The first capital of Ming Dynasty was Nanjing 南京 (literally "Southern Capital"). It served as secondary capital after the Yongle Emperor moved the center of his government to Beijing 北京 (literally "Northern Capital"; other names Jingshi 京師, Shuntianfu 順天府) after 1403. The Provinces (sheng 省) of the Ming Empire province seat of governor Jingshi 京師, Bei Zhili 北直隸 (modern Hebei) Shuntianfu 順天府 (modern Beijing) Shandong 山東省 includes the Liaodong peninsula Jinan 濟南府 Shanxi 山西省 Taiyuan 太原府 Shaanxi 陜西省 Xi'an 西安府 Henan 河南省 Kaifeng 開封府 Huguang 湖廣省 (modern Hubei and Hunan) Wuhan 武漢府 Jiangxi 江西省 Nanchang 南昌府 Sichuan 四川省 Chengdu 成都府 Yunnan 雲南省 Yunnan 雲南府 (modern Kunming 昆明) Guizhou 貴州省 Guiyang 貴陽府 Guangxi 廣西省 Guilin 桂林府 Nanjing 南京, Nan Zhili 南直隸 (modern Jiangsu) Yingtianfu 應天府 (modern Nanjing 南京) Zhejiang 浙江省 Hangzhou 杭州府 Guangdong 廣東省 Guangzhou 廣州府 Fujian 福建省 Fuzhou 福州府 To prohibit the northern nomad tribes to undertake raids on Chinese soil and territory, the Great Wall (Wanli Changcheng 萬里長城 "The ten thousand leagues long fortification"; violet line) was rebuilt. But this fortification was unable to prevent the Jürched nomads from entering the Chinese soil through the eastern gate Shanhaiguan 山海關 in 1644. During the 16th century, pirate attacks on Chinese coast cities were quite severe. Many pirates were of Japanese origin. The Japanese Warlord Toyotomi Hideyoshi tried to conquer Korea (Chosòn) and later China. The defense war against the Japanese troops swallowed a large part of the late Ming treasury. Peasants and adventurers rose against the Ming government in the provinces of Shanxi and Shaanxi, before attacking the capital Beijing. Dutch and Portuguese merchants founded the first Western colonies in Macau and Providentia and Zeelandia in Taiwan. The islands of Taiwan and Hainan were not yet incorporated into the Chinese empire. The northern neighbors of the Ming Empire were the Yi Dynasty 李朝 in Korea (Chosòn 朝鮮; 1392-1910), and various nomad tribes like the Jürched (Chinese: Ruzhen 女真, not Nüzhen!), Mongols (Chinese: Menggu 蒙古 or Mengwu 蒙兀), Oirats (Chinese: Wala 瓦剌), and "Tartars" (Chinese: Dada 韃靼). In the northwest, we find the independant kingdoms of Turfan (Chinese: Tulufan 土魯番), Tumet (Chinese: Tumote 土魔特), and Tibet (Chinese: Zang 藏), governed under the theocrat Dalai Lama regime. In the south, Vietnam was governed by the Tran Dynasty 陳朝 (1225-1400), later the Lê Dynasty 黎朝 (1428-1558).

Map and Geography Event History Emperors and Rulers Government and Administration Literature and Philosophy Religion Technology and Inventions Economy Arts