I

Learnino
-tlutcorfres
You will be able to: :

r identify the external threats ,,

that the people of ancient

lndia, China and Southeast
A.sia faced. ,'

explain how these ancient

societies responded to
external threats.
tell whether these
responses were successful
in dealing with external .-.
th reats.
Lqa rn in E
0utcodes
You will be able to:
. identify the external threats
that the people of ancient
lndia, China and Southeast
Asia faced. of ,t
explain how these ancient
societies r*sponded to
external threats.
telt whether these
responses were successful
in dealing with external
th reats.
 I

1
i

Kffi
r,{
{:
4.,

3' 1,' 'lt'

a
ti

---
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India
India is, for the most part, cut off from the rest
<hvuer PasS
^nf." of mainland Asia by the mighty Hindu Kush
?v.l and Himalayan mountain ranges. Nonetheless,
rylrr aJw- 4
rtr^ nn. e:m a -vln tq" foreigners could still enter India through the breaks
ili:3H.5ii'l
nAt.,".
Ht
7..^
tii-uluyu
*q*\*L-'rnt Mountains
along the mountain ranges. The most famous of
these breaks is the Khyber Pass in the northwest'
'"O"tgt"
between present-day Afghanistan and Pakistan.
It was probably through the Khyber Pass that the
Aryans entered India around 1500 BCE.
Bay of
Bengal
For many centuries after the arrival of the Aryans,
Arabian Sea the northwestern passes were the routes taken by
foreign invaders who wanted to get their hands on
N India's wealth. For example, c. 530 BCE, Cyrus, the
INDIAN OCEAN
emperor of Persia (present-day Iran), conquered the
Mountai ns

Khyber Pass
CEYLON
+ lands to the west of the Indus River. As discussed
in Chapter 4,the Indus Valley region was invaded
River
by the young Greek emperor, Alexander the Great.
&. Fig 10.1 A map of India rn 326 BCE.

re
abo ut...
Alexander the Great
Alexander the Great (356-323 BCE) became the king of Macedonia, a

kingdom north of Greece, when he was only 20 years old. Attracted

by the wealth of lndian cities, he crossed the lndus River in 326 BCE.
Though Alexander was Successful in defeating the local lndian rulers,
his soldiers did not want to push on into the Ganges Valley. Therefore,
Alexander had to return to Greece. To return home, they sailed down
to the mouth of the Indus River and then walked across the deserts
of present-day Pakistan and lran. Alexander died on his way home.
&Fig 10.2 Bust of Alexander the Great
found in Indla

164
ffi r,'u i ,, ,!',,tt
 In the mirjclle of 5th centu? CE, ancienr
invaded bv rh" .r,,jl-. Inclia was
il,il::'iji:, IIT: :.T :;;'i.;;
Romans. The Hunas ;ffi:1J::T,i;:
as tne Huns by the
no#*,
invaded,r,"
ern part
was at thaf timo r,r^r r^-_ ,7 ^ of India, which ARTHED!
I;'.::,*x' J'il';:' *, lL,l:,o,0*'l' # ;:ilxlfi ]ffjl;:
;:l,Tii:?,i?,3:"y":t*,d;*,""o,Jli,TilHiili
:;,ff :#i,j.ll;^,:",,,",yqe1.j:i.o';;il:ffi ,f ;ff T
.ollu@:!ool,,ft.r. The fhinese travcller,
recorded that one Huna
Xuan Zang,
king stro"ngly
apposed Buddhism.This
account iJ
corroboratetJ by lndian
historical
ffi&wm$ry ffim*wryemx reeords from a later period.
#rxd$mre K&rngdwmm
For most of its ancient
period, India
kingdoms, with each kinlaom;ril; was divided into many
kingdoms *.*trirved in armosr .l_i.l"*1ent king. These
,Til:','#f* X;
il#i*; ;ffi ;"',T::T #;1#:
The southern part of-India
was a very important
centre of trade. Thus, it
of much wealth for the was u ,orr..
Orn*OJr, ,.
empire that contr:olled
it. frrrJr.,
ther.efore fcught with
another for the control ;.;^-
southern part of India.
of the
During the
early part ci the ztt, "cE,
..rtu.y
the Pailava kingdo,,
*o,
war tlr ar it waged againstu'
:n:^ C'hatukya tinjdom.
In 8()r CE. rhe pallava kingdom

Chola kingdom (850-126; Arabian\ea

CE).
IDuring the rule of N
Rajaraja the Great
(985-1014 CE), rhe
Chota kingdom
grew inro a sourh Indian
.rnii..- i, +
defeated two other sorrrher- ;i-:;^_-

- cheraan..*rrjl'ffi:fff3.:H"
-v
- F

northern part of Ceylon

Sri Lanka). H"n.e, rh. 1p..r.r"Ouy INDIAN OCEAN
6h; ..pi."
very powerful in south
9":.u-:
India. As a result of the and central CEYLON
I chora ;;;,r,. srrong
efflcient rule, there was and
finally p"*" i, the southern
India after several centuries part of .& Fig 10.3 A map of the
ofhgfrtirrg. southern part of lndia
krngdoms in the

fifusptsr !S i;li:i;;,11 lils;r5 165

 &t'*rym,** $r'q}$''tr;i} fu'*,* &ff ;r r rlsg $[:q.1lr,:r * mI
'S'h
r**'lgi
The kings of ancient India responded to possible invasions in
several ways. These methods served not only to prevent foreign
invasions, but also to defend or protect their kingdoms against
such invasions when they occurred.

:1 r.,_' llf-'".>i;,r; *=r:",*r e. aitij =r,'1 i35

";,i*
All towns and cities in ancient India had very tall walls to keep
out foreign invaders. For example, Pataliputra, the capital of the
Mauryan empire during the 3rd century BCE, was surrounded
by enormous wooden walls with 64 gates and 512 watchtowers
placed at regular intervals.

A major weakness of ancient India's defences was that no king

* Fig 10.4 How were the watchtowers useful
as a measure against surprise invasions?
ever tried to build any kind of 'Great Wall of India' near the
Khyber Pass to keep invaders out. Since the centres of polirical
power were mainly in the middle of the Ganges Valley, the kings
of ancient India did not pay enough attention to defending the
border zones.

/
n
S,c

,;i*,r*
lr* T

.t& Jr'*
*U;":
 Ancient Indian kingdoms had armies that were used not
only to invade other kingdoms, but also to defend their own
kingdoms. Harsha (606-641 CE), the ruler of a kingdom in
the northern part of India, had a large army that included
100 000 cavaky (soldiers who fight on horseback) and 60 000
war elephants.

Although most Indian armies were big, they were not

particularly effective. The war elephants, while presenting a
fearsome sight, were ineffective during the actual flghting.
When Alexander the Great invaded the Indus Valley region
rn 326 BCE, his soldiers learned that the war elephants could
be frightened by flring flaming arrows at them. The frightened
elephants would then retreat and trample on the Indian troops
following behind.

*ZpZ*"n=x*1;
To reduce the risk ofbeing invaded, kings of ancient India also
participated in diplomacy. By forming friendships or alliances, an
V Fig 10.5 Alexander the Great at war
against an lndian k ng. Compare the armies
of Alexander the Great and his indian riva
.

Indian kingdom would not be invaded by its allies, the kingdoms Whose armies do you think were able
and empires it was friendly with. Also, these friendships allowed to move quicker and defend themselves
better? Why do you say so?
allies to invade their common enemies.

-t'
,/ '
* .',
s,
Jf
t& rx

W 'g*
rI;]

'-ts-" I't,
taD

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tr g
?
 The Mauryan kings, for example, maintained
friendly relations with the rulers of other
kingdoms by exchanging gifts. The kings also
sent their ambassadors to other kingdoms.
Ambassadors were treated with a lot of
respect. The ancient Indians believed that
a king who killed an ambassador would be
reborn in hell along with all his offlcials.

6. Fig 10.6Today, besides sending ambassadors to

other countries, heads of state also meet regularly
to strengthen therr fr endship. The photograph
;:i,"+L;{;di:*ii,
above shows the 11th meeting of the South Asran
Association of Regional Cooperation (SAARC). Not ail measures taken by the kings of ancient India succeeded
in keeping away foreign invaders. In some cases, the foreign
invaders managed to conquer parts of India. However, the impact
of these conquests on ancient Indian society was minimal. Most
' ' foreign invaders accepted and followed the ancient Indians'
Qii"rtions lifestyle by learning Sanskrit and adopting Hinduism. As a
1. What were the measures taken by
result, the people of ancient India accepted these foreigners
the ancient lndians to deal with
into their society and gave them a class ranking, normally that
externai threats?
of kshatriyas. This process is called integration.
2. How would foreign rulers try to
adapt to the lndian way of life?
An example of integration can be seen in the case of the
Kushans, Central Asian nomads who invaded and ruled most
of the northem paft of India between the lst century CE and
iioris to.z Gold coins minted 2nd century CE. They adopted the Indian way of life and
during the Kushan dynasty
show mages of Kushan kings practised Hinduism and Buddhism. As a sign of their
ard Hi-dr gods. What does devotion, Kushan kings ordered coins that featured
th s say abrout how Kushan
kings saw themselves? Hindu gods such as Shiva and Lakshmi to be minted.
The Kushans' most famous king, Kanishka, encouraged
the spread of Hinduism and Buddhism and was considered
an outstanding ruler.

lndia Timeline
326 BCE 7th century CE
c. 530 BCE Alexander the Great 5th century CE Pallava kingdom conquered
Cyrus invaded India invaded lndia Hunas invaded lndia the Chalukya kingdom

400
+ 2aa

c. 322-185 BCE
400
I
BCE
c. 320_b50
600 800 1000 1200 1400
ut- 985-1014
-L- o^,^^
CE
of o^,^.^,.
Reign ^i Rajaraja
the Great
Mauryan dynasty Gupta dynasty I_-T-_
850-1267 CE
Chola dynasty
 Target Skill:

-,,f1fu
 {., r >clLi Le t K( M' & r\r'J .% ct-t^ 4al 7<srt>

i ku at\ or, ,W^ li- 1vw-cLthr

I
tl
+ kav* China - ^qn\.Lurla-
-Y6\(cx""\ ( la r(.1 t{f ["ta(a[ _r^o^latr&-
UI ffimre$gxt Brxvmsrmrns
J yet
+k4
''l
A u'c.1' t4'
^rtn
va(,' -.?rr^,.
Unlike India. which is mostly cut ofl from Centrut'er(u f,)r'Oy^o
mountains, China is exposed to the vast plains of Central Asia. I
In ancient times, these regions were home to fierce wandering
(nomadic) tribes whom the Chinese regarded as uncivilised.
Thus, the Chinese considered invasions by these tribes to be a
V Fig 10.8The Mongols were known to be serious threat to their civilisation.
courageous and skilful soldiers.

One of the most feared nomadic tribes was the Xiongnu. During
the Han period (2O2BCE-220 CB),they tried to invade northwest
China. In 1121 CE, another tribe, the Jurchen from Manchuria,
brought down the Song dynasty. They set up a new dynasty, the
Jin dynasty, with its capital at Beijing. The emperor and offlcials
of the defeated Song dynasty were forced to flee south, where
they established the Southern Song dynasty. Later, both the Jin
and Southern Song dynasties were overthrown n 1219 CE when
another tribe, the Mongols, conquered the whole of China and
set up the Yuan dynasty (1279-1368 CE).

Manchurian t,
Plain I
,tl
Central Asia MONGOLIA EI
f,, d
l"}(
\z -yf 1

\%
*,, \%
ltt
QY
g
19.n\
? fFt*r-r.t^
\"w
East
tr!er China

o\
:l
o.- I
'to'
J cHrNA
5ea

^1. oo
..# ?u, Rir",
South
iu Fig 10.9The general direction of nomadic China
invasions into China Sea
fntu.n Great Wall of China

170 lneLiviiljpasi
 lVleasures Teke* &gmsres€ ffix€errem$
A
Threats
Chinese emperors took several steps to prevent foreign invasions.
Some of these actions were taken to ensure that the areas beyond
China which had been conquered, would remain loyal to the
'Af,r,ql^ [J,^^ V uc{r
Chinese emperor.

Y
o r, c,.l ..r?z) a t k
* * r rrai {z* *TrE**zZ* *y xz* et t t-7.',k\ ic at'ct efr I
A5 During the reign of Han Wudi (140-87 BCE), the empire of
\. I
1^
ancient China expanded to include northern Vietnam, inner ,-hir h t 0
+ \ \ Mongolia, southern Manchurfu and most of Korqp. To mainta,in
f,' r,r1i^,),'^
y
I p.u." in these conquered are,&s, Wudi developed the tribute ,
ILJ system. Underthis system, the rulers of areas Wudi had conquered
cu, " ?o^ ia"

*. rf
were allowed to keep their thrones. Wudi also promised to help
l^them if they were attacked by rival tribes and kingdoms. In retun'r, l\ ,\:/
^,inff.irr\
,',/- ,:^affi
' )l the rulers had to give regular tribute or gifts to Wudi. They also .
Y
) "{a
+R I c.-'
Fig t0.10 An a)tisr's imfs,oh @aqu tr.,"
traO to send their sons to China to receive
I rribule sysLem was pract sed ln arcient Chiina
I a Chinese education. By doing this,

[-_.,from the rulers.

Emperors after Wudi's time

continued to use the tribute
system as a way of 'buying off '
the tribes who lived along -
the Silk Road in Central
,l
Asia. Upon receiving
\
tribute from the tribes, .1

Chinese emperors would r'

allow them to take part
in China's lucrative trade d
:ffi
iffit
with India and the West. w
{ By doing this, Chinese
emperors hoped that
the tribes would not
invade China.

t
I

l0 External Ihreats
 Building physical barriers and

One of the most impressive examples of a

physical barrier built by the ancient Chinese
is the Great Wall of China. The construction
of the Great Wall first began during the
re .
'{
J. i. i
Period the Warring States
(403-z2l BCE). Initiauy. wans
about... 1$
were built by ruleri of the
northern, kinedoms to keep
^4. 1n\nfo, no*uoic rlibes out
1r I . , i \,r.ui$ of
The Great Wall of China ' l, ,"f U in
jn':."..rhen 221 BCE.
A person would need 16 days of non-stop
walking to cover the entire length of
the Great Wall. lt measures about 6 000
kilometres in length and 75 metres in width. J,eL.fi"':Tiffifl".iffi
, ::: -'_a
During the Oin dynasty (221-206 BCEI,
*, , (1369*1644 CE).

hundreds of thousands of people were

forced to leave their families and homes for
years to build the wall. They worked for long
; I lfr
hours without pay and many died durng the
process. ffi$#,&
ffie,
l9 Fig 10.11 A clay model of a watchtower
found in a Han dynasty tomb

=*

11
'a
I

.d;ir
.d;ir i:

,f:it.r,]tii

172
 c
VPIYJ 1 tWtvT fzu"td .u \14
1
In order to be on constant guard against foreign invaders,
Chinese emperors always maintained large armies.
During the
Qin dynasry (221-206 BCE), the armies were mosrty ma'Oe
up of peasant infantrymen (foot soldiers). At the age
of 30,
all peasant males were required to do one year,slervi."
with the army unit stationed nearest to their homes.

To make their armies more powerfur. the ancient Chinese

developed advanced weapons. Remarkable technological
achievemenl.s were made between the l2th centuiy CE
and l3th century cE.Among these were the invention or a
mechanical flame.thrower and the use of gunpowder for
rockets
and grenades. By the end of the lath ceitur; aJ,;; in*rn"r.
were making the best cannons in the worrd. Unfortunatery.
chinese military technology did not improve much after
the
15th century CE.

h{nt do
'*1,";,7u)-, c
th"n ({ q )t^
L,'ga/ +1/r
t^^r ctr J [t
w* t.
ft UUt l04
b<e+ -uqtt
1
.J'
Fig 10.12 Why do you think Oin Shihuang sacrificed so
many people and spent much effort to build the Great
Wall
of ChinaT

T
1,
i..,
\,
P.
pi
ii
{r

rl
rjl
lIi
t"
I

!
\t-=.
rs
-
 .l
;1 &xx€mgrm€&wm
j
Wvo Many foreign invaders readily accepted Chinese culture and
rdz integrated into Chinese society. They adopted Chinese names.
customs, dressing and used the Chinese language and script.
J I
Rulers of the nomadic tribes also married Chinese women.
4/ However, not all nomadic tribes were keen to integrate into
Y Chinese society. The Mongols, for example, maintained most of
their traditional ways. Mongol princes of the Yuan dynasty preferred

'
n Vr,
,I
J
ra4 I0*, , to sleep not in palaces but in tents (gers) erected in parks.
\
D
+ln r'
t , ryl Ir'ik 4
,, i"u ,'I .1.)
a^(ta + CQ, I,tr4
( a ttA )rn
P Fig 10.13The Mongols have retained their
traditional way of life. Look at the photograph
of the interior of a ger. How is it'f urn shed?
Why do you think the Mongols live thrs way?

'
L,,:'111 1-"-l.l:
""
l:"i

Qfi""tions
1. What were the measures taken bY
the ancient Chinese against foreign
invasions?
I

I
2" How did foreign rulers integrate
I into ancient Chinese societY?
l

China Timeline

12th-13th century CE
221 BCE-1644CE Advanced weaoons were invented
GreatWall of China was strengthened and lengthened

L+ 1121-1279 CE
1240 1 400

1279-1368 CE
1 600

rsotl-roaa cr
2A2BCE-220 CE
Han dynasty Jin and Southern Song dynasties --J Yuan dynasty Ming dynasty

174 li:rr,,,,.:l::r

t
I
:ff
I

i'
 South east Asia
I
ffiEwmXry ffimtweern KEregdmms
You may remember that there were four major
trading kingdoms in --- early
_"-_J Southeast
vvBLrrvuDL Asia
rrore 1 ij ,,4
_i
/
)i
Funan, Srivijaya, Khmer and Melaka. At the
-timewheneachofthesekingdomsexisted.there4A. i': *---/
,
were also numerous other smaller kingdoms that

t'l
competed with them to gain power and wealth.

For example, in the 13th century CE, Srivijaya

o++^^1.^A L-,+--.^ ,:- -'1 --
attacked
was
by two rival states. The first was a Siamese
\ a
South China Sea

kingdom that took away Srivijaya's control over

.l areas in the north of the Malay peninsula. The
i
second was a Javanese kingdom that took away its e^
!;urtrol in southeast Sumatra.
control over areas rn
N
N ^
ld
l.
,i ii:fPalembang.thro^
i"'':..1{,$-jl{:,$l} Ei}!;.ir.ll;{:."1;!'}:.i I *(e=urDo^
d The kingdoms of early Southeast Asia also srivijaya kingdom
J d_
faced threats from kingdoms outside the v
region. Early in the 2nd century BCE, north
viernam (then caued Nam viet) was conquered'by ,1,lJiJ,i;llHffi,i,,,ii:::'J::Ijf.[,-,.0
Han wudi and chinese rule over north vietnam continued
until manv areas.
the 10th century cE. In 1511 cE, Melaka was attacked by the
Portuguese and the Melaka Sultanate ended.

ffi#
EVfr*esures ltmk*rx &ga$rxmt ffixterffiffi$ yfurmmtm
*ipir*mxxy
The rulers of early Southeast Asian kingdoms avoided
war
by actively forming friendships with their neighbours. They
regularly exchanged letters and gifts and sent ambassadors.
The
rulers had to be very carefur about how they approached
other
rulers to make sure that they did not offend unyon".

!hapter 1S liierul ;i:iu;; 175


UNMARTHED!
S*m*times, 3*:;theacl Asia n
kingd*r:rs *atae t*Qethcr a6ainst
th*ir c*mm*n *n*mie*,Th*t
is, they rnight egr*e to at{ack a
*oilrn:on rival t*g*th*r" ln 1527 XE,
a Sr*L:p *{ king*cn'rs ciefeat*d the
Majapahit kirigd*m iil Jav*. Sorne
*f lVlajapahit's rnyai fan:ily h*d 1*
f!ee 1* Sali.
The rulers also cultivated friendships with foreigners, especially
the Chinese. Most SoutheastAsian rulers were keen to participate
in China's tribute system so that they could trade with China and
get Chinese protection against attacks by rival kingdoms. For
this reason, Chinese traders were always welcomed at Southeast
Asian port cities.
When the Europeans came to Southeast Asia, some local rulers
decided to form friendships with them too. This was to ensure
that the Europeans would not invade them. For example, Sultan
Hairun, a 1 6th century CE ruler of an island in eastern Itldonesia,
signed treaties with the Portuguese. He even dressed like a
Portuguese and spoke their language fluently.
We have: learned in Chapter 9 that Melaka was invaded by
the Portuguese in 1511 CE. After capturing Melaka, the
Portuguese built a strong fort called A Famosa. The
fort was so secure that it successfully "defended
Melaka frorn 12 attacks by its rivals between
1513 CE and 1529 CE. The local rulers saw
the value of such forts and started building
, their own. The ruins of these forts can still
be seen in many parts of the region.
The armies of the early kingdoms of
Southeast Asia were much smaller than
those of ancient India or China. For
example, Melaka had about 20 000
fighting men in the 15th century CE.
Even though these small armies were
useful in defence against attacks from
other Southeast Asian kingdoms, they
proved ineffective against the Europeans,
who arrived between the 16th century CE
and lTth century CE. With their superior
ships and cannons, the Europeans easily
defeated the kingdoms of Southeast Asia.
4 fig fO.ts Look at the remains of A Famosa in
Melaka today. What does th s tell you about the
defence capabi ity of the Portuguese?
 "z;z: * iif.{'. {- <;:-

During the 15th century CE, Southeast Asian armies used

firearms such as the matchlock, which was an early Do you know that Singapore
type of
shoulder gun. Cannons, too, mostly made of bronze, also has forts?Try to search for
were used.
These cannons were either imported from places like more information online.Type in
Turkey and keywords such as 'Katong Fort,,
India, or made locally.
'Siloso'and 'British fort in Singapore,.
ln groups, you can also compile a
New naval technologies were also adopted from overseas in collage of the various modern and
the
16th century CE. For example, fast war galleys, propelied ancient forls in Southeast Asia.
by
oars and armed with small cannons, were imported from
Turkey.
unfortunately, like the armies they built, weapons used by the
people of ancient southeast Asia might have been good
enough
for wars among the locar rulers but were useless when used
against the Europeans. Many Southeast Asian rulers
mistakenry
chose size over quality when modernising their forces.
They
competed with one another to cast increasingly bigger
cannons.
Some cannons were more than five metres long. Such
enormous
guns, while awesome to look at, were impossible
to move. '
.il' t:,iir
''
;r.i, .:1.i,
;. ti

when the Europeans arrived between the 16th century cE and O;;'tions
17th century cE, they were able to easily defeat the 1. What were the external threats that
Southeast
Asian kingdoms. the people of ancient Southeast
Asia faced?

? *Zr i r:Zi *. r r*'*: *:i1 : * :z * 2. How did they respond to these

Patriotism means a deep rove for one's country. Sometimes, external threats?
t patriotic rebellions are started by people r,vhen the place
rvhere q
they live is threatened by foreign invaders. In 39 cE, two
women.
the Trung sisters, started a rebellion to try and push
the
Chinese out of north Vietnam. However, they
were not successful.

Y Fig 10.16 Maiay kingdoms used cannons

lrke the one shown below to counter attacks
f rom jnvaders. Do you think such
weapons
would be usef ul today? Why do you say so?

,- ,

177
/a
 Southeast Asia Ti mel i ne
1513-1529 CE
ao atr f- 12 attacks launched against
2nd century BCE JI Portuquese in Melaka
China under Han Wudi Trung sisters rebelled 1511 CE
conquered Vietnam against Chinese rule Portuguese attacked Melaka Sultanate

200 1 600
-T--_T_ |
1 st-6th centuries CE -J 1403-1SltCE
Funan kingdom
+ 800-1432 CE
Merinasurianate

Khmer kingdom

yf-
 THE THREE CIVILISATIONS

The people of ancient India, China and Southeast Asia realised

that natural physical barriers such as mountains and seas could
not always prevent foreign invasions from occurring. They had
to build large armies and physical barriers such as walls and forts
to protect themselves against foreign attacks. They also had to
constantly invent better and more advahced weapons.
s #d
'rS
",*,i
i
ffirys
&"",., Friendships were also established between

ffi Ti
rulers of different kingdoms and empires to
prevent wars. Kingdoms or empires thatformed
friendships or made agreements, promised not
-,.
,A
to attack one another but instead, help one
another in times of war, or attack a common
a

q+

enemy. This arrangement is still being practised

by countries today.

Foreign lnvaders Adopted the Culture of

':i j' the Local People
."i' Fven when kingdoms or empires were conquered by
' :ar*
e"rl foreign invaders, the culture of the conquered people
l:, .'

&. did not die. Foreign rulers often integrated into the
*.
. local society by adoptin-q lifestyle of the local people.
This can be seen in the examples of the Kushans in
ancient India and the various Central Asian emperors
of ancient China.

In today's world, countries often face greatthreats too. Some of

these threats, like natural disasters and wars, are not too different
.& Fig 10.17 National servrce was introduced ln from those faced by the peoples of ancient times. Other threats,
1967 to meet Singapore's need for a defence
force. Based on what you know of the responses like global environmental problems and international terrorism,
'We,
of the ancrent peoplg to external threats, what are special to our times, too, must find responses to these
other preventive measuTes can Singapore adopt?
threats, so that our achievements can be passed on to future
generations. In searching for ways to deal with these threats, we
surely can
- and should - be inspired by the people of ancient
India, China and Southeast Asia.
" Exp:
\A 3 Section B,t NA:WB Sec.tion B,
o Sectior (.. . Sectron u

180 The