Approaching Sovereignty over the Diaoyu Islands

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xxix

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2. Mentions of the Diaoyu Islands by Ming and Qing Investiture Envoys to Ryukyu

   • Tin Wong

   Pages 1-36

3. Benefiting from Tributary Trade with China

   • Tin Wong

   Pages 37-59

4. Satsuma Invades, Captures Ryukyu’s King, Executes Its Prime Minister and Brings It to “Dual Subordination” Status

   • Tin Wong

   Pages 61-95

5. In Its First Step to Incorporate Ryukyu, Japan Dethrones King Shō Tai and Makes Ryukyu a Domain

   • Tin Wong

   Pages 97-116

6. On the Pretext of Protecting Ryukyuans, Japan Invades Taiwan

   • Tin Wong

   Pages 117-144

7. Mindful of Past Kindness, Subjugated Ryukyu Tries to Continue China Tributes

   • Tin Wong

   Pages 145-162

8. Minister He’s Diplomatic Struggle, Japan’s Incorporation of Ryukyu

   • Tin Wong

   Pages 163-188

9. Former US President Grant Mediates the Ryukyu Case

   • Tin Wong

   Pages 189-208

10. China Concedes to Protect Ryukyu, but the Kingdom is not Restored

    • Tin Wong

    Pages 209-250

11. Shō Tokukō Begs for China’s Help, Rin Seikō Tries to Secure Chinese Military Intervention

    • Tin Wong

    Pages 251-293

12. Defeat by Japan in 1895, the Bloody Battle of Okinawa, 1945

    • Tin Wong

    Pages 295-323

13. The UN Puts Ryukyu in the Trusteeship of the US, Ryukyu is Handed to Japan to Serve the US Strategic Plan

    • Tin Wong

    Pages 325-368

14. Back Matter

    Pages 369-428

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This book discusses the sovereignty over the Diaoyu Islands from the perspectives of Ryukyu and Okinawa. Written in chronological order, the book has 13 chapters featuring 121 documents and maps. The first 12 chapters explain, based on detailed historical facts on the Diaoyu Islands, the rise and decline of the Ryukyu Kingdom and the historical roles of China, Japan, and the United States in the history of the kingdom. The final chapter is an overview of the Sino-Ryukyuan, Japan-Ryukyuan and US-Ryukyuan relations, and further clarifies the issue of ownership of the Diaoyu Islands and their strategic position. The book demonstrates that Ryukyu did not have sovereignty over the Diaoyu Islands, refutes Japan’s claim that these islands were a part of the Ryukyu Kingdom, and reveals the causes and consequences of the Sino-Japanese conflicts created by the United States. The book examines the 500-year friendship between China and Ryukyu, recounting moving stories. Lastly, citing ancient documents and more, the books proves that the Ryukyus never owned the Diaoyu Islands and that these islands belong to China.

• Diaoyu Islands
• Sino-Ryukyuan Relations
• Territorial Dispute
• Ryukyu History
• Sovereignty of Diaoyu Islands
• Tributary trade with ancient China
• Historical Geography

• Hong Kong, China

  Tin Wong

Wong Tin, also known as Kam Chun Wong, is a researcher of Sino-Japanese relations. He completed his degree in sociology at Hosei University of Japan in 1983. In 1985, he became a senior editor at Joint Publishing (Hong Kong) Company Limited, where he edited numerous award-winning academic books. He taught the history of Sino-Japanese relations at the Chinese University of Hong Kong’s Japanese Studies Center from 2006 to 2012.
Wong translated 中国风物 into Chinese, coauthored 日本总览 and Macau China, wrote “起来！”我们的国歌 and 遐迩贯珍:香港史料类抄, and published more than 50 academic papers in various journals.

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