Unit 1 AP world History Review (1200-1450)

The Song Dynasty replaced the…

Tang Dynasty in 960 and ruled for centuries with a prosperous reign.

China’s strength was the result of its

imperial bureaucracy (vast organization in which elected officials carried out the empire’s policies). It represented a continuity across centuries and dynasties.

The Song Dynasty replaced the…

Tang Dynasty in 960 and ruled for centuries with a prosperous reign.

China’s strength was the result of its

imperial bureaucracy (vast organization in which elected officials carried out the empire’s policies). It represented a continuity across centuries and dynasties.

One of Emperor Song Taizu’s great achievements was…

The expansion of educational opportunities to young men of the lower economic classes so they could score well (upward mobility) on the civil service exams — and get a good job in the bureaucracy —- metiocracy.

It grew so large by the end of the Song Dynasty, the bureaucracy…

was the weakness as the cost of running the govt had grown high

After being built by the Sui Dynasty, the Song Dynasty…

expanded the canal, allowing China to become the most populous trading center in the world.

Though gunpowder had been invented in earlier dynasties, the Song Dynasty…

Made the First guns which later spread to the rest of Eurasia along the Silk Roads.

Champa Rice

A fast-ripening and drought resistant rice from the Champa Kingdom in present-day Vietnam that expanded agricultural production for two harvests a yr in China —- rapid population growth.

Manufacturing and Trade

Industrial production soured thanks to the discovery of coal —- great production of cast iron. After it was learned how to take carbon out of iron to make steel, steel was used to reinforce structures and make agricultural equipments.

Proto-industrialization

When rural workers make more goods than they can sell. This relied on home-based or community-based production.

Artisians

Skilled craftworkers that produced steel and other products in dispersed smelting facilities under the supervision of the imperial govt.

The Song also promoted the growth of the commercial economy by using…

taxes to pay people for labor to build public projects rather than using forced labor.

The Tributary system was

another income source for the govt which had an arrangement where other states such as Japan, Korea, and Vietnam would pay or provide goods to the Chinese emperor.

Scholar Gentry

Bureaucratic expansion created this entirely new social class which outnumbered the aristocracy and landowners. The scholar gentry was educated in Confucian philosophy and became influential.

Following the aristocrats and scholar gentry…

came farmers, artisans, and merchants who were viewed lower. The Song govt provided aid to the poor and established public hospitals.

Foot Binding

Practice where feet of young girls would be wrapped tightly. This started in aristocratic families and a symbol for wealth.

The Chinse invented both papers and were the first to invent printing using woodblocks…

This allowed for mass production of news and booklets.

Buddhism

Came to China via the Silk Roads and despite its presence being a problem for Tang Bureaucracy, the religion grew

A syncretic faith was between Daoist and Buddhist beliefs called

Chan or Zen buddhism

Buddhism and Neo-Confucianism

The Song Dynasty was more friendly towards Buddhism but did not promote the religion. Buddhist scriptures become widely available thanks to printing. Neo-Confucianism was a syncretic system combining Daoism and Buddhism into Confucianism, which became popular in Japan, Korea, and Vietnam along with China.

Filial Piety

Confucian idea that the duty of family members is to subordinate their desires to those of the male head of the family and to the ruler.

Heian Period

A period when Japan emulated Chinese traditions in politics, arts, and literature

Japan still shared much of Chinese culture as…

Buddhism and Confucianism were promoted along with Japan’s traditional Shinto religion and technology (e.g. woodblock printing) was taken from China

Feudalism

Japan had a feudal society with landowning aristocrats (daimyo) battling for control of land with samurai while the majority of people worked as rice farmers.

Japan vs. Europe Feudalism

Japan feudalism was similar to Europe as it had very little social mobility but what distinguishes Japan is that the Daimyo enjoys much more power than the nobility in Europe.

Daimyo was above the emperor or shogun while in Europe’s hierarchy, the monarch was above the nobility.

European knights followed the code of chivalry while samurai followed bushido.

China was ruled by an emperor with a

strong central govt while Japan’s emperor had little power and instead it was aristocrats.

Korea was in close contact with China, it also had a

centralized government in the Chinese style, Confucian and Buddhist beliefs were both adopted, and a Chinese writing system was used.

The aristocracy was more powerful in Korea and even though there was a Korean civil service exam…

it was not open to peasants (there wasn’t a merit-based system to enter the bureaucracy.

Vietnam vs. China

There was more gender equality as women enjoyed greater independence, had more rights, and didn’t support foot binding. Vietnamese would often rebel against their govt if they deemed it oppressive and would often rebel against Chinese invasions.