GREAT STATE: China and the World

Histories of China usually start in 221 BCE with the establishment of Imperial China under the Qin dynasty, but the author of this readable book believes that those days are too remote for us to enter with understanding and chooses to commence with the occupation of the Mongol Chinggis (Genghis) Khan, followed by the rule of Khubilai Khan. The concept of the Great State, a military power that potentially encompasses the whole world, dates from this time and permeates the Ming dynasty from 1368 and the Qing from 1635, finally giving way to the People's State, or Republic, in 1912. The story of Chinese history from the Mongols to the present is told in 13 chapters, each with a focus on a particular event or person. Khubilai Khan's fabled palace, which he did not initially dare call Xanadu (Supreme Capital) in case it suggested aggression towards his brothers, was legitimised by a decision to elect him supreme ruler of the Mongol world. Times were tough with the onset of a mini-ice-age, but the era saw the international travels of Marco Polo after accompanying the Blue Princess to Persia, an incredible story confirmed by official documents showing that his planned route along the Silk Road had become impassable. The century was ravaged by the Black Death, but writing the history of China into the Black Death is problematic because few people are known definitely to have died there. The author investigates using modern genomic technology. The Ming dynasty saw the notorious and possibly apocryphal attempt by Zheng He to obtain the holiest relic of the time, the Buddha's tooth, from Hong Kong. Khubilai Khan had made the attempt earlier and was fobbed off with fakes, but avoided humiliation by pretending they were the real thing. Other Ming incidents cover the riots on Java and the chequered career of the Jesuit missionary Matteo Ricci. In the modern era the Manchu dynasty saw a slowly unfolding relationship with the west, concluding with the Japanese occupation of China in World War II and the post-war establishment of the People's Republic. 442pp, colour photos, maps.