South Gate (Lizheng Gate)

南門麗正門· Historic site

About

The South Gate, also called Lizheng Gate, was completed in 1884 (the tenth year of the Guangxu reign). It was the main gate of the Taipei prefectural city at the time, so its form and size were the grandest of all the gates.

Its stone came from the Dazhi area, and the workmanship is fine and has lasted well. The stone plaque is framed with chi dragon patterns, unlike any of the other gates. Early in the Japanese colonial period, the Japanese demolished Taipei's city walls, outer walls and the West Gate. The South Gate survived but fell into disrepair over the years. After the Nationalist government came to Taiwan, the old gates were renovated and the South Gate was rebuilt with a northern Chinese palace-style gate tower, losing much of its original appearance, although the stone base and the arched gateway kept their original form. The gate stands at the junction of Gongyuan Road, Nanchang Street and Aiguo West Road, next to the Tobacco and Liquor Monopoly Bureau building, a national monument, and the high-walled Presidential Residence, where plain-clothes and uniformed police are posted every few steps.

Translated and shortened by DealTaipei from Taiwan's national tourism database. Sources are on the terms page.

Facts and sources

Names: EN South Gate (Lizheng Gate)中文南門麗正門한국어 리정먼 Chinese from the listing; English by DealTaipei
District: Zhongzheng District · 中正區 Tourism Administration listing, updated 2026-05-20
Opening hours: Not in the listing Tourism Administration listing, read 2026-09-30
Phone: (02)27208889 Tourism Administration listing. May be Chinese only
Data: /api/sight/south-gate-lizheng-gate.json The same facts as JSON, for apps and AI agents