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The pirate Zhang Baozai operated six fleets in the South China Sea with over 70,000 followers, presenting perhaps the largest maritime security problem any nation has ever faced.<br/><br/> An extraordinary ink painting scroll entitled ‘Pacifying the South China Sea’ which is 18 metres in length, depicts the nine-day Battle of Lantau that heralded the strategy of Viceroy Bailing to rid the Chinese seas of this blight. It was painted in the early 19th century by an unknown artist to commemorate the defeat of the pirates who prowled the waters around Guangdong in the mid-Jiaqing period (1796–1820).
The sovereignty of the Paracels has been the subject of dispute between the People's Republic of China, Republic of China (Taiwan), and Vietnam since at least the early 20th century.<br/><br/> France annexed the islands as part of French Indochina despite protests from China in the 1930s, but they were taken over by Japanese troops during the Second Sino-Japanese War. Japan renounced the claims to the islands after the war and the Republic of China occupied some of the Paracel islands in late 1946. A small Chinese platoon was stationed on Woody Island.<br/><br/> After the success of communists in the Chinese Civil War in 1949, the People's Republic of China occupied Woody Island, the main island of the Amphitrite group and the only island that was occupied at the time. Pattle Island, the largest of the Crescent group, on the other hand, was reoccupied by French Indochina and later controlled by South Vietnam following independence in 1956.<br/><br/> Tensions over these features continued to rise and climaxed at the Battle of the Paracel Islands between the Republic of Vietnam and the People's Republic of China. After the bloody engagement, the latter seized the entire archipelago and has taken control of the islands since 1974. Vietnam does not recognise this fait accompli and continues to dispute ownership.
18th-century map of Vietnam, derives from a map of Southeast Asia and parts of China published in Amsterdam by the firm of Covens and Mortier around 1760. The title of this map is in French, but many of the place names and notes have been translated into Dutch.
Carte Hydro-Geo-Graphique des Indes Orientales en deca et au dela du Gange avec leur Archipel Dressee et assujettie aux Observations Astronomiques, by cartographer Rigobert Bonne (1727-1795).<br/><br/> Bonne's 1771 map of Tonkin and the South China Sea / East Sea is important and controversial as it clearly shows Hainan Island (yellow outline) belonging to China and, more significantly, the Paracel Islands - currently disputed between China and Vietnam but occupied by the former - in green, as Vietnamese territory. The disputed Spratlys are not shown on the map.<br/><br/> In 1771 Tonkin was ruled by the Trinh Lords (1545-1787), specifically by the 10th Trinh Lord, Trịnh Sâm (Ruled 1767 - 1782 under the title Tinh Do Vương).
Carte Hydro-Geo-Graphique des Indes Orientales en deca et au dela du Gange avec leur Archipel Dressee et assujettie aux Observations Astronomiques, by cartographer Rigobert Bonne (1727-1795).<br/><br/> Bonne's 1771 map of Tonkin and the South China Sea / East Sea is important and controversial as it clearly shows Hainan Island (yellow outline) belonging to China and, more significantly, the Paracel Islands - currently disputed between China and Vietnam but occupied by the former - in green, as Vietnamese territory. The disputed Spratlys are not shown on the map.<br/><br/> In 1771 Tonkin was ruled by the Trinh Lords (1545-1787), specifically by the 10th Trinh Lord, Trịnh Sâm (Ruled 1767 - 1782 under the title Tinh Do Vương).
Tran Hung Dao (1228–1300; Quoc Ngu: Trần Hưng Đạo) was the Supreme Commander of Đại Việt during the Trần Dynasty. He commanded the Đại Việt armies that repelled two major Mongol invasions in the 13th century.<br/><br/> At the Battle of the Bạch Đằng River, General Trần Hưng Đạo predicted the Mongol's naval route and quickly deployed heavy unconventional traps of steel-tipped wooden stakes unseen during high tides along the Bạch Đằng River bed. When the Mongol fleet attempted to retreat from the river, the Viet deployed smaller and more maneuverable vessels into agitating and luring the Mongol vessels into the riverside where the booby traps were waiting while it was still high tide.<br/><br/> As the river tide River receded, the Mongol vessels were impaled and sunk by the embedded steel-tipped stakes. The Viet forces led by Trần Hưng Đạo burned down an estimated 400 large Mongol vessels and captured the remaining naval crew along the river. The entire Mongol fleet was destroyed and the Mongol admiral was captured and executed.
In 1958, the People's Republic of China, having taken over mainland China and having left the Republic of China with control over Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen, Matsu, and some outlying islands, issued a declaration of a 12 nautical mile limit territorial waters that encompassed the Spratly Islands. North Vietnam's prime minister, Phạm Văn Đồng, sent a formal note to recognize these claims, and stated that the Government of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam) respects the decision on the 12 nautical mile limit territorial waters.
The Spratlys Archipelago in the South China Sea (called by Vietnam the East Sea) is disputed in various degrees by China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei. The Paracels Islands are disputed between China and Vietnam, but have been controlled completely by China since 1974.<br/><br/> The Chinese claim is the most extensive and is generally indicated by a notional frontier termed by the Chinese the 'Nine Dotted Line' (nánhǎi jiǔduàn xiàn; literally "Nine division lines of the South China Sea") and by the Vietnamese the 'Ox's Tongue Line' (Đường lưỡi bò).<br/><br/> The dispute is driven in part by the proven fishing reserves of the region, in part by unproven but supected oil reserves, and by competing national prides - especially between China (effectively backed by Taiwan) and Vietnam.
The Spratlys Archipelago in the South China Sea (called by Vietnam the East Sea) is disputed in various degrees by China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei. The Paracels Islands are disputed between China and Vietnam, but have been controlled completely by China since 1974.<br/><br/> The Chinese claim is the most extensive and is generally indicated by a notional frontier termed by the Chinese the 'Nine Dotted Line' (nánhǎi jiǔduàn xiàn; literally 'Nine division lines of the South China Sea') and by the Vietnamese the 'Ox's Tongue Line' (Đường lưỡi bò).<br/><br/> The Nine-dotted line was originally an 'eleven dotted line' first indicated by the then Kuomintang government of the Republic of China in 1947 for its claims to the South China Sea. After the Communist Party of China took over mainland China and formed the People's Republic of China in 1949, the line was adopted and revised to nine as endorsed by Zhou Enlai. The 9-dotted line is subject to severe criticism and protest from many countries in the region. Immediately after China submitted to the UN a map including the 9-dotted lines territorial claim in the South China Sea on May 7, 2009, the Philippines lodged a diplomatic protest against China for claiming the whole of South China Sea illegally. Vietnam and Malaysia filed their joint protest a day after China submitted its 9-dash line map to the UN.<br/><br/>
The Spratly Islands are a group of more than 750 reefs, iislets, atolls, cays and islands in the South China Sea. The archipelago lies off the coasts of the Philippines and Malaysia (Sabah), about one third of the way to southern Vietnam. They comprise less than four square kilometers of land area spread over more than 425,000 square kilometers of sea. The Spratlys are one of three archipelagos of the South China Sea which comprise more than 30,000 islands and reefs and which complicate governance and economics in that region of Southeast Asia.<br/><br/> Such small and remote islands have little economic value in themselves, but are important in establishing international boundaries. There are no native islanders but there are rich fishing grounds and initial surveys indicate the islands may contain significant reserves of oil and natural gas.<br/><br/> About 45 islands are occupied by relatively small numbers of military forces from Vietnam, the People's Republic of China, the Republic of China (Taiwan), Malaysia and the Philippines. Brunei has also claimed an Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) in the southeastern part of the Spratlys encompassing just one area of small islands above mean high water (on Louisa Reef.)
The Spratlys Archipelago in the South China Sea (called by Vietnam the East Sea) is disputed in various degrees by China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei. The Paracels Islands are disputed between China and Vietnam, but have been controlled completely by China since 1974.<br/><br/> The Chinese claim is the most extensive and is generally indicated by a notional frontier termed by the Chinese the 'Nine Dotted Line' (nánhǎi jiǔduàn xiàn; literally 'Nine division lines of the South China Sea') and by the Vietnamese the 'Ox's Tongue Line' (Đường lưỡi bò).<br/><br/> The dispute is driven in part by the proven fishing reserves of the region, in part by unproven but supected oil reserves, and by competing national prides - especially between China (effectively backed by Taiwan) and Vietnam.
The Spratlys Archipelago in the South China Sea (called by Vietnam the East Sea) is disputed in various degrees by China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei. The Paracels Islands are disputed between China and Vietnam, but have been controlled completely by China since 1974.<br/><br/> The Chinese claim is the most extensive and is generally indicated by a notional frontier termed by the Chinese the 'Nine Dotted Line' (nánhǎi jiǔduàn xiàn; literally "Nine division lines of the South China Sea") and by the Vietnamese the 'Ox's Tongue Line' (Đường lưỡi bò).<br/><br/> The dispute is driven in part by the proven fishing reserves of the region, in part by unproven but supected oil reserves, and by competing national prides - especially between China (effectively backed by Taiwan) and Vietnam.
The sovereignty of the Paracels has been the subject of dispute between the People's Republic of China, Republic of China (Taiwan), and Vietnam since at least the early 20th century.<br/><br/> France annexed the islands as part of French Indochina despite protests from China in the 1930s, but they were taken over by Japanese troops during the Second Sino-Japanese War. Japan renounced the claims to the islands after the war and the Republic of China occupied some of the Paracel islands in late 1946. A small Chinese platoon was stationed on Woody Island.<br/><br/> After the success of communists in the Chinese Civil War in 1949, the People's Republic of China occupied Woody Island, the main island of the Amphitrite group and the only island that was occupied at the time. Pattle Island, the largest of the Crescent group, on the other hand, was reoccupied by French Indochina and later controlled by South Vietnam following independence in 1956.<br/><br/> Tensions over these features continued to rise and climaxed at the Battle of the Paracel Islands between the Republic of Vietnam and the People's Republic of China. After the bloody engagement, the latter seized the entire archipelago and has taken control of the islands since 1974. Vietnam does not recognise this fait accompli and continues to dispute ownership.
The Spratlys Archipelago in the South China Sea (called by Vietnam the East Sea) is disputed in various degrees by China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei. The Paracels Islands are disputed between China and Vietnam, but have been controlled completely by China since 1974.<br/><br/> The Chinese claim is the most extensive and is generally indicated by a notional frontier termed by the Chinese the 'Nine Dotted Line' (nánhǎi jiǔduàn xiàn; literally 'Nine division lines of the South China Sea') and by the Vietnamese the 'Ox's Tongue Line' (Đường lưỡi bò).<br/><br/> The dispute is driven in part by the proven fishing reserves of the region, in part by unproven but supected oil reserves, and by competing national prides - especially between China (effectively backed by Taiwan) and Vietnam.
The Spratlys Archipelago in the South China Sea (called by Vietnam the East Sea) is disputed in various degrees by China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei. The Paracels Islands are disputed between China and Vietnam, but have been controlled completely by China since 1974.<br/><br/> The Chinese claim is the most extensive and is generally indicated by a notional frontier termed by the Chinese the 'Nine Dotted Line' (nánhǎi jiǔduàn xiàn; literally 'Nine division lines of the South China Sea') and by the Vietnamese the 'Ox's Tongue Line' (Đường lưỡi bò).<br/><br/> The dispute is driven in part by the proven fishing reserves of the region, in part by unproven but supected oil reserves, and by competing national prides - especially between China (effectively backed by Taiwan) and Vietnam.
The Spratlys Archipelago in the South China Sea (called by Vietnam the East Sea) is disputed in various degrees by China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei. The Paracels Islands are disputed between China and Vietnam, but have been controlled completely by China since 1974.<br/><br/> The Chinese claim is the most extensive and is generally indicated by a notional frontier termed by the Chinese the 'Nine Dotted Line' (nánhǎi jiǔduàn xiàn; literally 'Nine division lines of the South China Sea') and by the Vietnamese the 'Ox's Tongue Line' (Đường lưỡi bò).<br/><br/> The dispute is driven in part by the proven fishing reserves of the region, in part by unproven but supected oil reserves, and by competing national prides - especially between China (effectively backed by Taiwan) and Vietnam.