CHINA–SOUTHEAST ASIA RELATIONS: A RETROSPECTIVE OF CHINA’S TRIBUTARY SYSTEM
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Published:
Dec 31, 2020
Keywords:
Tributary system China foreign relations Son of Heaven Mandate of Heaven China-Southeast Asia tributary relations
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Abstract
This article attempts to describe the ideology, politics, and implementation of China’s traditional tributary system to better understand its suzerainty over states, specifically in foreign relations. Through this system, China, which is considered to be the superior state (shangguo), will protect the sovereign states in its orbit. In return, the sovereign states have to present tributes to the Emperor of China, who is regarded as the Son of Heaven (tianzi), as well as recognised China’s greatness and power. This study involves a qualitative analysis based on official Chinese historical records as well as scholarly studies on the effectiveness and limitations of the system. This article also covers countries in Southeast Asia that adopted tributary systems. This region is still poorly defined, and the limited number of studies, especially regarding its history and intra-regional development prior to Western powers' arrival. The research findings proved that China’s tributary system in the Southeast Asian region is dynamic relationships. Hence, it is suggested that researchers should look at the system within a broader framework to understand its implementation. Although the practice of the tributary system is Sinocentric, it is neither static nor monolithic. Conversely, the tributary system has a well-organised, neat and well-established mechanism that results from mutual understanding between China and its protectorates.
Keywords: tributary system, China foreign relations, Son of Heaven, Mandate of Heaven, China-Southeast Asia tributary relations
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Niu, J. (2003). Zhaogong yu Banjiao: Mingmo Qingchu Zhongyue Guangxi Yanjiu: 1593–1702 [Tribute and diplomatic relations: Sino–Vietnamese relationships during the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties: 1593–1701]. Doctoral thesis, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China.
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Stuart-Fox, M. (2004). Southeast Asia and China: The role of history and culture in shaping future relations. Contemporary Southeast Asia, 26(1), 116–139.
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Wade, G. P. (1994). The Ming Shi-lu (Veritable records of the Ming Dynasty) as a source for Southeast Asian history – 14th to 17th centuries. Doctoral thesis. Department of History, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong.
Wade, G. P. (2008). Engaging the south: Ming China and Southeast Asia in the fifteenth century. Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient, 51(4), 578–638.
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Wang, G. (1965b). Chinese Historians and the nature of early Chinese foreign relations. The Journal of the Oriental Society of Australia, 2(3), 39–54.
Wang, G. (1968). Early Ming relations with Southeast Asia: A background essay. In J. K. Fairbank (Ed.), The Chinese world order: Traditional China’s foreign relations (pp. 34-62). Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press.
Wang, G. (1999). China and Southeast Asia: Myths, threats and culture. Singapore: World Scientific Publishing.
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Yu, Y. (1967). Trade and expansion in Han China: A study in the structure of Sino-Barbarian economic relations. Berkeley: University of California Press.
Zhang, F. (2009). Rethinking the “tribute system”: Broadening the conceptual horizon of historical East Asian politics. Chinese Journal of International Politics, 2, 545–574.
Zhang, F. (2015). Confucian foreign policy traditions in Chinese history. The Chinese Journal of International Politics, 8(2), 197–218.
Zhang, S. (2004). Qiangdai Zongfan Guanxi de Lishi Faxue Duowei Toushi Fenxi [Suzerain–vassal state relationships in the Qing Dynasty]. Qingshi Yanjiu [Studies in Qing History], 1, 21–38.
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Cheng, Z. (1964). Chunqiu jiangyi [Explanation of the meaning of spring and autumn]. Hong Kong: Erhu Chubanshe.
Chun, H.-J. (1968). Sino-Korean tributary relations in the Ch’ing Period. In J. K. Fairbank (Ed.), The Chinese world order: Traditional China’s foreign relations (pp. 91–112). Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press.
Cranmer-Byng, J. (1973). The Chinese view of their place in the world: An historical perspective. The China Quarterly, 53, 67–79.
Fairbank, J. K. (1942). Tributary trade and China’s relations with the West. The Far Eastern Quarterly, 1(2), 129–145.
Fairbank, J. K. (Ed.) (1968). The Chinese world order: Traditional China’s foreign relations. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press.
Fairbank, J. K., & Goldman, M. (2006). China - a new history. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press.
Fletcher, J. (1968). China and Central Asia 1368-1884. In J. K. Fairbank (Ed.), The Chinese world order: Traditional China’s foreign relations (pp. 206–224). Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press.
Ford, C. (2010). The mind of empire: China’s history and modern foreign relations. Lexington: University Press of Kentucky.
Fuma, S. (2007). Ming-Qing China’s policy towards Vietnam as a mirror of its policy towards Korea: With a focus on the question of investiture and punitive expeditions. Memoirs of the Research Department of the Toyo Bunko, 65, 1-33.
Hamashita, T. (1988). The tribute trade system and modern Asia. Memoirs of the Research Department of the Toyo Bunko, 46, 7–23.
Hamashita, T. (2008). China, East Asia and the global economy: Regional and historical perspectives. Abingdon: Routledge.
Hevia, J. L. (1995). Cherishing men from afar: Qing guest ritual and the Macartney Embassy of 1793. Durham: Duke University Press.
Hevia, J. L. (2009). Tribute, asymmetry, and imperial formations: Rethinking relations of power in East Asia. The Journal of American-East Asian Relations, 16(1), 69–83.
Hsu, I. (1960). China’s entrance into the family of nations: The diplomatic phase 1858-1880. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press.
Jenkins, B. M. (1979). Traditions and patterns of Vietnamese history. The Rand Corporation. Retrieved from https://www.rand.org/content/dam/rand/pubs/papers/2006/P6395.pdf
Kang, D. C. (2003). Hierarchy, balancing, and empirical puzzles in Asian international relations. International Security, 28(3), 174–175.
Kang, D. C. (2012). East Asia before the West: Five centuries of trade and tribute. New York: Columbia University Press.
Kham Dinh Viet Su Thong Giam Cuong Muc [The imperially ordered annotated text completely reflecting the history of Viet], vol. 35.
Kobkua, S. P. (1997). Asia Tenggara: Hubungan tradisional serantau [Southeast Asia: Traditional regional relation]. Kuala Lumpur: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka.
Lee, J.-Y. (2017). China’s hegemony: Four hundred years of East Asian domination. New York: Columbia University Press.
Liang, L. (1996). Lembaran sejarah gemilang hubungan Empayar Melaka-Dinasti Ming abad ke-15 [History of foreign relations between the Melaka Sultanate and China during the Ming Dynasty in the fifteenth century]. Bangi: Penerbit Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia.
Lien, S. Y. (1968). Historical notes on the Chinese world order. In J. K. Fairbank (Ed.), The Chinese world order: Traditional China’s foreign relations (pp. 3–24). Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press.
Li, Y. (2004). Zhaogong zhidu shilun - Zhongguo gudai dui wai guanxi tizhi yanjiu [On Sino-foreign relations and the tributary system]. Beijing: Xinhua Chubanshe.
Mancall, M. (1968). The Ch’ing tribute system: An interpretive essay. In J. K. Fairbank (Ed.), The Chinese world order: Traditional China’s foreign relations (pp. 63–89). Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press.
Mancall, M. (1984). China at the center: 300 years of foreign policy. London: Collier Macmillan.
Ming Shilu, Shi-zong. Vol. 268. [《明世宗实录》，《卷二六八》] Retrieved March 10, 2020, from http://epress.nus.edu.sg/msl/reign/jia-jing
Ming Shilu, Yingzong. Vol. 46, 6a-b. Retrieved March 10, 2020, from http://epress.nus.edu.sg/msl/reign/zheng-tong
Ming Taizu Shilu [Veritable Record of Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang]. (1418). Vol. 80. Retrieved March 10, 2020, from http://epress.nus.edu.sg/msl/reign/hong-wu
Nakajima, G. (2018). The structure and transformation of the Ming tribute trade system. In M. Perez Garcia, & L. de Sousa (Eds.), Global history and new polycentric approaches (pp. 137–162). Singapore: Springer Nature Singapore.
Niu, J. (1995). Gudai zhoubian guojia dui hua chaogong de teshu gongpin – gong ren [The special tribute between China and its ancient neighboring countries – a tribute envoy]. Zhongshan Daxue Yanjiusheng Xuekan: Shehi Kexueban [Journal of the Graduates, Sun Yat-sen University (Social Sciences)], 16(3), 54–60.
Niu, J. (2003). Zhaogong yu Banjiao: Mingmo Qingchu Zhongyue Guangxi Yanjiu: 1593–1702 [Tribute and diplomatic relations: Sino–Vietnamese relationships during the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties: 1593–1701]. Doctoral thesis, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China.
Niu, J. (2005). Sangui jukou yu wubai sankou: Qingchao yu Annan de liyi zhi zheng [Dispute over protocol between the Qing Dynasty and Annam: ‘Wubai sankou’ or ‘sangui jiukou’]. Nanyang Wenti Yanjiu [Southeast Asian Affairs], 1, 46-52.
Perdue, P. C. (2015). The tenacious tributary system. Journal of Contemporary China, 24(96), 1002–1014. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10670564.2015.1030949.
Qinding Da Qing Huidian Shili [Collected statutes of the Qing Dynasty]. Vol. 150: Libu [Bureau of Ceremonies], Zhuke Qinglishi [Bureau of Receptions], Chaogong [Tribute].
Qing Taizong Shilu [Veritable Records of Qing Taizong] [《清太宗实录》].
Rossabi, M. (Ed.) (1983). China among equals: The middle kingdom and its neighbours, 10th-14th centuries. Berkeley: University of California Press.
Samuel, S. K. (2015). China, the United Nations and world order. Princeton University Press.
Shih, M.-W. (2002). The rise of China in world-system perspective. Doctoral thesis, Sociology Department, State University of New York at Binghamton, Binghamton, United States.
Shijing. Xiaoya, Beishan [The Book of Poetry, Little Elegance].
Stuart-Fox, M. (2004). Southeast Asia and China: The role of history and culture in shaping future relations. Contemporary Southeast Asia, 26(1), 116–139.
Suebsaeng, P. (1971). Sino-Siamese tributary relations, 1282-1853. Doctoral thesis, University of Wisconsin, United States.
Sun, H. (2005). Yongzheng chao
Tsiang, T. F. (1935). China and European expansion. Politica, 2(5), 1–18.
Viraphol, S. (1977). Tribute and profit: Sino-Siamese trade, 1652-1853. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Council on East Asian Studies, Harvard University.
Vuving, A. L. (2009). Operated by world views and interfaced by world order: Traditional and modern Sino-Vietnamese relations. In A. Reid and Y. Zhang (Eds.), Negotiating asymmetry: China’s place in Asia (pp. 73-92). Singapore: National University of Singapore Press.
Wade, G. P. (1994). The Ming Shi-lu (Veritable records of the Ming Dynasty) as a source for Southeast Asian history – 14th to 17th centuries. Doctoral thesis. Department of History, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong.
Wade, G. P. (2008). Engaging the south: Ming China and Southeast Asia in the fifteenth century. Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient, 51(4), 578–638.
Wade, G., & Chin, J. K. (Eds.). (2019). China and Southeast Asia: Historical interactions. Abingdon: Routledge.
Wagar, W. W. (Ed.). (1971). History and the idea of mankind. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press.
Wang, G. (1965a). Chinese historians and the nature of early Chinese foreign relations. Journal of the Oriental Society of Australia, 3(2), 39–45.
Wang, G. (1965b). Chinese Historians and the nature of early Chinese foreign relations. The Journal of the Oriental Society of Australia, 2(3), 39–54.
Wang, G. (1968). Early Ming relations with Southeast Asia: A background essay. In J. K. Fairbank (Ed.), The Chinese world order: Traditional China’s foreign relations (pp. 34-62). Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press.
Wang, G. (1999). China and Southeast Asia: Myths, threats and culture. Singapore: World Scientific Publishing.
Wang, G. (2005a). The opening of relations between China and Malacca, 1403-05. In L. Suryadinata (Ed.), Admiral Zheng He & Southeast Asia (pp. 1–25). Singapore: Singapore International Society of Zheng He.
Wang, G. (2005b). The first three rulers of Melaka. In L. Suryadinata (Ed.), Admiral Zheng He & Southeast Asia (pp. 26–41). Singapore: Singapore International Society of Zheng He.
Wenxian Tongkao [General History of Institutions and Critical Examination of Documents and Studies]. Vol. 331: Si Yi Ba [Frontier Regions], No. 8 and Vol. 22: Shi Kao [The City].
Wills, J. E., Jr. (2010). China and maritime Europe, 1500–1800: Trade, settlement, diplomacy, and missions. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Womack, B. (2012). Asymmetry and China’s tributary system. The Chinese Journal of International Politics, 5(1), 37–54.
Woodside, A. B. (1963). Early Ming expansionism, 1406-1427: China’s abortive conquest of Vietnam. Papers on China. 17. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University East Asia Research Center.
Woodside, A. B. (1971). Vietnam and the Chinese model: A comparative study of Vietnamese and Chinese government in the first half of the nineteenth century. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press.
Yang, T. (2007). Diming, lishi, guannian-jiyu Lingnan Guimenguan chenwei liubianshi de wenhuaxue Jiedu [Place name, history, idea: The culturology interpretation based on the changes of appellation of Guimen Pass in Lingnan]. Guangxi Minzu Yanjiu [Guangxi Ethnic Studies], 2, 157–162.
Yu, Y. (1967). Trade and expansion in Han China: A study in the structure of Sino-Barbarian economic relations. Berkeley: University of California Press.
Zhang, F. (2009). Rethinking the “tribute system”: Broadening the conceptual horizon of historical East Asian politics. Chinese Journal of International Politics, 2, 545–574.
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Zuo Zhuan [Zuozhuan Commentary] [《左传》, 《定公十年》]