The word paracel is of Portuguese origin, meaning placer (a submerged bank or reef), and appears on 16th-century Portuguese maps. The archipelago includes about 130 small coral islands and reefs, most grouped into the northeastern Amphitrite Group or the western Crescent Group. They are distributed over a maritime area of around 15,000 square kilometers (5,800sqmi), with a land area of approximately 7.75 square kilometers (2.99sqmi). The archipelago is located about 220 miles (350km) southeast of Hainan Island, equidistant from the coastlines of the People's Republic of China (PRC) and Vietnam, and approximately one-third of the way between central Vietnam and the northern Philippines. A feature of the Paracel Islands is Dragon Hole, the second deepest blue hole (underwater sinkhole) in the world. Sea turtles and seabirds are native to the islands, which have a hot and humid climate, abundant rainfall and may experience annual typhoons. The archipelago is surrounded by productive fishing grounds and a seabed potentially containing unexplored oil and gas reserves.
Geography
Location of the Paracel Islands showing the more significant PRC settlements
The climate is different from nearby continental land masses with the lower[clarification needed] air mass temperatures being 1 to 2°C (1.8 to 3.6°F) cooler than land at the same latitude, and with higher relative humidity due to the maritime
air mass. The air mass over the Paracel Islands has about a 5°C (9.0°F) variation in annual temperature compared to the 2.2°C (4.0°F) observed over the Spratly Islands.
Source: Vietnam Institute for Building Science and Technology
Amphitrite group
The Amphitrite group was named after the French frigateAmphitrite, which observed the islands while carrying a Jesuit mission to Canton in 1698–1700.
Lying in the northeast of the Paracel Islands at 16°53′N112°17′E / 16.883°N 112.283°E / 16.883; 112.283, the group consists of low, narrow islands with sand cays and enclosed shallow lagoons connected by reefs of rock. It is about 37km (23mi) northwest of Lincoln Island. The group approximately forms an ellipse with a north–south axis of 22km (14mi).
The northern section of the group comprises West Sand, Tree Island, and the Qilian Yu (七连屿, "seven sisters") sub-group: North Island, Middle Island, South Island, North Sand, Middle Sand, South Sand, and two small sands (New West Sand and New East Sand). The center of the group consists of Woody Island and Rocky Island, approximately 5km (3mi) south of the southern tip of the eastern extremity of the northern section. The southwest corner of the group is occupied by the Iltis Bank.
The largest island of the Paracels, Woody Island (which has an area of 213ha (530 acres)), has over 1,000 residents[failed verification] including fishermen and their families, military personnel, and civilian administrators.
Crescent group
Aerial photo of the Crescent group
Lying about 70km (43mi) southwest of the Amphitrite group, at 16°30′N111°42′E / 16.5°N 111.7°E / 16.5; 111.7, the Crescent group consists of islands and reefs that form a crescent-like structure from west to east, enclosing a deep central lagoon. The group measures 31 by 15km (19 by 9mi) east-west and north–south. All of the islands in the group support vegetation except on their small cays.
The islands are named after former senior figures in the British East India Company (EIC). Three were members of the EIC's 'Select Committee' in Canton: James Drummond, Thomas Pattle and John William Roberts. Jonathan Duncan was Governor in Council of Bombay, and William Taylor Money was Superintendent of the Bombay Marine.
Money Island lies at the southwest extremity of the group, and has some small cays on the southern side. While the island's English name was named after William Taylor Money, the Chinese name is Jin Yin Dao, a literal translation of "money island".
Antelope Reef, submerged at high tide and containing a central lagoon, lies 2.4km (1.5mi) east of Money Island.
Northeast of this are Robert Island (also named Round Island) and Pattle Island, separated from each other by a 3.5km (2.2mi) wide deep channel. A weather station was built on Pattle Island (by the French) in 1932, and a lighthouse and radio station in 1937.
Northeast of this is Quanfu Dao ("All Wealth Island").
Observation Bank, also named Silver Islet, and the Lesser Silver Islet, are the northernmost of the group and contain a small cay.
Just south of them are Yagong Dao (He Duck) and Xianshe Yu (Salty Hut).
At the eastern side of the group lies a 12km (7mi) long boomerang shaped reef with Stone Islet at its north end and Drummond Island at its south end. Near the centre of the reef is Dragon Hole the second deepest known sinkhole in the world.
The Duncan Islands (16°27′N111°43′E / 16.450°N 111.717°E / 16.450; 111.717), consisting of Duncan Island and Palm Island, lie approximately 3km (2mi) west of Drummond Island and about 8km (5mi) east of Antelope Reef. Kuangzai Shazhou (Little Basket) lies about halfway between Palm Island and Antelope Reef.
Bombay Reef: This elongated reef is situated at the southeastern corner of the Paracel Islands (16°00′N112°30′E / 16°N 112.5°E / 16; 112.5) and lies approximately 90km (56mi) southeast of the Crescent group. With most parts submerged, the reef measures approximately 18 by 5km (11 by 3mi) (E-W by N-S). Bombay Reef encloses a deep lagoon with rocks on its edge.
Eastern sub-group
Bremen Bank: Located 24km (15mi) north of Bombay Reef (16°18′N112°30′E / 16.3°N 112.5°E / 16.3; 112.5), is the southwesternmost feature of this subgroup. This submerged shallow bank measures approximately 23km (14mi) in length from northeast to southwest. The shallowest area reaches a depth of about 12 meters (39ft) and is located in the southwestern part of the bank.
Lincoln Island: Surrounded by a coral reef, located 37km (23mi) southeast from the Amphitrite Group at 16°42′N112°42′E / 16.7°N 112.7°E / 16.7; 112.7, the island is covered with brushes and fairly high trees, including coconutpalm 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.
North Reef: Situated approximately 56km (35mi) north from the Crescent group and about 70km (43mi) west-northwest from the Amphitrite group at 17°06′N111°30′E / 17.1°N 111.5°E / 17.1; 111.5, 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.
(West: Crescent group)
Inner southwest
Discovery Reef: Measuring approximately 27km (17mi) in length from east to west, and 7km (4mi) from north to south, the reef is located about 18km (11mi) south of the Crescent Group at 16°15′N111°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.
Passu Keah: This small reef encloses a shallow lagoon and is located about 12km (7mi) south of the eastern side of Discovery Reef at 16°06′N111°48′E / 16.1°N 111.8°E / 16.1; 111.8, approximately 37 miles (60km) east-northeast from Triton Island. The sand cay measures 9km (6mi) in length.
Outer southwest
Triton Island: The sand cay supports vegetation and stands on a steep-sided coral reef measuring 1.5km (1mi) in length. This southwesternmost island of the Paracels is situated about 56km (35mi) from Discovery Reef at 15°48′N111°12′E / 15.8°N 111.2°E / 15.8; 111.2.
Central
Vuladdore Reef: Located slightly south of the center of the group at 16°18′N112°00′E / 16.3°N 112°E / 16.3; 112, this mostly submerged reef is orientated east–west and measures approximately 12km (7mi) by 3km (2mi). Some small spiral rocks are to be seen on the reef.
South China Sea islands along the bottom of the Mao Kun map
The Chinese wrote about large groups of maritime features in the area. Names such as changsha, shitang, shichuang and others were used. The Song dynasty book Zhu Fan Zhi mentions Qianli Changsha (千里長沙, lit. "Thousand-Mile Long Sands") and Wanli Shichuang (萬里石床 lit."Ten-Thousand-Mile Rock Bed"). The Yuan dynasty travel book Daoyi Zhilüe describes Wanli Shitang (萬里石塘, lit."Ten-Thousand Mile Rock Pool") as comprising three veins extending from Chaozhou to Borneo, Côn Sơn Island, and Java. The History of Yuan uses the terms Qizhouyang (七洲洋, lit. "Ocean of Seven Islands") and Wanli Shitang. In the Mao Kun map depicting 15th century Ming Treasure Voyages, groups of islands were named Shitang (石塘), Wansheng Shitangyu (萬生石塘嶼), and Shixing Shitang (石星石塘). Another Ming dynasty work, Haiyu (On the Sea), uses Wanli Shitang and Wanli Changsha. Qing dynasty maps and book Hai Lu (Illustrations of the Sea) refer to islands and other features as Changsha, Shitang, and Qizhouyang. A sea chart from the Daoguang era, Yiban Lu (Particular Illustrations) by Zheng Guangzu, uses Xisha (西沙, lit."Western Sands/Shoals" ) to refer to the Paracels. Xisha became the standard name for the Paracels in the 20th century and was used in maps published by the Republic of China in 1935 and 1947.
Paracel Islands misidentified in 18th-19th century European maps
Portuguese maps from the early 16th century marked a group of ilhas allagadas (lit. "flooded islands") in the area. They were later named y as del atabalero after the atabaque hand drum, due to the concial shape assigned to the entire group. The Paracels and the Spratlys were not distinguished separately at the time. From the mid-1500s Portuguese cartographers began referring to the group as Ilhas do Pracel, although y as del atabalero was still used for some time. The word Paracel is likely a variant of pracel or parcel, from the Spanish word placer used by Portuguese and Spanish navigators to designate shallow sandy seas or submerged banks, such as the Placer de los Roques.
Similar names entered Dutch and French maps, such as the 1617 Chart of Asia and eight city maps published by Willem Blaeu as well as the 1747 Kaart van de Kusten van Kochinchine, van Tunquin, en Gedeeltelyk van de Chineesse-kus/ Carte des Costes de Cochin chine, Tunquin, et Partie de celles de la Chine (lit. "Map of the coasts of Cochinchina, Tonkin, and part of the Chinese coast") published by Pieter de Hondt/Pierre d'Hondt.
The 1634 Route through Quảng Nam map depicting Bãi Cát Vàng–the Golden Sandbank
Before the 19th century, the area was primarily known only as "dangerous grounds" in English sources. In the late 1700s and early 1800s, greater attention was paid to mapping the islands in detail, notably by hydrographers such as Alexander Dalrymple and James Horsburgh, the latter of whom concluded that most of the Paracel islands indicated in earlier European maps were mistakes of sailors who really saw the tops of coastal mountains. A better picture of the area emerged in British charts by the mid-1800s.
Philippine
Due to confusion, the Spratly Islands were referred to as the Paracels in the mid-1900s.
Vietnamese
The Vietnamese call the islands Hoang Sa, (黃沙, lit. Yellow Sands), and this name is found in Vietnamese documents dating back to 1483 and An Nam quốc họa đồ published in 1490. In the modern language system, it is written as Hoàng Sa or Cát Vàng. They all have the same meaning—the Yellow Sands or the Yellow Sandbank. Before the early 19th century, the Spratly Islands to the south were considered as part of the Hoàng Sa. It was not until the reign of Emperor Minh Mạng (1820–1841) that the Spratlys were distinctly designated as Vạn Lý Trường Sa (萬里長沙, lit. Ten-Thousand-Mile Long Sands).
China has historically had a presence in the islands and, as of 2016, was engaged in major infrastructure development to support its territorial claims over the archipelago, and as a result there has been, and continues to be, a lot of construction activity. In recent years Woody Island has acquired an upgraded airport, an upgraded sea port, and a city hall. There is a post office, hospital and a school on Woody Island.
Fresh water
There is limited supply of fresh water on the islands. In 2012, it was reported that China (PRC) planned to build a solar-energy-powered desalination plant on the islands. In 2016, it was reported that the first desalination plant was activated. This reduces the occupant's reliance on water supply coming in barrels by boat.
Electricity
Both wind and solar powered facilities exist, but most of the electricity is supplied by diesel generators. This led to considerations by the Chinese government to use floating nuclear power plants. It was reported in October 2020 that an experimental wave power generator was installed off Woody Island.
On land, in August 2020, Millennium Energy Viêtnam Co., Ltd, a member of Millennium Petroleum Corporation announced plans to develop a 600 ha, US$15 billion LNG project in the south Vân Phong area of the Khánh Hòa province, i.e. Nha Trang, near by Cam Ranh, with capacity of 9,600 MW, project which include a dock warehouse system, may be terminals, to provide gas to the power plant as well as distribute LNG in South-East Asia, supplied presumably by the offshore gas deposit along the coast of Quảng Nam province, discovered by ExxonMobil in October 2011, at 200 nautical miles (roughly 370km), surrounded the Paracel Islands which China has control since 1974.[citation needed]
Communication
The Chinese postal zip code of the island is 572000, and the telephone area code is +86 (898). There is cellphone reception on the island.
Transport
There is an airport on Woody Island with a 2,400 meters (7,900ft) long runway, which can handle take-offs and landings of Boeing-737s or planes of similar size. Flight services operate on the Haikou – Xisha route. There are three main roads on Woody Island as well as an 800 meters (2,600ft) long cement causeway that connects Woody Island and Rocky Island. Extensive port facilities have been constructed on Duncan Island.
Harbor developments between the Duncan Islands (December 2012)
Ecology and tourism
Paracel Islands' geographical and ecological traits are often likened as "China's Maldives", however, controversial conflicts between environment conservation and human activities including military operations, developments, and tourism on Paracel Islands have become public concerns in recent years. Local ecosystem include endangered fish such as whale sharks, oceanic birds, marine mammals (at least historically) such as blue whales, fin whales, and Chinese white dolphins, and marine reptile species such as critically endangered green sea turtles, hawksbill sea turtles, and Leatherback sea turtles; however, direct damaging of the ecosystem by military group and tourists has been documented. Governmental actions to cease illegal tourism are ongoing.
The islands have been open for tourists since 1997. Chinese tourists can take a 20-hour ferry to the Islands, paying up to US$2,000 for a 5-day cruise, and wait for their applications to be accepted. The BBC article states that "Chinese tourism has strong political implications, as the Chinese tourists are being used as 'foot soldiers of China' by Beijing to further China's territorial claims there". The video also states "Vietnam is considered unlikely to send military vessels to stop them".
There are two museums on Woody Island; a Naval Museum and a Maritime Museum. In April 2012, the Vice-Mayor and officials from the Haikou Municipal Government made several announcements about developing new docking facilities and hotels within the Crescent Group - on Duncan and Drummond Islands specifically. Promotion of the naturally unspoilt reef system was cited as the driver for new tourism potential with other such reefs, such as the Great Barrier Reef in Australia, now placed under threat of extinction due to human activities. However, according to The China Post, this was denied by a PRC Government official in April 2012, due to sensitivities surrounding the islands.
The ownership of the islands remains hotly contested. The People's Republic of China (PRC) on mainland China, Vietnam, and the Republic of China (ROC) on Taiwan all claim sovereignty. The PRC has controlled the entire archipelago since the Battle of the Paracel Islands in January 1974. In July 2012, China (PRC) established Sansha, Hainan Province, as administering the area. As of February 2017, 20 PRC outposts, including small harbours, built on reclaimed land have been reported in the Paracels. The majority of the Paracel islands lie within 200nm of both China's and Vietnam's geographic baselines under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
Historical perspectives
The nation states involved have differing historic perspectives as to sovereignty of the Paracel Islands with the Chinese claiming an interest since their discovery of the islands in the second century BC. A Vietnamese interest was crystallised in the view of one commentator by the planting of their flag in 1816. In 1836, the Vietnamese installed ten 5-meter steles with inscriptions that claimed the islands.
Between 1881 and 1883 the German navy surveyed the islands continuously for three months each year without seeking the permission of either France or China. No protest was issued by either government and the German government published the results of the survey in 1885. After the 1884–1885 Sino-French War, France officially gained control of Annam and Tonkin as protectorates and fully established French colonial rule in Vietnam by signing a number of treaties with the Chinese and Vietnamese governments, including the Tientsin Accord, Treaty of Huế (1884) and Treaty of Tientsin (1885), stipulating that China was to give up their claims of suzerainty over Vietnam.
In 1909 the Chinese sent an expedition to claim and map the islands in reaction to Japanese interest in exploiting the guano there. In the 1910s and 20s, the French accepted Chinese sovereignty of the Paracels. Around 1930 the French authorities began to push for a claim on behalf of Annam based on the protectorate's activities in the seventeenth century but were skeptical because Annam had done little to uphold its past claims.
In 1932 France formally claimed the Paracel Islands and in 1933 the Spratly Islands. Initially there seems to have been confusion in China at the time as the Paracel Islands were not recognised as a separate geographical entity and formal protests did not immediately follow. China and Japan both protested. In 1933, France seized the Paracels and Spratlys, announced their annexation, formally included them in French Indochina, and built a couple of weather stations on them, but did not disturb the numerous Chinese fishermen it found there. In 1939 during the Second Sino-Japanese War, Japan took over the Paracel Islands on the pretext of them being a Chinese territory and placed them under the administration of either Taiwan or Hainan, then under its control.
The Paracels and Spratlys were handed over to the Republic of China's control after the 1945 surrender of Japan, since the Allied powers had assigned the Republic of China to accept the Japanese surrender in the area. At the end of the war (Asian-Pacific Region), the ROC occupied the Paracels, Spratlys, and other islands in the South China Sea in October and November 1946. During the San Francisco Peace Conference of 1951, the USSR motioned for the Paracels and the Spratlys to be awarded to China, but the motion was rejected by a vote of 46 to 3. In the Geneva accord of 1954, Japan formally renounced all of its claims to, inter alia, the South China Sea islands that it had occupied during World War II. After World War II ended, the Republic of China was consistently the "most active claimant" of the islands. It garrisoned Woody Island, the main island of the Amphitrite group, and posted Chinese flags and markers on it. France tried, but failed, to force the ROC to leave, although the weather station on Prattle Island continued to be operated by French Indochina. The aim of the ROC was to block French claims. In December 1947, the ROC 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.
After the communists gained control of China in 1949 after victory in the Chinese Civil War, they occupied Woody Island. By 1955 South Vietnam had taken possession of the Crescent Group. North Vietnam's prime minister Phạm Văn Đồng recognized Chinese sovereignty over the Paracels in 1958. After winning the Vietnam war, North Vietnam retracted its recognition, saying it had done so to receive aid from China in fighting the Americans, according to Pham's discussion in June 1977 with China's Li Xiannan.:98
After the Battle of the Paracel Islands in January 1974, the People's Republic of China expelled the Vietnamese from the Crescent Group and took full control of the Paracels. In 1976 the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) tried to persuade Beijing to acknowledge Vietnam's sovereignty over the Spratly Islands to the south, offering in return to recognize China's claim over the Paracel Islands. However, when this effort failed, Vietnam's government, now under CPV control, asserted its claim over both archipelagos.
China
618–1279
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There are some Chinese cultural relics in the Paracel islands dating from the Tang and Song eras, and there is some evidence of Chinese habitation on the islands during these periods, though the relics are more likely washed ashore from shipwrecked junks. 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.
1279–1368
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The Yuan dynasty travel book Daoyi Zhilüe describes Wanli Shitang (萬里石塘, lit."Ten-Thousand Mile Rock Pool") as comprising three veins extending from Chaozhou to Borneo, Côn Sơn Island, and Java. In 1279 the Yuan 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 claimed by China to be located in the Paracel Islands, although this is considered unlikely by many Chinese scholars. 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.
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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. For three months each year between 1881 and 1884, the German Imperial Navy sent two boats (the ship Freya and the warship Iltis) to study and map the Paracel Islands without either seeking the permission of or incurring protest by the Chinese government. This mission was finished without any problems and the German Admiralty published the results in 1885 in a document called "Die Paracel-Inseln" (The Paracel Islands). In the period 1884 to 1885 the Tientsin Accord and Treaty of Tientsin were signed by Chinese representatives to attempt to address issues from an undeclared war between France acting on behalf of its protectorate territories in Vietnam and China. During this period between the treaties the Chinese did claim the Paracels.
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", which France did not protest. 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.
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, after which the investigation team produced a detailed Report of Surveys on the Paracel Islands.
On July27, 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. The Paracels and Spratlys were handed over to Republic of China control after the 1945 surrender of Japan, since the Allied powers had assigned the Republic of China to receive Japanese surrenders in that area. 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. 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. The aim of the Republic of China was to block the French claims. 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.
Vietnam
15th–17th centuries
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 of the Lê dynasty (1428–1789), the Vietnamese began conducting commercial activities on and around Hoàng Sa, including harvesting abundant sea-products and conducting salvage operations on shipwrecks.
In 1634, during year fifth of Emperor Đức Long of Vietnam (1629–1635), 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 Đàng Trong, territory of Lord Nguyễn Phúc Nguyên (1613–1635), to seek rescue for other castaways still on the islands.
1680–1705, Lord Trịnh Căn of Tonkin instructed Đỗ Bá Công Đạo to publish Thiên Nam tứ chí lộ đồ (天南四至路圖), an encyclopedia consisting of four series of maps that detail routes from Thăng Long,[clarification needed] capital of Đại Việt,[clarification needed] to other countries in 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.
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.
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 encyclopedist, and a Minister of Construction during the Lê dynasty (1428–1789). These six volumes detail the Nguyễn dynasty's territories, including the exploitation of the Paracel and Spratly Islands from 1702 onwards.
1777–1784, when traveling to Cochinchina, 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.
1800–1899
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." In 1802, Emperor Gia Long created the "Hoàng Sa Đội" (Company of the Paracels) to supervise the island exploitation.
In 1807, the East India Company sent Captain Daniel Ross to Cochinchina 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. 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. 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. 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.
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.
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.
In 1821, the Lịch triều hiến chương loại chí (歷朝憲章類誌) published by Phan Huy Chú, a historian, an encyclopedist, 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).
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.
In 1833, Emperor Minh Mạng ordered the Ministry of Construction to build a temple, erect steles, and plant many trees on the islands for navigation purposes.
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.
In 1835, Emperor Minh Mạng issued a royal ordinance to order 24 troops to the Paracel Islands. Generations of the Đặng family have preserved the royal ordinance and publicly disclosed it in early 2009.
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
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." 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.
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.
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 dynasty (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.
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, which, according to China, put the islands in the Chinese territory. In fact, the treaty only clarified Gulf of Tonkin sea border and other land border issues between Vietnam and China.
1895–1896, German vessel Bellona and Japanese ship Himeji 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.
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)
Imperial edict no. 10 of 29-02-Bảo Đại 13 (30 March 1938) transferring the Paracels from the Quảng Ngãi province to the Thừa Thiên province issued by the Bảo Đại Emperor as recorded in the Nam-Triều Quốc-Ngữ Công-Báo (南朝國語公報, "Bulletin of the Southern dynasty in the National Language") số 8 (1938). Referring to the islands as "sovereign" (chủ-quyền) territory of the South (nước Nam) since "long ago and under previous dynasties" (đã lâu đời và dưới các tiền triều).
Decree no.174-NV from the presidency of Ngô Đình Diệm, Republic of Vietnam, redistricting the Paracels as part of Quảng Nam Province effective 13 July 1961. The Paracels were previously part of Thừa Thiên–Huế Province since 30 March 1938, when redistricted by the government of French Indochina.
20th-century events
In the 1910-20s, the French Ministry of Colonies and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs agreed that the Paracel Islands were under Chinese sovereignty, and that France should not try to claim them, either on behalf of itself, or Annam. Therefore, France did not protest in 1921 when the government of Guangdong province declared the Paracels to be under the administration of Hainan Island. 5 years later in 1926, France refused an application from a French company to exploit guano in the Paracels. It also refused a similar application from a Japanese company.
In 1932, France nonetheless formally claimed both the Paracel and Spratly Islands. China and Japan both protested. On 6 April 1933, France occupied the Spratlys, announced their annexation, formally included them in French Indochina, and built a couple of weather stations on them.
On 3 July 1938, French Indochinese colonial troops, headed by sub-lieutenant Edmond Grethen, occupy the Paracels islands in turn.
In March 1939 Japan took the islands from France, garrisoned them, and built a submarine base at Itu Aba (now Taiping / 太平) Island. In 1941, the Japanese Empire made the Paracel and Spratly islands part of Taiwan, then under its rule.
After World War II, Nationalist China reaffirmed its sovereignty over the islands in the South China Sea, and dispatched a patrol force to the islands, but this was challenged by the French.[citation needed]
After the fall of the nationalist regime in China in 1949, the PRC gained control of the eastern half of the Paracel islands. Several small clashes occurred between the French and the communist Chinese naval forces during this period, but eventually a de facto line of control was established with the PRC occupying Woody Island, while the remainder was held by Franco -Vietnamese forces.
In 1951, at the international Treaty of San Francisco conference, Vietnam's representative claimed that both the Paracels and Spratlys are territories of Vietnam, and was met with no challenge from all nations at the event. However, neither the PRC nor the ROC participated in the conference. Separately, the ROC negotiated and signed its own treaty with Japan regarding the islands on April 29, 1952.
In 1954, according to the Geneva Agreements, which were signed by a number of nations including the PRC, Vietnam was partitioned into two states, North Vietnam and South Vietnam. The 17th parallel was used as the provisional military demarcation line, which was effectively extended into the territorial waters.[citation needed]The Paracel archipelago lies south of this line and belongs to South Vietnam accordingly.[citation needed]
In 1956, after the French withdrawal from Vietnam, South Vietnam replaced French control of the islands. By February 1956, the South Vietnamese Navy was already stationed on Pattle Island by Ngô Đình Diệm, though both the PRC and ROC politically and diplomatically condemned the decision and reaffirmed their claims to the islands.[citation needed] Following on the former French claim, Vietnam claimed the entire Paracel Islands.
On September 4, 1958, the government of the PRC proclaimed the breadth of its territorial sea to be twelve nautical miles (22km) which applied to all its territory, including the Paracel and Spratly Islands. Ten days later, the prime minister of North Vietnam, Phạm Văn Đồng, in his letter to Zhou Enlai stated that his government had respected the declaration of the PRC government. The PRC government used this letter as justification for their occupation, in fact, according to PhD Nguyen Van Canh: "The note of a prime minister, that is, the executive, is just an administrative document in the field of diplomacy, and in the matter of territorial transfers, the constitutions of countries stipulate that there must be a treaty regulating the transfer of territory and determine that problem. In other words, the National Assembly decides on that issue, and the National Assembly reflects the will of the entire people when transferring territory."
Letter from South Vietnam's General Staff of the Republic of Vietnam Military Forces, dated 18 February 1974, concerning the Battle of the Paracel Islands On January 19, 1974, the Battle of the Paracel Islands between the PRC and South Vietnam took place, leaving the PRC in control of the entire archipelago. On January 16, South Vietnamese naval officers and an American observer had reported to Saigon some suspected military activities of the Chinese navy on the Drummond and Duncan islands. After receiving the report, the government of South Vietnam decided to counter the Chinese forces, to defend the South Vietnamese-controlled section (the western half of the Paracels) from Chinese occupation, and sent a unit of frigates to the area. On January 19, there were sea and land battles between the Chinese and Vietnamese forces with casualties on both sides. At the end, the Chinese fleet defeated the naval force of South Vietnam. With the ongoing civil war with the Viet Cong embroiling South Vietnam's attention and the absence of the USA's support, no military attempt was made to re-engage the PRC over the islands. After the military engagement and the subsequent victory, the PRC gained control of the entire archipelago and has maintained control since.:254 It was a significant turning point for the PRC but the sovereignty dispute on the islands remains unresolved with Vietnam.
In a statement released on 13 July 1999 by the foreign ministry of Taiwan, under President Lee Teng-hui stated that "legally, historically, geographically, or in reality", all of the South China Sea and the islands were Taiwan's territory and under Taiwanese sovereignty. The ROC's and the PRC's claims "mirror" each other. Taiwan and China are largely strategically aligned on the islands issue, since they both claim exactly the same area, so Taiwan's claims are viewed[by whom?] as an extension of China's claims. Taiwan and China both claim the entire island chains, while all the other claimants only claim portions of them, and China has proposed cooperation with Taiwan against all the other countries claiming the islands, such as Vietnam. China has urged Taiwan to cooperate and offered Taiwan a share in oil and gas resources while shutting out all the other rival claimants. Board director Chiu Yi of Taiwan's state run oil company, CPC Corp, has named Vietnam as the "greatest threat" to Taiwan. The United States has regularly ignored Taiwan's claims in the South China Sea and does not include Taiwan in any talks on dispute resolution for the area.
21st-century events
In July 2012 the National Assembly of Vietnam passed a law demarcating Vietnamese sea borders to include the Paracel and Spratly Islands.
The Philippines and Vietnam promptly lodged diplomatic protests strongly opposing the establishment of the Sansha City under Chinese jurisdiction.
In April 2013, a representative from the Vietnamese Foreign Ministry's National Boundary Commission gave a diplomatic note to a representative of the Chinese Embassy in Hanoi demanding that China cancel its plan to bring tourists to the Paracel archipelago.
According to reports from Chinese state media, at the beginning of May 2014, Chinese and Vietnamese naval vessels collided near the islands as Hanoi sought to prevent a Chinese oil rig from setting up in the area. On May 26, a Vietnamese fishing boat sank near the oil rig, after colliding with a Chinese vessel. As both sides imputed the blame to each other, Vietnam released a video footage in a week later, showing a Chinese vessel ramming into its ship before it sank; the Chinese said they were on the defensive while Vietnamese vessels were attacking the Chinese fishing boats.
On May 9, 2014, Taiwan reiterated its claim to the Paracel islands, rejecting all rival claims amidst the standoff and repeating its position that all of the Paracel Islands, Spratly Islands, Macclesfield Bank and Pratas Islands belong to the Republic of China along with "their surrounding waters and respective seabed and subsoil", and that Taiwan views both Vietnam and mainland China's claims as illegitimate. This statement was released by Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which added – "There is no doubt that the Republic of China has sovereignty over the archipelagos and waters."
In January 2016, photographs emerged that indicate that China is reclaiming land and expanding military facilities in the Paracels, including at Duncan Island, North Island, and Tree Island. Commentators have likened this work to the initial stages of China's large-scale construction in the Spratly Islands.
On July 12, 2016, an arbitration under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) backed the Philippines against China's claims of resources and maritime areas within the nine-dash line that exceeded its entitlements under the UNCLOS. The tribunal argued that China had not historically exercised exclusive control within, hence has "no legal basis" to claim "historic rights" over resources. The ruling was rejected by both China and Taiwan.
In February 2017, the AMTI project under the Center for Strategic and International Studies reported that Chinese authorities had carried out land reclamation on 20 reefs, thus establishing 20 Chinese outposts so far. These include Duncan Island and Drummond Island which also have small helipads. Of these, three were capable of berthing small naval and commercial merchant ships. Vietnam had responded to this by expanding its already existing facilities on some of the Spratly islands occupied by it.
In 2026, China began construction at Antelope Reef in the Paracel Islands, expanding infrastructure that could have military and civilian uses. The development and the country's increased defense spending drew attention for the scale involved, with observers noting its potential for sustained maritime operations and impacts on regional territorial claims. This resumption followed a decade of slowdown in its island-building activities.
In popular culture
The film Storm in the South China Sea (南海风云) was produced in China in 1976, showing the Battle of the Paracel Islands in 1974.
The television show "The Last Ship" features the crew of the USS Nathan James navigating a minefield through the islands as part of an operation to rescue some of their crew mates that had been taken captive by pirates and were being held hostage on one of the islands.
↑Jones, Gareth Wyn (2002). "Provinces". In Boland-Crewe, Tara; Lea, David (eds.). The Territories of the People's Republic of China. London: Europa Publications. p.101. ISBN978-0-203-40311-2.
↑"Paracel Islands". The World Factbook. CIA. Archived from the original on November 12, 2025. Retrieved September 18, 2014.
↑Young Men's Catholic Association, Catholic progressArchived January 1, 2016, at the Wayback Machine, Vol. 7, Burns and Oates, London, 1878. Retrieved 6 April 2009.
↑三沙市全国陆地面积最小人口最少 粮食全靠运输[Sansha: Smallest Population Density in China - Completely Reliant on Imported Foodstuffs] (in Chinese). Sohu. July 9, 2012. Archived from the original on October 16, 2015. Retrieved July 24, 2014.
↑This is the maximum height, or for submerged features, the minimum depth, in metres. A height of zero indicates low sandy cays or beaches, reefs that dry at low tide, or similar. Source:
↑The Overall Survey of the Ocean's Shores, Appendix 1 China in Southern Island 万生石塘 annotated as the Paracel Islands by J.V.Mills, White Lotus Press ISBN974-8496-78-3
123Hancox, David J.; Prescott, John R. V. (1995). A geographical description of the Spratly Islands and an account of hydrographic surveys amongst those islands. Maritime briefing. Durham: International Boundaries Research Unit, Univ. of Durham. ISBN978-1-897643-18-1.
↑Horsburgh, James (1805). Memoirs: Comprising the navigation to and from China, by the China Sea, and through the various straits and channels in the Indian archipelago; also, the navigation of Bombay harbour. London: C. Mercier and Co.
↑Conrad Malte-Brun, Universal geography, Vol. 2, John Laval and S.F. Bradford, Philadelphia, 1829. Retrieved 2009-04-25.
123Phan Huy Chú, The Encyclopedia Lịch Triều Hiến Chương Loại Chí, 1821. Translated into modern Vietnamese from Chinese by Nguyen Tho Duc, Saigon, 1972
12Jean Louis, Dictionarium Anamitico-Latinum et Latino-Anamiticum, 1838
↑US Department of State Publication, Record of Proceedings of the Conference for the Conclusion and Signature of the Treaty of Peace with Japan, 119, 292 (1951).
↑Myron H. Nordquist, John Norton Moore, University of Virginia, "Security flashpoints: oil, islands, sea access and military confrontation", p174-185]
↑"Spratly Islands - reefs, shoals, atolls, and islets, South China Sea". Encyclopædia Britannica. Archived from the original on May 20, 2015. Retrieved May 16, 2014.]
↑我国对西沙南沙群岛主权的历史和法理依据[Chinese Sovereignty Over the Xisha and Nansha Islands - Historic and Legal Basis for the Claim] (in Chinese). CNKI. Archived from the original on July 28, 2014. Retrieved July 24, 2014.
↑Myron H. Nordquist, John Norton Moore, University of Virginia, "Security flashpoints: oil, islands, sea access and military confrontation", pp. 165–174.
↑Hungdah, Chiu; Park, Choon-Ho (1975). "Legal status of the Paracel and Spratly Islands". Ocean Development & International Law. 3: 1–28. doi:10.1080/00908327509545556.
↑Myron H. Nordquist, John Norton Moore, University of Virginia, "Security flashpoints: oil, islands, sea access and military confrontation", pp. 176.
↑Đỗ Bá Công Đạo, Toàn Tập Thiên Nam Tứ Chí Lộ Đồ Thư, Translated into modern Vietnamese from Chinese by Buu Cam, Hồng Đức Bản Đồ, Saigon, 1962.
12Lê Quý Đôn, The Encyclopedia of Thuận Hóa and Quảng NamPhủ Biên Tập Lục, 1776. Translated into modern Vietnamese from Chinese by Le Xuan Giao, Saigon, 1972.
↑Myron H. Nordquist et al., University of Virginia, Center for Oceans Law, Security FlashpointsArchived January 1, 2016, at the Wayback Machine, pp.142–143, Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, 1998. Retrieved on 4-17-2009.
↑《南海风云》[Storm in the South China Sea] (in Chinese). Douban. Archived from the original on July 28, 2014. Retrieved July 24, 2014.
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