The history of Taipei's development didn't begin until 1709, when Chen Lai-chang, a native of Chuanchou, Fukien Province, applied for permission from the government to develop the region. He started out in the Tachianapao area (present-day Taipei), with Mengchia (present-day Wanhua) being the first district to be developed. Due to its convenient access to water and a natural harbor, it became the trading center of the Taipei Basin. Immigrants from Chuanchou moved to the Tataocheng area in 1853, beginning a period of prosperity and development in the region.

In 1875, Shen Pao-chen petitioned the Ching government to establish Taipei City. Work began in 1882 and was completed in 1884. The entire city was rectangular in shape. In 1887, Taiwan was officially made a province, with Taipei as its capital and Liu Ming-chuan as its first governor.

In 1895, after China's defeat in the Sino-Japanese War, Taiwan was ceded to Japan and became a colony.

Taipei was torn down and redesigned three times by the Japanese before eventually taking on the proportions of a big city.

Following its retrocession to China in 1945, Taiwan was re-established as a province. Four years later, the Central Government relocated to Taiwan and made Taipei its provisional capital. The city gradually prospered, and on July 1, 1967, it was raised to the status of a special municipality directly administered by the Central Government.

After the reorganization, Taipei rose in prominence to become the political, economic, educational, cultural, and transportation hub of the country. Thirty years and two administrative restructurings later, it has transformed itself into an international city.