| That's a more recent history.
In fact, Japan's victory in both the Sino-Japanese War and the Russo-Japanese War secured Korea for them.
But when we're talking about anything before the 16 or 1700s, China was without a doubt the de facto power in the region without rival (except for a time with the Mongols).
The Sino-Japanese War was a typical lesson in that the military machine is not about showing off flashy equipment. It was where the Chinese "modern" Army with its new equipment was crushed by the Japanese who had modern equipment as well. The Chinese were too damned corrupt and incompetent to make it count. |