Paracel Islands

Southeast

• Bombay Reef: This elongated reef is situated at the southeastern corner of the Paracel Islands (16°00′N 112°30′E / 16°N 112.5°E / 16; 112.5) and lies approximately 90 km (56 mi) southeast of the Crescent group. With most parts submerged, the reef measures approximately 18 by 5 km (11 by 3 mi) (E-W by N-S). Bombay Reef encloses a deep lagoon with rocks on its edge.

Eastern sub-group

• Bremen Bank: Located 24 km (15 mi) north of Bombay Reef (16°18′N 112°30′E / 16.3°N 112.5°E / 16.3; 112.5), is the southwestern-most feature of this subgroup. This submerged shallow bank measures approximately 23 km (14 mi) in length from northeast to southwest. The shallowest area reaches a depth of about 12 metres (39 ft) and is located in the southwestern part of the bank.
• Jehangire Bank: East of the Bremen Bank at 16°18′N 112°42′E / 16.3°N 112.7°E / 16.3; 112.7
• Neptuna Bank: North of the Bremen Bank at 16°30′N 112°30′E / 16.5°N 112.5°E / 16.5; 112.5
• Pyramid Rock: NE of the Neptuna Bank at 16°36′N 112°36′E / 16.6°N 112.6°E / 16.6; 112.6
• Lincoln Island: Surrounded by a coral reef, located 37 km (23 mi) southeast from the Amphitrite Group at 16°42′N 112°42′E / 16.7°N 112.7°E / 16.7; 112.7, the island is covered with brushes and fairly high trees, including coconut palm trees. The depth increases sharply on the northern and eastern sides of the island but the southern and south western regions are shallow. An observation post on the western side was found by officers of the German government surveys in 1883. In 1948, Great Britain requested France for permission to use the feature for military exercises.

Northeast

• Dido Bank: Separate from, and NE of, the Eastern sub-group at 16°49′N 112°53′E / 16.817°N 112.883°E / 16.817; 112.883^[17]

(ENE: Ampitrite group)

16°53′N 112°17′E / 16.883°N 112.283°E / 16.883; 112.283^[13]

Northwest

• North Reef: Situated approximately 56 km (35 mi) north from the Crescent group and about 70 km (43 mi) west-northwest from the Amphitrite group at 17°06′N 111°30′E / 17.1°N 111.5°E / 17.1; 111.5,^[18] the reef is the most northwesterly feature of the Paracel Islands. Most parts of the reef are submerged. There are rugged rocks are around the edge that are barely above water. There is a passage into the lagoon on the southwestern side of the reef.

Inner southwest

• Discovery Reef: Measuring approximately 27 km (17 mi) in length from east to west, and 7 km (4 mi) from north to south, the reef is located about 18 km (11 mi) south of the Crescent Group at 16°15′N 111°42′E / 16.25°N 111.7°E / 16.25; 111.7. Completely submerged, the elongated ring structure is the largest single reef in the Paracel Islands. The reef has two large, deep openings into the lagoon on its southern side. In the ocean nearby is Dragon Hole the deepest known sinkhole in the world.^[5][6]
• Passu Keah: This small reef encloses a shallow lagoon and is located about 12 km (7 mi) south of the eastern side of Discovery Reef at 16°06′N 111°48′E / 16.1°N 111.8°E / 16.1; 111.8, approximately 37 miles (60 km) east-northeast from Triton Island. The sand cay measures 9 km (6 mi) in length.

Outer southwest

• Triton Island: The sand cay supports vegetation and stands on a steep-sided coral reef measuring 1.5 km (1 mi) in length. This southwesternmost island of the Paracels is situated about 56 km (35 mi) from Discovery Reef at 15°48′N 111°12′E / 15.8°N 111.2°E / 15.8; 111.2.

Central

• Vuladdore Reef: Located slightly south of the centre of the group at 16°18′N 112°00′E / 16.3°N 112°E / 16.3; 112, this mostly submerged reef is orientated east-west and measures approximately 12 km (7 mi) by 3 km (2 mi). Some small spiral rocks are to be seen on the reef.

618–1279

Wikisource has original text related to this article: 武經總要·前集·卷二十一·廣南東路

There are some Chinese cultural relics in the Paracel islands dating from the Tang and Song eras,^{[65][note 1]} and there is some evidence of Chinese habitation on the islands during these periods.^[66] According to the Wujing Zongyao, a book published in the Northern Song dynasty in 1044, the Song government then included the Islands in the patrol areas of the Navy of the Court.^[67]

1279–1368

In 1279, the Yuan dynasty emperor sent the high-level official and astronomer, Guo Shoujing, to the South China Sea to survey and measure the islands and the surrounding sea area. Guo's base of survey was located in the Paracel Islands. His activities were recorded in the Yuan Shi, or History of Yuan. According to the Yuan Shi, the South China Sea islands were within the boundary of the Yuan dynasty. Maps published in the Yuan era invariably included the Changsha (the Paracels) and the Shitang (the Spratlys) within the domain of Yuan.

Wikisource has original text related to this article: 元史·卷一百六十二·列傳第四十九·史弼

1368–1912

Relevant local annals and other historic materials of the Ming (1368–1644) and the Qing (1644–1912) dynasties continued to make reference to the South China Sea islands as China's territory. The Qiongzhou Prefecture (the highest administrative authority in Hainan), exercised jurisdiction over the Paracel and Spratly Islands in the Ming and Qing Dynasties.

In the 19th century, Europeans found that Chinese fishermen from Hainan annually sojourned on the Paracel and Spratly Islands for part of the year.^[68][69]

When the Spratlys and Paracels were being surveyed by the German Empire in 1883, China issued protests against them.^[70] In 1909, Zhang Renjun (Chinese: 張人駿), the Viceroy of Liangguang, ordered Guangdong Fleet Admiral Li Zhun (李準) to sail to the Paracel Islands. In June, with over 170 sailors in three warships named Fubo (伏波號), Guangjin (廣金號) and Shenhang (琛航號), he inspected 15 islands, erected stone tablets engraved with each island's name, raised China's flag and fired cannons to declare the islands "sacred territory of China",^[71] which France did not protest.^[72] In 1910, the Qing government decided to invite Chinese merchants to contract for the administration of the development affairs of the South China Sea islands, and demanded that officials shall provide protection and maintenance in order to highlight Chinese territory and protect its titles and interests.^[73]

1912–1950s

After the fall of the Qing dynasty, the new Government of Guangdong Province decided to place the Paracel Islands under the jurisdiction of the Ya Xian County of Hainan Prefecture in 1911. The Southern Military Government in 1921 reaffirmed the 1911 decision. China continued to exercise authority over the South China Sea islands by such means as granting licenses or contracts to private Chinese merchants for the development and exploitation of guano and other resources on those islands and protesting against foreign nations' claims, occupations, and other activities. For example, in May 1928, the Guangdong provincial government sent a naval vessel, the Hai-jui (海瑞號), with an investigation team organized by the provincial government and Sun Yat-Sen University to investigate and survey the islets,^[74] after which the investigation team produced a detailed Report of Surveys on the Paracel Islands.^[75]

On July 27, 1932, the Chinese Foreign Ministry instructed the Chinese Envoy to France to lodge a diplomatic protest to the French Foreign Ministry and to deny France's claims to the Paracel Islands. On November 30 of the same year, Zhu Zhaoshen, a high-level inspection official of the Chinese Foreign Ministry, issued public correspondence Number 66 to the French Consul in Guangzhou, reiterating that "it is absolutely beyond doubt that the Xisha [Paracel] Islands fall within the boundary of China". Despite repeated Chinese protests, French troops, who had colonized French Indochina in the 19th century, invaded and occupied the Paracel Islands on July 3, 1938. This took place shortly after the breakout of the Second Sino-Japanese War, when the armed forces of China and Japan were busy elsewhere. Three days later, on July 6, the Japanese Foreign Ministry also issued a declaration in protest of the French occupation:

The statement of Great Britain and France made respectively in 1900 and 1921 already declared that the Xisha [Paracel] Islands were part of the Administrative Prefecture of Hainan Island. Therefore, the current claims made by An'nam or France to the Xisha Islands are totally unjustifiable.

During the Second World War, the Japanese expelled the French troops and took over the islands in spite of the 1938 declarations. The Spratlys and the Paracels were conquered by Japan in 1939. Japan administered the Spratlys via Taiwan's jurisdiction and the Paracels via Hainan's jurisdiction.^[76] The Paracels and Spratlys were handed over to Republic of China control after the 1945 surrender of Japan,^[77]:124 since the Allied powers had assigned the Republic of China to receive Japanese surrenders in that area.^[78] At the end of the war (Asian-Pacific Region), Nationalist China formally retook the Paracels, Spratlys and other islands in the South China Sea in October and November 1946. In the Geneva accord of 1954 Japan formally renounced all of its claims to, inter alia, the South China Sea islands which it had occupied during the World War II.^[79] After WW2 ended, the Republic of China was the "most active claimant". The Republic of China then garrisoned Woody Island in the Paracels in 1946 and posted Chinese flags and markers on it; France tried, but failed, to make them leave Woody island.^[80] The aim of the Republic of China was to block the French claims.^[78][81] In December 1947, the Republic of China drew up a map showing its eleven-dotted line U shaped claim to the entire South China Sea, including the Spratly and Paracel Islands as Chinese territory.^[82]

15th–17th centuries

The Route through Quảng Nam map depicting Bãi Cát Vàng – the Golden Sandbank – off the coast of Quảng Nam, 1634.

Atlas produced by Belgian geographer Philippe Vandermaelen (1795-1869), published in 1827 in Belgium, showing Paracel Islands is a part of Vietnam

• 1460–1497, under the reign of Emperor Lê Thánh Tông, the Vietnamese began conducting commercial activities on and around Hoàng Sa, including harvesting abundant sea-products and conducting salvage operations on shipwrecks.^[36]
• In 1634, under the Lê dynasty (1527–1786), the ship Grootebroek of the Dutch East India Company sank in the vicinity of the Paracel archipelago. Using a small boat, captain Huijch Jansen and 12 sailors managed to reach Annam, territory of Lord Nguyễn Phước Nguyên (1613–1635), to seek rescue for other castaways remained on the islands.^[83]
• 1680–1705, Lord Trịnh Căn instructed Đỗ Bá Công Đạo to publish Thiên Nam tứ chí lộ đồ (天南四至路圖), an encyclopedia consists of 4 series of maps that detail routes from Thăng Long, capital of Đại Việt, to other countries in the Southeast Asia. Part of this work was based on the Hồng Đức Atlas (Hồng Đức Bản Đồ) developed during the time of Emperor Lê Thánh Tông (1460–1497). This encyclopedia was considered one of the oldest and rarely preserved Vietnamese documents regarding the islands. The volume "Đường từ phủ Phụng Thiên đến Chiêm Thành" (The Route to Champa from Phụng Thiên Province), remarkably described the archipelago with maps. For instance, a statement found in the volume read "In the middle of the sea, there is a long sandbank called Bãi Cát Vàng, which is approximately 400-league long and 20-league wide rising up above the sea." Bãi Cát Vàng means Hoàng Sa, Golden Sandbank.^[36][84]
• In the 18th century, under instructions of the Nguyễn Lords, the salvage operations officially started with the formation of Hoàng Sa and Bắc Hải Companies. Their responsibility was to carry out the mission at Hoàng Sa (Golden Sandbank) and Vạn Lý Trường Sa (Ten-thousand-league Long Sandbank) respectively. This effort was continued thereafter with successive establishments of other naval task units in accordance with strategic policies toward the two archipelagos under the Nguyễn dynasty. Noticeably, a number of naval battles between the Dutch fleet and the Nguyễn Royal Navy occurred in 1643 and 1644. The Hoàng Sa naval task unit consisted of 70 men recruited from An Vĩnh and An Hải villages of Quảng Ngãi, while the majority of members of the Bắc Hải Company came from Bình Thuận province.^{[36][39][85][86]}

1700–1799

• In 1776, the Phủ Biên Tạp Lục (撫邊雜錄), the Miscellaneous Records on the Pacification of the Frontiers, published by Lê Quý Đôn, a philosopher, an encyclopaedist, and a Minister of Construction of the Lê dynasty (1527–1786). These six volumes detail the Nguyễn dynasty's territories, including the exploitation of the Paracel and Spratly Islands from 1702 onwards.^[36][85][86]
• 1777–1784, when traveling to Cochin China, Father Jean-Baptiste Grosier recorded his impression about maritime activities of the Vietnamese from Huế, Đà Nẵng, and Quảng Ngãi. The abbot Grosier wrote that the people from those ports were excellent and cleverest navigators in this Kingdom. One of their activities was making long distance sailing every year to the long chain of islands and rocks known as the Paracels to collect debris from shipwrecks.^[87]

1800–1899

The Royal Ordinance issued by Emperor Minh Mạng, 1835.

Đại Nam Thống Nhất Toàn Đồ – The Unified Đại Nam Complete Map (1838) - distinctly delineated Hoàng Sa and Vạn Lý Trường Sa at the far right margin

1880 German map of Southeast Asia, locating the Paracel Islands as part of "Annam" (Vietnam)

Decree no.174-NV from the presidency of Ngô Đình Diệm, Republic of Vietnam, redistricting the Paracels as part of Quảng Nam Province effective 07-13-1961. Paracels were previously part of Thừa Thiên–Huế Province since 03-30-1938, when redistricted by the government of French Indochina.

• 1802–1820, under the reign of Emperor Gia Long, the territory of his kingdom included Tonkin, Cochin China, part of Cambodia, and "certain islands off the coast including the well known Paracels which bear such an evil reputation as a source of danger to navigation in the China Seas."^[88]
• In 1807, the East India Company sent Captain Daniel Ross to Cochin China to survey the Paracel Islands. Upon arriving to the kingdom, he presented a letter of introduction entrusted by the English company to the reigning king, who was believed to be Emperor Gia Long at that time.^[89] Subsequently, Captain Ross completed chartering the south coast of China in 1807, the Paracel Islands in 1808, part of the coast of Cochin China in 1809, and the coast of Palawan in 1810. Most notably, in his surveys published in 1821 under the title "(South) China Sea, Sheet I & II", the Spratly Islands was referred to as The Dangerous Ground, and was later renamed as Storm Island on the 1859 edition of the chart.^[90] Separately, in another document, the "Correct Chart of the China Sea", published by Herbert in 1758, the Paracel archipelago was described as a long group of islands and reefs extending from 13 to 17 degrees North, which approximately correspond to the geographic latitudes of the present-day Spratly and Paracel Islands, respectively.^[90] It is quite clearly that the captain himself, and probably most navigators of his time, did not differentiate the two archipelagos, but instead had delineated the present-day Spratly Islands as part of the Paracels. Captain Daniel Ross was a well known hydrographer of the Navy of Government of English Bengal and founder of the Bombay Geographical Society.^[91]
• In 1815, Emperor Gia Long ordered Phạm Quang Anh's Hoàng Sa naval task unit to sail to the islands to make surveys and report on maritime routes and draw up maps.^[86][92]
• In 1816, according to Jean-Baptiste Chaigneau, Emperor Gia Long officially claimed the sovereignty of the Paracel Islands, which would include the present-day Spratly archipelago. These two islands were later delineated distinctly under the reign of his successor, Emperor Minh Mạng. Chaigneau was one of the most respected advisors to Emperor Gia Long. He spent more than 30 years in Cochinchina and became the first French Consul to this kingdom in 1821.^[93]
• In 1821, the Lịch triều hiến chương loại chí (歷朝憲章類誌) published by Phan Huy Chú, a historian, an encyclopaedist, and an officer of the Ministry of Construction in the time of emperor Minh Mạng. This remarkable work was prepared in 10 years (1809–1819) and consisted of 10 volumes. One of them, the Địa Dư Chí volume, details territories of Dai Nam Kingdom. In 1838, he published the Đại Nam Thống Nhất Toàn Đồ, the Unified Đại Nam Complete Map, that distinctly delineated Vạn Lý Trường Sa (the Ten-thousand-league Long Sandbank) and Hoàng Sa (the Golden Sandbank).^[39]
• In 1827, a world atlas produced by Belgian geographer Philippe Vandermaelen was published in Belgium. Vietnam was described by four maps in this atlas. One of these maps has the title "Partie de la Cochinchine", in which Paracel Islands was included, indicating that it was part of Cochinchine (southern Vietnam region). The map also featured geography, politics, minerals and statistics about the Empire of An Nam (former name of Vietnam). Moreover, the map titled "Partie de la Chine" in the atlas had identified Hainan Island as the southernmost point of China at that time.^[94]
• In 1833, Emperor Minh Mạng ordered Ministry of Construction to build a temple, erect steles, and plant many trees on the islands for navigation purposes.^[86][92]
• In 1834, Emperor Minh Mạng ordered Trương Phúc Sĩ, a naval task unit commander, accompanied by 21 men sailing to the islands to survey and draw map of Hoàng Sa.^[36]
• In 1835, Emperor Minh Mạng issued a royal ordinance to order 24 troops to the Paracel Islands. The royal ordinance has been preserved by generations of Đặng family and was publicly disclosed in early 2009.^[95]
• In 1835, the King ordered Phạm Văn Nguyên's naval task unit, accompanied by workers from Bình Định and Quãng Ngãi provinces, to build Hoàng Sa temple with a wind screen and erect steles on Bàn Than Thạch (Bàn Than Rock) of the present-day Woody Island. The mission was completed in 10 days. Notably, about 33m southwest from the erection, there was a little ancient temple where a stele engraved with the words "Vạn Lý Ba Bình" found. This inscription means Ten Thousand Leagues of Calming Waves. The date of the actual erection of the ancient temple remains unknown^[86][92]
• In 1836, Emperor Minh Mạng received a report from his Ministry of Construction that recommended a comprehensive survey of all the East Sea islands because of their "great strategic importance to our maritime borders."^[86][96] The King ordered Phạm Hữu Nhật, a royal navy commander, to erect a wooden stele on the islands. The post was engraved with the following inscription: The 17th of the reign of Minh Mạng by the royal ordinance commander of the navy Phạm Hữu Nhật came here to Hoàng Sa for reconnaissance to make topographical measurements and leave this stele as record thereof.^[86][92]
• In 1838, Bishop Jean-Louis Taberd published the "Latin-Annamese Dictionary". The dictionary contains the "An Nam Đại Quốc Họa Đồ" (The Great Annam Map). In the neighborhood of the present-day coordinate of the islands, words found on the map read "Paracel seu Cát Vàng" (Paracel or Cát Vàng). Cát Vàng means Hoàng Sa, Golden Sands or Golden Sandbank.^[40]
• In 1842, Hai Lu Do Chi, a historical Chinese document was written in the 22nd year of the reign of the Daoguang Emperor (1820–1850) of the Qing eynasty (1644 to 1912) of China. A statement found in this book read: Wang Li Shi Tang (万里石塘) is a sandbank rising above the sea. Several thousand leagues in length, it forms a rampart on the periphery of the Kingdom of Annam. Wang Li Shi Tang means Ten-thousand-league Long Sandbank.^[86]
• In 1858, Napoleon III ordered French troops to attack Tourane, the present-day Đà Nẳng city. Subsequently, France launched more attacks and forced Cochin China and some provinces in the South to become her colonies. French Indochina was formed in 1887 and consisted of Tonkin, Annam, Cochin China, and Cambodia.
• The 1887 Chinese-Vietnamese Boundary convention signed between France and China after the Sino-French War stated that China was the owner of the Spratly and Paracel islands.^[97]
• 1895–1896, German vessel Bellona and Japanese ship Imezi Maru sank at the islands. Chinese fishermen looted and resold them at Hainan. These countries protested but local Chinese authorities, the Governor of Liang Guang, denied any responsibilities on the ground that the Paracels were abandoned and belonged to neither country.^[86]