The Judicial Building () is a governmental building in

Zhongzheng District Zhongzheng District (also Jhongjheng District) is a District (Taiwan), district in Taipei, Taiwan. Taipei Main Station is located in the district. It is home to most of the national government buildings of Taiwan. Overview The district is n ...

Taipei , nickname = The City of Azaleas , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Taiwan#Asia#Pacific Ocean#Earth , coordinates = , subdivision_type = Country ...

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...

. It houses several judicial agencies of

, including *

Judicial Yuan The Judicial Yuan () is the Judiciary, judicial branch of the Republic of China.''See'' Constitution arts. 77-82, ''available at'' ''See'' Additional Articles of the Constitution art. 5, ''available at'' It functions as the Constitutional Cour ...

— the

judiciary The judiciary (also known as the judicial system, judicature, judicial branch, judiciative branch, and court or judiciary system) is the system of courts that adjudicates legal disputes/disagreements and interprets, defends, and applies the law ...

and

constitutional court A constitutional court is a high court that deals primarily with constitutional law. Its main authority is to rule on whether laws that are challenged are in fact unconstitutional, i.e. whether they conflict with constitutionally established ru ...

of the

government of the Republic of China The Government of the Republic of China is the central government, national authority whose actual-controlled territory consists of Taiwan (island), main island of Taiwan (Formosa), Penghu, Kinmen, Matsu Islands, Matsu, and list of islands of ...

(

), * Taiwan High Court, * Taiwan High Prosecutors Office, and * Disciplinary Sanction Court.

History

Originally constructed as the High Court of the

Government-General of Taiwan The Government-General of Taiwan (Government of Taiwan, Taiwan Government, Government of Formosa, Japanese: , Kyūjitai: , Hepburn: ''Taiwan Sōtokufu''; ; Tâi-lô: Tâi-uân Tsóng-tok-hú; Pha̍k-fa-sṳ=Thòi-vân Chúng-tuk-fú) was the ...

(, ''Taiwan Sōtokufu Kōtō Hōin''), it was a major governmental building of the Japanese era. It was the highest-level judicial institution of its day, though still subordinate to the

Governor-General of Taiwan The governor-general of Taiwan (, shinjitai: ) was the head of the Government-General of Taiwan in the Japanese era (including Formosa and the Pescadores) when they were part of the Empire of Japan, from 1895 to 1945. The Japanese governors- ...

's office. It held authority over the district courts and prosecutor's offices of Taipei and

Taichung Taichung (, Wade–Giles: '), officially Taichung City, is a special municipality (Taiwan), special municipality in central Taiwan. Taichung is Taiwan's second-largest city, with more than 2.85 million residents, making it the largest city in Ce ...

. Construction began on the building in 1929 and was completed in 1934.

Architecture

The building was designed by the Japanese architect Ide Kaoru, whose other well-known works include the

Executive Yuan The Executive Yuan () is the executive (government), executive branch of the government of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Under the Additional Articles of the Constitution of the Republic of China, amended constitution, the head of the Execut ...

building and

Zhongshan Hall Zhongshan Hall () is a historic building which originally functioned as the Taipei (Taihoku) City Public Auditorium (public hall). It is located at 98 Yanping South Road in the Ximending neighborhood of Zhongzheng District, Taipei, Taiwan. In 19 ...

in Taipei. Originally it had three floors, with one more added later. The building is laid out in the

Chinese character Chinese characters are logographs used to write the Chinese languages and others from regions historically influenced by Chinese culture. Of the four independently invented writing systems accepted by scholars, they represent the only on ...

for "sun" ( 日)· Designed along minimalist lines in an eclectic style, the building features two skylights for ventilation and ambient lights, as well as arched doors and windows. Its light green exterior wall tiles served to enhance air defence. One of its unusual features is the roof of the central tower. Octagonal with a prominent rim and a rippled surface, it is helmet-shaped in a manner reminiscent of the bell-and drum tower of Lungshan Temple of Manka,

Wanhua District Wanhua District (), known in Taiwanese Hokkien as Báng-kah khu () and historically as "Monga" or "Monka", is a district in Taipei, Taiwan. It is Taipei's oldest district. The district is home to historic buildings such as the Bangka Lungs ...

. This incorporation of local Taiwanese architectural forms was an element of the Imperial Crown Style, reflecting the Japanese imperialist government's ideology of the

Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere The , also known as the GEACPS, was a Pan-Asianism, pan-Asian union that the Empire of Japan tried to establish. Initially, it covered Japan (including Korea under Japanese rule, annexed Korea), Manchukuo, and Wang Jingwei regime, China, but as ...

through a fusion of local design features.

References

External links

Judicial Building
at the Bureau of Cultural Heritage website {{commons category, Judicial Yuan Building 1934 establishments in Taiwan Government buildings completed in 1934 Buildings and structures in Taipei Former courthouses National supreme court buildings Imperial Crown Style architecture National monuments of Taiwan