AP World HistoryPOD 8 – The Middle

Kingdom

Tang & Song Empires

Class Discussion Notes

Bulliet et. al. – “The Sui and Tang Empires, 581-755”

pp. 284-290

“The Emergence of East Asia, to 1200” pp. 291-297

Sui Dynasty “After the fall of the Han dynasty, China was fragmented for

several centuries. It was reunified under the Sui (sway) dynasty, father and son rulers who held power from 581 until Turks from Inner Asia (the part of the Eurasian steppe east of the Pamir Mountains) defeated the son in 615. He was assassinated three years later and the Tang filled the political vacuum.” (Bulliet, p. 284)

Grand Canal – built by the Sui, this 1100 mile canal was built to link together and facilitate trade between the Yellow and Yangtze Rivers

Great Wall – made improvements to the defensive structure The heavy burdens of military ambition and overreaching

public works projects weakened the dynasty

Tang Dynasty In 618 the powerful Li family took advantage of

the Sui disorder to carve out an empire of similar scale and ambition. They adopted the dynastic name Tang. The brilliant emperor Li Shimin (lee shir-meen) extended his power primarily westward into Inner Asia. Though he and succeeding rulers of the Tang Empire retained many Sui governing practices, and avoided overcentralization by allowing local nobles, gentry officials, and religious establishments to exercise significant power.” (Bulliet, pp. 284-285)

Tributary System “A system in which, from time to time of the Han

Empire, countries in East and Southeast Asia not under the direct control of empires based in China nevertheless enrolled as tributary states, acknowledging the superiority of the emperors in China in exchange for trading rights or strategic alliances.” (Bulliet, p. 287)

This system was also used by the Tang Each tributary sent regular embassies to the

capital Chang’an to pay tribute Often times these embassies were more

important than the payments because they signified access to the trading system.

Buddhism in the Tang Empire Tang Emperors used the Buddhist idea that kings are

spiritual agents as a means to consolidate and legitimize their control

Buddhism spread along the trade routes of Asia. It was especially centered around the Tang capital of Chang’an – the massive interaction of world merchants made this a cosmopolitan city

Tang princes in their quest for greater political influence sought the support of monastic leaders who would pray for them, preach for them and counsel aristocrats to support them

Monastic leaders contributed money to the war chests of these princes from the monastery treasury in exchange for tax exemptions, land privileges and gifts

Mahayana “Great Vehicle” Buddhism Fostered faith in enlightened beings –

bodhisattvas – who postpone nirvana in order to help others achieve nirvana

Allowed for the introduction of local gods and goddesses into sainthood making conversion more attractive to the common man

Encouraged the translation of Buddhist scripture into the vernacular (local languages)

Accepted religious practices not based on religious texts

Proved to be a very adaptable belief system for people of different societies and classes of people, invigorated travel, language, learning and cultural exchange

Opposition to Buddhism Tang elites saw Buddhism as undermining the Confucianism

ideal of the family as the mode for the state Buddhism was also criticized for the practice of allowing

women in politics By 840 the government moved to crush the monasteries

whose tax exemption had allowed them to accumulate land, serfs and precious objects often times as gifts (4,600 temples were destroyed / 150,000 workers were returned to the tax rolls)

Wu Zhao – a woman who married into the imperial family seized control of the government from 690 to 705 and declared herself emperor claiming legitimacy due to her alleged status as a bohisattva – and ruled in a way that favored Buddhism and Daoism over Confucianism

A Historical Interpretation … “Serious historians dismiss the stories about Wu

Zhao as stereotypical characterizations of “evil” rulers. Eunch (castrated palace servants) charged by historians with controlling Chang’an and the Tang court and publicly executing rival bureaucrats represent a similar stereotype. In fact Wu seems to have ruled effectively and was not deposed until 705, when extreme old age (eighty-plus) incapacitated her. Nevertheless, traditional Chinese historians commonly describe unorthodox rulers and all-powerful women as evil, and the truth about Wu will never be known.” (Bulliet, p. 290)

Tang Dynasty Collapse The campaigns of expansion in the 7th century had left the

empire dependent on local military commanders and a complex tax collection system

755 - An Lushan, a Tang general on the northeast frontier, led about 200,000 soldiers in rebellion

879-881 – Huang Chao (wang show), a disgruntled member of the gentry led the most devastating rebellion – he was supported by poor farmers and tenants who could not protect themselves from local bosses

A new hatred of “barbarians” led the rebels to slaughter thousands of foreign residents in Canton and Beijing

Local warlords defeated the rebels, but Tang society never found peace – refugees, migrant workers and homeless people roamed the land

907 Tang control of Chang’an was eliminated

China after the Tang 3 states emerged in China after the fall of the

Tang Liao (lee-OW) Empire of the Khitan – pastoral

nomads related to the Mongols living on the northeastern frontier ruled the north

Minyak – cousins of the Tibetans established a state called Tanggut (TAHNG-gut) on the Inner Asia frontier in northwestern China

Song – controlled central China starting in 960

Song Industry The Southern Song came closer to

initiating an industrial revolution than any other pre-modern state

A great deal of technology came to China during the reign of the Tang Dynasty and Song officials, scholars, and businessmen had the vision to adapt these innovations to meet their military, agricultural, and administrative needs.

Technology & Innovation Fractions – first employed in describing the phases of the

moon Lunar observations allowed the creation of a precise

calendar Compass design – magnetic compass Junk – main ocean going ship Iron and steel weapons – fought northern rivals for control

of mines – production of coal and iron High temperature metallurgy driven by water wheels Mass produced body armor Experimented with gunpowder – first launching clusters of

flaming arrows and later exploding shells Moveable Type – made printing cheaper and information

more widely available – and education a great equalizer

Song Culture Despite their warrior ways, Song culture

idealized civil pursuits Civilians outranked soldiers Private academies designed to train young

men for the official civil service examination flourished

Civil Service system helped improve the bureaucracy – social class and rank no longer mattered in jobs and promotions

Neo-Confucianism Neo-Confucianism – new interpretations of

Confucian teachings became influential Zhu Xi – argued that human nature is

moral, rational, and essentially good The ideal person was the sage, a person

who could preserve mental stability and serenity while dealing conscientiously with troubling social problems

Song Economics The empire experienced rapid population growth Credit was widely used throughout long distance trade

routes “Flying Money” – intercity or interregional credit depended

on the acceptance of guarantees that the paper could be redeemed for coinage

Paper money was created to help the state respond to increasing financial demands

Tax farmers made a profit by collecting the maximum amount and sending and agreed upon smaller sum to the government leading to extreme rates for taxable services such as tolls and heavier tax burdens on the common people

Fortune was open to all – land was no longer the only source of wealth – agricultural life was on the decline and urban life was on the rise