AHC: Reverse Hong Kong

How plausible?

  • Alien Space Bats invading Earth is more likely to happen than this.

    Votes: 13 18.3%
  • Very implausible, basically on the edge of ASB.

    Votes: 18 25.4%
  • Implausible, but not impossible.

    Votes: 29 40.8%
  • Plausible.

    Votes: 11 15.5%

  • Total voters
    71
The challenge is, so to speak is a Chinese dynasty/nation with it’s capital in East Asia starting a war against a nation based in the British Isles with situations somewhat similar to Britain’s wars with China in the 19th century, and after winning takes a mainland concession akin to Hong Kong.

How could this happen? POD preferably not be earlier than 1200 AD.
 
I'm going to have to say inplausable, though more out of the consquences of that kind of technological and organizational gap breaking in China's favor. In that case , what could Britain POSSIBLY being exporting to the point China's trade balance gets lopsided enough she starts taking drastic measures?
 
I'm going to have to say inplausable, though more out of the consquences of that kind of technological and organizational gap breaking in China's favor. In that case , what could Britain POSSIBLY being exporting to the point China's trade balance gets lopsided enough she starts taking drastic measures?
Maybe not Britain itself but what about as a foothold into European markets in general?
 
Why does "ASB" get abused so much on this site? It's referring to things that are practically impossible to happen in the real world, not merely unlikely.

Anyways, so the time-span of this scenario is between the 13th to 19th centuries. A lot of things can go differently over the course of 600 years. I don't know exactly how OP's "Reverse Hong Kong" would happen, but it can happen if we are to somehow butterfly away the age of European imperialism, and make China more technologically and militarily superior to Britain or any other country in Europe.
 
If Batu conquered HRE and France, he could well demand an English treaty port as symbolic vasselage in exchange for access to the continent.
 

Lusitania

Donor
So what we need is for China to not look internally but be outward looking.

But the biggest issue was that China being so huge that it became self absorbed and the same reason it rejected trade with west that resulted in the creation of Macau and Hong Kong Would prevent the Chinese from sailing all the way to Europe and establish s trade outpost. The Chinese treasure fleet and expeditions were not real trade missions but diplomatic trips where gifts were exchanged between China and the various countries.

No you need maybe a similar circumstances in Asia where some smaller countries all vying for trade and expansion.

Similarly if Europe was united into single country and faced no great threats to it dominance it would not had province of even government sail Around Africa. Instead traded useujg its contacts a trade neyweeotk in Red Sea to reach Asia.
 
I need to read more carefull. I read this as 'Reverse King Kong', and vacillated between fifty foot women, tiny apes, etc.
 

RousseauX

Donor
The challenge is, so to speak is a Chinese dynasty/nation with it’s capital in East Asia starting a war against a nation based in the British Isles with situations somewhat similar to Britain’s wars with China in the 19th century, and after winning takes a mainland concession akin to Hong Kong.

How could this happen? POD preferably not be earlier than 1200 AD.
yeah if Song dynasty industrializes or there's a worse black death, or some kind of successful Mongol invasion to set European development back a couple centuries and you are there
 

Lusitania

Donor
yeah if Song dynasty industrializes or there's a worse black death, or some kind of successful Mongol invasion to set European development back a couple centuries and you are there
I disagree for there had to be a need for Europeans goods. Also if we read a worse Black Death then Europe might be controlled by Muslims and all trade through Arabian Peninsula. There a book to that affect.
 

RousseauX

Donor
I disagree for there had to be a need for Europeans goods. Also if we read a worse Black Death then Europe might be controlled by Muslims and all trade through Arabian Peninsula. There a book to that affect.
maybe China runs low on coal or something after burning it for a few extra centuries and needs to go abroad looking for it
 

Lusitania

Donor
maybe China runs low on coal or something after burning it for a few extra centuries and needs to go abroad looking for it
But Australia full of coal and nobody to go conquer. No the only reason Europeans setup Hong Kong was to access the luxury Chinese goods for the rich. So we need China to have a demand for a European luxury. Plus and most important have a closed system refusing to buy and trade.

For the reason we had Hong Kong was that Chinese felt they had no need to western goods but were willing to sell their goods for silver.

The Spanish mined the silver in Americas then shipped it to Manila and it was used to buy Chinese goods. The British on the other hand resented Chinese attitude and having to spend their hard earned silver to buy Chinese goods. So they sold the Chinese opium and then used the silver from the sale of the opium to buy Chinese goods. Causing much social problems and leaving millions of Chinese addicted.

We now have opium war and the victorious British get Hong Kong.
 
I voted implausible, simply because what would China want from Britain that they didn't already have back home? Britain wanted tea and exotic Oriental furnishings, but what would China want from Britain? Biscuits and crumpets?
 
Maybe not Britain itself but what about as a foothold into European markets in general?

We shall call it Sheng Diguo.

chun2-png.150894
 
As I think it would take too many POD's , I've voted ASB. You need China that is external looking , wanting to trade externally, finding something in Europe it can not get easier from a nearer source ( would effectively have to be something manufactured ) and at the other end, a Europe that will not trade, that is non expansionist, that is not exploring and is less developed/warlike.
No single POD is possible to get even close to that as it needs massive changes in both the Far East and Europe. Stacking POD's in my mind becomes ASB, indeed the easiest way would be for a ASB to swap unity/mindset of China and Europe whilst giving the Chinese a craving for European wines. Even that would need Africa/Middle East nations to forego even raiding as that would cause Europe to respond.
 
But Australia full of coal and nobody to go conquer. No the only reason Europeans setup Hong Kong was to access the luxury Chinese goods for the rich. So we need China to have a demand for a European luxury. Plus and most important have a closed system refusing to buy and trade.

For the reason we had Hong Kong was that Chinese felt they had no need to western goods but were willing to sell their goods for silver.

The Spanish mined the silver in Americas then shipped it to Manila and it was used to buy Chinese goods. The British on the other hand resented Chinese attitude and having to spend their hard earned silver to buy Chinese goods. So they sold the Chinese opium and then used the silver from the sale of the opium to buy Chinese goods. Causing much social problems and leaving millions of Chinese addicted.

We now have opium war and the victorious British get Hong Kong.
Perhaps the Chinese develop an obsession for European glassware or Baltic amber? Now after a few centuries of being in Europe and an industrial revolution they decide to conquer Britain for its resources. Not sure how likely though.
 
Perhaps the Chinese develop an obsession for European glassware or Baltic amber? Now after a few centuries of being in Europe and an industrial revolution they decide to conquer Britain for its resources. Not sure how likely though.

Extremely unlikely. It's far cheaper to just buy the things than pay for a military occupation half way across the world, and Britain can't hope to toss up effective trade barriers against a China that powerful. The British would need to be divorced from the reality of the power China's advances,gave it and a similar sense,of consistention/infallabilty, which you can't really get.
 
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