The modern Sulu State was established in the fifteenth century, but this country was already recorded in the historical materials of the Yuan Dynasty in the fourteenth century. At that time, the Sulu Islands were not unified but were ruled by multiple kings.
In the fifteenth year of Yongle's reign, the king of the east, Batu Gebalabu, the king of the west, Mahalachige Lamading, the wife of the king of Dong, Batu Gebalabu, and more than 340 of their family leaders, came to the rescue. Hai paid tribute, brought in gold-engraved inscriptions, and offered pearls, gems, tortoise shells and other objects.
Sulu's visit to the Ming Dynasty was entirely due to the promotion of Zheng He's massive voyage to the West. At that time, Southeast Asian countries marveled at the powerful national power of the Ming Dynasty and sent envoys to pay tribute.
The King of Sulu was the most enthusiastic and simply came in person.
When Emperor Yongle saw that this guy was really on the road, it was too flattering to praise him so much, so he ordered a grand reception. King Sulu opened his eyes and saw what it means to be a superior country.
But no matter how rich and noble a place is, you can't stay for a long time. After all, this is not your home. When the King of Sulu was on his way back to his country, he might really be reluctant to part with the glory and wealth here, and he really didn't want to go back to a tropical island country to eat bananas.
This guy died of illness in Shandong with a bang!
I can't stay in the Ming Dynasty while I'm alive. I have to die here... This is a very high-level way of dealing with porcelain. I'm really willing to give it up!
Emperor Yongle lamented so much that he ordered him to be buried on the spot. This is the famous Tomb of King Sulu in Dezhou, Shandong Province, and it has survived ever since!
The eldest son of King Sulu returned to China to inherit the throne, and his second son and third son directly stayed and joined the Ming Dynasty. Their descendants have continued to multiply to this day.
The descendants of the second son changed their Chinese surname to Wen, and the descendants of the third son changed their surname to An!
Due to the policy of seclusion implemented by the Ming Dynasty in the later period, the connection between Sulu and the Ming Dynasty became increasingly scarce. It was during this historical gap that Western forces began to penetrate.
By the Qing Dynasty, the Sulu Kingdom was increasingly struggling in its confrontation with the Spanish. At this time, they had no choice but to seek foreign aid from the north.
During the reigns of Yongzheng and Qianlong, the Sulu Kingdom sent envoys to Beijing to seek protection, but they were all rejected.
Even in the 18th year of Qianlong's reign, the Sulu Kingdom submitted a request for a territory map, which meant that I no longer wanted to be a vassal state, but directly donated land to merge with China.
All land and people will be recorded in a register and dedicated to the Qing Dynasty. Can I directly incorporate it into your territory?
It is a pity that Emperor Qianlong believed that overseas Chinese were "traitors" and death was not a pity. It would be more beneficial to the Qing Dynasty for the colonists to kill the overseas Chinese.
From then on, the Sulu Kingdom was completely in despair. It was not until 1851 that the Spaniards captured the capital city of Hele, and the Sulu Kingdom completely surrendered to the Spaniards.
It is worth mentioning that that year happened to be the Jintian Uprising of the Taiping Rebellion!
The Sulu Kingdom has been separated from the vassal system with China for twenty years. Twenty years is not a short time. Even the Spaniards have forgotten this.
You must know that the Sulu kings have not yet been deposed. They still exercise their right to rule on the ancient Sulu land, but the vassal relationship has been transferred to Spain.
At this time, the King of Sulu was legally a subordinate king conferred by the Spanish royal family and a small vassal state under the Kingdom of Spain.
Can twenty years of belonging really erase the thousands of years of penetration of the Central Plains civilization? As soon as this question appeared in the minds of Governor Botila and Major General Enmu, cold sweat broke out on their backs.
"Oh God! It's true. The land donation from Lanfang Republic is a sign. These Chinese are going to completely eat up the Philippines and Kalimantan from south to north!"
"Oh God! It's too scary, it's really too scary, Xiao Letian's ambition is too great!"
The governor tried his best to wipe the sweat with a handkerchief, and Major General Enmu also felt that his calves were trembling a little.
The major general pushed away the map and said tremblingly, "Brunei is the central point. The Chinese want to gather heavy troops here for their own political reasons!"
"Why are they concentrating the Ryukyu fleet on Brunei? They want to accumulate strength to cover the army from Mani*!"
"Even these Chinese want to fight us on the sea. Our current naval power is too weak. Once the twelve main battleships are destroyed, the remaining dozens of offshore gunboats will not be able to serve as the Chinese navy... "
"Well... my general... how many warships do the Chinese have? Do you have any information?"
Major General Enmu shook his head, "God knows how many warships the Chinese have. We have no intelligence clues about Ryukyu at all, and the British and French don't share them with us..."
"But it must be more than ours! Because they have been purchasing continuously in the past few years, and during the war they also captured a number of French and Tsarist Russian warships..."
"God knows whether it has been repaired. I can only pray for God's blessing!"
Enmu rubbed his numb cheeks, "It should be clear now what the Chinese plan is. First, the navy will be mobilized to assemble in Brunei, and then the army will start organizing and reorganizing here to prepare for battle!"
"I don't know how many troops the Chinese can organize. Right now, we know that Brunei has more than 30,000 troops that can be mobilized. There will be at least 30,000 thugs in northern Luzon in the future!"
"How much support can Ryukyu mainland support? I heard from British businessmen that Chinese newspapers have reported that the king of the distant Far East sent 20,000 dragoons!"
"At least 100,000 army! This is the most conservative number... Navy, I estimate that the number of warships that the Chinese will eventually gather will exceed ours, more than twelve!"
"I'm talking about large battleships capable of blue-water decisive battles, not those small gunboats!"
"Your Majesty the Governor, change your strategy. The biggest threat right now is not the north! It is our south!"
Governor Botila was so frightened that he had never fought such a large-scale war in his life or experienced it!
One hundred thousand troops landed in Manila, and all the troops in the Philippines combined were not enough!
Although the indigenous people can also provide some troops, can those monkeys fight? How can it be compared with the iron army of the Chinese that fought hard against France and Tsarist Russia!
"Change...change, change, change...I completely listen to you, let's change our strategy immediately!"
"God, please save me. If you can help me survive this disaster safely, I am willing to build a church of thanksgiving in Manila!"
Major General Enmu sighed inwardly, "The empire is really in decline. Can such an incompetent weakling become the governor?"
"For the current plan, we can only concentrate our limited forces to build a defense line in the north of Manila, temporarily abandon the north of Luzon Island, and focus on protecting the security of Manila..."
"Then... then let the navy dispatch! While the Chinese fleet has not yet assembled, attack Brunei and kill as many as you can..."
"Right now, there are only four Chinese warships in Brunei. As long as we act quickly and take action before the six warships from Hong Kong arrive, there is a possibility of a comeback!"
"The fleet quickly moved south, eating four Brunei warships, and then headed north to block the Chinese support fleet in the South China Sea...first twelve against four, then twelve against six..."
"No matter what, we win!"
The Governor opened his eyes wide and confused. "Really? Are you sure? Will it definitely succeed?"
