Note 4 — And in Neighboring Provinces and Realms, From July, 1618, to the Present Date in 1619

In 1618 the Manchu leader Noorhachu invaded the province of Liaotung—now a division of the province of Sheng-King, and lying on the northern coast of the Korean Gulf; its southern extremity forms a long, narrow peninsula which terminates at the entrance of the Gulf of Pe-chili, and on it are the fortified posts of Dalny and Port Arthur, important strategic points commanding the entrance to that gulf, and prominent in the present war (May, 1904) between Russia and Japan. In Liaotung are also the important towns of Mukden and Niuchuang (Newchwang). In 1621 Noorhachu captured Mukden, and soon conquered the rest of the province; and, about twenty-five years later, his successors completed the conquest of China, expelling the Ming dynasty (which had begun in 1368), and establishing that of the Manchus, which still rules in China. For a detailed description of this conquest, see Boulger’s History of China (London and New York, 1900), pp. 97–125.