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Namjyut History Brainstorming factbook
Nanyue is referred to here as Namjyut. References to IRL figures or places may be given as Mandarin Pinyin/Cantonese Jyutping/Traditional Chinese Characters. Kest's Chinese Empire (治杲) of Han majority is referred to as North China. Underlined items are awaiting discussion with other players and their inclusion in Namjyut history is undetermined. Italicized items are questions that should be expanded upon or explained at some point.General questions
What opportunities are there for internal fragmentation of Namjyut? When should these fragmentations take place? Can we integrate them with other periods of Chinese fragmentation in a way that does not totally disrupt the formation of the Ming Dynasty?
What relationship does Namjyut have with Tibet over the course of its history? Can they be related to important events in Namjyut's history?
What relationship does Namjyut have with states to its south? What can we learn from Chinese states that bordered them IRL?
Date of Divergence: 120 BC
2nd Century BC
120BC Zhao Yinqi/Ziu Jing Cai/趙嬰齊, notable tyrant, is assassinated. Prime Minister Lü Jia/Leoi Gaa/呂嘉 accedes to the throne. (Yinqi's IRL son never takes the throne, and Yinqi's wife never sends request to rejoin the Han Empire) Existing Han peoples continue to integrate peacefully with the Baiyue and vice versa.
1st Century AD
9 The fall of the Western Han breaks the de jure enfoeffment of Namjyut, becoming a sovereign state. Namjyut militarizes in defense of its borders while the Eastern Han struggles to be established (finally happening in 25 AD).
40 AD Eastern Han attempts to regain control of Namjyut through conquest. Anticipation by Namjyut state leads to Han defeat.
3rd Century AD
How did Namjyut emerge from the Three Kingdoms Period 220-280? (The Nanyue territories were held by IRL Shi Xie. Why did he fail, and what could Namjyut do differently? Why were his territories eventually taken by the Eastern Wu, eventually falling to the Jin? Shi Xie's territories were a nominal province of the Han to begin with, and when the first Han went to dust, he allied with Sun Quan and his new Eastern Wu. Shi Xie's Jiao province was safe from the initial chaos because it was so far south. Why did the Eastern Wu fall to the Jin, with Jiao along with it? Sun Hao, the last Wu ruler, decided that he'd rather indulge in wine and women rather than prepare for imminent attack. Then the Jin attacked up north and he surrendered after a string of failures. Jin planning started 269, invasion 279, ending in the 280 surrender)
Namjyut needs to have a non-corrupt or incompetent ruler during this time. Then we can have more than a literal zero people guard frontier regions.
266 In the Eastern Wu, due to Sun Hao/Syun Hou/孫皓's corrupt rule, rebellions break out among the commoners.
268 Eastern Wu forces start to attack Jin border towns. Namjyut starts absorbing defecting Eastern Wu border towns, immediately stationing military garrisons.
268 A non-aggression pact is made between the Namjyut and the Jin.
279 As the Jin attack the Eastern Wu along the Yangtze River into the capital, Namjyut forces make an offensive push into Eastern Wu territory through the south.
280 The Jin arrive at the Eastern Wu capital and Sun Hao surrenders. Territory remaining to the Eastern Wu are given to the Jin, and Namjyut's push north ends.
280 Fearing continued Jin expansion, a Namjyut diplomatic mission is sent to the Jin to re-affirm the non-aggression pact, assuring the Jin that Namjyut did not have any intention of invading Jin territory. Border towns are fortified.
4th Century AD
How did Namjyut emerge from the Sixteen Kingdoms period? (The Jin dynasty that unified China IRL significantly lost power after the rise of minority kingdoms. Han kingdoms that broke away from the Jin heavily allied with ethnic minorities. What would be Namjyut's relationship with the bordering Eastern Jin?)
Why did the Eastern Jin survive for so long even after the Jin dynasty fragmented? Does this prevent Namjyut from taking control of the Eastern Jin as it does with the Southern Song?
Is it possible that Namjyut itself experiences inner turmoil like its northern neighbor?
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How did Namjyut fare during the time of the Northern and Southern dynasties (386–589)? This was an era of civil wars for its northern neighbors. Which sides would Namjyut support?
In 577, the Northern Zhou that would eventually form the Sui dynasty reunifies China through conquest IRL. At this time, Namjyut bordered the Chen dynasty. Would Namjyut ally with the Chen against the Northern Zhou? Would this result in a surviving Chen dynasty until some later era?
10th Century AD
How did Namjyut emerge from the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period (907–979)? Why wasn't it taken up during the foundation of the former Song?
(IRL in 960, the Song dynasty is formed when Zhao Kuangyin starts a coup against the ruler of the Later Zhou, Chai Rong.) Would Namjyut have supported Zhao Kuangyin's coup, earning his favor, leading to a non-aggression pact or alliance?
12th Century AD
1127 The Southern Song Dynasty is established after the former Song are defeated by the Jurchen Jin in the north. (Due to the existence of a sovereign Namjyut, the Southern Song would not have much of its southern territories.)
1130 Namjyut takes the opportunity to devour the remaining Song territories. Southern Song areas are given suzerainty. Cultural exchange between the Song areas and Namjyut significant during this time.
13th Century AD
~1259 Mongol conquest into Southern Song areas takes place. Namjyut military garrisons in the Song were not properly assigned, and defenses fail to mobilize in time for a quick defense. Attention is focused on fortifying Namjyut proper, and walls are build along its border.
1276 Mongols successfully push until the northern fortifications, where the Mongols are stopped. As a result of Mongol invasion, there is significant migration of Han Chinese to Namjyut proper.
14th Century AD
1351 Red Turban Rebellions start in the Mongolian Yuan Dynasty because they failed to address significant problems following natural disaster. The rebellion spreads to other parts of China.
1354 Political actions in response to the Red Turban Rebellions eventually lead to diminished power of central government, and politics increasingly rely on local warlords.
1356 Namjyut marches west on Yunnan/Wannaam/雲南.
1360 Wannaam taken by Namjyut.
Late 14th Century Namjyut sponsors settlement in Wannaam frontier regions. Namjyut attempts to continue conquest and swing to Lan Xang but are repelled. In the end, Lan Xang pays tribute in return for peace.
17th Century AD
Early 17th Century European missions rise in Namjyut. Merchant and missionary activities notable, and Namjyut goods are sold for silver and iron.
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Late 17th Century. Namjyut government increasingly corrupt. Reports of bribes taken from North China. Ethnic minorities especially fear the growing influence of North China.
Li rebellion breaks out in Hainan/Hoinam/海南, spreads to people of other ethnicities in the area skeptical of Namjyut government.
18th Century AD
Early 18th Century Inspired by rebellion in Hainan/Hoinam/海南, rebellion in Vietnam begins. Insurgent pirates begin to grow. A coup attempt starts and fails.
Namjyut government orders ports to close to prevent additional waterborne coup attempts.
Previous emperor dies, new one succeeds. Reform and corruption crackdowns follow.
Rebellions are crushed or fizzle out. Ports reopen, but only Guangdong/Gwongdung/廣東 is open to Europeans.
Due to increased mercantile activity from Europeans, pirates continue to have targets to pillage. As of the early 18th century, they are still weak but are gaining resources.
Late 18th Century Pirate situation is becoming a major menace to Namjyut and foreign traders.
Namjyut Navy and Dutch VOC navy action against the pirate menace. Pirates are sequestered in a smaller part of the sea and infighting ensues, weakening their influence.
As trade imbalance continues to increase due to Namjyut accepting only silver and iron, British seek to smuggle opium into the country. Addition crisis strikes.
19th Century AD
1835 Namjyut government seizes opium and throws it into the sea without recompense. This leads to the Opium War.
1836 Opium War begins with Britain.
1839 Opium war ends in Namjyut defeat, Sanya/Sama/三亞 port town in Hainan/Hoinam/海南 is ceded to the British. This angers the Hoinam lord, who plots to take Sama back by force.
1845 Emperor dies. New one accedes.
1846 Recognizing the defeats suffered during the Opium war, the emperor begins a series of reforms known as the Imperial Consolidation. The aim is to consolidate the power of the various regional lords in Namjyut under a military with a modernized industrial base. Many regions are consolidated at first, but there remain extant holdout regions. Notable regions include Hoinam and the Vietnamese regions.
1847 Imperial government offers incentive program for pirates to join the navy. At the same time, the Hoinam lord is also recruiting pirates as mercenaries for his plan to recaputre Sama. Altogether fearing another defeat at the hands of European influence, the pirates join one or the other.
1847 Imperial government institutes conscription for fighting age men. Regional army levies are absorbed into the national army.
1850 Hoinam holdout region purchases significant numbers of Russian arms for his plan. Part of the deal includes opening Haikou/Hoihau/海口市 to Russian merchants for trade, against central government policy. The imperial government, not knowing of the Hoinam lord's plan to recapture Sama, prepares to fight Hoinam to prove that the imperial government has the ability to enforce the consolidation policy.
1855 Hoinam launches assault on Sama from the highlands. The locals join. Though this is a massive breach of consolidation policy, the imperial government, realizing the Hoinam plan and disliking the British settlement, sends infantry and naval support anyway. During the fighting, the Hoinam lord is killed, and imperial generals take over.
1856-60 The British are pushed out to sea. The Namjyut navy outnumbers the British, but they are better trained and with superior technology. The naval battle is drawn out for a long time. Coastal artillery and superior numbers allow Namjyut to go for a war of attrition by keeping a territorial stalemate going. Keeping pressure on British supply lines in the south coming through Singapore, Namjyut makes the war too expensive for the British to justify.
1860 British withdraw, and Sama is returned to Hoinam. With the Hoinam lord dead, the imperial government absorbs the island into the capital province. To continue enforcing the Imperial Consolidation policy, the imperial government swings to the holdout regions in Vietnam (at this time, containing all the lands of the IRL Nguyễn dynasty).
1862 The German invasion of Indochina begins. Germany attacks and takes Southern Vietnam while the Imperial Government scrambles to put the extant holdouts in Vietnam in line with the Imperial Consolidation policy.
1862-1868 The German invasion of Indochina is essentially a race between Namjyut, which is attempting to consolidate the local holdouts into its modernized military starting in the North, and Germany, which is trying to take all of Indochina starting in the South. The German plan is to launch an attack into the valley of Cambodia, where it is easier to attack than the mountainous region of the Annamite mountain range. Then the Germans push further into the Laotian valley. Finally, the Germans swing East to attack central and north Vietnam.
1863 Tonkin region is consolidated.
1864 Wannaam is consolidated.
1866 Central Vietnam is consolidated.
1868 Germany and Namjyut face off in Vietnam. Facing difficult terrain and lacking geographical knowledge, in addition to modern weapons supplied from Russia earlier, the Germans are defeated trying to advance. Peace is made, and the German invasion of Indochina ends.
How do we transition from the 19th century to the CoDN Great War?
