In 1785, official corruption and grinding poverty sparked an uprising in Changhua Country led by Lin Shuang-wen. The fighting spread south to Chiayi and Fengshan (present-day Kaohsiung) and north to Chuchian (present-day Hsinchu), where the rebels met with resistance from local Hakka militia.
乾隆五十一年，在官方貪腐、民生困乏的情況下，林爽文由彰化起事，南部延及嘉義、鳳山，北路在竹塹地區遭到客家人反攻。