Agriculture and Trade
- Increased international trade contacts, and a revolution in agricultural productivity
- Overseas trade through investments in trading vessels, which undertook trade at ports
- The government encouraged people to reclaim barren lands and put them under cultivation. Anyone who opened up new lands and paid taxes were granted permanent possession of the new land
- Invented a type of plow to cultivate the lands. Used and invented irrigation systems made from bamboo.
- Cotton was a very economic crop
- Cotton flowers were collected, pits removed, beaten loose with bamboo bows, and drawn into yarns and weaved into cloth called “jibei”
- Trade was a huge part of the economy and every “social” class was involved in trade some way, whether it be by trading agricultural supplies or other important things for the overall dynasty
- Since the collapse of the Sui Dynasty (581-618), productivity had been severely damaged and the national economy was in paralysis
- After the Tang Dynasty reunified the whole nation, Emperor Kao Tsu paid much attention to develop agriculture and successively implemented a series of reforms, such as Juntai Zhi
- In this way, the peassants’ burden was lessened and production efficiency was improved
- As a result, farm told and agricultural technique were improved
- The economy was very great in power
Accomplishments of the Song Dynasty:
- Lasted from 960-1279 A.D.
- Considered a second golden age, following that of the Tang Dynsty, which collapsed 50 years earlier
- Followed by the yuan dynasty
- Consisted of Northern Song (960-1127) and Southern Song (1127-1279)
- The Northern Song was destroyed by the Jin (1115-1234) in 1127 after a bit of political corruption and decline in the regime
- The southern song was set up by zhao gou, son of the last emperor of the northern song
- In 1279 the army of the yuan dynasty captured the capital of the southern song, which pretty much ended the southern song
- There was a total of 18 emperors who ruled over the song dynasty
- The first emperor of the song adopted a bureaucratic system employing sholar-officials
- The emperor set aside military traditions and insisted on civilians control his provinces, government , and military
- Civil service exams were revived, schools spread, and literacy grew
- They boasted welfare by first helping house and care for the elderly
- What they did for large cities:
- Made state hospitals
- Made state orphanages
- Had free pharmacies for the poor
- Zhao Kuangyin:
- Military general who founded the Northern Song
- In 13 years, he was able to unite the separatist regimes in the southern part of China
- Agricultural productivity and output of food advanced with new technologies
- Division of labor became more detailed with handicrafts technologies
- The basic form of paper currency appeared during their time period, also called Jiao Zi
- Silk, textile, and porcelain made industries strive
- Advances were made in the mining and manufacturing of ceramics
- This cause China from Agrarian to a mercantile state
- The industry improved with new bridges, better canal lock gates, and water powered clocks
- Methods of acupuncture and autopsies and physicians code of ethics were codified
- Arts even saw an advancement in lyrical song and portrait and landscape paintings
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