Shangchuan Island (上川镇, Schangschwan, Sancian, Chang-Chuang, St. John's Island) is an island of the South China Sea, on the southern coast of China, part of the Guangdong province. It is located 14 km from the mainland.

Administration

Administratively, Shangchuan is one of the 20 townships of Taishan.

History

Shangchuan Island was one of the first bases established by the Portuguese off the China coast, during the 16th century. They abandoned this base after they occupied Macau in 1557.

The Jesuit missionary Francis Xavier died there on December 2, 1552, on his way to Guangzhou.

Geography

Latitude : 21.70° N

Longitude : 112.78° E

The island is isolated from the mainland since the last ice age. It is located near Xiachuan Island .

Cities include: Dalangwan , Shadi.

Economy

Shangchuan and Xiachuan have been establihed as a Tourism Open Integrated Experimental Zones (旅游开发综合试验区, pinyin Lu3you2kai1fa1zong3he2shi4yan4qu1)

Feisha Beach Resort is a commerical tourist resort located on the island's eastern shore.

See also

• Geography of China
• List of islands of the People's Republic of China

External links

• Maps of the area
• Old maps [1], [2]
• Picture of Shangchuan island. The chapel marks the location of Francis Xavier's death