Records of Messages from Chong-shan (Zhong Shan Chuan Xin Lu)

In 1718 (the 57th year of the reign of Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty), Xu Baoguang, a deputy title-conferring envoy, was sent to Ryukyu by the Qing court. In order to clarify the boundary between China and Ryukyu, Emperor Kangxi also sent a special expert to accompany Xu to make a chart. His book Records of Messages from Chong-shan (Zhong Shan Chuan Xin Lu) (Chong-shan is another name for the Ryukyu Kingdom) explicitly marks the names and locations of Ryukyu islands and specially notes Kume Mountain as a fortified post on the southwest border of Ryukyu. These records prove that China and Ryukyu clearly had identical understanding of the maritime boundaries and jurisdictions of the various islands.

Zhong Shan Chuan Xin Lu

Zhong Shan Chuan Xin Lu