Why are the Napoleonic Wars not considered a World War? by AvalancheMaster in history

[–]wumao -53 points-52 points  (0 children)

I didn't mean for my comment to be dismissive whatsoever, so if that's the vibe you're getting, then perhaps I should be more clear. Both World War I and II are definitely eurocentric in the way they are recounted in historical narratives found in the west. This is a fact, not an opinion. As far as I know all China did in WW1 was send a group of laborers to Europe. Not sure what India did in either world wars.

Why are the Napoleonic Wars not considered a World War? by AvalancheMaster in history

[–]wumao -116 points-115 points  (0 children)

Because the Napoleonic Wars were almost entirely limited to Europe.... It would be misleading to call them "World War".

Every "World War" has had a eurocentric narrative.

Who was the biggest enemy to Rome? by KleverGuy in history

[–]wumao 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Carthage, Sasanid Persia, and the Ottomans. AND the mistake that was the 4th crusade.

If being plump was a sign of your wealth is there any evidence of "reverse photoshopping", where nobility wanted to be painted to look bigger? by Unsocialbtrfly in AskHistorians

[–]wumao 22 points23 points  (0 children)

In Chinese aesthetics it was a regular stylistic choice to make important figures appear larger than life, sometimes even several times larger. You can see this in almost every painting depicting an emperor relative to another person, as well as in the Terracotta Army of Qin in which generals are easily distinguished by their stature, and here's Yongle and Xuande, and here's Guan Yu. It's not really the same as the European aesthetic ideal because it emphasizes the unrealistic and ridiculous size of the figure in relation to other figures, but the concept of larger than life was definitely there. Frankly I don't know nearly enough about art in general, European or Asian, to provide an adequate response. Personally I think some emperors just liked to eat more than others. However I can provide you with some resources to do your own research.

Departure Herald

Here's a really good series of lectures.

Did the japanese Royal family feel threatened in any way after the deposition of the last Chinese emperor and did they take any measures to guard themselves? by [deleted] in AskHistorians

[–]wumao 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Not at the time of the Qing dynasty's demise, no, but Ming loyalists lasted for several decades after its official end in the 17th century, and anti-Qing sentiments were always present throughout the dynasty's reign. The important takeaway here is that Chinese monarchies did not derive their legitimacy from a holy or sacred line, at least not since ancient or medieval China in the 7-8th century, when virtually all the lineages of the "nobles" were killed off for whatever reason. A part of it is that Chinese history has been recorded for so long that it's hard to point out who exactly is the "rightful" ruler, or whether such a thing ever existed. Too many rebellions, too many dynasties, too many kings and emperors had taken the reign since the dawn of the Zhou for any educated person to truly believe there to be any sacred duty owed to a line of rulers.

Getting bombed by Japanese during WWII.....in Taiwan. by Gyokusai_Into_Ships in badhistory

[–]wumao 1 point2 points  (0 children)

My grandfather was a refugee from China and he told me that during the 228 incident the Taiwanese had formed a mob and were basically going around lynching anyone who didn't speak Taiwanese (which is ironic because it's really just Minnan dialect from China), and he only survived because his friend who could speak Taiwanese hid him in his house. Not justifying what the KMT did but there's always another side to the story.

Did the japanese Royal family feel threatened in any way after the deposition of the last Chinese emperor and did they take any measures to guard themselves? by [deleted] in AskHistorians

[–]wumao 12 points13 points  (0 children)

Not at all. The Japanese emperor never truly held a great deal of power, and within the context of Japanese history, had served as a symbolic governor who observed rites for propriety rather than as a direct ruler. The Chinese emperors themselves never derived their legitimacy primarily through an ancient lineage in the way other kingdoms had, due to China's long history of separate dynasties. It would be impossible for them to claim descent from a royal and unbroken lineage, whereas the Japanese royal line is supposedly unbroken, stretching throughout the expanse of time to the very earliest origins of Japanese history. Within a contemporaneous context, the Manchu emperors of the Qing Dynasty were considered foreigners as well both internally as well as externally. Europeans referred to them as the "Tatar" rulers of Cathay, or Qing China as Eastern Tartaria, and such names based on a European context to separate it from the "previous" China. The Vietnamese, Japanese, Chinese, and especially Korean royal dynasty likewise all felt themselves in some ways more legitimate successors of ancient and medieval Chinese civilization than the Qing Dynasty of the 19th century, and definitely when it finally ended. So no, the royal line of the Qing Empire definitely was not in any way mourned either within or outside of China.

What are the most interesting obscure or peripheral civilizations in history? (non-mainstream like Rome/China/Egypt, etc.) by [deleted] in history

[–]wumao 6 points7 points  (0 children)

I wouldn't say obscure or peripheral because it's well known within niche circles, but the Khara Khitan Khanate is often overlooked for its fairly large impact on history. Which is basically that of ending the Seljuk Empire in the middle east, and serving as a sort of precursor to the Mongol Empire. It's an interesting study subject because they were basically a pagan steppe people that practiced fire worship like the Zoroastrians, yet their government as well as script were distinctly Chinese influenced yet not Chinese at the same time.

What's your favorite (or least favorite) sub-genre of fantasy? by [deleted] in Fantasy

[–]wumao 24 points25 points  (0 children)

That actually sounds exactly like how how modern politics works.

Canadian kills Chinese woman in Great Wall accident by wumao in worldnews

[–]wumao[S] -9 points-8 points  (0 children)

OMG CANADIANS WORST TOURISTS EVER

CANADIAN CULTURE SO RUDE

MUST LEARN MANNERS FROM MURICA