Byusa
From FrathWiki
Byusa (扶桑) is an archipelago off the far eastern shore of Asia. Several nations are located in Byusa, presently forming a loose confederation known as the Byusan Union.
Note: Some names used herein are provisional, in many cases simply the names of regions in our timeline
Contents |
History
The ancestors of today's Byusans arrived around 800 BC, possibly from northern Silla (Korea in our timeline). They were initially divided into many small statelets, which gradually coalesced into eight small kingdoms.
Pakkok Era
By around AD 300, eight kingdoms had formed in southern and central Byusa. The rulers of these states used the title 大王 (Great King) to distinguish themselves from the lesser states that had preceded them and, in some cases, continued to exist as vassals. The northernmost and southernmost portions were still non-Byusan, occupied by various tribes. The southernmost state, Wakok, was non-Byusan, most likely another group of immigrants from the Sillan Peninsula. These states frequently fought amongst themselves, and also interacted with the kingdoms of the Sillan Peninsula.
The eight states were (italics for uncertain names):
- Wakok 倭国 (yellow on the map)
- Sandokok 三島国 (red on the map)
- Saninkok 山陰国 (light green)
- Sanyokok 山陽国 (light blue)
- Kogenkok 広原国 (orange)
- Pokkok 北国 (purple)
- Enkokok 遠江国 (dark blue)
- Nitrikok 日立国 (dark green)
Gokok Era
By the early 6th century, the eight kingdoms had been reduced to five. Sandokok had been divided between Wakok and Saninkok. Kogenkok had conquered Sanyokok and competed with Wakok over control of *Shikoku, while Nitrikok had conquered Enkokok, and both Nitrikok and Pokkok were expanding northward. Wakok also pushed southwards, bringing the entirity of Wato under its control. During the Gokok Era, sustained contact was made with China, resulting in large-scale cultural borrowing. Buddhism first arrived in Byusa in 538, first appearing in Wakok and Saninkok. By 560, it had been accepted by the ruling elite of all but Nitrikok, which rejected Buddhist missionaries and remained loyal to the old religion, though by the middle of the century, even Nitrikok had become influenced by Buddhism.
In 578, the King of Saninkok died without heir, and the kings of Pokkok, Wakok, and Kogenkok all claimed the succession. The Kingdom of Saninkok was divided threeways between the states, giving Kogenkok a coastline on the Byusan Sea. The later part of the Gokok Era is therefore a misnomer, as there were now four states, but the name is still used.
Unification of Byusa
During the Pakkok and, especially, the Gokok Eras, Kogenkok had acquired prestige over the other states. During the Gokok Era, the Chinese Emperors commonly recognized their king as "King of Byusa". In 604, King ??? began the process of unification with the introduction of reforms to the Kogenkok court, modeling China's court, and insisting that the other states acknowledge Kogenkok's suzerainity over them. By 610, Pokkok and Nitrikok had accepted Kogenkok suzerainity, and their kings had simplified their title to simply 王, acknowledging the Kogenkok monarch as the only 大王 (after which point, the Kogenkok monarchs are commonly referred to, though anachronisticly, as Emperors). Wakok, however, refused to acknowledge Kogenkok suzereinity, and in 620, the Wakok War (620-627) broke out. The war ended in the King of Wakok acknowledging Kogenkok suzerainity, and surrendering all of its territory outside of Wa Island itself. The territory on Shikoku was claimed by Kogenkok, while the rest was given to Pokkok. The Wa king was also forced to abdicate, and was replaced by a relative chosen by the Emperor.
The second phase in the Great Reform now began. The former kingdoms became divisions of the Empire called Lands (国), each of which were divided into Provinces (州), further subdivided into Districts (郡). Each Land was ruled by a hereditary King, except for Kogen, which was ruled directly by the Emperor. Provinces and districts were ruled by officials appointed by the King of their Land.
The Silla War
In 660, Baekje, on the Sillan Peninsula, sought Byusan assistance against a Silla-Tang alliance. Byusa sent some 40,000 troops to aid the Baekje forces. The troops were thoroughly defeated, and Baekje was conquered. The Baekje royal family fled to Byusa, along with many other nobles and scholars of the former state. Byusa, fearing invasion, built fortifications in Wa Island and Tsushima and Iki Islands. This marked the end of Byusa's activities in mainland Asia for several centuries.
Age of Centralization
Over the next few centuries, the Byusan Empire became increasingly centralized. The lesser kings lost power as the Imperial Court began to gain increasing influence in their courts. By the mid-8th century, the Great King had adopted a new title, chanfa, generally translated as Emperor (天皇, literally Heavenly Emperor). The northern border of the Empire was pushed further north, until at last Byusa reached the northern tip of Honshu.
At the same time that the Imperial Court was gaining power over the lesser courts, and the southern regions of Byusa were being brought ever more under the cnetral government's control, military leaders in the far north began to carve out their own fiefdoms. The most powerful of these was ???? who established a capital at *Hiraizumi in 1120 to rule the northern provinces from. For nearly a century, he and his descendants ruled as de facto sovereigns of the northern provinces, ignoring the nominal governors. In 1245, the royal court attempted to remove ???? from his position, starting the Enchu War, which ended, in 1257, with an agreement that recognized ???? as a King, defining the borders of a new land, Enchukok.
Mongol Invasions and Disintegration
In 1274, the Mongols launched an invasion of Byusa, which was turned back, in large part due to a fortuitous storm. A second attempt was made in 1281, also unsuccessful. Fearing another invasion, the Imperial Court ordered the creation of large standing armies. There were no further invasions. However, the presence of large standing armies proved to be destabilizing for the Empire.
In 1307, Emperor ???? proclaimed an Imperial Restoration, seeking to restore direct power to the Emperor out of the hands of the noble families who had long held actual political power. The Emperor was deposed, and fled to the west with his supporters. The military elite in the Capital placed another member of the Imperial Family on the throne. The King of Wakok recognized the deposed Emperor as the legitimate Emperor, while the Kings of Nitrikok and Pokkok recognized the eastern claimant. The King of Pokkok pledged homage to the Emperor of China. Two rival courts existed, both claiming the title of Emperor and refusing to acknowledge the other. Over the next 54 years, periodic battles broke out as each tried to subdue the other. The Kings of Nitrikok and Wakok both claimed the title of Great King (大王) from their respective (nominal) sovereigns for their support of their claim (Enchukok followed suit in 1349). In 1361 the war ended in a compromise. The title of Emperor would alternate between the Eastern and Western courts, and both would also hold the title Great King, which would be used when not holding the title of Emperor. The territories under the control of each court were organized as new states, Togenkok and Saigenkok. These two new states were smaller than the earlier Kogenkok. Nitrikok had annexed the easternmost portion of Kogenkok, roughly the equivalent of the Pakkok-era Enkokok, while Pokkok had taken advantage of the war to grab Kogenkok's Byusan Sea coastline. By the time the war was over, both monarchs were little more than figureheads for military leaders, and the other four lands had shaken off all central control. Thus began the Rokkok Era.
Rokkok Era
In the late 14th century, the *Goryeo Dynasty of Silla was beginning to crumble. By 1388, civil war broke out in Silla. Wakok sent troops, ostensibly to support the ruling dynasty agains the rebels. The rebels, lead by General Yi Seong-gye, were defeated, surrendering in 1397. In 1412, the Goryeo Dynasty was abolished, and Silla was formally annexed by Wakok. The recently-established Ming Dynasty of China invaded in 1416 in an unsuccessful attempt to drive Wakok out of the peninsula.
