Asia has been known for thousands of years as a geologically volatile area of the world. Geographers call a large area Monsoon Asia, because of the significance of wind patterns. Japan, the Philippines and Indonesia all sit on the Pacific Ring of Fire, an area of high seismic and volcanic instability. Cyclones and earthquakes have toppled and swallowed cities. Floods and tidal waves regularly wash the earth clean. Volcanoes send deadly waves of lava and clouds of ash to blanket the world.
As if that were not enough, natural disasters do not represent the entire picture of chaos. Throughout Asia, throughout time, mankind has also had to deal with drought, famine, war, rebellion, conquerors, and disease. Genghis Khan, the Black Death and the British all plagued the Asian people, leaving one to wonder just exactly how they survived. While that is a valid question for all of humanity, it seems to be especially true for the population of Asia, which has faced time and again every force the earth, they sky and power hungry men could throw at it, and survived to tell the tale. Here then, are some of the darkest moments in Asian history.
1162-1227> Genghis Khan expanded the Mongol empire from Asia to the doorstep of Europe, killing millions along the way, and earning the nickname, The Bloody Terror.
1281 On down the line, Kublai Khan decided that mainland Asia was not enough and went after Japan. With over 4,000 ships and over 100,000 troops, he set sail for the conquest of Japan. With no large ships, the Japanese prepared to defend the coast and things soon looked bad for them. That is until a strange and powerful storm suddenly appeared and the typhoon destroyed the Mongol fleet. The typhoon was viewed as a divine wind and was named as such; kamikaze.
