Manchurian Incident: Did you mean...?

War tales (gunki monogatari) is a genre of historical writing that developed in Japan from the Heian Period (794-1185) to the Muromachi Period (1333-1573). They form an important element in the development of the Japanese literary tradition...

Chikamatsu Monzaemon (1653-1725) was a Japanese playwright who wrote for both the puppet theatre and kabuki. He is regarded as Japan’s greatest dramatist. Apart from their aesthetic appeal, his plays are of value because they provide an insight...

Taejo (r. 918-943 CE), previously known as Wang Geon or Wang Kon, was the founder and first king of the Goryeo (Koryo) kingdom which unified and ruled ancient Korea from 918 CE to 1392 CE. Wang Geon was given the posthumous title of Taejo...

The Balhae (Parhae) kingdom in Manchuria (698-926 CE) was an important regional power which interacted both peacefully and otherwise with its neighbours the Unified Silla Kingdom of Korea and Tang China. The latter was a strong cultural influence...

The Khitan people formed the Liao dynasty and ruled parts of Mongolia, Manchuria, and northern China from 907 to 1125 CE. Adopting elements of Chinese government and culture, the Khitan were more than a match for their rivals the Song dynasty...

The Later Three Kingdoms period (889-935 CE) of ancient Korea saw a partial revival of the old three kingdoms which had dominated the peninsula from the 1st century BCE to the 7th century CE. After the Unified Silla kingdom had ruled Korea...

The Samguk yusa ('Memorabilia of the Three Kingdoms') is a 13th-century CE text which covers the history and legends of Korea's founding right up to the 10th century CE. It is a sequel of sorts to the earlier Samguk sagi ('Records of the...

Sugawara no Michizane, aka Tenman Tenjin (845-903), was a scholar, poet, and high-level administrator in the Japanese court during the Heian Period. Badly treated and exiled, he would gain a spectacular revenge on his political rivals from...

Choe Chiwon (857-915 CE) was a celebrated poet and scholar of the Unified Silla kingdom which ruled Korea from 668 to 935 CE. Choe Chiwon adopted the pseudonym or brush name 'Orphan Cloud' and he became the most celebrated scholar-official...

The age-old concept of the “divine right of kings” allowed that a country's ruler received his or her power or authority from God. However, few, if any, were delusional enough to actually believe themselves to be a god. An exception to this...