The China History Podcast

In America, we have Washington Irving, Mark Twain, Hemingway, and so on. In China, Su Dongpo, (also known referred to as Su Shi) would be mentioned when rattling off their best of the best. He was definitely a major guy not only in the Song but in the overall world of Chinese culture as well. If you're interested to check out some of his poetry, here's an amazon link to a book of his poems translated by Burton Watson: Selected Poems of Su T'ung-P'o. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this latest episode, Laszlo finally gets around to the oft-requested subject of piracy in early 19th century China. Pirates had been a fact of life going back to the most olden days. Mid to late Qing Dynasty the amount of trade being plied on the China coast attracted pirates like never before. Zheng Yi Sao ("Zheng Yi's Wife") was a tough woman from the Pearl River Delta who married the most notorious pirate of his day Zheng Yi. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Laszlo offers up the exciting conclusion to the 3-part series introducing the Tong Wars. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this Part 2 episode, the Tong Wars begin in earnest. The first and second Tong Wars are discussed.  "Tong Wars, The Untold Story of Vice, Money and Murder in New York's Chinatown" Scott Seligman's Amazon Page: https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B001IGHOAO/allbooks?ingress=0&visitId=24d82f31-2703-4b29-ad95-129e3d303e4b&ref_=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1&ccs_id=31d8c0f7-2b8e-4f3b-871a-5ad5acff810f 

In this episode, Laszlo explains the Tong Wars of New York's Chinatown. With the help of Scott Seligman's latest book we go back to late 19th - early 20th century America and focus on New York's Chinatown. These were terribly unpleasant days for most citizens of Chinese ancestry and especially for those immigrants who either had not begun the process or lived in the shadows illegally. For a list of terms used in this episode, check out the CHP website at teacup.media Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Laszlo finishes up the story of the Yuan Dynasty, founded in 1271. The parts of China not yet conquered were done in by 1276 and the last holdouts went by 1279. But the Great Yuan didn't last long. This episode takes a nice little overview of the dynasty, its slow demise, and the legacy they left. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this long-overdue episode with a deceiving title, we don't actually get around to the Yuan Dynasty. However, a nice handy and confusing overview tracing the rise of the Mongol nation is presented which includes a bio on Genghis Khan. We'll get to the rise of Kublai Khan this time and look at the Yuan Dynasty next episode. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this bonus one hour plus episode we look at the last six years of Zhou Enlai's life. It was a bittersweet end for Premier Zhou. In between doing great things for China and guiding the country's general well-being, he was forced to play a central role in some of the worst internecine politics in CCP history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this longer than expected seventh episode of the series, the Cultural Revolution gets underway, something that Zhou will have to deal with until his dying day. Aside from this, China's illustrious premier also has his hands full with a thousand other responsibilities, both foreign and domestic. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

More Zhou Enlai again. This time we look at the second half of the 1950s. Zhou was as busy as ever, setting up the government, handling foreign relations, and dealing with Chairman Mao. This episode will see Zhou during the Gao Gang Affair, Hundred Flowers, Anti-Rightist, San Fan and Wu Fan Campaigns, Land Reform, rapid agricultural collectivization, and the disastrous Great Leap Forward. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Welcome back to Part 5 of our Zhou Enlai series. Today, the focus is on the Korean War and the Geneva Conference. Zhou already enjoyed some degree of international respect from those he had come to know during his Shanghai and Chongqing years. By 1954 he had established himself as a respected tour de force on the world stage and earned begrudging admiration from those who refused to recognize the country for which he was head of state. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this Part 4 episode of the CHP Zhou Enlai series Laszlo re-tells the always amusing story of when the Americans came around Yan'an to kick the tires of the CCP and see what they were all about. This time Zhou again proves his loyalty and devotion to Mao and as always to China. He gets a real workout as far as developing his role as the Communists (and later China's) chief diplomat. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this Part 3 episode, the story of Zhou Enlai is taken all the way up to the 1943 Yan'an Rectification Campaign. We'll look at the Zunyi Conference, the Long March, the Xian Incident, and finally the ill-fated Second United Front. At every historic moment, Zhou Enlai was there, playing a lead role. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this second part of what's shaping up to be a long series, Laszlo picks up at the Zhongshan Gunboat Incident and follows the life of Zhou Enlai through the challenging years of 1926-1934. Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-china-history-podcast/donations Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In today's Part 1 episode Laszlo explores the early life of Zhou Enlai, growing up in a traditional scholar-officials family that had seen better days. Zhou gets passed from relative to relative. But each step of the way there were mentors and breaks that he was able to make the most of. We can see through his early years and into his teens how Zhou was perfectly trained and tested for the larger job that lay ahead. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jack Jones' story is told today in this little snapshot of a little-known organization that operated in 1940's China known as The Friends Ambulance Unit later renamed the Friends Service Unit. It was a Quaker funded charity that operated ambulances, providing urgent medical care and other charitable services during wartime. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Laszlo focuses on the history of Chinese Americans in the early years of Hollywood. The period will focus on the 1920s to the 1950s. During those years Asian Americans had a rough time in Hollywood trying to break away from stereotypical roles. This episode takes a closer look at the lives of Anna May Wong and Jadin Wong as a window into these times. Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-china-history-podcast/donations Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this final Part 3 episode we finally get around to Qin Shihuang and the dynasty he founded. He didn’t reign a long time but the First Qin Emperor’s impact on all the dynasties that followed was very long lasting. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this Part 2 of a 3 part series, we'll look at Duke Xiao's secret weapon: Shang Yang. Shang Yang introduced Legalism to the Qin ruler and all kinds of reforms that took the Qin to the next level. We'll also explore the rulers who all benefited from Shang Yang's political reforms. We'll also look at King Zhaoxiang and his great military advisor Fan Ju. Nobody was laughing at the Qin anymore. By the 3rd century BC, they were becoming the most powerful state in Eastern Zhou China.  

In this first of three episodes, Laszlo offers up a nice easy overview of Qin Shihuang and the Qin State. In Part 1 we'll look at the ancient beginnings of the Qin and how they caught a few lucky breaks, establishing themselves around Gansu and Shaanxi province, after coming to the aid of the Zhou kings. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices