East Asian History Articles
The
Sook
Ching
Massacre
An introduction to the Sook
Ching
massacre of Chinese in
Fortress
Singapore
What
is the truth about the fall of
The
Ghosts of SIngapore
Who are the ghosts of
Pol
Pot
The
life and times of Cambodian Khmer Rouge
leader Pol
Pot.
Dr
Sun Yat
Sen
The life and times of the founder of modern
The
Development of a Modern Educational System in
Thailand
An introduction to the way in which a modern educational system has
been
created in
Lee
Kuan Yew
The life and achievements of the first prime minister of
The
Assassination of Sultan Mahmud
The assassination of Sultan Mahmud
of
Johor in 1699
led to a century of anarchy and disconnection.
Chiang
Kai-Shek
An introduction to the life and times of Chiang Kai-Shek,
Nationalist leader of
The
Boxers
The Boxer Rebellion of 1898-1900: who were the Boxers and what happened
to
them?
The
Kalok
Dance of
the Mons
An introduction to the kalok
or ghost
dance of the
Mon people of the Thai-Burmese border region.
Strange
Events in Cambodia and Laos: C16th Dutch Explorers Report
An
introduction to various Dutch reports
from
Ya
Sang: Traditional Poisons of Thailand
An introduction to the traditional and magical poisons of
Moving
to Saigon in 1859
What
was it like for young French people to
move to
the new colonies of
Magical
Amulets and Spells of Thailand
An introduction to the magical amulets, talismans and spells of
traditional
Thai culture.
The
Ming Invasion of Yunnan
A description of the Chinese conquest of
Le
Thanh Tong, Emperor of Vietnam
An intorduction
to the life and times of
Vietnamese
emperor and hero Le Thanh Tong.
South
Seas Piracy
What
is the reality of piracy in the
The
Malay Kingdom of Patani
An introduction to the Malay Kingdom of Patani,
now
part of
Makasar
An introduction to the trade emporium of Makasar on
Mao's
Women
The
indifference with which Mao Tse-tung
treated his wives and abandoned children helps show the cruelty with
which he
threw away millions of lives.
Scholars
An introductio
to Scholarship in Ancient
China.
Kaya:
a Vanished State of Korea
An
introduction to the vanished state of Kaya
in
Proverbs
from Southeast Asia
An introduction to some of the proverbs of
Tokugawa
Ieyasu
An introduction to the life and achievement of the Shogun Tokugawa
Ieyasu.
Limahong
Attacks Manila
An account of Limahong's
attack on
Xi
Xia
An introduction to the now disappeared state of Xi Xia (Western Xia or Hsia).
The
Rise of the Manchus
An introduction to the rise of the Manchus,
who
established the Qing Dynasty in
The
Secret History of the Mongols
An introduction to the Secret History of the Mongols.
Songkhran:
The Water Splashing Festival
An introduction to the water-splashing festival of Songkhran, the most
eagerly
anticipated holiday in
Poverty
and Resourcefulness in Isan
An introductory essay on the subject of the resourcefulness
demonstrated by the
Isan
people in the face of poverty.
The
Khmu
Rok
People of Laos
An introduction to the life and culture of the Khmu
Rok
people of northern
Juche
An introduction to juche, the official philosophy of
The
Betrayal of the Karens:
The
British Colonisation of Burma, Part 4
Continuing the exploration of the British colonisation of
When
Did the Chinese First Visit the Americas?
An
investigation into early contacts between the
east and the
west.
The
Emperor Guang
Wudi
The life and times of the Chinese Emperor Guang
Wudi,
founder of the Eastern Han Dynasty.
Jiang
Zemin
The life and career of Jiang Zemin, leader of the Chinese state.
The
Spread of Buddhism to East Asia: Fa
Hsien's
Journey
An introduction to the journey of the Chinese monk Fa
Hsien's
journey to India in 402 and his
importance in
spreading Buddhism in China.
Melaka:
The Rise of a Great Trade Centre
An introduction to the founding of Melaka (also known as Malacca) and
its great
years.
The
Tic-Balan,
Juanita and the Balete
Tree
A discussion of the Philippine folk tale concerning the escape of
Juanita from
the balete
tree in which she had been
imprisoned by
the fiendish Tic-Balan
monster.
Heike
Monogatari:
A Medieval Japanese Epic
An introduction to the Heike Monogatari,
the famous
Medieval Japanese epic.
The
Spread of Buddhism to East Asia, Part I
The first part of a short series of articles on the spread of Buddhism
to East
Asia, this article deals with the early emergence of Buddhist thought
in
The
British Conquest of Burma: The Process of
Empire
The third part of the series on the British conquest of
The
Islamisation of Southeast Asia, Part 2
The second part of a short series of articles dealing with the
Islamisation of
Southeast Asia.
The
Islamisation of Southeast Asia, Part 1
The first part of a description of the spread of Islam in
Homo
Floresiensis: An Update on the 'Hobbits' of Indonesia
An update on the debate over the significance of the Homo Floresiensis
findings
in Indonesia.
Homo
Floresiensis: An Update on the 'Hobbits' of Indonesia
An update on the debate over the significance of the Homo Floresiensis
findings
in Indonesia.
Ningxia
An introduction to the Northwestern Chinese
Customs
of Cambodia: Angkor in 1296
A
description of the Khmer Empire at the hieght
of its power by a contemporary Chinese
diplomat.
Rubber
in East Asia
An introduction to the rubber industry in
Silk
A brief introduction to the Hstory
of
Silk.
The
British Conquest of Burma: the Second
Anglo-Burmese War
Continuing the story of the British conquest of
The
British Conquest of Burma: The First
Anglo-Burmese War
A description of the early stages of the British conquest and
colonisation of
Homo
Floresiensis: the Hobbits of Flores Island
An
introduction to a sensational new
archaeological
discovery on the remote Indonesian
The
Spice Trade
An introduction to the spice trade that for centuries has linked Europe
with
the
Fireworks
An introduction to the history of fireworks.
The
Second Opium War
A description of the Second Opium War between
Alexander
Hamilton: Loose in Southeast Asia, 1689-1723
An introduction to the account of East Asia by the C17th-18th Scottish
sea
captain alexander
Hamilton.
Yutalao
and the Golden Carp: a Tale of the Dai
People
A
description of the Dai legend of Yutalao
and the Golden Carp.
The
First Opium War
The background to and implications of the First Opium War foughtbetween
The
Spratly Islands
The Spratly Islands are a group of widely spaced, unpopulated islands
in the
middle of the
The
Spratly Islands
The Spratly Islands are a group of widely spaced, unpopulated islands
in the
middle of the
Korea:
A Rags
to Riches Story
How has
Hat
Yai
An introduction to the Southern Thai city of
Hanoi:
A Brief History
An introduction to the history of the capital city of
Champasak:
Another Forgotten State?
An
introduction to the state of Champasak,
which once flourished in southern
The
Sino-Vietnamese War, 1979
What caused the war between
The
Mekong river
What is the future of the
Yunnan
An introduction to the history of Yunnan Province of China, where
Sima
Qian:
The
Castrated
Historian
The life and achgievement
of the great
Chinese
historian Sima
Qian,
the
castrated chronicler.
The
Battle of Tarim
Basin
The only military encounter between the Chinese and the Arabs led to
decisive
defeat for the Chinese. What is the background to this incident?
The
Koguryo
War
The disastrous Chinese invasion of
Sticky
Rice
An
introduction to different types of sticky
rice in
Migration
in Southeast Asia
An introduction to the motivations for and implications of migration in
Southeast Asian history.
Aceh
Introduction to the people and history of Aceh and the consideration of
their
struggle for independence.
The
Younghusband
Mission to Tibet
An introduction to the Yuonghusband
mission to
The
Younghusband
Mission to Tibet
An introduction to the Younghusband
mission to
Luchuan
Introduction to the independent Tai state Luchuan,
which flourished in southern
Kuan
Yin: Goddess of Mercy and Compassion
Description of the role and nature of the Goddess of Mercy and COmpassion,
Kuan Yin
The
US Conquest of the Philippines
Analysis of the
Marco
Polo
An introduction to the life and work of Marco Polo.
Uncle
Ho
An introduction to Ho Chi Minh and the meaning of his life.
Pak
Moon Dam and Water Management in Thailand
A discussion of water management issues in
On
Historiography
An introduction to the issues relating to the historiography of
Dien
Bien Phu
An introduction to Dien Bien Phu, the battle that ended the First
Indochina
War.
The
Origin of the Mosquito: a Vietnamese Legend
An introduction to the Vietnamese legend about the origin of the
mosquito and a
discussion of what it tells us.
The
Grand Canal
An introduction to the Grand Canal built in
The
Thai-Malaysian Border Region in History
An introduction to the history of the Thai-Malaysian border region and
a
discussion of the factors that might have lead to it providing a
terrorist
threat.
The
White Lotus Society
An introduction to the White Lotus Society, which has been active in
The
Ryukyu Islands
An introduction to the history of the Ryukyu islands, south of
Commodore
Perry and the Opening of Japan
What
was the impact of Commodore Perry's
illegal entry
of Japanese waters?
A
Brief Introduction to Insurrections in Early
Thailand
An introduction to revolts and insurrection in
Genghis
Khan
The life and times of Genghis Khan, creator of the Mongol Empire and
terror of
the earth.
The
Haiku of Basho
An introduction to the haiku verse form of
Prehistoric
Taiwan
An introduction to the prehistory of the
The
Chams
An introduction to the civilisation of the Chams, together with a brief
description of state formation in
The
Thai Resistance in World War II
This is a description of the resistance to Japanese occupation by the
Thais
during World War II.
Xinjiang
An
introduction to
Raffles:
Sir Stamford Raffles and the Founding of Singapore
An introduction to Sir Stamford Raffles and to the founding of
When
the Tibetan Armies Threatened China
A
description and analysis of the period in
which
Confucius:
What Did He Really Say?
An
introduction to the life and thought of the
Chinese
philosopher Confucius.
Angkor
Wat: The Capital of the Mighty Khmer Empire
An illustrated introduction to one of the great wonders of the world,
the
Angkor Wat temple complex in
The
Japanese Occupation of Indonesia
An introduction to the themes resulting from the Japanese conquest and occupaton
of
Elephant!
An
introduction to the elephants of
Nanchao:
Between China and Southeast Asia
A history of Nanchao, the state that for centuries separated
Fa
Ngum
Founds the
Holy City of
Louang Phrabang
The history of the founder of
Shanghai
A
brief introduction to the city of
King
Sejong
and the Invention of Hangul
The role of King Sejong
the Great in
inventing the hangul
script is analysed.
A
Short History of Opium
This article provides a short history of opium production and its
impact in
Srivijaya:
The
First Indonesian State
The ancient state of Srivijaya in the islands of
The
Voyages of Admiral Cheng Ho
The
amazing voyages of the Chinese admiral
Cheng Ho
are described and placed in historical context.
Kim
Il
Sung and the Founding of North Korea
The life of Kim Il Sung and the founding of
The
Tai Ahom
Kingdom
of Assam
A description of the founding and nature of the Tai
The
Achievement of Communism in East Asia
This article describes some of the major achievements of communism in
The
Trung
Sisters
and Vietnam's
First Resistance
The Trung
sisters led early resistance of
the
Vietnamese against the Chinese. This is their story, together with a
historical
perspective.
Ramkhamhaeng
the Great
The
history and achievements of King
Ramkhamhaeng the
great of Sukothai
are described.
Ramkhamhaeng
continues to be remembered as the father of modern Thai monarchy
and a great hero.
The
Empress Wu Hou
- China's Only Female Ruler
A history to the life, times and achievements of one of the most
remarkable
women ever to have lived, the Empress Wu Hou
of
China.
The
Cambodian Civil War, 1970-5
The Cambodian Civil War of 1970-5 saw the defeat of the nationalist
government
and the rise to power of the Khmer Rouges under Pol
Pot. The horrific regime heralded by this is one of the darkest moments
of
history. Understand how and why it happened.
An
Introduction to Chinese History
An introduction and overview of Chinese history