Episoder
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A brief history of Mid-Autumn Festival, and the tale of Hou Yi the Archer & the Ten Suns, and Chang'e & the Moon
In other words, please be true
In other words, I love you.
Sources:
Barlett, Scarlett. The Mythology Bible: The Definitive Guide to Legendary Tales.
Masaka, Mori. “Restoring the ‘Epic of Hou Yi’” in Asian Folklore Studies, vol. 52, no. 5.
Yang, Lihui, Demin An, and Jessica Anderson Turner. Handbook of Chinese Mythology.
Republication, original Episode Sept. 22, 2022.
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With its southern border finally pacified, the Qing Dynasty under its Kangxi Emperor must now contend with a rising challenge to the northeast: the ascent and enthronement of a real steppe wildcard, the chieftain Galdan, as reigning Khan of the Dzungar Mongols. Kangxi will strive to use him as he has used all other neighboring petty-potentates - as semi-disposable ablative armor for the soft innards of China proper under the longstanding guidelines of "Use The Barbarians to Deal With the Barbarians" foreign policy... but Galdan is mercurial enough to have ideas of his own, and friends in surprisingly high places (the Tibetan Highlands).
Time Period Covered:
~1679-1684 CE
Major Historical Figures:
Great Qing:
The Kangxi Emperor (Aisin Gioro Xuanye) [r. 1661-1722]
The Lifan Yuan (Office of Barbarian Control)
Dzungar Khannate:
Galdan, the Boshugtu Khan [r. 1679-1697]
Other Mongols:
Erdeni Qosuuci
Morgen Alana Dorji
Lobzang Gunbu Labdan
Batur Erke Jinong [d. 1709]
Prince Gandu
Lamist Tibet:
The Fifth Dalai Lama, Ngawang Lobsang Gyatso [1617–1682]
Russian Empire:
Count Fedor Alekseevich Golovin [1650-1706]
Major Works Cited:
Munkh-Erdene, Lamsuren. The Taiji Government and the Rise of the Warrior State.
Perdue, Peter C. China Marches West: The Qing Conquest of Central Eurasia.
Thokmay, Darig. “Game Changers of the Tibetan Buddhist Political Order in Central Asia in the Early Eighteenth Century” in The Tibet Journal, Vol. 46, No. 1.
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Across the trackless expanses of the northwestern frontier zones, far beyond the final vestiges of Great Qing sovereignty or protection, independent, oasis trade hubs survive and even thrive across central Asia during the chaos of the 16th & 17th centuries. They and their denizens, though largely cut off from the rest of the wider world, nevertheless serve a vital – though fragile – linkage between east and west. Here, north of the Taklamakan Desert, the Oirat Mongols continue to live much as they have these past several centuries… until a group known as the Dzungars under a rising leader called Batur Hong Taiji will start dreaming bigger: an Albany Plan of Union… with Mongol characteristics…
Time Period Covered:
~1680 CE
Major Historical Figures:
Four Oirat/Dzungar Mongols:
Baibagas Khan [r. 1585-1640]
Chechen Khan (Ochirtu) [r. 1640~1670]
Zaya Pandita [d. 1662]
Khara Khula [d. 1634]
Batur Hongtaiji [r. 1634-1653]
Sengge [r. 1653-1671]
Queen Anu of the Khoshuts [~1653-1696]
Boshoghtu Khan (Galdan) [1644-1697, r. 1671-97]
Other Mongols:
Altan Khan of the Golden Horde
Jasaku Khan of the Khalkhas
Dge-lugs-pa Tibetan Buddhist Sect:
The 5th Dalai Lama (Ngawang Lobsang Gyatso] [1617-1682]
Great Qing:
The Kangxi Emperor (Aisin Gioro Xuanye) [r. 1661-1722]
Major Work Cited:
Amitai-Preiss, Reuven & David O. Morgan (eds.) The Mongol Empire & its Legacy.
Halkovic, Jr., Stephen A. The Mongols of the West.
Miyawaki, Junko. “The Chinggisid Principle In Russia” in The Frontier In Russian History, Vol. 19, No. 1/4.
Perdue, Peter C. China Marches West: The Qing Conquest of Central Eurasia.
Taupier, Richard. “Yeke Caaji, the Mongol-Oyirod Great Code of 1640: Innovation In Eurasian State Formation” in Asian Literature and Translation, Vol. 5, No. 1, 2018.
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With border disputes and foreign affair emergencies levelling off, the Kangxi Emperor is able to turn his attentions inward toward the domestic, the home and hearth. But it's not all bbqs and pickleball there, either - there's the questions of succession, for one... who will be next when Kangxi is no more? And an heir there is... but... does something seem a little *off* about the crown-prince??
Time Period Covered:
~1660-1722 CE
Major Historical Figures:
The Kangxi Emperor (Xuanye) [r. 1661-1722]
Yunreng, Heir-apparent [1674-1725]
Prime Minister Songgotu [1636-1703]
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A set of short fever dreams from Chinese folklore to beat the summer heat...
1:25 - A Pipa Competition, by: Li Zhi
4:45 - The "Magical" Pear Tree, by: Pu Songling
8:15 - Real Life In the Capital, by: Ji Yun
13:55 - The Realness of Paintings & Demons, by: Pu Songling
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Doc 1: Cable, From: U.S. Embassy Beijing, To: Department of State, Wash DC, A Student Demonstration of Sorts in Tiananmen Square (11/21/85)
Doc 2: Cable, From: U.S. Embassy Beijing, To: Department of State, Wash DC, Government Arrests Student Demonstrators (11/25/85)
Doc 3: Cable, From: U.S. Embassy Beijing, To: Department of State, Wash DC, More Student Demonstrations (12/23/85)
Doc 4: From: U.S. Embassy Beijing, To: Department of State, Wash DC, Student Demonstrations Update (12/24/86)
Doc 5: IPAC Daily Intelligence Summary 1-87, China: Student Demonstrations (01/02/87)
Doc 6: IPAC Daily Intelligence Summary 10-87, China: Hu Yaobang Resigns (01/17/87)
Doc 7: Memorandum of Conversation, [George Bush] Meeting with Wan Li, Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress and Member of the Politburo, People’s Republic of China (05/23/89)
Doc 8: Secretary of State's Morning Summary for 06/0289, China: Stalemate Continues
Doc 9: Secretary of State's Morning Summary for 06/03/89, China: Police Use Tear Gas on Crowds
Doc 10: Cable, From: U.S. Embassy Beijing, To: Department of State, Wash DC, SITREP No. 27: Martial Law with Chinese Characteristics (06/03/89)
Doc 11: Cable, From: U.S. Embassy Beijing, To: Department of State, Wash DC, SITREP No. 28: Ten to Fifteen Thousand Armed Troops Stopped at City Perimeter by Human and Bus Barricades (06/03/89)
Doc 12: Cable, From: Department of State, Wash DC, To: U.S. Embassy Beijing, and All Diplomatic and Consular Posts, TFCHO1: SITREP 1, 1700 EDT (06/03/89)
Doc 13: Secretary of State's Morning Summary for 06/04/89, China: Troops Open Fire
Doc 14: Cable, From: U.S. Embassy Beijing, To: Department of State, Wash DC, SITREP No. 32 (06/04/89)
Doc 15: Cable, From: U.S. Embassy Beijing, To: Department of State, Wash DC, SITREP No. 33 (06/04/89)
Doc 16: Cable, From: Department of State, Wash DC, To: U.S. Embassy Beijing, China Task Force Situation Report No. 3 (06/04/89)
Doc 17: Secretary of State's Morning Summary for 06/05/89, China: After the Bloodbath
Doc 18: Cable, From: U.S. Embassy Beijing, To: Department of State, Wash DC, SITREP No. 35 (06/05/89)
Doc 19: Secretary of State's Morning Summary for 06/06/89, China: Descent into Chaos
Doc 20: Cable, From: U.S. Embassy Beijing, To: Department of State, Wash DC, TFCH01--SITREP No. 37 (06/06/89)
Doc 21: Secretary of State's Morning Summary for 06/07/89, China: Tense Standoff Continues
Doc 22: Cable, From: U.S. Embassy Beijing, To: Department of State, Wash DC, TFCH01--SITREP No. 38 (06/07/89)
Doc 23: Secretary of State's Morning Summary for 06/9/89, China: Uneasy Calm
Doc 24: Department of State Intelligence Brief, "Current Situation in China: Background and Prospects" (Ca. 06/10/89)
Doc 25: Secretary of State's Morning Summary for 06/10/89, China: Mixed Signals on Purge
Doc 26: Cable, From: U.S. Embassy Beijing, To: Department of State, Wash DC, SITREP No. 49, (06/11/89)
Doc 27: Secretary of State's Morning Summary for 06/14/89, China: Back to Business, But Crackdown Continues
Doc 28: Secretary of State's Morning Summary for 06/15/89, China: Accusation over Fang Lizhi
Doc 29: Secretary of State's Morning Summary for 06/21/89, China: Swift Justice
Doc 30: Cable, From: U.S. Embassy Beijing, To: Department of State, Wash DC, Eyewitness Account of June 4 PLA Tank Crushing 11 Students and Related Early Morning Events in Tiananmen Square (06/22/89)
Doc 31: Cable, From: U.S. Embassy Beijing, To: Department of State, Wash DC, What Happened on the Night of June 3/4? (06/22/89)
Doc 32: Cable, From: U.S. Embassy Beijing, To: Department of State, Wash DC, TFCH01: SITREP No. 65 (06/27/89)
Doc 33: State Department document entitled "Themes" (06/29/89)
Doc 34: State Department Bureau of Intelligence and Research, "Status Report on Situation in China as of 07/ 26/89"
Doc 35: State Department Bureau of Intelligence and Research, "China: Aftermath of the Crisis" (07/27/89)
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As he feels the inevitable passage of time take its toll on his body and soul, Genghis Khan looks for answers - about how to extend his rule and his life, perhaps even how to gain life everlasting. Thus, when word reaches him on the eve of his Khwarazmian campaign of a Daoist Immortal living in the mountains of Shandong, he will seek this master out in order to gain his wisdom. But this supposed immortal isn't quite what he claims to be...
Time Period Covered:
ca. 1219-1224 CE
Major Figures:
Genghis Khan (Temüjin)
Master Changchun, Leader of the Daoist Quanzhen Sect (Qiu Chuji)
Temuge-otchigin, Hearthkeeper of Mongolia
Liu Wen, alchemist, arrow-maker, caravan-leader
Yelu Chu Chi, brother of the Governor of Samarkand, translator for the Great Khan
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Be sure to check out Airwave Media's list of 100 Best podcasts! ThoC is #69 (Nice!):
https://blog.feedspot.com/airwave_media_podcasts/
The Kangxi Emperor squashes his beef with the three rebellious feudatories of the south by squashing their traitorous lords, only to have to pivot northward once again to face down... who? The Russians? And the Mongols?! And Tibetans?! And the Catholic Church?!
Time Period Covered:
1670-1722 CE
Major Historical Figures:
Great Qing:
The Kangxi Emperor [r. 1661-1722]
Crown-Prince Yunreng [1674-1725]
Grand Secretary Songgotu [1636-1703]
Fan Chengmo, Governor-General of Fujian [1624-1676]
Nian Gengyao, Viceroy of Sichuan and Tibet [1679-1726]
Mei Wending, mathematician [1633-1721]
Tsarist Russia:
Tsar Alexis Romanov, "The Quietest" [r. 1645-1676]
Tsar Feodor III [r. 1676-1682]
Tsar Ivan V [r. 1682-1696]
Tsar/Emperor Peter I, "the Great" [r. 1682-1725]
Izmailov
Roman Catholic Church:
Pope Clement XI [1649-1721]
Cardinal Charles-Thomas Maillard de Tournon [1668-1710]
Jesuit Missionaires:
Fr. Jean-François Gerbillon [1654-1707]
Fr. Tomé Pereira [1645-1708]
Fr. Joachim Bouvet [1656-1730]
Ö
löd/Mongol/Dzungar Khanate:
Erdeniin Galdan, Boshugtu Khan [r. 1671-1697]
Tsewang Araptan [r. 1697-1727]
General Chereng Dondub the Elder [d. 1737]
Major Works Cited:
Perdue, Peter C. (2009). China Marches West: The Qing Conquest of Central Eurasia.
Spence, Jonathan D. "The K'ang-Hsi Reign" in The Cambridge History of China, Vol. 9: The Ch'ing Dynasty, Part 1: To 1800.
Wakeman, Frederic Evans. The Great Enterprise: The Manchu Reconstruction of Imperial Order In Seventeenth-Century China.
Wakeman, Frederic Evans. "Romantics,Stoics, and Martyrs In Seventeenth Century China" in The Journal of Asian Studies, Vol. 43, No. 4.
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The Excellent Adventure:
In the course of their pursuit of the fleeing Khwarazmian Amir, Genghis Khan’s two top commanders have reached the shores of the Caspian Sea, and heard some of the strangest tales about what – and who – lay beyond. When the Great Khan gives his go-ahead to scout it out, they’ll launch a three-year trek that will remake the world in their bloody image.
The Bogus Journey:
Reaching the far side of the Caucuses Mountains, Subotai and Jebe have a surprise in store. But the true wonders, riches, and opportunities still lie ahead among the forests and winding rivers north of the Black Sea.
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Just as the last vestiges of the Ming are being swept away, a new round of wars will erupt to challenge Manchu suzerainty over China. From both within - as in the rebellions led by the three great feudatory lords of the south - and without - as in the challenges coming from Mongolia and Taiwan - the Kangxi Emperor's reign, and the Qing Dynasty itself, will be tested as never before.
Time Period Covered:
~1661-1683 CE
Great Qing:
The Kangxi Emperor (Xuanye) [r. 1654-1722]
Prince Lergiyan
Gyesu, Prince Kang of the First Rank [1645-1697]
Shang Kexi, Prince of Pingnan [1604-1676]
Southern Ming:
Zhu Youlang, Prince of Gui [1623-1662]
Gen. Li Dingguo [1621-1662]
Gen. Bo Wenxuan [d. 1662]
Kingdom of Tungning:
Zheng Chenggong (Koxinga) [1624-1662]
Zheng Jing [1642-1681]
The Three Feudatories:
Yunnan & Guizhou:
Wu Sangui "Emperor of Wu Zhou" [1612-1678]
Wu Shifan [1663-1681]
Guangdong:
Shang Zhixin "Prince Who Pacifies the South" [1636-1680]
Fujian:
Geng Jingzong, Prince of Jingnan [d. 1682]
Chahar Mongols:
Burni [d. 1675]
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After the untimely death of Shunzhi, a regency will be established for the 8-year-old newly-enthroned Kangxi Emperor. These four powerful Manchu lords will each be vying with power for themselves, and the last thing they'll be expecting is a 13-year-old kid to outwit them all.
Time Period Covered:
1661-1669 CE
Major Historical Figures:
The Kangxi Emperor (Xuanye) [r. 1661-1722]
Prince-Regent Oboi of the Gulwgiya Clan [c. 1610-1669]
Prince-Regent Soni of the Heseri Clan [1601-1667]
Prince-Regent Ebilun of the Noihori Clan [d. 1673]
Prince-Regent Suksaha of the Nara Clan [d. 1667]
Grand Empress-Dowager Xiaozhuang [1613-1688]
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With the untimely and mysterious death of Prince-Regent Dorgon, the thirteen-year-old Shunzhi Emperor takes personal command of the still unsteady Qing Empire. He's got a lot to do - and it will turn out, not terribly long to do it! From purging prince, to beheading grand secretaries, to winning conquests... to perhaps that hardest of them all: standing up to his own mother, it's Shunzhi in the driver's seat!
Time Period Covered:
1651-1661 CE
Major Historical Figures:
House of Aisin Gioro:
The Shunzhi Emperor (Fulin) [r. 1651-1661]
Prince-Regent Dorgon [1612-1650]
Jirgalang, Prince Zheng of the First Rank [1599-1655]
Qing Imperial Court:
Grand Secretariat Chen Mingxia [1601-1654]
General Tantai of the Plain Yellow Banner [1594-1651]
Grand Academician Feng Chuan [1596-1572]
Grand Academician Ning Wanwo [1593-1665]
General Ren Zhen
Hong Chengchou, Pacifying General of Jiangnan [1593-1665]
Wu Sangui, Prince of Western Pacification [1612-1678]
Southern Ming/Rebels:
Li Dingguo, Prince of Jin [1621-1662]
Zheng Chenggong, Koxinga, Prince of Yanping [1624-1662]
Works Cited:
Dennerline, Jerry. "The Shun-chih Reign" in The Cambridge History of China, Vol. 9: The Ch'ing Dynasty, part 1: To 1800.
"Records of Emperor Shizuzhang, Vol. 74" in Records of the Qing Dynasty [Qing Shilu].
Wakeman, Frederic Evans. The Great Enterprise: The Manchu Reconstruction of Imperial Order in Seventeenth-Century China.
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Genghis Khan leaves the Jin Empire's subjugation to his generals, and makes his way home to Mongolia... only to find that his 5 years of campaigning have left his homeland in a bit of a mess. Siberians in rebellion and old foes cropping up in new places are things he can deal with... but when an unfamiliar warmongering powerhouse to the far West picks a fight, the nearly 60-year-old Great Khan will unleash the wrath of the Eternal Heaven down upon them.
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Koxinga takes Taiwan by storm, forcing the Dutch East India Company off the island for good, and heralding the dawn of Chinese rule over that overseas outpost.
Time Period Covered:
1661-1664 CE
Major Historical Figures:
Southern Ming Loyalists [Xiamen, Fujian]:
Zheng Chenggong (Koxinga), Lord of the Imperial Surname [1624-1662]
Yang Ying, Court Revenue Officer & Recordkeeper
Dutch East India Co. (VOC) [Ft. Zeelandia, Taiwan]:
He Tingbin, Headman & translator
Cornelius Caesar [Governor, 1651-1656]
Frederick Coyett [Governor, 1656-1662]
Hermanus Clenk van Odesse [Governor-select, dispatched 1662]
Admiral Jan van der Laan
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Between the Southern Ming warlord Zheng Chenggong in Fujian, and the Dutch East India Company across the Taiwan Strait in Ft. Zeelandia, a curious figure named He Tingbin serves as the two powers' sole line of communication and diplomacy. But He Tingbin has only one true master - himself. And in his drive to maximize his own gains (and minimize his risk of exposure) he will throw the entire cross-strait dialogue into chaos...
Time Period Covered:
1657-1661 CE
Major Historical Figures:
Southern Ming Loyalists [Xiamen, Fujian]:
Zheng Chenggong (Koxinga), Lord of the Imperial Surname [1624-1662]
Yang Ying, Court Revenue Officer & Recordkeeper
Dutch East India Co. (VOC) [Ft. Zeelandia, Taiwan]:
He Tingbin, Headman & translator
Cornelius Caesar [Governor, 1651-1656]
Frederick Coyett [Governor, 1656-1662]
Hermanus Clenk van Odesse [Governor-select, dispatched 1662]
Admiral Jan van der Laan
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As the Manchu armies of Great Qing press ever-southward, they put increasing pressure on Ming loyalists seeking either escape or additional lands to feed their war efforts. The warlord of Fujian, Zheng Chenggong, the Lord of the Imperial Surname, will begin eying the holdings of the Dutch East India Co. on Formosa as just such a target.
Time Period Covered:
ca. 1639-1659 CE
Major Historical Figures:
Ming:
Zheng Chenggong (Koxinga), Lord of the Imperial Surname [1624-1662]
VOC:
Christiaan Beyer, Ft. Zeelandia Surgeon-in-chief
Taiwanese:
Guo Huaiyi, rebel leader [d. 1652]
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by H.P. Lovecraft
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Though the Japanese bow out of the race for Taiwan with the establishment of the Sakoku "Closed Country" laws, the Spanish set up shot on the northern shore in an effort to stymie Dutch efforts at Ft. Zeelandia in the south. Of course you realize this means war. And surely the Chinese must be around here somewhere, right? Also, there will be rice... and sugar.
Time Period Covered:
~1630-1643 CE
Major Historical Figures:
Dutch East India Co./ Ft. Zeelandia:
Governor Hans Putmans
Iberian Union/Santissama Trinidad
/Manila:
King Philip II
Luis Perez Dasmariñas, Governor of Manila
Hurtado de Corcuera, Governor-General of the Philippines
Ming Dynasty:
Zheng Zhilong
Other:
Yan Siqi
Aboriginal Factions:
Taparri
Kimaurri
Mattau
Soulang
Baccluan
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Events on the high seas and islands alike reach a fevered pitch as the Dutch, Japan, China, and Portugal all vie for profit and supremacy over Taiwan and its lucrative trade. Meanwhile - call them what you will (because it's hard to keep track - but the "independent merchants" or "pirate lords" ... sometimes even turned government agents keep looking to exploit every opportunity to enrich themselves while avoiding the noose.
Take what you can, give nothin' back!
Timeframe Covered:
ca. 1600-1639
Major Historical Figures:
Dutch East India Company/Batavia/Ft. Zeelandia:
Capt. Elie Ripon
Pieter Nuyts, Governor of Formosa [1598-1655]
Catholic Church:
Georgius Candidus [1597-1647]
Independent Traders/Pirates of Taiwan:
Salvador Diaz of Macau
Yan Siqi [d. ~1625]
Li Dan "Captain China" [d. ~1625]
Li Kuiqi ("Quitsicq")
Zhong Bin
Liu Xiang
Ming China:
Chen Di, Ming imperial official [1541-1617]
Xu Xinsu ("Simpsou"), merchant-contact
"Patrolling Admiral" Zheng Zhilong [1604-1661]
Shogunate Japan:
Toyotomi Hideyoshi, "The Great Unifier" [1537-1598]
Suetsugu Heizo Masanao, merchant-lord [1546-1630]
Suetsugu Heizo Masafusa, the scion
Taiwan Aboriginal Groups:
the Sinkan
the Mattau
Major Sources Cited:
Andrade, Tonio (2005). How Taiwan Became Chinese: Dutch, Spanish, and Han Colonization in the Sevententh Century.
Andrade, Tonio (2004). "The Company's Chinese Pirates: How the Dutch East India Company Tried to Lead a Coalition of Pirates to War against China, 1621-1662" in Journal of World History, Vol. 15, No. 4 (Dec., 2004).
Clements, Jonathan (2004). Coxinga and the Fall of the Ming Dynasty.
Ripon, Elie [Leonard Blussé & Jaap de Moor, trans.] (2016). Captain Ripon’s Maritime Adventures in the East Indies: The Diary of a Mercenary Soldier, 1617-1627.
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Pirates!
Headhunters!
Samurai!
The Dutch!
Every day's high-stakes adventure on the island everyone's totally ignored until the 1600s!
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