Quemoy

Dictionary: Que·moy (kĭ-moi')

An island and group of 2 islands and 12 islets off southeast China in Taiwan Strait. The islands are heavily fortified and have been administered, along with Matsu, by Taiwan since the Chinese Revolution of 1949.

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US Military Dictionary: Quemoy

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[kiܒmoi]

kiˈmoi the main island in the Quemoy Islands, a group of islands a few miles off the coast of China's Fuchien Province. Quemoy has been ruled by the Republic of China since Nationalist troops repulsed Communist forces in a pitched battle in 1949. In August 1958. Mao Zedong determined to test American resolve to defend Taiwan by shelling Quemoy and Matsu Island from the port of Xiamen. After several days of heavy artillery fire, the United States sent six aircraft carriers, equipped with nuclear weapons, from the Seventh Fleet to help in resupplying the garrison. The Soviet Union promised retaliatory nuclear strikes should the United States use such force on mainland China, creating the first incident of brinksmanship, several years before the Cuban Missile Crisis.

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Columbia Encyclopedia: Quemoy

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Quemoy (kĭmoi'), Chin. Chinmen, Kinmen, or Jinmen, Taiwanese island group (1990 pop. 81,479), Taiwan Strait, just off Fujian prov., China, and c.150 mi (240 km) W of Taiwan. The group consists of the islands of Kinmen and Liehyu (or Little Kinmen) and 12 islets in the mouth of Xiamen Bay. The town of Kinmen, on Kinmen island, is the chief population center. Farming is the main occupation; about half the land is under cultivation. Crops include sweet potatoes, peanuts, sorghum, barley, wheat, soybeans, vegetables, and rice. Fishing and especially tourism are also important; many sites on Kinmen and Lieyu are preserved in Kinmen National Park. Kinmen island has extensive fortifications, but the government began removing minefields and unexploded munitions from the island in 2006.

After the Communist victory on mainland China (1949), Quemoy and Matsu remained Nationalist outposts. For many years the islands were subjected to periodic bombardment from the Communist mainland. An incident in 1958 led to the deployment of the U.S. 7th Fleet, but an escalation of hostilities was avoided. The islands are no longer an important point of contention, and Taiwan reduced the military forces stationed there after 1990. Civilian rule was restored in 1993, and restrictions on travel to Quemoy were ended in 1994. Direct travel to and trade with the mainland has been permitted since Jan., 2001, and Kinmen island is now popular with Chinese tourists visiting Taiwan.

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		Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2007. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. Read more
		US Military Dictionary. The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. Copyright © 2001, 2002 by Oxford University Press, Inc. All rights reserved. Read more
		Columbia Encyclopedia. The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition Copyright © 2003, Columbia University Press. Licensed from Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. www.cc.columbia.edu/cu/cup/. Read more