• carbohydra [des/pair]
    ·
    3 years ago

    Has anyone else ever laid claim to the coastal areas except the Europeans and Japanese? I get that the Han settled the south later but wouldn't both those areas be included in the heartland?

    • Hortener [none/use name]
      hexagon
      ·
      3 years ago

      China is thousands of years old. The last 200 years are the blink of an eye.

      Moreover most of the invasions China historically suffered came from the interior or the north (Manchu which became the Qing dynasty, Ghengis Khan who became the Yuan dynasty). By overrunning these areas, China protects its heartland.

      The overseas barbarians invading the coastal provinces is a new one. Yes, 180 years ago is "new" in China. China was never a maritime power, it never needed to go anywhere. It sits on the richest, most productive piece of land for thousands of miles in any direction. To the north, ice. To the east, a worthless mountainous island and thousands of miles of open ocean. To the south, tropical islands and to the east the endless wilds of central Asia.