Many accounts claim that Han China (c. 202 BCE – 220 CE) held uncontested military hegemony over all of East Asia. In that case, what role did Goryeo (Koryŏ), i.e. ‘Coree,’ actually play in this vast geopolitical arena? Was Han’s hegemony truly absolute, or should we instead recast East Asia as a multipolar system in which Goryeo occupied a central hub position?
At first glance, it is almost taken for granted in standard textbooks and popular history that Han China was the undisputed military superpower from roughly the 3rd century BCE through the early 3rd century CE, effectively “dominating” all of East Asia. However, if we broaden our perspective to view “Eastern Eurasia” as a dynamic, multipolar network—comprising nomadic steppe confederations, Korean kingdoms, maritime states, and successive Chinese dynasties—then it becomes clear that Han was just one powerful node among many. In fact, from a “Major Coree Theory” standpoint, Goryeo (918 – 1392) emerges as the strategic hub that linked northern steppes, the Korean Peninsula, the maritime world, and the Chinese heartland. Below, I outline three main arguments: Why “Han hegemony” is a misleading simplification. How Eastern Eurasia truly functioned as a multipolar network. Why Goryeo (Coree) should be regarded as the central “Asadal” hub. 1. The Myth of Unquestioned Han Hegemony 1.1 Han Sour...