East Asia Post-Classical

I. Tang & Song China: The “Golden Age” (500–1300)

 Tang Dynasty (618-907): Expanded borders, cosmopolitan culture, and high point for Buddhist

influence before a later backlash.

 Song Dynasty (960-1279): Smaller territory but higher economic prosperity (wealthiest in the

world).

 Political Structure: Re-established a strong, centralized bureaucracy staffed by officials passing

the civil service examination system.

 Economic Revolution:

o Champa Rice: Fast-ripening rice from Vietnam allowed double-cropping, causing

population growth.

o Grand Canal: Connected northern/southern China, facilitating trade and economic

unity.

o Infrastructure & Commercialization: Produced for the market (not just local

consumption) using paper money, credit, and gunpowder.

 Cultural/Social Changes:

o Neo-Confucianism: Revived Confucian ethics combined with Buddhist/Daoist

philosophy, emphasizing strict hierarchy.

o Foot-binding: Symbolized, and restricted, women’s lives in the Song Dynasty,

highlighting increased patriarchy.

II. East Asian Cultural Influence (Sinification)

 The Tribute System: China’s way of managing relationships with outsiders (Korea, Vietnam,

Japan). Neighbors acknowledged Chinese superiority through gifts and rituals in exchange for

trading rights.

 Korea: Closely modeled its court, capital, and bureaucracy after China. They kept a strict

aristocratic hierarchy and used Confucianism/Buddhism, but resisted Chinese-style civil service

exams for commoners.

 Vietnam: Adopted farming methods, language, and government structures but maintained a

distinct culture, including a stronger role for women.

 Japan: Voluntary adoption of Chinese culture (unlike Korea/Vietnam).

o Taika Reforms: Efforts to modernize the government based on Tang models.

o Heian Period (794-1185): High culture, poetry, and court protocol.

o Feudalism: As central power declined,Japan developed a decentralized system with

Samurai (warriors), Shogun (military leader), and Daimyo (landowners).

III. Key Themes & Vocabulary for Pre-AP

 Sinification: The adaptation of Chinese culture (religion, writing, politics) by neighboring

regions.

 Bureaucracy: Government run by appointed officials, not hereditary lords.

 Tributary System: The network of trade and foreign relations between China and its neighbors.

 Neo-Confucianism: The dominant intellectual thought of the Song, promoting strict social

hierarchy and gender roles.

 Foot-binding: A restrictive practice highlighting gender inequality.

IV. Potential Pre-AP Comparison Topics

1. Tang vs. Song: Tang was more expansive/cosmopolitan; Song was more economically advanced

and restrictive (Neo-Confucianism).

2. Japan vs. Korea: Japan borrowed voluntarily, while Korea was often forced or influenced by

direct proximity.

3. China vs. Vietnam/Korea: Korea/Vietnam often sought to maintain their identity despite heavy

Chinese cultural influence.

Political & Governance

 Scholar-Gentry: The highly educated class in China that passed the Civil Service Exams and ran

the government. They replaced the old land-owning aristocracy.

 Mandate of Heaven: The belief that a dynasty’s right to rule was granted by divine spirits; if a ruler

was corrupt or a disaster struck, the mandate was lost.

 Shogun: The supreme military commander in Japan who held the actual power, while

the Emperor served as a figurehead.

 Daimyo: Powerful Japanese land-holding lords who commanded private armies of Samurai.

Economic & Technology

 Champa Rice: A fast-ripening, drought-resistant grain from Vietnam that allowed China’s

population to double during the Song Dynasty.

 Grand Canal: The massive waterway built by the Sui Dynasty to link the Yellow and Yangtze

rivers, turning China into a unified internal market.

 Junk: A technologically advanced Chinese ship with sternpost rudders and watertight

compartments, dominant in the Indian Ocean Trade.

 Flying Cash: An early form of paper currency or credit used by merchants to avoid carrying heavy

copper coins.

Cultural & Religious

 Sinification: The process by which non-Chinese societies (Korea, Vietnam, Japan) adopted

Chinese culture, writing, and government.

 Neo-Confucianism: A revival of Confucianism during the Song Dynasty that incorporated

Buddhist and Daoist spiritual elements but remained strictly hierarchical.

 Bushido: "The Way of the Warrior"—the strict code of honor, loyalty, and bravery followed by

Japanese Samurai.

 Zen Buddhism: A branch of Buddhism (known as Chan in China) that emphasized meditation and

intuition; it became very popular among the Japanese warrior class.

Regional Specifics

 Tribute System: A set of practices where non-Chinese states acknowledged China's superiority

by giving gifts to the Emperor in exchange for trade rights.

Poet Li Bo (701-762 C.E.) was one of the most accomplished artists of the

Tang era in China. Many of his poems, such as the one above, describe someone

contemplating nature. Others focus on attending parties and other ways people enjoy

life with friends. These themes, both positive and uplifting, seem to reflect the

buoyancy of Post-Classical China. During the 600 years of the Tang and Song dynasties,

China enjoyed great wealth, political stability, and fine artistic and intellectual

achievements. These years were a golden era in Chinese history.

During the Post-Classical period, China dominated East Asia. Its neighbors, including

Korea, Japan, and Vietnam, developed vibrant and distinctive cultural traditions, but

each also displayed China's influence.

Political Structures in China

After the collapse of the Han Dynasty in the third century C.E., China fell into a state

of anarchy for nearly 400 years. People suffered from reduced trade and greater

political turmoil until the short-lived Sui Dynasty (581-618 C.E.).

Unity under the Sui Dynasty Emperor Sui Yangdi unified China through violence

and repression. Successful military expeditions to the south expanded the reach of

China's government. He also sent troops into Korea and Central Asia. Sui Yangdi

ruled through harsh, dictatorial methods, which made dissent risky.

Grand Canal The greatest accomplishment of the dynasty was the inception of the

construction of the Grand Canal. This ambitious public works project involved

thousands of conscripted peasants working for many years. The idea behind the

canal was to provide a means of transporting rice and other crops from the food-rich

Yangtze River valley in the south to populous northern China and the center of

government of Luoyang. At the southern end of the

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system, an arrangement in which other states had to pay money or provide goods to honor

the Chinese emperor. For example, the Silla Kingdom in Korea was not part of China,

but it had to pay a large tribute to the emperor. The tributary system cemented China's

economic and political power over several foreign countries, but it also created

stability and stimulated trade for all parties involved.

Tang emperors also expected representatives from tributary states to perform a

ritual kowtow, a requirement in which anyone greeting the Chinese emperor must bow

his or her head until it reached the floor. This act was a way to acknowledge China's

superior status.

Tang Accomplishments The Tang Dynasty had

Tang Dynasty had some notable

achievements. Emperor Tang Taizong (ruled 627-649) further developed modes of

transportation that had begun during the Sui Dynasty, such as roads and canals, as well

as postal and messenger services. His government successfully reduced the dangers

from bandits.

Tang Taizong expanded the empire's bureaucracy, which developed into an

important and ongoing feature of Chinese government. Candidates for the bureaucracy

had to pass an extremely rigorous civil service examination. The exam system had a

tremendous impact on Chinese culture. Since the examination was difficult, education

became increasingly important in China, a development that fostered economic growth

for many centuries. Further, serving in the bureaucracy was highly regarded. So, just as

communities today might take pride in producing an Olympic athlete or a noted

actor, communities in China took pride in their natives who won a good position

working for the government. Though most bureaucrats earned their positions in

government, some were appointed. Aristocratic families had greater access to

high-level positions in the bureaucracy than did any other group.

Spread of Buddhism In 629, a Chinese Buddhist monk named Xuanzang left China to

go on a pilgrimage to India, the birthplace of Buddhism. He traveled west on the

Silk Roads to Central Asia, then south and east to India, which he reached in 630. Along the

way and in India he met many Buddhist monks and visited Buddhist shrines. In order to

gain more insight into Buddhism, he studied for years in Buddhist monasteries and at

Nalanda University in Bilar, India a famous center of Buddhist knowledge. After

17 years away, Xuanzang finally returned to China, where people greeted him as

a celebrity. He brought back many Buddhist texts, which he spent the rest of his life

translating into Chinese. These writings were highly instrumental in the growth of

Buddhist scholarship in China.

An Lushan By the eighth century, the Tang Empire already showed signs of

weakness. Emperor Hsuan Tsung (ruled 712-756) was not devoted to administering the

affairs of government and became distracted by his favorite concubine, Yang Guifei. A

military leader named An Lushan orchestrated a rebellion involving about a hundred

thousand soldiers, overthrowing Hsuan Tsung in 755. Finally, an army of Uighurs, an

ethnic group living in Central Asia on land controlled by China, arrived from the

west to restore power to the government and defeat the rebels. The rebellion did

tremendous damage.

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The death toll from the fighting, combined with the starvation and disease associated with

the conflict, reached the millions and maybe the tens of millions. It was probably one

of the most devastating wars in human history. The Tang survived, but they never

fully recovered their power. They had to pay an annual tribute to the Uighurs. The

Tang Dynasty finally collapsed in 907.

Song

Dynasty

The Song Dynasty began in 960 and lasted until 1279. Because nomadic pastoralists

from Manchuria invaded its lands, captured the northern part, and set up their own

empire (the Jin, with a capital in Beijing), the Song came to rule a smaller region

than the Tang had. Nevertheless, China under the Song was quite prosperous, and the

arts flourished.

Bureaucracy and Meritocracy Under the Song, China's bureaucracy expanded, and

the number of bureaucratic positions in government increased. Moreover, Emperor

Song Taizu made special efforts to expand the educational opportunities to young

men of the lower strata so they could pass the civil service exams. Though the poor

were still extremely underrepresented in the

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bureaucracy, the Chinese system of meritocracy allowed for more upward mobility

than any other hiring system of its time.

However, under the Song Dynasty, the bureaucracy had gotten so large it contributed

to the empire's weakness. By creating more positions within the bureaucracy and by

paying these officials quite handsomely, Song Taizu increased the costs of

government enough that it began drying up China's surplus wealth.

Another problem was that Song Taizu and other emperors asked some bureaucrats to

be responsible for military affairs. Government officials, who were together known

as the scholar gentry, had studied in-depth the teachings of Confucius and the

Chinese classics, but they were not experts in military tactics and strategy. Their lack

of expertise left Chinese armies more vulnerable to nomadic incursions.

A Shifting Capital Because of threats from nomads, the Song Dynasty moved its

capital from Chang'an (the modern city of Xian) about 530 miles to the east, to

Kaifeng. In 1127, under continuous pressure from incursions by nomads, the empire

was forced to move its capital again, this time 400 miles further south, to Hangzhou.

The Southern Song Dynasty survived until 1279, when the nomadic Mongol Empire

vanquished the government and established the Yuan Dynasty. In the years

leading up to the Mongol conquest of China, the Song Empire had been paying

tribute to the Mongol nomads as a way to stave off conquest. However, this tribute

was not enough to save China from Mongol domination.

Economic Developments in Post-Classical China

The Tang Dynasty's efforts to promote agricultural development, improve

infrastructure, encourage foreign trade, and spread technology led to rapid prosperity

and population growth during the Song Dynasty. For the first 150 years under the

Song, China may have grown faster than any country ever had.

Land Reform Reforms in agriculture spurred economic growth. As was the case in

many societies of the era, a feudal hierarchy prevented most people from owning

any land or from owning sufficient land to live on. As discussed earlier, Wang

Mang attempted to redistribute land during the Han Dynasty, when social tensions

reached their peak. This created widespread unrest and weakened the Han Dynasty

permanently.

Six hundred years after Wang Mang's failed reforms, the Tang Empire reintroduced

an equal-field system, which attempted to ensure that all Chinese families had a

parcel of land to cultivate. The empire's intent was not humanitarian; its goal was to

wrest power away from the landed aristocracy. This reform proved effective for

about 100 years, resulting in an increase in rural wealth. In the eighth century,

though, the landed aristocracy used their money and power to bribe government

officials to let them keep owning their land. Though the equal-field system reform

did not last, rural wealth did grow, and increased prosperity provided some stability

for the countryside.

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Agricultural Productivity Agriculture prospered also because of new methods

of production. The Chinese put manure (both human and animal) on the fields to enrich

the soil. They built elaborate irrigation systems using ditches, water wheels, pumps,

and terraces to increase productivity. New heavy plows pulled by water buffalo or

oxen allowed previously unusable land to be cultivated. Under the Tang Dynasty

(618-907), fast-ripening rice (also known as Champa rice) added to Chinese

agricultural surpluses. This grain is native to northern Vietnam, which came under the

control of China during the Tang Dynasty. Fast-ripening rice allowed peasants in the

warmer agricultural region of southern China to grow two crops a year. Thus, both land

redistribution and food surpluses were instrumental in spreading China's

prosperity.

Because of the Sui Dynasty's construction of the Grand Canal, one of the biggest

infrastructure efforts of its time, agricultural products from southern China traveled

more easily to the less fertile lands of northern China. The Grand Canal moved the

centers of agricultural production of China from the barren north to the fertile south.

In most societies in world history prior to the time of the Song, agricultural goods

dominated the economy and trade. Song China produced more nonagricultural

goods for commercial use than any earlier civilization. Two of these goods stand out:

porcelain and silk. Under the Song, China went through proto-industrialization, a phase

that precedes and enables full industrialization later, earlier than Western Europe. (Test

Prep: Write a paragraph comparing China's proto-industrialization with the cottage

industries of Western Europe. See page 287.)

Urbanization Like the Abbasid civilizations, Song China featured growing urban

areas. Chinese cities impressed Marco Polo, a visitor from Western Europe's most

sophisticated urban area-Venice. Polo wrote extensively about the high levels of

urbanization he saw in the thirteenth century.

They use paper money as currency. The men as well as the women are

fair-skinned and handsome. Most of them always dress themselves in silk,

as a result of the vast quantities of that material produced in Hangzhou,

exclusive of what the merchants import from other provinces.

Hangzhou was large-it was home to about one million people-but other Chinese cities

were larger. Chang'an had about two million. However, Hangzhou was the center of

culture in southern China, the home of poets such as Lu Yu and Xin Qiji. And, located

at the southern end of the Grand Canal, it was a center of trade. Like other

important cities of the era, such as Novgorod in Russia, Timbuktu in Africa, and

Calicut in India, the city grew and prospered as its merchants imported and

exported goods. This trade brought diversity to Hangzhou, including a thriving

community of Arabs.

Tax Policy The Song reduced the requirement that people labor for the government.

Instead, they paid people to work on public projects. This increased the money in

circulation, thereby promoting economic growth.

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Metal, Gunpowder, and Guns Iron and steel production increased greatly in

China as people developed their skills in smelting, the process of separating a

metal from ore. One major advance in metal production was to convert coal into

coke, a process that removes many of the impurities found in coal. By using coke, the

Chinese could make metal that was stronger and make better plows, weapons, and

bridges.

During the ninth century, Chinese researchers, trying to find elements that might

lead to longer or even eternal life, discovered that blending certain ingredients created a

powder that, when touched with a flame, exploded. This was gunpowder. They

soon learned to use gunpowder to produce both entertaining fireworks displays and

weapons. The first guns were made in the Song Dynasty. Over centuries, the technology

of making gunpowder and guns spread from China to all parts of Eurasia via traders on

the Silk Roads and through the movement of nomadic peoples such as the Mongols along

the steppes, the long stretch of grasslands from Mongolia to Hungary.

Foreign Trade As discussed in earlier chapters, interregional trade along the Silk

Roads created many intercultural connections during the Classical Era. After the collapse

of classical civilizations such as the Roman and Han empires, activity on the Silk

Roads declined dramatically. However, by the eighth and ninth centuries, Arab

merchants from the Abbasid Empire revived the land route of the Silk Roads as

well as sea routes in the Indian Ocean. Tang China had much to offer the newly

revived global trade network, including the compass, paper, and gunpowder.

China exported porcelain, tea, and silk. From other parts of Asia, China imported

cotton, precious stones, pomegranates, dates, horses, and grapes. These luxury goods

appealed to the upper class of Chinese society, whose members reveled in their country's

newfound affluence.

To manage the increasing trade, China developed new financial systems.

Because copper coins became too unwieldy to transport for everyday

transactions, the government developed a system of credit known as flying cash.

This allowed a merchant to deposit paper money under his name in one location

and withdraw the same amount at another location. Merchants and tax collectors used

abacuses to calculate their transactions. The system of flying cash became the

model for the banks of the modern era. Later, Chinese governments would prohibit

private individuals and businesses from making paper money, reserving that right

for themselves.

Advances in naval technology allowed China to control trade in the South China Sea.

Chinese scientists developed the magnetic compass and improved the rudder,

both of which helped aid navigation and ship control along the seas. The Chinese

junk, developed in the Han Dynasty, was a boat similar to the Southwest Asian

dhow (discussed in Chapter 8), had multiple sails and was as long as 400 feet at

least triple the size of the typical Western European ship of its time. The hull of a

junk was divided into compartments. The walls making these divisions strengthened

the ship for rough voyages at sea and made sinking less likely.

Social Structures in China

Through most of Chinese history, the majority of people lived in rural areas. The Tang

and Song eras were no exception. However, this was the first time in China's history

when urban areas grew in prominence. At the height of the Song Dynasty, China was the

most urbanized land in the world, boasting several cities containing more than

100,000 people. The largest cities, Chang'an, Hangzhou, and Guangzhou, were

cosmopolitan metropolises― active centers of commerce with many

entertainment options to offer. Taverns, restaurants, street vendors, markets,

theaters, and specialty shops filled with imported luxuries were all available to

residents of these bustling cities, many of which were located on the southeastern coast

of China. The size and wealth of these cities amazed foreign visitors and traders, who

came from as far away as Italy.

New Social Class Though urbanization represented a significant development in

China's economic and social landscape, life in rural areas grew more complex as

well. As discussed earlier, the Song Dynasty expanded the bureaucracy

immensely, opening up opportunities for well-paying jobs to men of modest

backgrounds. This expansion created an entirely new social class, the scholar gentry.

They soon outnumbered the aristocracy, which was comprised of landowners who

inherited their wealth. The scholar gentry were educated in Confucian philosophy, had

more money than their ancestors, and, because of their numbers, became the most influential

social class in China.

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Other Classes Three other classes ranked below the scholar gentry: farmers, artisans

and craftsmen, and the merchant class. Merchants were considered by the gentry as the

lowest in rank because they didn't produce anything new; they merely profited from

the exchange of others' handiwork and labor. Even so, the merchant was often

quite wealthy and held considerably more influence in society than their rank

would suggest.

Role of Women As in many societies, in China, men ruled and women assumed

subordinate roles. China's patriarchal society strengthened during the Song and

Tang dynasties. One distinctive constraint on women's activity in China was the

practice of foot binding, which began during the Song Dynasty. From a very young

age, girls from aristocratic families had their feet wrapped so tightly that the bones

did not grow naturally. Though the small feet were considered a sign of beauty, foot

binding was quite painful and often made it difficult for women to walk. Many women

had to use canes to get around, and some had servants carry them to their desired

destinations. Because it restricted a woman's movement, foot binding was not

prevalent among rural peasants. Thus, a bound foot signified social status, something

particularly desired when choosing a suitable mate. Often, such practices have served to

restrict women and thus limit their contributions to the public sphere.

CHINESE WOOD-BLOCK PRINTING

With the development of wood block printing in China, people could make multiple copies of art or written

texts without laboriously copying each by hand.

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Intellectual and Cultural Developments

Perhaps because of China's increased affluence, better-educated populace, and

extensive contact with foreign nations, intellectual pursuits (technology, literature,

and visual arts) thrived during the Tang and Song eras.

Paper and Printing The Chinese had invented paper as early as the second century

C.E., and they developed a system of printing in the seventh century. They were

the first culture to use wood-block printing. In that method, an artist carves a block

of wood so that the carved parts of the wood will appear as blank spaces on the

page. The artist then coats the remaining raised parts of the block with ink, and the

mirror image of the block is created when pressed against a page. A Buddhist

scripture produced in the seventh century is thought to be the world's first

wood-block printed work. (For more on the Gutenberg press, see page 278.)

Reading and Poetry The development of paper and printing expanded the

availability of books. Though most peasants were illiterate, China's privileged

classes had increased access to literature. Confucian scholars not only consumed

literature at a tremendous rate, they also were the major producers of literature

throughout the Post-Classical Era. The Tang and Song dynasties' emphasis on

schooling created generations of well-rounded scholar-bureaucrats with leisure time on

their hands, which they might spend composing romantic verses or dabbling in

painting. These members of a privileged class were the world's first "Renaissance

men."

The secular backgrounds of many writers were revealed in their poetry. For example,

Li Bo's verse of the eighth century was light and airy; his subjects were love,

friendship, and the pleasures of wine. (See the example at the beginning of the

chapter.) His writing stands in contrast to the more somber poetry of Du Fu, in the

same century. Du Fu is known as the "poet-historian" of China's Post-Classical Era.

As the Tang Dynasty began to crumble, Du Fu's writing dealt with the hardships of

daily life. The works of these two prolific writers continue to be read in modern times.

Painting Another art form that flourished during the Post-Classical Era was landscape

painting. Landscape in Chinese literally means "mountain- water." Human figures

on the canvas are miniscule in comparison to the work's vast empty spaces or

mountains. Daoism's emphasis on nature shows itself in these paintings.

Religious Diversity in

China

Many Chinese respected the ideals of Daoism and combined Daoist beliefs with

Confucianism. The two belief systems existing alongside each other in people's

everyday beliefs and practices. For example, the scholar gentry who created

meditative landscape paintings were also well-versed in Confucianism.

However, Confucians and Buddhists did not coexist comfortably.

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Buddhism had come to China from its birthplace in India via the Silk Roads. Its

presence is evident during the anarchic period between the later Han and the Sui

dynasties. However, its popularity became widespread during the Tang Dynasty. The

seventh century Buddhist monk Xuanzang was instrumental in building Buddhism's

popularity in China.

Buddhism and Taoism Monks introduced Buddhism to the Chinese by relating its beliefs to

Daoist principles. For example, Buddhism's idea of dharma became translated as dao

("the way"). Eventually, Buddhist doctrines combined with elements of Daoist

traditions to create the syncretic faith Chan Buddhism, also known as Zen Buddhism.

Similar to Taoism, this new form of Buddhism emphasized direct experience and

meditation as opposed to formal learning based on scripture.

Thanks to this religious syncretism, Buddhism's popularity in China grew immensely.

Monasteries-homes of monks-appeared in virtually every major city, which

became a problem in itself for the Tang bureaucracy. Wealthy converts donated

large tracts of land to monasteries, which did not pay taxes, annoying the Confucian

bureaucracy.

More broadly, it was difficult for many leaders of the Tang Dynasty, which

considered itself the "Middle Kingdom"-the center of world affairs—to accept

that a foreign religion would have such prominence in society. Buddhism's popularity,

which drew individuals away from China's native religions, made Daoists and

Confucians quite jealous. Thus, during the eighth century, Tang officials ordered

that Buddhist monasteries be closed and their lands seized. Nevertheless, Chan Buddhism

remained popular among ordinary Chinese citizens.

Buddhism and Neo-Confucianism The Song Dynasty was somewhat friendlier

towards Buddhism, but it did not go out of its way to promote the religion,

preferring to emphasize China's native traditions, such as Confucianism, which

itself went through changes. Buddhism's presence had been so strong that many

Confucians had begun to adopt its ideals into their daily lives. The development of

printing had made Buddhist scriptures widely available to the Confucian scholar

gentry. In spite of themselves, the scholars found that they appreciated the

thoughtfulness that Buddhism devoted to issues of the soul and the meaning of life.

Thus, Neo-Confucianism, another syncretic faith, evolved in China between 770 and

840. Neo-Confucianism is a social and ethical philosophy, not a religious belief, that

combines rational thought with the metaphysics of Taoism and Buddhism. This new

incarnation of Confucianism also became immensely popular in the countries in

China's orbit, including Japan, Korea, and Vietnam.

Japan

Though the "Middle Kingdom" was powerful, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam had their

own political and cultural traditions. That said, China cast a long shadow

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than the nobility. This was a major blow to the power of the feudal lords and a large step

toward creating a powerful centralized government.

In the 710, the Fujiwara clan took control of the government and moved the capital

city to Nara, which was built in the style of China's capital city, Chang'an. Indeed, the

Fujiwara clan continued in the tradition of Shotoku in modeling itself after Tang

China in many ways.

Return to Decentralized Government Eventually, however, the power of the

aristocracy was too strong, and in 794, the current emperor moved the capital back to

Heian, where the emperor had more support. Unlike the Chinese emperors, the

emperor of Japan was merely a figurehead to whom the Japanese people gave

respect. In the Post-Classical Era, power truly rested in the hands of the Fujiwara

family.

Leaders of the empire during the Heian Period (794-1185) still tried to emulate

Chinese political traditions. They were not successful, though, as Heian Japan slipped

back into a pattern of political decentralization. Though the government had

instituted an equal-field system similar to China's, it failed because of the nobility's

influence. The merit-based bureaucracy actually served to strengthen the nobility

because the civil service examination was not open to all social classes.

The Tale of Genji Although leaders of Heian Japan failed to consolidate

government power, their cultural achievements are notable. Literature flourished during

this period. Most notably, a noblewoman known as Murasaki Shikibu, who lived at the

Japanese court, wrote The Tale of Genji. The main character, Genji, is a prince. As

Murasaki tells of his various trials, adventures, and romances, she provides a

window into the life of aristocratic Japan. However, the book is more than just a

melancholy story about life among Japan's elite. Earlier books in cultures throughout

the world were often collections of loosely connected tales or stories in which

characters changed little from beginning to end. However, The Tale of Genji focuses on

the psychological development of one main character, the way many modern stories do.

Because of this focus, it is often cited at the world's first novel.

Military Rule Political weakness and aristocratic greed caused the downfall of the

Heian court. Thereafter, the Minamoto clan rose to power. From the end of the twelfth

century until the late sixteenth century, power would stay in the hands of the

Minamoto family, which installed a shogun, or military ruler, to reign supreme. This

shogun was separate from the emperor, who had even less power during this period

than before. While the Nara and Heian courts tried to emulate China's scholarly and

courtly traditions, the Minamoto shogunate emphasized military prowess.

Because power became decentralized under the Minamoto clan, noble families

returned to battling over estates. To protect their lands, nobles recruited samurai,

professional warriors who, in return for their sacrifice, received clothing, shelter, and

food from their landlord. In the absence of any army or central political force to

stabilize the society, the samurai played a central role in the 400-year period (the

Kamakura and Muromachi shogunates) after

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Heian Japan fell. (Test Prep: Make an outline in which you compare Japanese

samurai with knights of medieval Europe. See page 223.)

Feudalism For hundreds of years, Japan had been a feudal society without a

centralized government. Landowning aristocrats, the daimyo, battled for supreme

power over the land, while the majority of people worked as rice farmers.

Japanese feudalism was similar to European feudalism, which is described in

Chapter 12. Both featured very little social mobility, and both systems were built

upon hereditary hierarchies. In Japan, peasants, known as serfs, were born into lives

of economic dependency, while samurai were born into their roles as protectors and

daimyo were born into lives of privilege. In Europe, the three groups were serfs,

knights, and nobles.

What distinguishes Japanese feudalism from that of Europe was that the

daimyo enjoyed much more power than the nobility in Europe did. The daimyo

ruled over vast stretches of land and, in reality, were more powerful than either the

emperor or the shogun. By contrast, Europe's hierarchy placed the monarch above

the nobility. Though there were periods when authority of the monarch waned and

power was distributed among nobility, the main centralized power structure of

European feudalism would not change until the Modern Industrial Era.

In Europe, the ideal knight held to the code of chivalry, with duty to countrymen,

duty to God, and duty to women, the last expressed through courtly love and the

virtues of gentleness and graciousness. In Japan, the code was known as bushido and

stressed frugality, loyalty, the martial arts, and honor unto death.

Korea

Since it shared a land border with China, Korea had a much more direct relationship with

China than Japan. The Tang Dynasty demanded that representatives of the Korean

Silla Kingdom perform the ritual kowtow when meeting the Chinese emperor and Silla

become a tributary state of China. In order to appease the Chinese, the Korean

kingdom agreed. Giving tributes to China had its benefits: Korea began receiving

valuable Chinese exports to which it may not have otherwise had access.

Similarity to China Through its tributary relationship, Korea and China were in close

contact. Thus Korea emulated many aspects of China's politics and culture. For

example, it modeled its capital city, Kumsong, on Chang'an. It centralized its

government in the style of the Chinese. Culturally, Koreans adopted both Confucian

and Buddhist beliefs. The educated elite studied Confucian classics, while

Buddhist doctrine attracted the peasant masses. Koreans adopted the Chinese

writing system, which proved to be very awkward. While the long and close

contacts between people in China and Korea resulted in many shared words, the

Chinese and Korean languages remained structurally very different.

EAST ASIA IN THE POST-CLASSICAL PERIOD

193

to Buddhism and became serious adherents to the faith. Politically, Vietnamese kings

modeled their palaces after those in China but with less grandeur and opulence. Formal

education continued to be conducted in Chinese.

Military Conflict with China As the Tang Dynasty began to crumble in the

eighth century, Vietnamese rebels took the opportunity to drive out China's occupying

army. In their battles against the Chinese, they showed a strong capacity for guerilla

warfare, perhaps due to their deep knowledge of their own land. One tactic used by

the Vietnamese against the naval forces of the Chinese (and later, the Mongols) was to

place sharpened logs in the harbor that were low enough that ships could easily sail in

during high tide. However, when the tide went out, the sticks would trap the ships in the

harbor, where they could be attacked from land. The Vietnamese won a major

victory in 938, when their small army defeated a Chinese force nearly three times

larger.

Comparing Japan, Korea, and

Vietnam

One of the most important dynamics in the histories of Japan, Korea, and Vietnam

was each country's relationship with China. Each developed its own distinct language and

culture, but it did so in the shadow of China. When China was unified, its political

power, economic wealth, religious and intellectual traditions, and technological

innovations made it one of the world's most powerful realms. Its smaller neighbors

benefited from being so close to China but faced a challenge of maintaining their own

distinctive culture.

HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVES: WHO INVENTED GUNPOWDER AND GUNS?

The development of gunpowder and its use in guns revolutionized world

history. However, historians have not agreed on who was responsible for starting

this revolution.

Chinese Claims and European Doubts While the Chinese long took credit for

developing both gunpowder and guns, European historians were

traditionally skeptical because they doubted the Chinese had the

technological ability to make such advances. For example, Henry Hime, a

British military officer, argued in his 1904 book, Gunpowder and

Ammunition: Their Origin and Progress, that the Chinese "possessed little

genius for mechanical or chemical inventions" so they had probably

"obtained their first gunpowder and firearms from the West."

Fireworks Europeans slowly acknowledged Chinese contributions to the

technologies that led to the development of guns. They first recognized that the

Chinese had invented gunpowder and that knowledge of the explosive

substance had been carried by traders and the Mongols to Europe in the

thirteenth century. However, European historians continued to argue that the

Chinese had used gunpowder only

EAST ASIA IN THE POST-CLASSICAL

PERIOD 195

for fireworks, not for weaponry. Historian Jack Kelly, in a recent book about the

history of gunpowder, noted that historians had not moved much beyond

Hime's argument in their views of Chinese abilities. "The notion of China's

benign relationship with gunpowder sprang in part from Western

prejudices about the Chinese character. Some viewed the Chinese as

dilettantes who stumbled onto the secret of gunpowder but couldn't envision its

potential. Others saw them as pacifist sages who wisely turned away from

its destructive possibilities."

Agreement The next step was for Europeans to acknowledge that the Chinese

historians were correct, and that the Chinese had begun using gunpowder to

make early forms of guns since the tenth century. British scholar Joseph

Needham revolutionized Western attitudes toward China with his multivolume

work Science and Civilization in China. Begun in 1954, it continued after

Needham's death under other scholars and now includes more than 25

volumes. By 1986, Needham called the development of gunpowder "no doubt

the greatest of all Chinese military inventions." And he concluded that the

Chinese had developed the first gun "before other peoples knew of the

invention at all."

KEY TERMS BY THEME

ECONOMICS

equal-field system fast-ripening

rice

proto-industrialization

flying cash

paper money

magnetic compass rudder

junk

wood-block printing

SOCIAL STRUCTURES

nuclear family sinification

polygyny

Xuanzang

Hsuan Tsung An Lushan

scholar gentry

daimyo

STATE-BUILDING Sui Dynasty Grand Canal Hangzhou

Tang Dynasty

Middle Kingdom

Silla Kingdom

tributary system

Song Dynasty

Southern Song

Dynasty Tang Taizong Song Taizu

Chang'an

Kaifeng

Yuan Dynasty

Ming Dynasty

Minamoto clan

shogun

samurai

Kumsong

guerilla warfare

CULTURE

kowtow

Uighurs

foot binding Li

Du Fu Chan

(Zen)

Buddhism

Neo-Confucianism

Shotoku Taishi

Taika Reforms

Fujiwara clan

Nara

Murasaki Shikibu The Tale of Genji bushido

MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1.1 to 1.3 refer to the passage below.

"One alderman shall be appointed for each ward in the capital, and one chief alderman

for four wards. The latter shall be responsible for maintaining the household

registers and investigating criminal matters. The chief alderman shall be chosen from

those men belonging to the wards, of unblemished character, strong and upright, who

can discharge the duties of the time effectively. In principle, aldermen of rural villages

or of city wards, shall be selected from ordinary subjects belonging to the villages

of city wards, who are sincere, incorrupt, and of strong disposition....

The prefects for these districts shall be chosen from local nobles (kuni no miyatsuko), of

unblemished character, strong and upright, who can discharge the duties of the time

effectively.... Men of ability and intelligence, who are skilled in writing and

arithmetic shall be appointed to assist them in the tasks of governance and

book-keeping."

The Reform Edict of Taika, 646

1.1 The main purpose of this document is to establish or re-establish (A)

traditional, decentralized government structures in Japan (B) a more

centralized government, run by bureaucrats and scholars (C) a political

structure in Japan based on Buddhist beliefs (D) laws allowing

government officials to exploit Japanese peasants

1.2 What statement supports the conclusion that ministers who had traveled

to China persuaded Japanese Emperor Shotoku to enact these reforms? (A)

The document describes political reforms that would create a very

decentralized government, similar to China's.

(B) The word taika in Japanese means "China."

virtue, and ethical behavior.

(D) Both Japan and China used the words kuni no miyatsuko to describe

local nobles.

1.3 How did the Taika Reforms affect the political structure of Japan?

(A) Japan became a vassal state of China.

(B) The reforms encouraged wider participation in government because the

civil service examination system became open to all people. (C) The

Japanese emperor shed his role as political figurehead and took

a new, more active role in political affairs in Japan.

(D) Japan did not sustain the political reforms enacted by the Taika

Reforms and soon developed a feudal political structure.

EAST ASIA IN THE POST-CLASSICAL PERIOD

197

Questions 2.1 to 2.3 refer to the passage below.

"In this part [of the city of Hangzhou, China] are the ten principal markets,

though besides these there are a vast number of others in the different parts of the

town. The former are all squares of half a mile to the side, and along their front

passes the main street, which is 40 paces in width, and runs straight from end to end

of the city, crossing many bridges of easy and commodious [convenient] approach.

At every four miles of its length comes one of those great squares of 2 miles (as we

have mentioned) in compass [i.e., square miles]. So also parallel to this great street,

but at the back of the market places, there runs a very large canal, on the bank of

which towards the squares are built great houses of stone, in which the merchants

from India and other foreign parts store their wares, to be handy for the markets. In

each of the squares is held a market three days in the week, frequented by

40,000 or 50,000 persons, who bring thither for sale every possible necessary of

life.”

Marco Polo, The Travels of Marco Polo, c. 1300

2.1 Which of the statements concerning trading cities in China, such as

Hangzhou, is most accurate?

(A) Foreigners were not welcome in Chinese trading cities, because they

were considered barbarians and had nothing of value to trade.

(B) Many of the people coming to trade in cities in China were

Europeans traveling along the Silk Roads.

Chinese merchants to use paper money instead of cumbersome copper coins.

2.2 What development, which began prior to Marco Polo's travels to China,

allowed Europeans to obtain the products of China and other parts of

Asia?

(A) The Islamic caliphates and Chinese dynasties, such as the Tang and the

Song, grew stronger, so long-distance trade could be conducted with less risk.

(B) The improvement in maritime technology allowed for ocean-going

ships to establish sea-trade routes from Asia to Europe via Southern Africa.

the trade routes between Europe and Africa were under one ruler. (D) Europeans

defeated the Islamic caliphates, which allowed those

Europeans to establish direct contracts with the Tang and the Song

Dynasties.

198 WORLD HISTORY: PREPARING FOR THE ADVANCED

PLACEMENT® EXAM

2.3 What products would Indians and other non-Chinese merchants be most

likely to purchase in a market such as the one described in the passage? (A)

silk, porcelain, and tea

(B) pepper, nutmeg, and

cinnamon

(D) rugs, parchment, and horses

Questions 3.1 and 3.2 refer to the passage below.

"Foot-binding is believed to have begun during, or just before, the Song Dynasty in

China around the 10th century, and became widespread within a couple of hundred

years. Bound feet were seen as a status symbol for wealthy women who did not

need to work, although eventually the practice became widespread.

[Photographer Jo] Farrell writes: 'Although considered fairly barbaric, it was a

tradition that enabled women to find a suitable partner. Matchmakers or

mothers-in-law required their son's betrothed to have bound feet as a sign that she

would be a good wife (she would be subservient and without complaint).'”

Phil Coomes, "Chinese Foot Binding," BBC News, July 16, 2014

3.1 One result of the custom of foot-binding during the Song Dynasty was

that

(A) the patriarchal system grew stronger, particularly among aristocrats

(B) peasant women suffered more difficulty working than did aristo-

cratic women

strate their status

(D) aristocratic women resisted the procedure because they considered it

barbaric

3.2 During the Post-Classical period, gender relations in China and the

societies of Sub-Saharan Africa were

(A) similar in that both societies allowed women to have very little eco-

nomic or political status

(B) similar because both societies were matrilineal in practice

the economy

(D) different because some societies in Sub-Saharan Africa were matri-

lineal, and women there were not as restricted as women in China