Ching-kuo Chi-hai Cultural Park, Cultural heritage site in Taipei, Taiwan.
Ching-kuo Chi-hai Cultural Park is a memorial complex in Dazhi, Zhongshan District, Taipei, comprising Chiang Ching-kuo's former residence, the Chi-hai Villa, and the Chiang Ching-kuo Presidential Library. The low two-storey library has a flat roof and facades of continuous horizontal glass bands framed in light metal, with white wall sections between floors; a covered walkway links it to a lower building of the same construction beside Chi-hai Lake.
The site began in the 1950s as a resort for the commander of the US Navy Seventh Fleet, which gave it the name Chi-hai. It later became Chiang Ching-kuo's residence, where he lived longer than anywhere else. In 2006 Taipei City registered the villa as a municipal historic site, and in 2019 the designation was extended to include Chi-hai Lake. The park opened on 22 January 2022.
The name Chi-hai, "Seven Seas", comes from the US Navy Seventh Fleet resort built here in the 1950s for its Taiwan Strait commander. The villa later became Chiang Ching-kuo's home and his longest-standing residence. Since the 2022 opening the site has been run by the Chiang Ching-kuo International Academic Exchange Foundation with the Christian Faith Hope Love Foundation, and it draws debate over how a former authoritarian leader should be remembered.
The park is in Dazhi, Zhongshan District, on the left bank of Chi-hai Lake; the villa and the library are linked by a covered walkway. The grounds combine indoor exhibits with the lakeside garden, so allow time for both. The site is operated by the Chiang Ching-kuo International Academic Exchange Foundation and the Christian China Faith Hope Love Foundation.
The site began in the 1950s as a holiday guesthouse for the commander of the US Navy Seventh Fleet, which patrolled the Taiwan Strait; the name Chi-hai ("Seven Seas") comes from that fleet. Chiang Ching-kuo later lived here longer than anywhere else. In 2019 the protected area was enlarged from the villa and garden to take in the shore of Chi-hai Lake.
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