The Woko Rebellion was a serious external problem in Chinese history, referring to the plundering and aggression carried out by pirates and invaders from Japan in the coastal areas of China. The Ming Dynasty was at its most severe, but during the Qing Dynasty, it was not as frequent and severe as in other dynasties. So, why didn't the Qing Dynasty have a plague of pirates?
Japan's stragglers
First of all, we need to understand how the plague of the Japanese came about. During the Ming Dynasty, Japan was caught in the midst of its de facto famous Warring States period. The Warring States period was an era of political chaos and frequent wars. The various daimyo fought for territory and power, and constantly waged wars, which led to social unrest. This war and chaos is very cruel to ordinary people, who are often forced to leave their homes and live in poverty and fear.
When they couldn't live in Japan, they could only look for a way to live, so some homeless people who couldn't live in Japan took advantage of their living habits as islanders and went out to make money in small boats. And at this time, they discovered the Ming Dynasty, which was the richest in the world at that time.
At this time, although the Ming Dynasty also obtained power through armed struggle, it was all completed by land operations. If you really talk about naval warfare, the Ming Dynasty is not enough, but it has always been the same as the navy's national defense force.
The Tokugawa family closed off the country
Japan's Sengoku period during the civil war finally came to an end at the hands of Tokugawa Ieyasu after two generations of overlords, Oda Nobunaga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi. Tokugawa Ieyasu ended the situation of domestic strife in Japan and led the Japanese island nation into a new era. In order to effectively strengthen its rule, the Tokugawa regime also implemented a policy of closing Japan to the rest of the world.
The main reasons for the Tokugawa shogunate's policy of seclusion and seclusion are as follows. During the Tokugawa shogunate, the social and political environment in Japan was relatively stable, and the shogunate wanted to maintain this stable state and avoid interference and aggression from external forces. Therefore, the policy of closing the country has become an effective means of reducing external influences and threats.
The Tokugawa shogunate also imposed a strict identity system and a centralized system, restricting the freedoms and rights of the people. This system made Japanese society relatively closed, and communication with the outside world was greatly restricted. Under such circumstances, the policy of closing the country to the outside world can further strengthen the control of the central government and maintain social stability.
In addition, before the implementation of the policy of closing the country to the rest of the world, Japan suffered many foreign invasions and plunder, such as the invasion of the Yuan Dynasty and the colonial expansion of Portugal, Spain and other countries. These historical events created a deep sense of distrust among the Japanese people against foreign forces, and the shogunate also recognized the threat of foreign forces, so it adopted a policy of seclusion and seclusion to avoid a similar historical repetition.
The shogunate was also concerned about the impact of foreign technology and culture on Japan's traditional culture and values, so it restricted foreign exchange and trade. This concern can also be understood to a certain extent as the preservation and preservation of Japanese culture and traditions.
The Qing government was cocooned and self-bound
The Qing Dynasty was the last feudal dynasty in Chinese history, and at this time the feudal dynasty's ruling skills had reached its peak. During the Ming Dynasty, due to political corruption and military backwardness, the coastal areas were often attacked by the Japanese pirates. However, during the Qing Dynasty, the government strengthened the management and defense of the coastal areas, built many walls and forts, increased military patrols and guards, and effectively curbed the attacks of the Japanese pirates.
Sadly, however, these facilities used to defend against the Japanese were nothing more than a façade in the face of the post-industrial revolution in Europe and the United States.
The Qing Dynasty also implemented a policy of sea ban, which is what we call a closed country. The government restricted maritime trade and the range of fishermen's movements, thereby reducing contacts and conflicts with the pirates.
But there is a certain number of things in the dark, and sooner or later a conflict and war between China and Japan will be staged. Qi Jiguang of the Ming Dynasty expelled the Japanese invaders from the southeast coast, and Li Rusong and other generals beat the Japanese invaders back to their hometowns. There was no violent conflict between the Qing Dynasty and Japan in the first half of the war, but after the Opium War, Japan was indomitable after the reform of the law, and the Qing government was completely defeated in the First Sino-Japanese War, and Japan could not raise its head in front of it for the next 50 years.