War, trade and piracy in the China Seas, 1622-1683 / by Cheng Wei-chung.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 345-355) and index.

Introduction: The Missing Link -- The tributary system challenged -- Nicolas Iquan before 1627 -- The survival game of the mercenaries, 1628-1631 -- The establishment of the An-Hai trading emporium, 1630-1633 -- Stormy weather at the imperial court and on the south China coast, 1632-1633 -- The winding ways towards the western ocean -- The risk of politics and the politics of risk, 1636-1640 -- In search of silver in a changing world, 1640-1646 -- The open coast of the Chinese empire, 1646-1650 -- Fukienese exceptionalism transformed into a political project, 1650-1654 -- The passions of a merchant prince, 1654-1657 -- From defeat to victory, 1658-1662 -- All acknowledged by the kings, 1663-1667 -- Monopoly lost, 1669-1683 -- Conclusion: defensive and aggressive monopolies.

Approaching its demise, the Ming imperial administration enlisted members of the Cheng family as mercenaries to help in the defense of the coastal waters of Fukien. Under the leadership of Cheng Chih-lung, also known as Nicolas Iquan, and with the help of the local gentry, these mercenaries became the backbone of the empire's maritime defense and the protectors of Chinese commercial interests in the East and South China Seas. The fall of the Ming allowed Cheng Ch'eng-kung-alias Coxinga-and his sons to create a short-lived but independent seaborne regime in China's southeastern coastalprovinces that competed fiercely, if only briefly, with Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch and English merchants during the early stages of globalization.

Local access dig.pdf. [Cheng-China Seas.pdf

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