Chinese Name: 褒忠亭義民廟

Located At: Hsinchu County (Northern Taiwan)

Year of Establishment: 1790

Address: No. 360, Section 3, Yimin Road, Xinpu Township, Hsinchu County

The Baozhong Yimin Temple in Xinpu Town, Hsinchu County is a center of spiritual belief for the Hakka people in Hsinchu and Taoyuan. It was originally a small temple used by four clans of four surnames. Later, its scale gradually expanded, and covered Taoyuan and Hsinchu. The Baozhong Yimin Temple was designated as a third-class monument by the Ministry of the Interior in 1985, and was re-designated in 2006 as a county-level monument.

In 1786, the Qing court banned the organization of rebellious groups. Lin Shuang-wen called on the people to resist. The North Road troops traveled along the Danshui River to the Zhubei area. Residents were called by the local gentry, Lin Hsian-kun (林先坤), to defend their hometowns. He organized the Yimin Army to assist the government soldiers to quell the unrest. In the battle, more than 200 people were unfortunately sacrificed. After the chaos was settled, the bodies of the Yimin were buried here. In order to recognize the Yimin, who lost their lives in the incident, Emperor Qianlong gave the sacred title "Baozhong" to them. In 1788, the members of local gentry donated land and built the Yimin Temple, providing a place for the local people to worship the Yimin, who protected their hometown.

The Baozhong Yimin Temple covers a vast area. In addition to the temple body and the vast plaza in front of it, the temple has a tomb for the Yimin and large surrounding gardens. It is now an important recreation spot in Hsinchu County. The scale of the building of the Yimin Temple consists of "two halls, two corridors and two horizontal houses". The stone carvings on the arches are extremely exquisite. The center of the main hall is dedicated to the gods of "Baozhong Yimin", and on the left and right are Lords of the Three Mountains (Taoist deities), Guanyinniang (Goddess of Mercy), Wuguye (Lord of Five Grains), etc. The plaques are a major feature of the Baozhong Yimin Temple, especially the "Baozhong" plaque given by the Qing Dynasty, and the "Total loyalty to the country" plaque donated by the Japanese colonial era Governor of Taiwan, Hasegawa Kiyoshi.

The Baozhong Yimin Festival was first held in 1835 and has a history of more than 180 years. It is the first Hakka heritage that was designated as a nationally important folk custom by the Ministry of Culture. It also has both "tangible" and "intangible" cultures. Not only an important asset for passing down Hakka culture, it also reflects the richness and diversity of Taiwan’s culture. This Hakka cultural festival is hosted by the alliance of 15 Hakka districts of Hsinchu and Taoyuan which take turns hosting it. It has continuously attracted private investments and completely preserves the traditional rotation system and rituals. It fully demonstrates the spontaneous power of the people and the cohesiveness of the community, and thus has expanded from being the private beliefs of the Fangliaozhuang and Liuzhanglizhuang communities to the belief center of the Hakka people in Hsinchu.

In the past 100 years, the Baozhong Yimin Temple has protected the traditions of the local people, confronted mobs and tyranny, contributed to the local community, and returned benefits to the local areas, exhibiting the characteristics of the region. In addition to serving as a place where Hakka immigrants could find spiritual support and relief during the period of social rebellion and unrest, it is also a symbol of the Hakka people's defense of their native land and the dedicated spirit.