Pathans-Bane of Imperial Britain

 

For much of the 19th and early 20th centuries, the fanatic Pathan (Afghani Pashtun Tribes) warriors of the Northwest Frontier of the Raj (British Imperial India), Pathans were a constant menace to Imperial control. Raids, wars, punitive expeditions, threats, bribes and the like were commonplace events as these warlike tribesmen resisted Imperial authority. 

Rather armed with flintlock rifles like these men or more modern rifles as time progressed, no British officer took lightly the thought of fighting these warriors, not if they wanted a long life that is. Many a great career in Imperial service was started, or cut short, during these conflicts on the Northwest Frontier-including that of a young Winston Churchill in the late 1890's. Never fully conquered, the Pathans remained a thorn in the side of Imperial Britain until the end of the Raj in 1947, when it became a problem for other nations well into the 21st century. 

Thailand Buddha

Buddha in the distance belies its size. 

94% of Thailand follows the Theravada school of Buddhism and it is a major aspect in the lives of the people of the nation.

The golden reclining Buddha is a huge statue and very popular among tourists.

Statues of Buddha are everywhere in the country and are beautiful works of religious art.

Song Dynasty-Two Lands-One Golden Age

In 960 CE the dysfunctional Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period of Imperial history was replaced by the creation of another Golden Age through leadership of the Song Dynasty. The Song were known for their many technological advances such as the bicycle chain, mechanical clock, compass, windmill and movable type that allowed the mass production of books including the world's first medical encyclopedia. Advances in the development of improved rice strains provided food surpluses that allowed further city and population growth throughout the empire.  Even the style government was revamped with the full establishment of the "Scholar-Official" Class of administrators.

Zhao Kuangyi-Emperor Taizu (960-976 CE) founder of the Song Dynasty.

Some of the China' greatest classical poets, artists and writers appeared during the 300 plus years of Song rule.  Scholars such as Mi Fu, Zhuxi, Ouyang Xiu, Su Shi, Sima Guang and Shen Kuo created works that are still studied and admired to this very day.

Yet the Song had many enemies, first the Jin took Northern China in 1127 CE restricting the Song to the Southern part of the country.  Here they were able to hold out for another two centuries till the 13th century when they finally fell to the overwhelming might of the Mongols in 1279.  Another Gold Age was laid waste as China was ruled by the foreign Yuan Dynasty for almost a century.

Major Dynasties of China

For thousands of years China has been ruled by a vast amount of dynasties.  While some ruled for centuries and others for decades, all have had an impact upon the history and culture of this ancient society.  Below are listed the major dynasties, there were others, and all have detailed histories that exceed the limited nature of this posting.

Shang

ca. 1650-1027 B.C.E.

First Dynasty, known for skilled work with bronze tools and art. Chinese writing created, ancestor worship becomes the central religion.

Inventions: Silk refining

Zhou  

1027-256 B.C.E.

Feudal system of government introduced; seen as a golden age of peace by Confucius and later philosophers. Rulers “Mandate of Heaven” first appears.

Inventions: Crossbow (450)

Warring States Period          

481-221 B.C.E.

Huge armies controlled by warlords divide China; as a counter, Confucius creates his philosophy of respect/ancestor worship/kindness/obedience.

Inventions: Sun Tzu writes the Art of War, first military textbook

Qin (Ch’in)

221-207 B.C.E.

                                    Pronounced Chin, First Emperor, unites China, completes the
Great Wall, repression of knowledge/philosophy, creates imperial plan of rule; although
the shortest dynasty, so firm is Qin’s legacy of imperial control that China is forever named for
the 1^st Emperor: Qin Shi Huang-di.

Inventions: Wheelbarrow (220), Unifies the written language, measurements & money of China

Han

207 B.C.–220 C.E.

Creates Civil Service, state run factories control manufacture of luxury, commercial and military goods.

Inventions: Horse Collar (150 BC), Writing paper, blast furnace (100 AD),

cast-iron, cast-iron plow, fishing reel (200)

Period of Disunity

221-580

Jin Dynasty 265-316 fails to unify China, foreign invasions and civil strife abound, as a counter point, peaceful Buddhism becomes popular.

Inventions: Rudder (400), matches (577)

Sui

580-618

Reunites northern and southern China, digs the Great Canal between the Yangzi and Yellow Rivers, repairs the Great Wall.

T’ang

618-906

Cultural renaissance, improve civil service exams to reward merit, China again becomes a regional and world power, Lao Zi creates Daoism, a religion of natural harmony.

Inventions: Gunpowder, Brandy (650), woodblock printing (760), paper money (760)

Five Dynasties

907-960

Northern China ruled by foreigners, Southern China divides into petty kingdoms, Liang, Tang, Jin, Han & Zhou.

Song

960-1279

A reunited China reaches its highest level of civilization to date, first “industrial revolution” with iron factories, Song were strong patrons of the arts and sciences with many advances seen in the latter.

Inventions: Bicycle chain (976), movable type (1041),
mechanical clock (1088), compass (1100), medical encyclopedia (1111), Windmill

Yuan (Mongols)

1279-1368

Foreign dynasty of “Barbarian” Mongols, Kublai Khan fails in two attempts to conquer Japan, Beijing becomes capital, entire Silk Road is under Mongol (Pax Mongolica) control increasing trade and allowing Europeans (Marco Polo) to visit China.

Inventions: Guns (1288)

Ming

1368-1644

Last Chinese dynasty, Admiral Zheng He explores from China to Madagascar with a fleet of a 100+ junks, unimpressed with the rest of the world, the Ming close their borders, forbid further exploration and make it a crime to leave China.

Qing (Manchu)

1644-1912

Foreign dynasty from Manchuria, in constant fear of Chinese revolt, the Qing cling to the past traditions, for the first time Chinese technology falls drastically behind Western/European, by the 1800’s European military might ellipses Chinese, twice conquering Beijing and looting the Forbidden City, forcing the Qing to make massive humiliating political/economic concessions to Western powers including the Westernized Asian nation of Japan. The last emperor is deposed in 1912.

Chinese Republic

1912-1949

  Never a true republic, China was largely controlled by local warlords, communists, puppet governments and Japanese troops.

People’s Republic of China

1949-Present

After decades of conflicts including civil strife, Japanese invasion, World War II, and open civil war, the Chinese Communist Party takes total control of China with its own form of “dynasty.” 

Imperial Nippon the Colonial Power

After Commodore Perry's fateful trip to Nippon in the 1850's the Nation of Nippon choose to embrace every aspect of the Modern World, including the European concept of Colonialism and overseas empires. Starting in the 1870's with dozens of Pacific islands, by the 1890's Nippon had turned its attention to the dying Qing Dynasty of China. After a swift victorious war, the Imperial Army and Navy annexed Formosa (Taiwan) and Korea (although the Europeans forced the technical return of the latter to the tender care of the Russian Empire).

By 1905, tensions had run their course between the empires of Russia and Nippon. The Imperial Navy used a lightning strike, before declaring war, on the Russian East Asia fleet in Korea. The Surprise attack destroyed Russian Naval power in Korean waters and allowed the unfettered movement of the Imperial Army as they systematically destroyed the Russian forces in Korea. The overwhelming victory of the Imperial Navy over the Russian reinforcement fleet in the Battle of Tushima sealed the Russian defeat and added Korean to the growing Empire of Nippon. By the 1930's, the Imperial Staff had made plans for the dismemberment of China, starting with Manchuria. This path was to directly lead to the final expansion of the Empire with the early conquests of much of East Asia in the opening victories of World War II.

The Japanese entry into World War II began as it had in the Russo-Japanese War, with a surprise attack upon the naval forces of the Japanese enemy, before a declaration of war.

The Empire's massive victory was also its greatest mistake.  The sneak attack on this "Day of Infamy" while the two governments were engaged in peace negotiations, would so enrage the American public that only total destruction of the Empire would satisfy the cry for revenge.

The Empire Nippon had reached its zenith of size and power and yet it had but four years left to live.

Meiji Restoration, Japan Modernizes into a World Power

The few ships of the Tokugawa Shogunate "Navy" before Commodore Perry's visit in 1853, were coastal junks with no effective armament.

By the 1880's, the Imperial Japanese Navy contained warships of the latest design such as the protected cruiser Naniwa armed with machine guns,and breech loading cannons.

After the United States opened Japan to the Modern World, a massive culture shock shook the country to its core. The Tokugawa Shogunate wanted to keep the status-quo while the Young Emperor Meiji wanted to modernize the whole of Japanese society, without the Shogunate and Samurai Feudalism. This led to brief, but bloody civil war. The modern Imperial Army and Imperial Navy won. Under Emperor Meiji's reform government, a crash modernization program that touched every aspect of Japanese life was instituted. By the 1890's the new Japan had defeated the Chinese and in 1905-06 Japan won the Russo-Japanese War. For the first time in history an Asian nation had defeated a Major European Power. In less than fifty years Japan had advanced from 17th Century technology to that of the Modern World. Under the Meiji Restoration Japan had arrived as a Major World Power.

Meiji, the 122nd Emperor of Nippon, in traditional robes of state.
Emperor Meiji in the modern clothing of a European Imperial Head of State.
Samurai officers of the Tokugawa Shogunate circa 1866.
Officers and men of the modern Imperial Army of Japan circa 1890. They are equipped with the latest weapons, trained in the most current European tactics, and confident in the power of Modern Japan.
Emperor Meiji and his Imperial Consort Shoken in European dress befitting their station.



After the modernization of his nation, Emperor Meiji said, "I dreamed of a unified Japan. Of a country strong and independent and modern… Now we have railroads and cannon and Western clothing. But we cannot forget who we are. Or where we come from."