How did the Chinese conquer and hold southern China?

Maybe it looks worse on the map than it really is. But according to the maps, South China has a lot of mountains. How did the Chinese dynasties conquer it and not lose it later?

Confession. I've always thought China would be mostly flat.
 
Look at the northern plain. A wide flat area with large rivers, very fertile, able to support large populations and produce vast wealth. The dependance on only two large river systems also means that the area is highly susceptible to being domianted by a single united polity, control strategic chokepoints on these rivers and the entire region must bend to your will.

Compare to the south, mountainous, far less fertile ground, cannot support populations as large, and is thus far less propserous. Furthermore it is easily fragmented as the defensible geography allows small groups to hold out against thier near peer neighbours isntead of beings subsmumed.

The north was simply far more powerful, and usually united agasint a fragmented and fractious south. Though southern geography gave them a marginal defensive advantage it was not enough against the sheer numbers and wealth of the north.

Combine this with the fact there was no peer power centre to contest the southern region with the Northern plain power centre, it was almost inevitable that the north would eventually conquer the south.
 
Compare to the south, mountainous, far less fertile ground, cannot support populations as large, and is thus far less propserous. Furthermore it is easily fragmented as the defensible geography allows small groups to hold out against thier near peer neighbours isntead of beings subsmumed.

The north was simply far more powerful, and usually united agasint a fragmented and fractious south. Though southern geography gave them a marginal defensive advantage it was not enough against the sheer numbers and wealth of the north.

Combine this with the fact there was no peer power centre to contest the southern region with the Northern plain power centre, it was almost inevitable that the north would eventually conquer the south.

China did lose a part of South for good after 1000 years.

The remaining of Ten Kingdoms.
Dai Viet.

Why did China not also lose Guangdong and Fujian for good, like Vietnam was lost?
 
China did lose a part of South for good after 1000 years.

The remaining of Ten Kingdoms.
Dai Viet.

Why did China not also lose Guangdong and Fujian for good, like Vietnam was lost?

I would attribute that to two factors, firstly the length of the supply line. If the base of your power is the North Chinese plain, then dominating south China is one thing, as it is directly adjacent, extending even further into Indochina is another all together. The crucial supplies of manpower and treasure to maintian control of that region has to travel twice the distance to reach Hue as it does Guangzhou, and almsot all of that extra distance is though mountanous regions where the local populace may not be especially predisposed to you. All said it is just a much harder effort. Which is not to say that the Chinese wern't capable of it, they of course managed it for signficant amounts of time. But doing so was draining, especially when thier northern borders were threatened by regular steppe nomad invasions.

The second factor is I think more human, geography isn't everything. The people of Indochina simply saw themselves as far more seperate from the Han Chinese, and resisted assimilation a lot more feverently. When the opportunity presented itself they were more than willing to break away.
 
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PhilippeO

Banned
Seconded Ato.

North China Plain (which also include Huai river and lower part of Yangtze) is Massive resources that allow its controller to project power in large-scale and long distance.

Also, China civilizations often settle in river valley and abandon hills for native, bandits, and shifting movable people. Its introductions of Americans Crops in Ming and Wing dynasties that allow government and Han people to fully settle the Southern Hills. Before, only river valley is settled, but with massive populations to outnumber hilly residents.
 
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