china in the medieval period 400-1450 ad

China in the Medieval Period

400-1450 AD

China was a fully developed empire by 400 AD. They had seen more history than the Western world has written since Rome!

China had medicine, paper, civil service, astronomy, veterinarians, fertilization, wheelbarrow, and the compass long before other civilizations.

Stability came and went in China with every new ruler. From 618-907 AD, China was ruled by the Tang Dynasty.

The Song empire followed. In addition to artistic development, they found a way to make bamboo tubes filled with gunpowder into rocket launchers!

Fire!

These were very unpredictable, but scared the poop out of their enemies!

The Song empire also invented the compass, which allowed ships to sail accurately.

In 1211, a Mongol leader named Temujin earned the title of Khan (ruler) and the prefix of Genghis (universal). Ghenghis Khan invaded China to build an empire.

Various other Mongol hordes attacked other empires (Baghdad, Russia, Europe, Japan.)

It didn’t take long until the Mongols discovered how to work the new terror weapons and used them to take over much of China, establishing the Yuan empire.

While Kublai Khan (grandson of Genghis) ruled China in 1271, he was visited by a European named Marco Polo (from Venice, Italy).

Marco Polo stayed in China for 17 years. When he returned to Europe, he told stories of gunpowder, crossbows, rocket launchers, the compass, and printing.

From China with Love

Umm...

While Europe began to put this information to use, China continued to see the rise and fall of dynasties.

Why China doesn’t get out of the Middle Ages first.

• Cultural Arrogance: They thought they were the center of the world, why leave home?

• Geographic Isolation: Takla-Makan Dessert, Himalayan Mountains, Pacific Ocean

• Rise and Fall of Dynasties.

What is the function of Empires?

Why does the world descend into the Middle-Ages?

What is the importance of the Catholic Church in the Middle Ages?

Who wins the race and why?

Why didn’t India win?

Why didn’t China win?

Why didn’t Africa win?

What do AD, BC, BCE, CE stand for?

What marks the year zero?

What part does geography play in determining who gets out of the Middle Ages first?

What advantages does Europe have?