Tang Dynasty
- Pre-Tang Dynasty
- before the Tang dynasty, there was the Sui Dynasty
- it lasted from 581 to 618
- a big achievement for the Sui dynasty was that they constructed most of the Grand Canal, by some labor of millions of workers
- the Grand Canal is the longest canal in the world
- however the high taxes and the forced labor for some construction projects projects and wars made this dynasty very unpopular
- the Sui empire ended in rebellions
- Early Tang Dynasty
- in the early Tang Dynasty the Li family became powerful leaders
- After capturing Changan, a general named Li Yaun declared himself the emperor of the Tang empire in 618
- he defeated his rival commanders and his rule lasted until 626 when his son forced him to retire
- his son, Li Shimin killed his two brothers to gain power as the emperor
- he was a very famous long lived emperor
- he was known as Taizong
- once the Gokturks in central Asia were defeated the Tang Empire expanded Westward
- the silk trade routes flourished and Taizong received foreign emissaries in Changan
- he died in 649
- Middle Tang Dynasty
- in the middle Tang Dynasty there was war, famine, and external attacks, this caused the death of millions
- in 750 the Nanzhao rebelled against the Tang dynasty
- it was quite small but powerful
- they destroyed a large army that was sent against them in 750
- another large army in 754
- then the Nanzhao expanded into Burma, Thailand and the rest of Yunnan and Sichuan
- Tang Dynasty
- 618 BCE to 907 BCE
- founded by the Li family
- capitol was Chang'an
- at the time it was the most populous city in the word at the time
- is considered a high point of the Chinese civilization
- extended a lot of cultural influence on its neighbors
- Buddhism became a major cultural influence
- Major Accomplishments
- developed a new study of medicine emphasized the use of herbs and organize materials for treatment - still in use today in China
- their research into complex chemicals heavily influenced useful inventions that came later - like air conditioning
- they also invented waterproof creams that resemble today's varnish that is used on wood
- their emphasis on education brought about economic prosperity and political stability for China for a long time
- Key Players
- Li Yuan was the founder of the Tang dynasty
- Wu Daozi was considered the greatest painter of the Tang dynasty - cultural leader
- Li Shimin was one of the emperors during this time - an excellent politician - led the dynasty to political stability through his open minded and humane style of rule
- Wu Zetian as empress along with Emperor Gaozong - she was able to preserve the empire with her keen political mind since Gaozong was weak minded - eliminated political enemies
- how they lost power
- there were four main reason that the Tang Dynasty lost power
- the rise of eunuchs
- men that have been castrated
- the rules that kept them from reaching high offices were abolished
- they reached position above princes and minister
- separatist regions, called Fanzhen, along the borders, fought amongst themselves
- they started as regional military governorship, for the safeguarding of boarders
- they competed for farmland and labor
- they became small kingdoms in and of themselves
- conflict in the ruling class
- people of wealthy lineage and commoner who had worked their way up
- formed different political parties, and the divisiveness between them broke down the power of the central regime
- the most important factor was the peasant uprising
- the government annexed a lot of land
- and imposed a lot of taxes
- the biggest one was the huang chao uprising
- after the tang dynasty
- china descended into political turmoil after the fall of the tang dynasty
weapons of the song dynasty
- knife chariot
- rammer
- iron sword
- stone casting machine
- fire arrow
- fireball
- watchtower
gunpowder
- song military found gunpowder to be helpful in the siege warfare
- led to the development of early types of rockets, cannons, bombs and mines
- song dynasty wanted to improve weapons to hold off the mongols
weapons of the tang dynasty
- pike
- swords
- bow and arrow
- grenades
- throwing dagger
armor
- plate of iron with sharp edges
- also used shields that were a thick piece of iron
tactics
- song-clamor in the east, attack in the west
- element of surprise provides an advantage
- tang- create something from nothing
- feint is a movement in order to deceive their adversary
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