Chapter 12--Reunification and Renaissance: The Era of the Tang and Song Dynasties
I. I. Introduction
a. A. Vital consolidation – changes less fundamental than elsewhere
b. B. Though isolated, created “orbit of influence”
c. C. After Han – nomadic invasions
c.i. 1. Regional kingdoms
c.ii. 2. Landed families with aristocratic backgrounds dominated rulers
c.iii. 3. Decline
c.iii.1. a. Foreign religion – Buddhism
c.iii.2. b. non-Chinese nomads ruled
c.iii.3. c. Great Wall divided between kingdoms
c.iii.4. d. trade/city life declined
c.iii.5. e. technology stagnated
c.iii.6. f. thought looked for magical cures/immortality
d. D. Rapid return to height under Tang because of
d.i. 1. Preservation of Confucian institutions
II. II. Rebuilding the Imperial Edifice in the Sui-Tang Eras
a. A. Introduction
a.i. 1. Summary
a.i.1. a. Sui recentralized control
a.i.2. b. Under Tang – bureaucracy restored, improved, expanded
a.i.3. c. Confucian revival
a.ii. 2, Sui Dynasty – 580 – return to strong dynastic control
a.ii.1. a. Wendi – northern elite family
a.ii.2. b. Secured power through
a.ii.2.a. 1. marriage
a.ii.2.b. 2. support of neighboring nomadi leaders
a.ii.2.b.a. a. Reconfirmed titles
a.ii.2.b.b. b. Showed no preference for scholar gentry
a.ii.3. c. Won support
a.ii.3.a. 1. lowering taxes
a.ii.3.b. 2. creation of food granaries
b. B. Sui Excesses and Collapse
b.i. 1. Son Yangdi
b.i.1. a. murdered father
b.i.2. b. extended father’s conquests
b.i.3. c. drove back nomads
b.i.4. d. established milder legal code
b.i.5. e. restore examination system
b.ii. 2. Downfall
b.ii.1. a. Programs hurt aristocratic families and nomadic leaders
b.ii.2. b. Built palaces
b.ii.3. c. Build canal links
b.ii.4. d. extensive game park – imported trees
b.ii.5. e. failed in attempt to take Korea
c. C. The Emergence of the Tang and the Restoration of the Empire
c.i. 1. Li Yuan – Duke of Tang took over
c.i.1. a. Former nomadic leaders forced to submit
c.i.2. b. Created frontier armies
c.i.2.a. 1. Sons of tribal leaders sent to capital as hostages – eventually assimilated
c.i.3. c. Korea overrun by Chinese armies
c.i.3.a. 1. Kingdom of Silla created as tributary state
d. D. Rebuilding the Bureaucracy
d.i. 1. To survive, must rebuild and expand imperial bureaucracy
d.i.1. a. need for loyal/well-educated officials
d.i.2. b. offset power of aristocracy
d.i.3. c. power to ruling families + bureaucrats
d.i.4. d. created ministries
d.i.4.a. 1. secretariat – drafted decrees
d.i.4.b. 2. secretariat monitored officials
d.i.4.c. 3. executive ran ministries – day to day life
e. E. Growing Importance of the Examination System
e.i. 1. Numbers of bureaucrats grew far past Han
e.ii. 2. Ministry of Rites – several kinds of examinations
e.iii. 3. Honor to those who passed
e.iii.1. a. Jinshi title
e.iii.2. b. transformed into dignitaries
e.iii.3. c. special social status
e.iii.3.a. 1. certain clothing
e.iii.3.b. 2. exempt from corporal punishment
e.iii.3.c. 3. access to material comfort/pleasures
e.iii.3.d. 4. Birth and family connections could still help you get into universities, assist
e.iii.3.d.a. a. Bureaucracy still overwhelmingly run by established families
e.iii.3.e. 5. Merit and ambition important, but birth and family influence count for more
f. F. State and Religion the Tang-Song Era
f.i. 1. State support of Confucian ideas
f.i.1. a. Threatened Buddhist monastic orders
f.i.2. b. Threatened old aristocratic families
f.ii. 2. Previous nomadic rulers – mostly Buddhist
f.ii.1. a. Masses believed in Mahayana Buddhism – salvation
f.ii.2. b. Chan/Zen Buddhism for elite
f.ii.2.a. 1. Stress on meditation
f.ii.2.b. 2. appreciation of natural/artistic bueaty
f.ii.2.c. 3. Empress Wu – 690-705
f.ii.2.c.a. a. Tried to make Buddhism state religion
f.ii.2.c.b. b. Commissioned Buddhist painting/sculpture
f.ii.2.c.c. c. Statues of Buddha carved
f.ii.2.c.d. d. Large pagodas built
f.ii.2.c.e. e. 50,000