Changes in China's territory: From the Xia Dynasty to the People's Republic of China, China is an ancient civilization with a long history, which has undergone more than 5,000 years of historical changes and formed today's vast territory. Let's explore the evolution of China's territory.
The Xia Dynasty was the first recorded dynasty in Chinese history, when there was no fixed concept of national boundaries. Limited by the conditions at that time, people could only move within a certain range, basically gathered in the middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River, such as Henan, Shandong,
Shanxi and other places have limited influence elsewhere. Shang Tang destroyed Xia Wei and established the Shang Dynasty, which far exceeded the territory of the Xia Dynasty. In the development of generations, the territory of the Shang Dynasty was further expanded, and it is said that it reached the seaside in the east, Shaanxi in the west, and Jiangnan in the south,
North to Liaoning. After Zhou Tianzi divided the world, the princes and kings of various places expanded to the surrounding areas. In its heyday, the Yan Kingdom in the north expanded to the area of present-day Kazuo and Chaoyang in Liaoning, reached the upper reaches of the Wei River in Gansu in the west, and reached the Huoshan area of the Fenhe River Basin in the northwest.
Qilu expanded to the Shandong Peninsula in the east, the upper reaches of the Han River in the south, and the lower reaches of the Yangtze River and the Taihu Lake basin in the southeast. However, as the strength increased, the ambitions of the princes and kings everywhere also continued to grow! In the Spring and Autumn Period, the ritual music collapsed, the heroes rose together, and the son of Zhou Tianzi was weak,
There is constant struggle between the princely states in various places, and the territory of each country is constantly changing. Until the early Warring States period, a large number of small countries were annexed, leaving only seven heroes, although the war was constant, but mainly internal strife, and the general territory of the country did not change much. In 221 BC,
Qin Shi Huang unified the six kingdoms and established the Qin Dynasty, and then carried out several expansions, extending its territory from the East China Sea in the east, Longxi in the west, the Great Wall in the north, and the South China Sea in the south. The land area has reached 3,546,900 square kilometers,
That's more than a third of China's territory today! After the establishment of the Han Dynasty, it continued to expand its territory outward. During the reign of Emperor Wudi of Han, he expelled the Xiongnu to collect the Hexi Corridor and took the Western Regions into his hands. At its peak, the territory of the Han Dynasty was annexed to Korea in the east, Jiaotoe in the south, and Congling Ridge in the west.
Reaching the desert in the north, the land area once reached 6.09 million square kilometers. During the Eastern Han Dynasty, compared with the Western Han Dynasty, the territory of the country shrank and it lost its rule over the Western Regions. The territory of the Eastern Han Dynasty is about 5.8 million square kilometers. Three Kingdoms period,
China's territory is in a state of division, with various forces vying for hegemony and borders changing frequently. The Western Jin Dynasty inherited the Cao Wei territory in the Central Plains, defeated Sun Wu, and incorporated Jiangdong into its territory. The territory extends north to Shanxi, Hebei and Liaodong, and to the southern Xiongnu,
Xianbei and Goguryeo are adjacent to each other; east to the seafront; south to Jiao Prefecture (present-day northern Vietnam); It is bounded by Gansu and Yunnan in the west, and adjacent to Xianbei, Qiang and Di in Hexi. At its peak, the country covered an area of about 5.43 million square kilometers. The period of the Southern and Northern Dynasties was quite chaotic, and the infighting continued,
The overall territorial area is shrinking. In 581, the Sui Dynasty was established and unified northern China. The Sui Dynasty stretched from the Liao River in the east, the desert in the north, Dunhuang in the west, and Jiaojiao in the south, with a land area of 4.27 million square kilometers, and soon the Sui Dynasty annexed Linyi.
The country has a land area of 4.67 million square kilometers. During the High Tang Dynasty, China's territory expanded again, reaching the Korean Peninsula in the east, the Aral Sea in Central Asia in the west, Hue in Vietnam in the south, and Lake Baikal in the north. At its largest, the territory of the Tang Dynasty was about 12.37 million square kilometers.
After the establishment of the Song Dynasty, the territory was much lower than before. During the Northern Song Dynasty, the territory area was as high as 4.6 million square kilometers, and after the southern crossing, it was directly reduced to about 2 million square kilometers. The Yuan Dynasty is the most extensive dynasty in Chinese history.
Straddling two continents, Europe and Asia. At its peak, the country had a land area of 13.72 million square kilometers, and if you expand the Arctic Ocean, it was 22.67 million square kilometers. In 1368, the Ming Dynasty was established, and theoretically had the strength to recover most of the Yuan Dynasty.
However, limited by the characteristics of the farming people, the Ming Dynasty did not make a rash move, but fought many wars with the Mongols, which eventually led to the weakening of national strength. At its peak, the territory of the Ming Dynasty was about 9.97 million square kilometers. The Qing Dynasty expanded to the highest peak of its territory,
The total area is 13.16 million square kilometers. However, with the decline of the Qing Dynasty and the payment of land reparations, it had shrunk to 11.35 million square kilometers by the end of the Qing Dynasty. The Republic of China inherited most of the lands of the Qing Dynasty, but in 1921, Outer Mongolia became independent.
It was not until 1946 that the Republic of China agreed to recognize the independence of Outer Mongolia. The territory of the Republic of China is about 11.35 million square kilometers. After the founding of the People's Republic of China, the territorial area was basically equivalent to that of the Republic of China, and there were no major changes.
The history of China's territorial evolution can be said to be a magnificent epic, witnessing China's glory and difficulties. Today's China, although its territory is relatively stable, faces new challenges and opportunities. In today's globalized world,
The territory of a nation is not the only measure of power. It is important to maintain the prosperity and development of the country and create a better life for the people. China should continue to promote reform and opening up, strengthen domestic development, and build more open and equal international relations.
Make greater contributions to world peace and prosperity. Before concluding, I would like to remind you that we can also review the map of neighboring Japan. There used to be militarists in Japan who were arrogant about China, but now China has risen and has great power.
We should remain vigilant and resolutely defend our interests and dignity. China's historical evolution is an eternal topic, let us discuss and think together, how to better inherit and develop our motherland. Please leave your comments,
What do you think China's territorial evolution tells us?