The History of China

For the once-great Ming, the 1630s... suck. Manchus are battering down the creaky northern defenses, foreign silver has dried up, the treasuries are empty, famine, plague and locust swarms are ripping through the populace, and bandit warlords are causing a ruckus in the west... with an increasing eye on the capital itself.Time Period Covered:ca. 1638-1644 CEMajor Historical Figures:Great Ming:The Chongzhen Emperor (Zhu Youjian) [r. 1627-1644]Xiong Wencan, Supreme Commander of Bandit Pacification [d. 1639]General Yang Sichang [d. 1641]General Sun Chuanting [d. 1643]General Wu Sangui [1616-1678]Great Qing:Hong Taiji [1592-1643]Prince Abatai [1589-1646]Prince Dorgon [1612-1650]Rebels/Bandits:Li Zicheng, "The Dashing King" [1606-1645]Zhang Xiangzhong, "The Yellow Tiger" [1606-1647]Major Sources Cited:Atwell, William. "The T'ai-ch'ang, T'ian-ch'i, and Ch'ung-chen reigns" in The Cambridge History of China, Vol. 7: The Ming Dynasty, 1368-1644, Part I.Brook, Timothy. The Troubled Empire: China in the Yuan and Ming Dynasties. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What does the aftermath of a massacre entail, on the world stage?CIA Memo 6/10/89 - Begins: 2:25US Beijing Embassy Cable 7/11/89 - Begins: 6:05 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Explore the haunting events of the 1989 Tiananmen Square Massacre, where mass protests erupted in Beijing and met with brutal military force. Discover the detailed military strategies and troop movements that aimed to suppress the dissent, painting a grim picture of civilian casualties. The podcast highlights the refusal of military leaders to protect the populace amidst chaos, its tragic impact on the city, and the lingering shadows of censorship that attempt to erase this pivotal moment in history.

We're releasing one from the paid vaults to share with everyone! (Don't worry, there's still plenty more exclusive Mongol content)... consider heading on over to Patreon.com/thehistoryofchina to support the show and catch up with all things steppe-rider!Genghis Khan rules the steppe. Yet before he'll be able to expand beyond its vast, rolling expanse, he'll have to deal with several in-house issues, particularly the ambitions of a powerful shaman named Teb Tengri, who may have designed on Genghis' power and position...  Time Period Covered: 1206-1209CE Major Historical Figures: Borjigin:Genghis Khan (Temujin)Börte, Temujin's First WifeHo'elun, Temujin's MotherKhasar, Temujin's Second BrotherTemuge Otchigin, Prince of the Hearth, Temujin's Youngest BrotherChaga, Temujin's 11th Wife Mongol:Kokhchu Teb Tengri, ShamanMonglik Jurchen Jin:Emperor Zhangzong of JinWanyan Yongji, Prince Shao of Wei Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As the newly enthroned Khan of the Manchus, Hong Taiji has a lot of plates to keep spinning. Conquest of Joseon Korea to the east, conquest of the Chahar Mongols to the west, and continuing to pound against the ever-weakening Ming Dynasty to the south. But he still has time for aesthetic considerations, such as the fact that names like "Jurchen" and "Jin" are so passé, while names like "Manchu" and "Qing" are the new hotness.Time Period Covered:1626-1643 CEMajor Historical Figures:Qing:Hong Taiji (Emperor Taizong of Qing) [r. 1626-1643]Prince Amin [1585-1640]Prince Haoge [1609-1648]Prince Dorgon [1612-1650]Prince Fulin (The Shunzi Emperor) [r. 1643-1661]Ming:Gen. Mao Wenlong [1576-1629]Gen. Yuan Chonghuan [1584-1630]Gen. Zu Dashou [d. 1656]Gen. Hong Chenchou [1593-1665]Gen. Wu Sangui [1612-1678]Joseon:King Injo [r. 1623-1649]Northern Yuan:Ligdan Khan [r. 1603-1634] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Chongzhen Emperor takes command of the Ming, but things are not going well... and they're not going to get any better. After purging his government of partisan elements, he find he's now condemned it to hopeless deadlock. Along the southern coasts, pirate fleets and Dutch privateers prowl the water, making trade all but impossible. Economic and currency woes lead, combined with repeated natural catastrophes lead to widespread banditry and rebel factions doing what they must to survive... and through it all, the Manchu threat to the north continue to press its advantage, breaking through the Great Wall, and going so far as to raid around Beijing itself!Time Period Covered:1628-1636Major Historical Figures:Ming Empire:The Chongzhen Emperor (Zhu Yujian) [r. 1628-1644]General Yuan Conghuan [1584-1630]Zheng Zhilong, Admiral of the South Seas [1604-1661]Grand Secretary Wen Tiren [1584-1639]Qing Dynasty:Hong Taiji (Emperor Taizong of Qing) [r. 1626-1643]Amin [1585-1640]Commander Kong Youde [d. 1562]Geng Zhongming [1604-1649]Rebels:Li Zicheng [1606-1649] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Great Ming's 15th emperor steps up to bat at the tender age of 15, but he's not terribly interested in tackling the challenges facing the empire. He'd rather sit in his room and... build models. As if that weren't enough, things go from already-bad to even-worse when a certain eunuch with a mountain of a chip on his shoulder manages to wrangle the reins of power from the teenage monarch.Time Period Covered:1620-1627 CEMajor Historical Figures:The Tianqi Emperor (Zhu Youjiao) [r. 1620-1627]Exalted Duke Wei Zhongxian [1568-1627]Madame Ke [1605-1627]Minister of War Cui Chengxiu [1571-1627]Grand Secretary Ye Xianggao [1559-1627]Minister Liu Zongzhou [1578-1645]Vice Censor-in-Chief Yang Lian [1572-1625]Xu Hengru, White Lotus rebel leader [d. 1623]The Chongzhen Emperor (Zhu Yujian) [r. 1627-1644] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

WE today join the host of The History Daily Podcast, Lindsay Graham, as he recounts the harrowing 1281 invasion of Japan by the fearsome combined force of Mongols, Chinese, and Koreans. All seems lost for the archipelagic kingdom... until a most unusual wind begins to blow... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Please take a few minutes to help out the show by taking the Airwave listener survey! Thank you in advance!www.surveymonkey.com/r/airwave We revisit the pivotal Battle of Sarhu of 1619/20, but this time from the Ming perspective. Then we'll finally send the Wanli Emperor into his tomb and take stock of his reign and legacy, before getting into our final few emperors Great Ming has left in the tank.Time Period Covered:1619-1621 CEMajor Historical Figures:Ming:The Wanli Emperor (Zhu Yujin) [r. 1572-1620]The Taichang Emperor (Zhu Changluo) [r. 1620-1620]The Tianqi Emperor (Zhu Youjiao) [r. 1620-1627]Consort LiSupreme Commander Yang Hao [d. 1629]General Du Song, "The Madman" [d. 1619]General Ma Lin [d. 1619]General Li Rubo [d. 1621]General Liu Ting [d. 1619]Manchu/Later Jin:Nurhachi [r. 1616-1626]Amba Beile Daisan [1583-1648]Hong Taiji [1592-1643] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With Manchuria all but tapped out, Nurhachi and his Manchus seek to expand in the only direction that makes any sense - south into Ming territory. It's time for the Airing of Grievances! He's got a lot of problems with you people, and now you're gonna hear about it!!Time Period Covered:~1618-1626 CE Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices