Imperial China: From the First to the Last Emperor

Shana J. Brown

Department of History

University of Hawaii

Tactics in studying Chinese history…• Appreciating the extraordinary

degree of geographical, cultural, linguistic, and ethnic diversity

• Countering the myth of “eternal China” by defining historical units and themes that acknowledge growth, change, influences by outside world

• Looking for historical themes that enrich our understanding of contemporary problems, without reducing them to stereotypes

Aspects of the imperial system

• The bureaucratic operation and ritual coherence of the empire provided social coherence despite significant ethnic, linguistic, religious, and other cleavages

• China’s borders were malleable – the empire grew and contracted in size, without losing distinctive political, economic, and cultural features

• Imperial system required social consent and cultural harmony – numerically small regimes can only survive via strategic partnerships

Part I: Legalism v. Confucianism

Zhou feudalism and decline• Spring and Autumn

Period (771-481 BC)• Feudal: central king &

subservient fiefdoms• Central state loses

authority as kings become corrupt

• Last Zhou king is defeated by vassal, allied with “barbarian” forces

• Fiefdoms devolve into independent states

Warring States (481-221 BC)

• Age of Confucius and the philosophers

• Effective political & social structures attract & control subjects

• Confucians: ruler relies on moral example and elite cooperation

Rise of the State of Qin & Legalism

• Ruler is distant, impartial, and stern

• Strict rules & punishments leads to secure, prosperous society

• No hereditary nobility; private ownership & taxation

Imperial ambitions

• Qin Shihuang (259 – 210 BC) conquers neighboring states

• Builds Great Wall to the north, Lingqu Canal to the south

Rule by standardization

• Weights & measures, currency, cart axels standardized

• Non-Qin characters outlawed

• Outlaws & burns existing most texts, kills scholars who resist

Search for immortality

• Qin Shihuang obsessed with elixir of life

• Builds enormous, elaborate tomb to ensure power and comfort in afterlife

Qin conquered by Han (206 BC – 220 CE)

• After collapse of Qin, two rebel commanders emerge; victor is proclaimed emperor of new dynasty

• Han initially reestablish feudal system, but gradually develop new administrative system

Han administration system

• Semi-autonomous fiefdoms gradually made smaller, and autonomous staff was replaced by appointees from central court

• Introduced an Imperial College to teach Confucian texts and literature

• Confucian ritual elevated above Legalist focus on power of the emperor

• Concepts of Mandate of Heaven and rule by ethics replace Legalist emperor’s claim to absolute power and rule by decree

A flourishing economy

• Government monopolies on salt, iron, and other commodities encourage trade and increase state revenue

• Loyalty of wealthy landowners essential to government taxation & functioning

Han Dynasty coin and mold

Ritual and performance

• Elaborate temple & tomb architecture

• Ritual practice aimed to achieve purification, repentance, and the expiation of sins

• Minister of Ceremonies organized court ritual, administered imperial examinations

The tensions of the imperial system

• New states founded by conquest, but survive by accommodation and consent

• Administrative power relies on pragmatic rule, ritual persuasion

• Rulers emphasize popular welfare as the definition of good government, but expect obedient population

Part II: Inner and Outer Empires

After Han, age of disunity

• Invasion of nomadic groups from northern steppes

• diverse cultures and political structures

• Rise of Buddhism as significant moral and cultural influence

Tang Dynasty (618-907 CE)• Tang rulers linked to

nomadic groups• Population reached

some 50 million people

• Creation of unified legal code; resurrection of Han institutions

• Buddhist & Daoist institutions at the height of their power and wealth

Tang culture and society

Increased trade led to greater variety of foodstuffs, including the “golden peaches of Samarkand”…

Control and danger

• How to defend and police such a large population, such diffuse borders

• Problem of rebellion, particularly in borderlands: An Lushan and the Tibetans

• Attacks on the Buddhism: in 846, seizure of temples and other property

Song Dynasty (960-1279 CE)

• Introduction of fast-growing rice led to dramatic population growth

• Development of specialized agriculture and more sophisticated urban markets

• Rise of Neo-Confucianism as state orthodoxy

The idealized Song capital: “Going upriver on the Qingming Festival”

Why no industrial revolution?• Did language

impede innovation?

• Was there an “equilibrium trap” between population and need for labor-saving devices?

• Too protective to take advantage of trade and culture exchange?

Song falls to northern invaders

• Song conquered first by Jin, then by Yuan (Mongols)

• Mongols discriminate against Han Chinese, but eventually revive many aspects of Song imperial system

China in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644)

Korean map dating to 1402 (before Zheng He’s voyages)

Ming administrative power

Great walls

Imperial political “parties”

• “Maritime party” – wants to direct more resources towards SE Asia, maritime trade

• Anti-maritime party: wanted to focus on domestic development, threats from NW frontier

The tributary system

• Foreign states expected to hold peaceful, if subservient attitudes

• Gift exchange reinforced China’s position of as supreme political power, as well as trade

• Tribute included native products, like elephants from Siam, or eunuchs and virgin girls for harem

Mongol envoys to Ming court (courtesy of a Dutch artist)