Chapter 36 master of the southern peninsula of asia

The total area of ​​the southern peninsula is four times that of the Balkan Peninsula, including four ancient kingdoms, including independent, semi-independent, and outright subordinate kingdoms.Myanmar is located on the westernmost tip of the southern peninsula. Before 1885, Myanmar was always an independent kingdom. Later, after gaining the approval of the Burmese and the support of the whole world, the British exiled the last king of Myanmar and incorporated Myanmar into the territory of the British Empire.No one disputed the matter except the last king of Burma himself.But unless the last king of Burma is like the crazy king in the movie "Eastern Monarch", he is the kind of person who can exile him without making excuses.Moreover, he is imported from the north, not a native Burmese.The entire southern peninsula has had enough of a man like him.For this, the mountains of Burma are largely responsible.A high mountain stretches from east to west on the northern border of Myanmar, keeping India out and acting as a natural barrier.However, the five mountains in Myanmar run from north to south, providing a convenient channel for those peoples living on the great plains of Central Asia. coastal areas.Wherever they went, they left behind not only countless ruined walls, abandoned fields, and burned cities, but also many descendants of them.The last monarch of Myanmar is one of them.

You need not feel sorry for the misfortune of the last Burmese monarch.It was he who, in celebration of his becoming king, repeated the tragedy of ancient Asia—killed all his relatives.In former times, the sultans of the Turkish Empire used to do this as a precaution.Just like if one day you become the president of a South American republic, you must purchase accidental death insurance.However, this incident of beheading hundreds of brothers and nephews and bleeding into rivers happened in the 1980s of the last century, which is intolerable.So the British governor took the opportunity to replace him and drove the last tyrant away.Since then, Myanmar, a small kingdom with 3% Hindus and 90% Buddhists, has prospered rapidly.The Ayeyarwady River (upstream in our country, called the Lancang River——Translator’s Note) is navigable all the way from Yangon to Mandalay. It soon became the main artery of commercial transportation. Countless ships came and went on the river, carrying rice, Materials such as oil have brought unprecedented landscapes to Myanmar.

The east of Myanmar is Siam (the old name of Thailand——Translator's Note).On the border between Myanmar and Siam, the Dona Mountains and Thanointhaung Mountains stand there.The reason why Siam can continue to enjoy the independence of the country is because the west side of Siam is occupied by the United Kingdom, and the east side is the French colony. Britain and France are mutually exclusive and guarded against each other, and Siam has obtained protection from it.In addition, another important factor for the survival of the Siamese Kingdom is the Siamese King.The elder King Chulalongkorn, a descendant of the Chinese who separated Siam from Burma in the late 18th century, has been in power for nearly forty years.Using his neighbors to the west against his neighbors to the east, he was careful and tactful, with a knack for making small concessions at the right time, and he chose advisers who were neither British nor French but from less threatening People from small countries.The wise King Chulalongkorn established a university, reduced the illiteracy rate of Siam from 90% to 20%, built a railway, and dredged the Chao Phraya River, making it navigable for more than 400 miles.He also built an excellent communications and telephone system.The Siamese soldiers were also well-trained, and he not only turned Siam into a very reliable ally, but also had the potential to develop into a potential threat.

Bangkok is located on the Chao Phraya River Delta, and its population has expanded to 1 million. However, most people still live on small boats along the Chao Phraya River, making people feel that Bangkok is the Venice of the East.Siam has never restricted the immigration of foreign immigrants, so industrious Chinese can freely come to Bangkok to settle down.The Chinese now account for one-ninth of Siam's total population and have rapidly developed Siam into the most important rice exporter.There are dense forests in the interior of Siam, and its economic value is also very considerable. One of Siam's most important exports is teak.The Malacca peninsula contains some of the richest tin mines in the world, and thankfully, Siam retains at least part of the peninsula.

However, on the whole, the Siamese government took a resistive attitude towards the country's industrialization.All the inhabitants of the tropics must, if they are to survive, place their chief interest in agriculture and other simple crafts.Let Europe be a world of factories and slums, Asia only wants to keep its villages and farmlands forever, which may not be liked by westerners, but they suit oriental tastes, and factories are out of them. In addition, Siam's agricultural products are somewhat different from those of most agriculturally developed countries.In addition to the 1 million pigs raised by the Chinese in Siam, there are 6 million domesticated buffaloes and 6,822 elephants in Siam.Siamese elephants can help their owners with work in the fields and can also be rented out to serve as cranes and heavy trucks.

The part of the peninsula occupied by the French is French Indochina, which can be roughly divided into five parts from south to north.The first is Cambodia, located in the delta of the Mekong River Great Plains, producing cotton and pepper.Cambodia is nominally an independent kingdom, but it is under French supervision.Angkor Wat is a fascinating historical site in Cambodia, located in the heart of Cambodia, in the dense forests north of Tonle Sap Lake.Angkor Wat was built by the mysterious Khmer people, about whom we know very little.In the 9th century AD, the Khmer people established Angkor in northern Cambodia as their capital.The capital project was so vast that each side of the city walls was at least 2 miles long and 30 feet high.Under the influence of Indian monks, the Khmer people began to believe in Brahmanism. However, in the 10th century, the Khmer people changed to believe in Buddhism and made Buddhism the state religion.The spiritual world of the Khmer people has changed from Brahmanism to Buddhism, and this transformation is also reflected in the structures of temples and halls that can be seen everywhere.These buildings were built between the 12th and 15th centuries AD, and after the destruction of Angkor, they still left behind amazing ruins of ancient buildings.If you compare the Angkor ruins with the world-famous Mayan heritage in America, the Mayan civilization is just the work of simple-minded beginners.

Another theory is that Angkor existed long before the formation of the Mekong Delta, and it was originally built on the sea.If so, that means the ocean has receded 300 miles.This is simply a world miracle! In history, it has been recorded that the coastline of Narraven has retreated nearly 5 miles, and that of Pisa has retreated nearly 7 miles.The ins and outs of Angkor's past may remain a mystery forever.But there was a city like Angkor in Cambodia. Angkor was more important than New York today, but Angkor does not exist now, and it has become a landscape on postcards. At the Paris Colonial Exhibition, visitors You can get it for a penny.What is even more incredible is that when Angkor became the center of world civilization at that time, Paris was still a small fishing village made up of simple houses that gave off an unpleasant fishy smell.

Today, the Mekong Delta is part of the French Indochina colony.France's expansion in Mexico suffered a serious setback. In order to save a little face for the empire, in 1867, the Mekong Delta was occupied.Saigon is a natural harbor in the Mekong Delta.Thousands of French officials were in charge of 4 million Indochinese in Saigon, and they eagerly hoped to end this drudgery as soon as possible so that they could return to their hometown and spend their old age in peace. To the east of Indochina is Annam (the former name of the People's Republic of Vietnam——Translator's Note).Although Annan has been "protected" by France since 1886, Annan still maintains the status of an independent kingdom.Timber is the main product of Annan, but there are many roads in Annan Mountains, so it is still in a primitive state to be developed.

The northern part of Annan is very important. Not only is there an important river, the Red River, but it is also rich in coal and cement.Annan is actually a part of China and, like China, produces and exports cotton, silk and sugar.Since 1902, the seat of the French government governing the entire Indochina has been located in Hanoi, the Annan capital.There is also a narrow strip of French Indochina known as Laos. In 1893, the French annexed Laos.The southernmost tip of the peninsula is divided in two, part of which is the so-called "Malay Federation", including four small semi-independent principalities, all of which are under the jurisdiction of the United Kingdom.The other part of the peninsula is the British Crown Colony, officially known as the "Straits Settlements".The mountains, sometimes at elevations as high as 8,000 feet, are rich in tin.For the British, control of the Malay Peninsula was extremely important.The peninsula's climate is also suitable for growing a wide variety of tropical crops with little input.Penang is located on the shore of the Strait of Malacca, and it exports a large amount of rubber, coffee, pepper, tapioca starch, betel nut paste and other products.Singapore sits on a small island with a population of over 500,000.The city of Singapore guards all sea passages from south to north and from east to west, so Singapore's strategic position is very important.

Singapore, also known as the "Lion City", has a history similar to that of Chicago.The earliest builder was the famous Dutch colonial official Stamford Raffles, who had long foreseen the importance of the strategic location of the Lion City.At that time, the Lion City was a colony of the Netherlands, but the Netherlands itself had been reduced to a vassal of the Napoleonic Empire.Today, Singapore has a population of more than 500,000, and until 1819, the Lion City was a scrubland.In Singapore, all kinds of races, languages, and customs of the East can be seen.Like Gibraltar, the Lion City is a fortress.A railway line that can go directly to Bangkok, Siam starts from the Lion City, and this railway line has not yet been repaired to Yangon, Myanmar.When the conflict eventually inevitably breaks out between East and West, Singapore will have a special role to play.In anticipation of this prospect, a large number of bars have sprung up in Singapore, and their magnificence is well-known throughout the Eastern world.In addition, the lion city spends almost as much money as Dublin on the annual horse race.