Historical Fiction.

The article discusses China's historic basis of territorial claims to the South China Sea and the Spratly Islands, with information on legal aspects of sovereignty and maritime boundaries set by international law. Topics include the concept of sovereignty and nation-states as a post-imperial notion introduced to Asia through contact with Europe, the historic process of establishing China's 2013 borders during the period of Qing (Manchu) expansionism in the 18th century, and China's use of historical revisionist accounts, propaganda, and folklore to support its claims in the multilateral dispute regarding the South China Sea.