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Fifteen China's By Mars, DISCLAIMER DOWN BELOW

Vexilogic

Published: Jun 26, 2024

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DISCLAIMER : This is map is not of my own creation, it is an archived post of a map made by MarsBy2024OrBust, who deleted their account alongside their other maps. I have reposted this map (alongside the others) with this disclaimer so that the credit goes to Mars, who worked hard on these maps so that people may enjoy them.

. . .

A1. Republic Of China (2001)

The Xinhai Revolution brought forth the end to centuries of Manchu rule, and laid the path for the rise of the first republic. With its rise to prominence, many saw it as the beginning of a new era, instead, all of those hopes would be snuffed out as squabbling warlords emerged and China began to fracture, the darkness reigned. However, the sun rose once more over China, the darkness that mired China years prior was vanquished, however it would be the White Sun, shining over a Wholly Red Earth and a Blue Sky.

Though, the troubles did not end there. A famine ravaged the interior of the country while corruption was rampant. Times were becoming desperate, and so the voices of necessity soon gave way to the drive of large and leaping reforms, which resulted in the end of the famine and the beginning of a largely successful transition from an agricultural to a commercial and industrial economy. Corruption, a parasite that had it’s tendrils deep inside the nooks and crannies of the bureaucracy, was swept away by the tides of reform. Yet with the centralization of control came with it the suppression of political dissidents, and even after Chiang’s death, China remained thoroughly an autocracy.

A2. Chinese Celestial State (1979)

The incredibly destructive civil war that has gripped the former Chinese Empire in recent times has resulted in the creation of new religions that were produced as a reaction to the stresses of such a conflict. The Celestial State itself adheres to one of these movements, the highly violent and fanatical Regenerationism, borrowing elements from other religions, and tying their origins to an obscure secret society in the years following up to the war. Regenerationists primarily compare the Emperor’s reforms years prior, which indirectly led the concurrent civil war, to severing fingers of a hand. Regenerationists primarily hold the idea that China has been forcibly severed as a result of the Emperor’s reforms years prior and it’s weakness manifesting in the form of the aforementioned civil war. Regenerationists uphold the idea of a “Light Crusade” to end the war and usher in a new golden age.

At its apex it held on to the heartland of China and had millions of people under its banner. Running parallel to the rise of the Celestial State, several historical sites and items in China were destroyed by the Celestial State as part of a campaign of the destruction of cultural heritage sites. For a moment, the feared Light Crusade nearly became a reality but such a feared force in China attracted international condemnation and led to the formation of resistance groups which have whittled away it’s territory one by one. Today, they only find their days to be increasingly numbered.

A3. National Restoration Movement (1990)

As atomic fire burned through the Northern hemisphere, the People's Republic and the old superpowers were destroyed with it. As the days progressed into weeks, weeks became months and months turned into years, the PRC simply began to be considered to be a more than a mere fever dream with most simply moving past it. However, scattered among it’s ashes, many still held onto the memory of the People’s Republic and many clung to the idea of restoring it, and soon the birds of the same feather began to flock together. Such groups emerged among it’s ashes, thus emerged the various “restorationist” groups determined to restore the People’s Republic, however some follow on the lines of pre-war Maoism while some uphold the ideas of Deng Xiaoping. However, most such groups only have substantial influence at the regional level. However, one of these groups happens to be one of the largest and most powerful forces in the region; the National Restoration Movement.

The effects of nuclear war and the desperation that came after seemingly brought the most unlikely groups together, and the NRM is an example of such. Forming 3 months after the end, the NRM finds itself bolstered by the bulk of the former People's Liberation Army Navy and bureaucrats of the ROC government. In the curious case of the PLAN, in the chaos that followed the destruction of PRC, the PLAN suddenly saw itself flying the flag of a nation that no longer existed, it would be the decision of the surviving Chief Naval Commander Liu Huaqing that the PLAN formally relocated to Taiwan where they would continue their operations and would later forge an lasting alliance with the ROC government there. The NRM now finds itself holding various coastal territories scattered throughout and has recently conducted operations in Japan and down the major rivers of China.

The sky may be big enough for two suns after all.

B1. Zhao State (2029)

In the incredibly vast lands of Huaxia[1], lies the Central State of Zhao, or simply known as the Zhao State. The lands of Huaxia houses one of the world's oldest civilizations and is regarded as one of the many cradles of civilization. In the past, Huaxian civilization was nearly strangled in its cradle by years and years of shifting climates and nomadic invasions from it’s northern periphery as a side effect of the advancing glaciers. Despite the often destructive invasions and natural disasters that happened in the past, Huaxian civilization proved hard to fully root out, instead the wounds from the disasters healed and it would be invaders that would adopt Huaxian culture and would later be assimilated; these invasions and the “conquest” dynasties that followed would help shape early Huaxian civilization and culture into what we see today.

After political consolidation, Huaxian civilization would make great strides in technological advancements, especially in the maritime sector as great attention was put into it as the oceans shrank and the docks dried up, those technological strides and the efforts that followed would bear fruit in the form of the discovery of the continents of Tieshan and Jinshan alongside the establishment of Huaxian colonies on said regions, which kickstarted the Sail Era. Today, it is the leader and houses the meeting place of the One Sky Union, a massive multinational organization that stretches from Huaxia, the southeastern regions of Asia and the coasts and deserts of Tansela[2]. Created in the aftermath of the Great Deluge, the OSU regularly conducts the building of new railroads, highways and secures the land trade routes that pierce through the mountains and the fields in Asia’s interior.

B2. Chinese Soviet Republic (1958)

As the end of the Second World War dawned, China emerged as one of it’s victors and successfully repelled the Japanese invasion. Despite this, it was never united at the time, with the seemingly one country being primarily a united front between the major 2 parties of the Chinese Communist Party and the nationalist Kuomintang that formed as a response to Japanese encroachment. As the postwar era began, both parties began stressing the need for a peaceful reconstruction, but a conference between both sides did not produce any formal results and clashes between the two sides continued, though these clashes never escalated to full-scale confrontations. The civil war between these two parties resumed as later postwar negotiations between the Kuomintang and the CCP failed.

Although the balance of power in the conflict was initially favourable to the KMT; after 2 years, the conflict would boil down into a stalemate between both sides. The war would end unofficially in 1952 in the form of an armistice. However, due to the fact that no peace treaty was signed, the two Chinas are technically still at war, a frozen conflict emerged. Following the armistice between both sides, Mao Zedong proclaimed the founding of the Chinese Soviet Republic in the half of China that the CCP held onto; designating it’s capital to be the city of Harbin. Mao would also oversee the creation of the first and only autonomous region in the country; the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, which was aimed at the Mongol minority in the region.

B3. Great Qing (1913)

The Qing, at its zenith, had more than one-third of the world's population under its banner, and possessed the largest economy in the world. For a time, it seemed that the great empire stood on top of the world. However, the winds of change had arrived, but the Qing never built any windmills, instead building walls to protect itself from the arrival of powerful forces from a land far outside its boundaries. Though the mighty wall began to crumble under pressure, rebellions would bloom like flowers in it’s cracks. Portions of its territory began to be picked away by the Western Powers taking advantage of the empire’s technological disadvantage and concessions dotted the coastlines. Whatever reforms the empire had planned were instead undermined and suppressed[3].

What did the people do? Stand by idly letting this all happen? No. Many would establish martial folk religious societies in the face of Western encroachment. Then, the red lanterns rose up in a rebellion, claiming to be a moving force for independence and China’s savior in the face of Western imperialism, but instead proved to be its downfall. As a showcase of unrestrained colonialism, the Western powers swept in as the conflict began to swell. In the weeks that followed, instances of looting could be found everywhere and colonial subjects were carved. Now, with what remains of the Qing now confined to a small area enclosing Peking, 4.000 years of history have seemingly met its end.

C1. Chinese Pacification Government (1981)

The weeks and months arrived and passed, the world kept turning, time kept passing. Ever since the collapse of the old world, the lands of the former Soviet Union are under one banner once more, and the lights that were extinguished are turning back on, however the banner would not be the banner of the old union, it would be the banner of Eurasia held by the torchbearers of the Eurasianist ideology, lead by a passionariy[4] and kept turning and running on its feet by harmonics[5], a brain and muscle. Before the demise of the Soviet Union and the old world, Eurasianism was an obscure ideology relegated to fringe ideological circles; with the collapse of the old world, it saw a chance to prove itself as a true ideological force that could storm the world, it took it and never let go. For the first time since the days of Genghis Khan, the Eurasian superethnos[6] was unified.

Although more focused on it’s own territory and internal affairs, Eurasia had conducted large incursions into the former lands of the PRC through a series of brutal campaigns that took on local forces, and in the process subdued them and created the Chinese Pacification Government, although all of this was generally seen as a waste of time and resources that were better off spent elsewhere, especially as the Han Chinese in the Eurasian worldview are seen as "non-complimentary", incompatible and thus not seen are part of Eurasia; though the Han are not exactly persecuted, they don't gain same rights and same support as groups considered part of Eurasia. Now though, the problems are already beginning to emerge, and the fate of the region might just be decided by how the governors of the Pacification Government respond.

C2. Xinjiang Revolutionary Committee (1950)

The fight against the Japanese imperialists might have died down, but there remain many who refuse to acknowledge this fact. Yet, even as the jackboot trampled through China and crushed any dreams of democracy or the liberation of the working class, there were a handful of lucky groups who managed to evade it’s wrath and the gaze of certain death. A handful of few managed to continue their struggle by moving underground, far from the peering eyes of most, and only strike when the time is right. Then, there were those who instead chose a way out, a way to escape the overreaching grasp of the rising sun, a way to keep the dream of democracy alive, a dream that was trampled by the jackboot.

In the months that arrived, a great exodus westward followed. In a daring move, a patchwork of KMT groups conducted a massive retreat as far as they could go from the pursuing Japanese forces, marching through hundreds of kilometers and trekking through mountains, fields and warlords; by the time they would arrive at their final destination, Xinjiang, a large portion have already perished during the journey, but a sizeable percentage remained. In Xinjiang these groups rejoined and would later strike an agreement with Xinjiang’s governor, in the process creating the Revolutionary Committee. Though their road is far from it’s end, whispers of Uyghur separatists are swirling around, creating an atmosphere of paranoia as clashes and attacks in the region escalate, and recently, rumors of marauding CPC units bringing terror to the countryside cause many to scratch their heads; as some thought the CPC died back in China. In the streets of Dihua, the old flag can be seen still flying with the wind; while posters dot the walls of buildings exclaiming: “China is not yet lost!”

Yet with each passing year that sentence becomes harder to grasp.

C3. Third Republic of China (2030)

World War 3 always seemed like an black swan to many, it lurched around the corners of the minds of many and remained confined to behind the screens displaying the uncountable interpretations of what such a conflict would take form. Yet, those very same screens would display the escalation to the contingency. It started small, a border skirmish, a rocket strike, the final domino being placed. In the very first days of the conflict, armies assembled, fleets collected, and the masses rallied. As the days went by, the war quickly became unpredictable, but it became immediately clear that it wouldn’t be the war to end all wars, as the nuclear option was fortunately averted early on, but the possibility still lingered on like a spectral dagger pointed at the necks of many.

As the major blocs of the world assembled, the theaters opened, the skies would become the site of large engagements while the cities became close-quarter battlegrounds and many saw the war brought to the sights of their home. The deserts of the Middle East saw burning oil wells and armored vehicles cruising through the vast fields while the Indian subcontinent became the single deadliest theater in the conflict, with its final casualties exceeding all of World War 2. As some saw where the winds were blowing, many nations jumped from ship from one to another, upsetting the balance of power in the war to the favor of the United States and its allies. With the downfall of the PRC, the Third Republic came to replace it. The Third Republic is a very troubled nation, mired in instability not long following its formation, though has recently made successful leaps in recuperating the problems that emerged following the end of World War 3. As an old saying goes, the third time's a charm.

D1. Free Peoples’ Movement (1968)

To many, anarchism is a state of lawlessness and of chaos, something that one would normally associate with the violent end of a nation, but to the fierce ideologues of the Free Peoples’ Movement, it is their way of life, it is something that has to be embraced, and it is the natural end stage of humanity. The premier anarchist power in Asia, initially having its roots in student cliques that eagerly sought out anarchist doctrines and the small Taoist secret societies that developed prior to the collapse of the Chinese Republic.

In contrast to many of their Western counterparts, the FPM’s philosophy centers around an "anti-polity" stance, believing that a true revolution would be wholly non-ideological and a philosophy of "non-rule"; with it’s unique take on Anarchism being in-part inspired by the global Nihilist movement, they have emerged as an unlikely, but frighteningly powerful force during the collapse of the Chinese Republic following a string of revolts and rebellions. Using it’s main military wing, the Righteous and Divine Black Army and its various components, the FPM has run a successful campaign that has swept through China, overwhelming the other belligerents in the collapse and subsequently emerging as the true successor to the late Chinese Republic, a very unexpected one that is.

D2. Great Ming (1657)

A series of famines, flooding and rebellion would spell doom for the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty and would cement the rise of the Han-led Ming dynasty. In the years that followed, infrastructure was rebuilt, and for now China was seemingly back on its feet. However, it’s greatest strides would not be in China itself, but instead outside it’s boundaries. Following the death of the Hongwu Emperor and the ascendance of Yongle Emperor to the throne; under his reign the nation pursued an expansive overseas policy, China assembled and sent large flotillas of ships on outward voyages towards regions such as the Arabian Peninsula and East Africa, and in the process carried back large exotic treasures that enthralled the Emperor into continuing such voyages after his death.

One of the many fruits of the outward voyages was the discovery of the northern reaches of Tongshan (Copper Mountain). Following the initial discovery and landfall, the northern coasts would see the establishment of the first outposts that would bloom into large scale settlements, alongside the introduction of new technologies and diseases such as smallpox, measles, influenza that would cause large amounts of suffering on the natives. However, instead of creating a system of conquest seen in the Americas, the Ming mostly left the natives on their own, though disputes occasionally appeared and some would end in confrontations. The settlements on the northern coasts became bustling with ships and soon mining companies were founded to take advantage of the region’s mineral wealth. The Northern Tongshan province would prove to be a lifeboat to the Ming as a large portion of the leadership, including the Emperor, fled to the colony after facing rebellions and collapse in China as a result of invading Jurchens from the north.

D3. State Preservation Committee (2013)

It was all falling apart. Most remained within the boundaries of their homes to wait out the worst, while the streets were largely devoid of activity. International observers remained confined to their screens, processing whatever piece of information that trickles out of the country, waiting for anything that could happen. As the arms of the clocks advanced further, the nation edged forward onto the edge, gazing at the abyss waiting to consume it. Yet, as whispers of a failed saving throw emerged, the confusion that came before cleared and became panic, suddenly the people began to arm themselves while the seas saw fleets scramble to their side of their choice.

As the clocks kept turning, many found themselves on the move; approximately 10-28 million Chinese were forcibly displaced and in the later stages of the war, while foreign volunteers swarmed into the country to fight for the side of their choice; this fact produced a common joke that stated that for every militia one encounters there is at least 1 foreign volunteer. The most peculiar excesses of the war have manifested in the various generational-based killings common in the region that have been dubbed “Boomercide” by outside observers. Emerging in the chaos that has engulfed the country, the State Preservation Committee stands as one of the few surviving relics of the pre-war government, claiming to be the legitimate government. By far one of the most powerful groups in the war, however internal and external factors have left the Committee unable to expand past it’s boundaries and fulfill it’s goal of restoring the old PRC.

E1. Republic of China (1962)

For 4.000 years the Middle Kingdom rose towards its greatest heights; in its golden age it was the political and economic center of which East Asia rotated around, a showcase of it’s might. It became the home to philosophers and great thinkers alike. However, this golden age would not last forever, as Western Imperialists began to sweep through Asia they subjected China to national humiliation for a century, in the process issued the unequal treaties and forced China to give major concessions to the West. Of course, this era of humiliation did not last forever; Japan, spared from the machinations of imperialism, began a great crusade to expel the imperialists from Asia, upholding the ideology of Pan-Asianism and later the vanguard of the Co-Prosperity Sphere, it’s great efforts would later borne fruit. Today, the flag that Wang Jingwei once held still flies and China can enjoy another century without the ugly face of imperialism rearing its head around the corner.

Or at least that’s how the story is told in propaganda.

In reality, China is even more of a tragic state than before, and it can be argued that what China had experienced at the hands of the European imperialist powers cannot be compared to atrocities committed in the hands of the IJA during the war; with such atrocities being actively swept under the rug. Since the end of the war, both nations have undergone very divergent developments; the military’s influence in Japan unraveled and saw the restoration of pre-war democratic processes while China remained solidly a one party state; while Japan maintained a steady industrial base, China remained a relative agricultural backwater in the Sphere. On paper, the Sphere upholds the pan-Asian ideals and is a self-sufficient bloc of Asian nations; in practice, it is effectively a vehicle for Japan to advance its political and economic dominance within Asia, and this can be seen in China where Japanese products and business have flooded the country and beat out the local Chinese ones. Corruption is rampant in the government while the highly limited Reorganized National Government Army struggles to wipe out holdouts of resistance that remained even after a decade after the war. 1962 has arrived, China remains in its darkest hour but change is coming, for the better or for the worst.

E2. Yan Empire (948)

A chain of rebellions, natural disasters and the rise of regional military governors known as jiedushi would bring on the downfall of the Tang dynasty and culminated in the beginning of a period of political upheaval and division known as the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. In the following years, this period of fragmentation and upheaval would come to an end with the unification of China by the Yan, a conquest dynasty founded by the Turkic-speaking Uyghurs.

Formerly finding themselves on the outer periphery of the Tang, following its collapse, sought to seize the opportunity and moved in towards it’s former territory to fill the power vacuum left behind. With the advent of unification following a series of sweeping campaigns against the remaining Jiedushi, the Yan dynasty began a process of westward expansion, and in the process managed to take control of the Tarim basin. In the years after its founding, it would come into multiple conflicts with the Khitan Liao towards it’s north. The establishment of the Yan also opened the door for Manichaeism to enter China as a result of the Uyghurs initially being Manichaean; which would precede the Yan dynasty’s later conversion to Buddhism[7]. Initially, there were few normal places of worship in the Yan, as an unintended consequence of the nomadic lifestyle practiced by the Uyghurs; though this was mitigated by the construction of new places of worship in the years following unification.

E3. Great Shui (1703)

The emergence of the Yuan dynasty had significantly impacted the movement of culture and people in China; under the reign of the Yuan, Islam began to grow noticably in the following years as more Muslims began to migrate to China, espescially after the completion of the Chinese Grand Canal that linked Khanbaliq with Hangzhou. In the port city of Quanzhou, the beginning of the Maritime Silk Road, due to its position, became home to mostly foreigners or Fan (番), such as the Arabs, Persians, Europeans and housed large ethnic enclaves. In 1357, the city became the site of the Fujian revolt[8] which saw the Yisibaxi Persian garrison sweeping Quanzhou and the revolt later coming under the control of Persian merchants Amid ud-Din (Amiliding) and Saif ud-Din (Saifuding); the revolt would significantly contribute to the downfall of the Yuan and would prove to be a crucial component in the rise of the Ming.

After the Ming consolidated themselves, Islam continued to grow in China, especially during the reign of the Hongwu Emperor. The Emperor, a devout Islamophile, began exempting Muslim merchants from the isolationist Haijin policies which restricted private maritime trading and coastal settlement. Under his reign, he ordered mosques to be built around China as a show of gratitude for their important role, and Muslims continued to be influential around government circles. When the winds of change came and the Ming fell, the Great Shui rose in its place. Founded and ruled by a converted peasant, the Shui would become known for being the first Islamic dynasty in Chinese history, although parts of China continued to practice their own respective beliefs; the Shui, despite facing numerous hurdles soon after it’s formation, would manage to survive to the present.

Transversing the ancient, Majestic path,

vanquishing away all evil,

His religion, Qing Zhen,

Muhammad, The Noble Great One.

-----------------------------------------

*[1] A fairly archaic term for China.

[2] Australia; name is derived from the Javanese “tanah selatan” (lit “southern land”).

[3] More specifically the Hundred Days’ Reform, which was ended by a coup by the conservative ruling elites led by Empress Dowager Cixi.

[4] Pasionariy were essentially Gumilyov’s answer to how ethne (culture) appeared. He considered that each human would always take some amount of energy from the outer world (both in a form of material, like food, air, or private property, and in non-material form, like attention, devotion, and information.) and give some amount of energy to the world in return. Each person has a different balance of those two scales; Gumilyov has suggested 3 main groups of people: those who give more than they take (passionariys), those who take more than they give (sub-passionariys, essentially social parasites), and those whose give-take ratio is balanced (harmonics, according to Gumilyov most people in the world fall into this category). Passionariy are source of all changes in society, but it is important to note that Passionarity itself doesn't make a person smarter and doesn't guarantee that they would definitely achieve something great.

[5] Ditto the definition of Harmonics above.

[6] Superethnos are essentially, as Lev Gumilyov described it, an area/nation with common cultural traits between many ethne (culture). An example of a superethnos would be either the Roman or Mongol Empires. In the case of Rome; it is classified as a superethnos not because it conquered a lot of land, but because all the nations under their banner assimilated parts of Roman culture and together created some new cultural traits. If you’re wondering, this is the source I cited for notes 4, 5, 6.

[7] This also happened with OTL Uyghurs.

[8] An alternative reading of OTL’s Ispah rebellion.

The quote at the end of E3 is from the closing words of the Hundred-word Eulogy by the Hongwu Emperor.

*All postscript notes by Mars

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