Empires at War : A Short History of Modern Asia since World War II

by Pike

• ISBN13: 9781848850798
• ISBN10: 1848850794
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2009-12-15
• Publisher: I. B. Tauris

Summary

Empires at Wargives a dramatic narrative account of how "Modern Asia" came into being. Ranging over the whole of Asia, from Japan to Pakistan, the modern history of this important region is placed in the context of the struggle between America and the Soviet Union. Francis Pike shows that America's domination of post-war Asia was a continuation of a 100-year competition for power in the region. He also argues cogently that, contrary to the largely "Western-centric" viewpoint, Asian nations were not simply the passive and biddable pawns of the superpowers, but had a political development which was both separate and unique, with a dynamic that was largely independent of the superpower conflict. And, in conclusion, the book traces the unwinding of American influence and the end of its empire, a crucial development in international history which is already having repercussions throughout the world.

Author Biography

Francis Pike studied history at Cambridge and is an historian, journalist and specialist in Asian economic and political strategy. He has advised Asian governments, and lived for 20 years in Japan, China and India.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements	p. xi
A Reader's Guide	p. xv
Introduction and Background	p. xvii
Maps	p. xxii
American Empire and its Competitors 1621-1945
American Empire and Its Competitors America: 1621-1945	p. 3
The Rise of European Nations and Migration to America	p. 4
The Land Motive for Independence	p. 10
Westward Expansion and the Louisiana Purchase	p. 12
American Setback in Canada	p. 14
The Alamo and the Annexation of Texas and Florida	p. 15
The Mexican War and the Seizure of California and Oregon	p. 17
Railroads and Territorial Consolidation	p. 19
Genocide: The Destruction of the American Indian	p. 20
Population, Gold and the Pioneer Spirit	p. 23
Legends of the Conquest of America	p. 25
Hawaii, Cuba and the Philippines: Empire Beyond the American Continent	p. 27
Trade and the Expansion of America's Asian Interest	p. 30
The Philippines: Conquest and Suppression	p. 32
Theodore Roosevelt, the Panama Canal and Economic Imperialism	p. 34
The Growth of 'Moralism' in American Politics and Foreign Policy	p. 36
Emergence of America as 'the' Global Superpower	p. 39
American Isolationism after the First World War	p. 40
The Russian Empire: A Competitor to US Hegemony	p. 41
Manchuria and the Rise of Japan	p. 44
Isolationism Abandoned	p. 49
A New Clash of Empires	p. 52
Asia's Post-War Settlement
Potsdam, Hiroshima and the Atom Bomb Japan: 1945	p. 61
Mao and the Chinese Revolution China: 1945-54	p. 70
Emperor Hirohito and the Tokyo War Crimes Trial Japan: 1945-8	p. 81
Mahatma Gandhi: Passive Aggression India: 1945-7	p. 94
'An Iron Curtain Has Descended' America-Soviet Union: 1945-61	p. 104
Stalin, Mao and Truman: Post-War Alliances China: 1945-50	p. 115
Chiang Kai Shek and the Flight to Taiwan Taiwan: 1945-9	p. 122
MacArthur, Yoshida and the American Occupation of Japan Japan: 1945-54	p. 130
Hô Chí Minh and the Battle of Diên Biên Phu Vietnam: 1945-54	p. 141
General Phibun: National Socialist Dictator Thailand: 1945-58	p. 158
From Independence to Dependency Philippines: 1945-60	p. 170
Lord Mountbatten and the Partition of India India-Pakistan: 1945-7	p. 179
Origins of the Korean War Korea: 1945-50	p. 192
Aung San: Revolutionary and Turncoat Burma: 1945-9	p. 199
Sukarno: The Founding Father Indonesia: 1945-50	p. 210
Independence and the Racial Contract Malaysia: 1945-51	p. 217
Lee Kuan Yew: Pocket Giant Singapore: 1945-64	p. 232
Capitalist Redoubt Hong Kong: 1945-97	p. 243
Cold War in the Balance
The Korean War Korea: 1950-3	p. 257
The Great Leap Forward China: 1949-61	p. 269
Dictatorship and Prosperity Taiwan: 1947-75	p. 277
Nehru: The Fashioning of a Legend India: 1945-65	p. 285
Jinnah and Pakistan's Failed Constitution Pakistan: 1945-65	p. 299
Fall of Rhee and Park's 'Economic Miracle' South Korea: 1954-79	p. 310
Kim II Sung: The 'Great Leader' North Korea: 1945-50	p. 318
The Todai Oligarchs Japan: 1955-92	p. 326
The Cultural Revolution China: 1961-70	p. 340
Indira Gandhi: A Study in Nepotism India: 1966-84	p. 351
Kennedy: Vietnam and the Vienna Summit America-Vietnam: 1954-63	p. 366
'The Year of Living Dangerously' Indonesia: 1950-68	p. 376
LBJ and the Vietnam Quagmire Vietnam: 1963-9	p. 391
The Trouble with Tigers Sri Lanka: 1945-94	p. 406
Nixon in China America-China: 1969-71	p. 420
The Night of the Intellectuals Bangladesh-Pakistan: 1965-73	p. 433
Têt Offensive: Lost Victories America-Vietnam: 1968-75	p. 441
The Bombing of Cambodia Cambodia: 1969-73	p. 456
Revolution's End: The Deaths of Mao, Zhou Enlai, Lin Biao China: 1970-6	p. 467
The Murder of Aquino: The Disgrace of Ferdinand Marcos Philippines: 1960-86	p. 475
Coups d'Etat: A Way of Life Thailand: 1958-91	p. 488
Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and General Mohammed Zia ul-Haq Pakistan: 1973-88	p. 498
Pol Pot: Deconstructionism and Genocide Cambodia: 1973-79	p. 506
Communism in Retreat
The Gang of Four China: 1976-9	p. 521
The End of the Tyrants Korea: 1979-2001	p. 527
Dr Mahathir: The Acerbic Autocrat Malaysia: 1981-2003	p. 535
Suharto: Rule of the Kleptocrats Indonesia: 1965-98	p. 544
Rogue State North Korea: 1980-2005	p. 558
Bloodlust and Revenge Bangladesh: 1971-96	p. 568
Cory Aquino and the Rocky Path to Democracy Philippines: 1986-2000	p. 576
Deng Xiaoping: 'Capitalist Roader No. 2' China: 1974-96	p. 583
Benazir and Sharif: Rise and Fall of the Demagogues Pakistan: 1988-99	p. 592
The Narcotic State Burma: 1948-2005	p. 600
Rajiv Gandhi: The Reluctant Pilot India: 1984-9	p. 612
The Tiananmen Square Massacre China: 1987-9	p. 624
Property Crash and the Lost Decade Japan: 1990-2000	p. 636
Narasimha Rao and the Quiet Revolution India: 1990-2003	p. 651
The Savaging of the Tiger Economies Asia: 1996-8	p. 660
A Bungled Surrender Hong Kong: 1980-7	p. 671
One China or Two? Taiwan: 1947-2005	p. 684
Nukes and Mullahs Pakistan: 1973-2005	p. 693
End of America's Asian Empire
Asia Redux Asia: 1990-2010	p. 705
China	p. 705
Taiwan	p. 707
Japan	p. 708
South Korea	p. 709
North Korea	p. 710
Thailand	p. 711
Malaysia	p. 713
Singapore	p. 715
The Philippines	p. 716
Indonesia	p. 716
Burma	p. 718
India	p. 718
Pakistan	p. 720
Bangladesh	p. 722
Sri Lanka	p. 723
Vietnam	p. 724
Cambodia	p. 724
From Cold War to End of Empire America-Asia: 1945-2010	p. 726
'To Serve and Not to Dominate the World'	p. 726
The Soviet Dynamic	p. 728
America's Post-War Asian Empire	p. 730
The Damning of America	p. 733
Reagan and Thatcher: Anglo-Saxon Revival	p. 739
Collapse of the 'Evil' Empire	p. 741
Peace Dividend: Global Expansion of American Values	p. 743
Beginning of the End of America's Empire	p. 745
Empires in Renewed Conflict?	p. 749
Conclusions	p. 752
Notes	p. 757
Bibliography	p. 801
Index	p. 821
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