Post-Han Chinese Dynasties

Unit Two: 600-1450

Chinese Chinese DynastiesDynasties

Sui Sui (“sway”)(“sway”)

TangTangSongSong

Post-Han China

Period of the Six Dynasties (220-589CE) Bureaucracy collapsed Buddhism gained strength, replacing Confucianism Non-Chinese nomads rule much Chinese territory

Sui Dynasty (589-618CE)

Established by Wendi

Followed by Yangdi

Reunification under the Sui and Tang• Sui Empire reunified China

• Established a government based on Confucianism but heavily influenced by Buddhism

• Sui’s rapid decline and fall may have been due to its having spent large amounts of resources on a number of ambitious construction, canal, irrigation, and military projects

• The Tang Empire: 618 CE

• Tang state carried out a program of territorial expansion, avoided over-centralization

• Tang emphasized Confucian tradition

Tang Dynasty (618-907CE)

Li Yuan Tang armies extend to

Afghanistan, parts of Tibet, Red River Valley in present-day Vietnam, and Manchuria dominating nomads on borders

Xuanzang returning to Chang'anBuddhism in Tang

Xuanzang returning to Chang'an

Buddhism and the Tang Empire• Tang emperors legitimized their rule with

Buddhist ideas -Monasteries were important allies of

early Tang emperors

• Mahayana Buddhism -More flexible, adaptable

• Buddhism spread through Central and East Asia -Followed trade routes -Chang’an central to trade routes -Chang’an = cosmopolitan city

Chang’an

Tang Dynasty (618-907CE) Rebuilt Bureaucracy

Confucian (restored) Political authority shared Examination System—Ministry of Rites

Training Some commoners Granted them special social status

Exam Cells

Tang Dynasty (618-907CE)—Decline

Tang Dynasty Gossip…

Empress Wu

Empress Wei

Females in general

East Asia After Fall of Han

After the fall of the Tang, a number of new states emerged in the former Tang territory: the Liao, the Jin, and the Chinese Song. As the Liao and Jin cut the Chinese off from Central Asia, the Song developed seafaring and strengthened contacts with Korea, Japan, and Southeast Asia.

East Asia in 1000 East Asia in 1000

Industrial Revolution

Many mathematic and navigation advancements during the Song dynasty:

1. Song inventors improved the previously invented compass, making it suitable for seafaring.

2. Shipbuilding, the Song introduced the sternpost rudder and watertight bulkheads• Ship innovations were later adopted in the Persian Gulf.

3. Standing, professionally trained, regularly paid military. • Iron and coal = important strategic resources for military.

• large amounts of high-grade iron and steel for weapons, armor, and defensive works

• GUNPOWDER!

Cities during the Song

Example:

Hangzhou

•Crowded but well-managed

•Scholars, monks, shopkeepers

•Restaurants, parks

Song Dynasty (969-1279CE)

DeclineNomads on the bordersNeo-Confucianism weakens the military

Poor leadership—Wang Anshi’s reforms of the 11th Century

Mongols – eventually invade Song China

Legacies – Tang and Song

Grand Canal Commercial Expansion (Silk Road, Urban

Centers) Agricultural Production Family (male-dominated households Technology (compass, junk, printing) Art (poetry!) Bureaucracy was re-established

Flaming Arrows

Women vs. Men: Confucianism and Neo-Confucianism

Roles of women and men (Neo-Confucians)Advocated confining women

Men—permitted far more sexual freedom

Women: less educated, “homemakers”

Laws favored men

Foot-binding

Counterpart to veiling in Islam? Small feet preferred At the age of 5-6, a girl’s toes were turned under and

bound with silk. It was wound more tightly as she grew. Greatly impaired a woman’s ability to walk. Easier to confine.

Question

As part of the Tang ___________ system, participating countries sent embassies to the Tang capital to acknowledge the Chinese emperor’s supremacy.

A.examinationB.exchangeC.tributaryD.colonization

Answer

As part of the Tang ___________ system, participating countries sent embassies to the Tang capital to acknowledge the Chinese emperor’s supremacy.

A. examinationB. exchangeC. tributary (correct) D. colonization

Hint: See page 314.

Question

The most dramatic change in the status of Chinese women during the Song dynasty was manifested by

A. footbinding.B.admittance of women into the military.C.veiling.D.the introduction of education for

women.

Answer

The most dramatic change in the status of Chinese women during the Song dynasty was manifested by

A.footbinding. (correct)B.admittance of women into the military.C.veiling.D.the introduction of education for

women.

Hint: See page 327.

Question

The hostility of Tang elites to ___________ resulted in an incalculable cultural loss to China.

A.ConfucianismB.educated womenC.BuddhismD.Islam

Answer

The hostility of Tang elites to ___________ resulted in an incalculable cultural loss to China.

A.ConfucianismB.educated womenC.Buddhism (correct)D.Islam

Hint: See page 319.