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in this video I will give a brief
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overview of Chinese geography that could
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come in handy as you read Chinese
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history one of the hardest things about
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learning Chinese history is orienting
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yourself to the geography so in this
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video I will try to demystify some of
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this and provide you with a framework
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for thinking about it it helps that
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despite its complexity the geography has
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not changed much from the beginning of
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Chinese history to the present day and
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so once you learn the basic principles
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you can apply them across many different
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time periods the key geographical
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feature of China is just how isolated it
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is from the rest of Asia in the west is
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the Tibetan plateau and the mountains of
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Central Asia which even to this day are
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nearly impassable to the north are the
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steps of Central Asia the Gobi desert
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and more Mountains to the South are the
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mountains that form the spine of
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Mainland southeast Asia and to the east
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is the Pacific Ocean within the external
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constraints that by these outer
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boundaries are even more internal
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constraints that separate the different
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regions of China from one another
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Northern China is dominant need to buy
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one large plane whereas the Northwest
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and south are mostly mountainous with
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many small river valleys a large number
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of ancient civilizations lived in the
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entirety of this area during Neolithic
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times but the open plain in the north
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meant that over time it was easy for a
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fuel power to dominate the area after
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which they could easily browbeat their
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smaller neighbors scattered around the
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many river valleys into submission until
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they reached the bigger outer boundaries
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they have nowhere else left to expand as
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much as the formidable outer boundaries
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facilitate the unification and
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centralization the smaller internal
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boundaries also promoted regionalization
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and fragmentation ancient China was just
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too big to be easily ruled under one
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government with pre-modern communication
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and transportation Technologies the
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mountains and rivers divide the land
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into many sub-regions some with very
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formidable natural barriers making it
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easy for Warlords to break off during
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periods of weak central Authority but
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then no matter how politically
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fragmented the land would become because
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of the even bigger outer constraints set
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by the Tibetan Plateau gobia desert and
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Pacific Ocean it will still only be a
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matter of time until one faction will
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grow powerful enough that it could
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probably be the other factions into a
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submission again unifying China as the
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famous opening sentence of the novel The
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Romance of the Three Kingdom States the
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Empire long United must divide long
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divided must unite and to make matters
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worse much of the ancient Chinese
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economy was centered around intensive
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agriculture to support as large of a
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population as possible along with high
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levels of political centralization that
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was unmatched in just about anywhere in
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the world until near modern times men
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that when things fell apart they really
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fell apart seven of the 10 bloodiest
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conflicts in history were either
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conflicts within China or involve
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foreign invasions of China ancient China
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was not a place you would want to be
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during chaotic times so what all this
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said let us look more closely at some of
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the major geographical features that
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played the important roles in Chinese
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history in the north as a Yellow River
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it flows through the North China Plain
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where it is very going to flooding
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especially because they carry so much
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silt that gives it its characteristic
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yellow color because of the frequent
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flooding the course of the lower Yellow
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River has changed many times throughout
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recorded Chinese history and flooding of
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the Yellow River has caused tremendous
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loss of life over this time but
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nonetheless the Yellow River was far
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more stable during earlier periods of
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Chinese history than more modern periods
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when Upstream deforestation made the
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river far more unstable during the
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earlier time periods the North China
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plane along the lower Yellow River and
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especially the region between the
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northward bend of the Yellow River and
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the mountains further to the north was
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consistently one of the wealthiest most
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densely populated parts of China prior
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to reaching the North China Plain the
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Yellow River also flows through the
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lowest Plateau named after the soft
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yellow soil that gives the Yellow River
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its characteristic color the lowest
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Plateau is bounded by a few formidable
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mountain ranges including the tin
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Mountains and the taihan mountains
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nerdiest mountains are short by
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important tributaries of the Yellow
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River the way Finn and lower rivers
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around which some of the earliest
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Chinese dynasties developed the great
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ancient Chinese capitals of changan
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modern-day Xian and ruayang were located
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in these valleys a recurring theme for
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much of Chinese history has been the
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relationship between the valleys in the
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west and the plains to the east as a
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general rule of thumb the big flat
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Eastern Area was wealthier and more
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culturally influential than the West
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whereas the West had oversized political
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and Military influence over the East due
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to its advantageous Mountain geography
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and proximity to the Northwestern
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Frontiers during times of Peace the
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political interests of the more
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populated East could be a thorn on the
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side of the emperor space out of the
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less populated West but during times of
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chaos the East with far fewer natural
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defenses was often hit very hard whereas
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the mountain valleys of the West were
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often well protected serving as secure
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bases for ambitious Warlords to conquer
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the rest of China in the south is a
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Yangtze River the longest river in China
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and the third longest in the world for
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almost its entire length the Yangtze
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River flows through fairly Mountain her
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rings making the South much more
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geographically fragmented than the North
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in ancient times there were also large
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expanses of marshes along the Yangtze
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making their planes immediately along
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the Yangtze River much less densely
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populated than those along the Yellow
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River the Yangtze River has unique
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geographical advantages that facilitated
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the growth of a large centralized Empire
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it is highly navigable even taking into
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account the borderline treacherous
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Waters through the Three Gorges it also
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rarely flooded at least before heavy
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deforestation took place in recent
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centuries its many tributaries expanded
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the Yangtze River Network even more in
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the mountainous Southwest the mean tour
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and darling Rivers have long served as
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major transportation routes within this
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isolated region in the center and
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flowing from the north is a Han River
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the longest tributary of the young sea
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the Han river flows into the Yang sea at
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the modern day city of Wuhan and where
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the Han in the city's name came from in
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ancient times the unique den of the Han
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River and its tributaries allow for
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almost continuous water transportation
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from the Yellow River to the young C
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following into the young Sea from the
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south are the Xiang and Gan Rivers these
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two rivers originate in the mountains in
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Far Southern China and have served as
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the main routes for the ancient Chinese
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Dynasty's expansion to the Deep South
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additional tributaries also leave from
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the young scene to the mountains of the
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far Southwest which to this day are
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still some of the most remote regions in
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China the mountains along the Yangtze
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divide its course into three regions a
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downstream region centered around the
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Yangtze River delta and especially the
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city of Nanjing a mainstream region
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centered around the Han and Xiang rivers
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and an upstream region in the
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southwestern mountains much of Southern
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Chinese history involved the balance of
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power between these three regions as you
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may have noticed by now it was much
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easier to travel East-West along the
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axis of both the yellow and Yangtze
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Rivers than to travel north south
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between their watersheds and this gives
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way to the biggest Chinese geographical
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divide of them all the Divide between
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North and South this was the most common
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divide during times of division the main
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boundary between North and South lies in
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a line formed by the shin Mountains and
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the Hawaii River North of this line the
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climate is much colder and drier it
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snows in the winter and wheat is
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currently the main stable green south of
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this line the climate is much warmer and
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wetter it rarely snows in the winter and
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rice has traditionally been the main
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staple grain the Hawaii River has been
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the third most important river in
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Chinese history in ancient times they'll
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flow directly Eastward into the sea but
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since the 12th century because of
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constant Southwest flooding of the
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Yellow River the Hawaii was forced to
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flow Southward so that it is now a
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tributary of the young sea so Hawaii has
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a number of historically important
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tributaries from the north the most
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important of which are the river which
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no longer follows its ancient course
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because of the Yellow River messing
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things up the yin and the rule during
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centuries of unification the Hawaii
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River and its tributary serve as major
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trade routes and during centuries of
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division it often marked the frontier
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between North and South the flat densely
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populated plain between the Hawaii and
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yellow Rivers is known as the Central
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Plains Oregon Chinese
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has as many different meanings in many
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different contexts but for the purpose
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of this video we will use the most
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common geographical definition which is
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the flat Central area between the yellow
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and white rivers that link the
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peripheral mountainous regions to one
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another because it was located at the
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intersection of so many different
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regions with no natural defenses during
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times of War it was a central Arena
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where the Warlords duked it out for
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control of China strategically the most
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important city in Jun has long been
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shujo making it one of the most fought
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after cities in China although if you
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were to be a Chinese warlord Jung Yang
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would happen one of the last places on
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the map you will want to start out on
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since you will be immediately surrounded
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by enemies with nowhere to hide Tao Tao
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the famous warlord in the novel The
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Romance of the Three Kingdoms was the
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only warlord to ever start out in the
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central plains and from there
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successfully conquered the rest of
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northern China and even he ran out of
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steam afterwards trying to conquer the
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South in ancient times traveling to the
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south from was difficult because of the
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large north-south distances involved one
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popular route was to take advantage of
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the northward band of the Han River and
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its tributaries and for this reason the
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city of xiangyang located on the Han
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River was one of the most strategically
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important cities in Chinese history
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there are no major natural north-south
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waterways on the coastal plains so an
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artificial one the Grand Canal was built
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kaifung the fabulously wealthy capital
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of the northern Song Dynasty from the
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10th to 12th centuries developed as a
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Transportation Hub along the canal a
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third route between North and South was
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from the way River Valley through
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various mountain passes in the tin
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mountains to the Han River and from
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there through the taoba mountains to the
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Basin around modern day Chengdu this
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rail was notoriously Steep and difficult
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in ancient times many segments
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especially through the tin mountains
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were made up of wooden planks attached
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to the side of the mountains like these
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the city of hanrung or literally middle
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of the Han has long been the primary
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city along this route and served as a
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strategically vital link between the
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Northwest and the Southwest now let's
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move on to the northern Frontier in the
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north separating the rest of China from
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the steps are a long line of mountains
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the yin or Shadow mountains to the west
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and the Yen mountains to the east not
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only do these two mountains form an
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easily defensible Frontier against the
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nomadic tribes further north but they
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also roughly marked the 400 millimeter
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rainfall Line North of which rainfall is
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so sparse that settled agriculture could
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not be supported and the way of life
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centered around pastoralism the earlier
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iterations of the Great Wall were built
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on top of these mountains south of the
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Great Wall the economy was based almost
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all unsettled agriculture which a
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Chinese dynasty could control relatively
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easily north of the Great Wall the
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economy was based almost all on
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pastoralism which made it hard for most
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Chinese dynasties to control the most
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important city along the Great Wall is
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Beijing which protected the narrow gap
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between the Tai Hong Mountains and the
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Sea if Beijing were to fall then the
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nomads could ride to the North Bank of
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the Yellow River within weeks to
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devastate one of the core regions of the
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Empire during the winter when the Waters
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of the Yellow River usually froze
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decoding Theory right even further south
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to the southwest of Beijing is Taiwan
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located in the dead center of the
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highlands of modern day shanxi Province
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from which you control The High Ground
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overlooking the surrounding regions
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Beijing and taibian work as a pair to
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defend the rest of China against nomadic
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invasions as recently as the Japanese
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invasion of China in 1937 the Japanese
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captured Beijing then known as baipin
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quite easily but before dika marched
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further south they had to first fight
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through the mountains of shine sea
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Province to capture taiban in order to
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secure their flank further to the West a
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thin long strip of decently low-lying
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arable land sits between the Italian
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mountains which marked the northern edge
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of the Tibetan plateau in the Mongolian
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steps this is known as the khresi
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corridor or West River Corridor since it
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is located west of the bend of the
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Yellow River and was a key bottleneck
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along the Silk Road linking China with a
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rest of Asia now moving to the Deep
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South there are a series of East-West
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mountains with the most prominent Peaks
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known as the nylin in English the
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southern mountains or wooling in English
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the five mountains to the people in the
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early Chinese dynasties living in the
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north the wooling might as well as have
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been the edge of the world the lands
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south of the wooling were collectively
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known as lingnan or south of the
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mountains inhabited by countless
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Barbarian tribes whose Customs they knew
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little about the ruling separated the
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Watershed of the Yangtze River from that
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of the Pearl River after the region was
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first conquered by the Qin dynasty
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around 200 BC a canal known as the
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linchu was stuck connecting the Xiang
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River to a tributary of the Pearl River
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known as the Lee River where the famous
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Landscapes of guilin are located this
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became the major route from the rest of
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China to lingnan and by extension
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Guangzhou would soon grew to become the
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major city in lingnan over the ensuing
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centuries more mountain roads were
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carved through the mountains although
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these mountainous regions remain very
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remote to the present day the Eastern
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parts of modern day Guangdong Province
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eventually became heavily synthesized
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whereas the western parts of lingnan the
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modern day guangxi autonomous region has
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large populations of non-hunt Chinese
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minorities Northern Vietnam was also
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part of lungan and under Chinese rule
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for 1100 years to 980. in ancient times
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the Red River Valley in Northern Vietnam
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was one of the wealthiest most populated
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regions of lignan and separated from
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their lands further north by many Remo
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mountain ranges there were many reasons
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why Vietnam was able to eventually gain
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its independence from China but one very
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obvious reason was simply that Northern
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Vietnam was significantly wealthier and
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more populated than the regions
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immediately to its North which even to
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this day lack behind the more
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economically developed parts of China
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when rebellions took place in Vietnam
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ancient Chinese armies had to travel
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tremendous distances through sparsely
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populated lands just together in the
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very early days of Imperial Chinese
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history around 200 BC the north centered
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along the Yellow River was the political
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cultural military and economic Center of
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China the rest of Chinese history
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however has essentially been a
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continuous process of the north becoming
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poorer and poorer and the South becoming
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richer and richer this was largely
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because the north has been periodically
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Shattered by cataclysmic Wars each time
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resulting in large-scale migrations to
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the South whereas the South has
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generally enjoyed much more stable
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growth the repeated flooding of the
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Yellow River has also severely damaged
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the economy of the North China Plain
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this pattern is a major factor why so
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much of earlier Chinese history such as
00:14:30
the events in the Romance of the Three
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Kingdoms involve northern China but more
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modern Chinese history overwhelmingly
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involves the Yangtze and the far south
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nowadays Southern China as a whole is
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much more economically developed than
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the North although the north still holds
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oversized political and Military
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importance part of this is historical in
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traditional Chinese Consciousness there
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has long been a strong sense that only
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when a regime has controlled the north
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especially zhongwen could a really claim
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authority over all of China and part of
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this is simply geographical the northern
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Frontier needs to be defended and the
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open terrain of the north still creates
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one huge economic cultural and
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Transportation Hub that serves as a
00:15:09
connecting piece for the rest of China
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for northern China the core regions were
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initially around the Yellow River and
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the central plains oriented in an
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East-West axis a recurring theme for the
00:15:19
first two-thirds of Chinese history
00:15:20
involved the tensions between East and
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West along this axis But as time went on
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more and more of the population and
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wealth shifted towards the southeast
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after 1000 A.D the Northwest around
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Xi'an which had previously been the
00:15:34
capital of so many Chinese dynasties has
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been mostly a Backwater living off of
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his former glory as the Northwest
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Decline and the South became more
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important the East-West access that had
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previously dominated Chinese politics
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was replaced by a north-south axis with
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a North centered around Beijing
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especially since the ruling Elites of
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the Mongol un Dynasty and the Manchu
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Qing Dynasty relied on beijing's
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Northerly location to maintain their
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ties with their Orange original Power
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basis goods from all across Southern
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China were shipped down the Yangtze
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River and then up the Grand Canal to
00:16:05
Beijing the closer we are to the modern
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day the more important this north-south
00:16:09
access would become this Corridor is
00:16:11
still relevant today with a political
00:16:13
Center of China located in Beijing but
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its economic heart in Shanghai that is
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it for now I hope this video can give
00:16:20
you a brief overview of historical
00:16:21
Chinese geography and help you Orient
00:16:24
yourself as you learn more and in the
00:16:26
future I plan to create many more videos
00:16:28
on historical Chinese geography to
00:16:30
discuss these geographical features and
00:16:32
strategic cities in much more detail
