Friday December 7th 2012

Hierarchy of Tang Dynasty

The Tang Dynasty is preceded by the Sui dynasty. It was founded by the Li family who seized power during the decline and collapse of the Sui dynasty. The Tang dynasty, which had at one time the most popular city in the world regarded as a high point.
The Tang Dynasty is a monarchy. The 7^th and half of the 8^th century is considered the Zenith era of the Tang dynasty. Emperor Xuanzong brought the middle kingdom to its golden age while the silk road thrived.

Shang Dynasty

It was founded around 1600 BC by Cheng Teng. It was a monarchy governed by a series of kings. Thirty kings total over 600 years. The king was served by officials who held specialized positions of authority.
Officials belong to a hereditary class of aristocrats. The king had supreme power over everything. He was the political and religious leader. The king directed life and work to peasants and serfs. The most powerful to least powerful are king, nobles, warriors and peasants.

Shang Women

The women were to be gentle, calm and respectful. Their main purpose was to obey and serve their husbands, fathers and even their sons. Women were lower than men in social standings. They tended to children and the needs of their husbands. Men married multiple women. Women were often used as concubines. They didn’t have many rights. They were treated with less respect than the average person in the empire. A concubine is a woman who lives with a man but has lower status than his wife or wives.

Tang women

They were expected to get married and raise a family. Spinning and weaving were some activities the women did. Peasant women would care for the livestock and tend to the fields. Upper class women could get powerful positions as a wife or concubine of a powerful man. Upper class women could enjoy riding horses. They could play the games such as polo and even hunting. If you were a lower class wife then you could not partake in these activities and had to do housework.

Compare Tang and Shang

Contrast

Tang- king was more involved with economy
Tang women generally had more freedom than Shang women.
If they could afford to pay someone else to do housework, they would spend more time with recreational activities
Larger civilizations than Shang
Shang- king had group of “advisors” that helped him rule.
King was military, governmental and religious leader.
Polygamy was more common
Women were at the bottom of social rankings.

Number 1 – 1 million = 3

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 possessions 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, 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 and Zuyongdiao system.
In this way, the peasants’ burden was lessened and production efficiency was improved. As a result, farm told and agricultural techniques were improved.
The economy was very great in power.

Song Dynasty-

Lasted from 960-1279 A.D.
Considered a second golden age, following the Tang Dynasty which collapsed 50 years earlier.
Followed by the Yuang Dynasty
Consisted of Northern Song (960-1127) and Southern Song (1127-1279)
The Northern Song was destroyed by the Jin in 1127 after a bit of political corruption and a 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 scholar-officials.
Civil service exams were revised, schools spread, and literacy grew.
They boasted welfare by first helping house and care for the elderly.
What they did for large cities: 1. Made state hospitals 2. Got low interest loans for peasants 3. Make state orphanages. 4. 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. Studied martial arts from a young age.
Launched a mutiny in Chenquio where he ascended the throne and fully established the dynasty.

Advancements

Agricultural productivity and output of food advanced with new technologies.
Division of labor became more detailed with handcrafts technologies.
The basic form of paper currency appeared during their time period, also called Jiao Zi
Silk, textile and porcelain-making industries strived.

Agriculture-

China Renaissance

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.

Number between 1 and 1 million

123,456

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