China history 1
“Yellow Emperor," Huang-ti
2700 BCE?
BC, BCE
1200
• most advanced use of bronze in world
Shang
• earliest complete record of writing
1027
1000
Classic China: Golden Age of Chinese Thought
Increased growth, creativity. Build canals, irrigation. Also
greater conflict. Age of Philosophers and Classics. Intellectual
outburst parallel Greeks, Hebrew prophets, Buddha.
West
800
770
Overrun by barb.
From west, move east
Zhou
(Chou)
East
450
Spring/
Autumn
722-481
600
Confucius:
Lao zi;
Mencius
Xunzi
Phil: Questions similar, answers different: Chinese: people as
social/political creatures; social phil: society not individual.
Compare to other worldly of Mediterranean and India. Maybe
from Warring State Anarchy. Classics: Look to past; increase
respect for and venerate old texts – last until recent times.
Confucian texts: 5; choose 4; 1000 yr later as embodiment of
Confucius and Mencius teach.
Confucius: carnage of warring state, return to Zhou founders.
Taoism – Lao Zi Yin/Yang Theory; 5 Element Theory;
Mencius : Govt exercise in ethics . True leader provide for well
being of people – hence mandate from heaven.
400
Warring
States
403-221
Legalist: (Hsun Tzu): men not good by nature – like Hobbes
state of nature – social contract; First totalitarians.
Shih-Huang Ti lead Qin victory. (Terracotta warriors)
unite people, massive public works projects Great Wall, Canals);
Qin
(Chin)
Shih-Huang Ti
200 BCE
Legalist gov’t – sourer people on law.
Set up weights, measures;
Rid (burn) old books.
0
Han
Start iron age, used in making weapons.
Language:
Characters
Radicals
220
AD, ACE
200 ACE
200 BCE
First Golden Age of China:
• contemporaries of Romans. Still threat from family
of empress, pastoral people; Grew to present size
of China.
• Previous philosophies survive piecemeal (YY/ 5E);
Taoism get primitive. Confucianism survive with
some changes.
• Set up 1st Cent. BC Confucian schools for civil
admin; model last forever. Legalist, in attempt to
destroy Confucianism, set up state where it
flourished.
0
Han
•Trade increased; Silk road used. start of paper,
porcelains, glazes;
•Both Roman and Han complex technological
societies. No adjust to increase population, wealth,
institution.
• Roman and Chinese Empires: Parallels
– both overrun by barbarians
- swept by new religions.
220
Roman empire die while Chinese succeed. Why:
200 ACE
AD, ACE
- southern dynasties less influenced by Northern
barbarians which had stronger influence on North
than Greek Byzantine culture
- Han ideals superior. Just and Ethical rule by
emperor with mandate from heaven and support
people with bureaucracy with educated people
chosen by merit
- Written language give China greater culture
continuity than Latin or Greek
- Size of China lead to absorption of Barbarians
Two factors lead to fall
• shift population N (Yellow) to S (Yangzi)
• barbarian invasion from N
• collapse, 350 yr chaos/disunity
China history 2
2 Major social changes: 1st: barbarians into North and
assimilate, while Han move south
200
Six Dynasties
(3 Kingdoms,
Dynasties N & S,
Sui – which help
reunify)
Import of Buddhism (64 AD) – one of greatest import of
ideas and challenges til 19th century. Passed from rich
to poor not v/v as Christianity. Compete and ultimately
compromised with Confuciansim. Spread from China
400
620
600
Empress Wu
(only female)
Tang
Emperor
Xuanzong,
Yang Guifei
,
An Lushan
Rebellion
800
900
2nd Golden Age of China
- Xian (Chang’an) capital, 2 M people, Silk Road;
- strongest, richest country in world. 1/4 (90M) of world.
- Efficient central govt., religious tolerance, tech. lead.
- Paper money; Great age of poetry (Li Bo, Du Fu), art,
sculpting; Advances in astronomy
- Start of 1000 yr of China as most advance, strongest,
richest country in world
- start of true civil service meritocracy: one of greatest
achievements in Chinese History. Intellectually unify
country. Confucian ideology entrenched. Education
valued; Poor could advance
- Absorbed and modified Buddhism. Culture tolerant.
Secular art
Ten Kingdoms/
5 Dynasties
960
Northern
1000
Song
(Sung)
1279
Yuan
S
o
u
t
Zhu
h
Xi
e
r
n
Chin
Mongols
1200
Khubilia Khan
1368
Chinese Millenium
- Great advances in agriculture (sufficient food); techniques
still in use today
- gunpowder, weapons, printing textiile, painting modern;
- golden age formal prose. Caligraphy high art.
- printing press; Large number printed books;
- Commercial revolution within organized bureacracy no
great effect as in feudal Europe. Govt of scholar officials
through exams;
- city dweller dominate; status women decrease;
- Neoconfucian: Zhu Xi (Chu His): and after become
orthodoxy. Social structure becomes static; surplus human
labor
-Turn inward. Tired of foreign invasion.
-G. Khan, and grandson, Khubilia Khan conquer; Beijing
capital; City of Khan, within which Forbidden City;
Mongol empire, linking E and W, promote trade and
travel.
- Rid of exams; scholar-official class excluded
- Maintained order by foster conservative
neoconfucianism; but use foreigners for positions.
- Great travel through Mongol empire. Marco Polo visit;
Christians come; Arab influence great.
1368
1400
Zheng He
Ship,
Map
Ming
Wang Yang-Ming
vs Bacon
Chinese
Millenium
(con’t)
1662
1600
Qing
(Ching
1800
1912
KMT
1949
PRC
2000
-Greatest era of orderly government, social stability in
history; strong, central govt, sea explorations; porcelains
widely recognized (blue/white pieces); Eventually
overthrown by Manchu, yet structure maintained even
then.
- fortify Great Wall, Build Forbidden City, Capital in Beijing
- This at time when 30 yr War(1618-48) wreck Europe.
And Europe go through Renaissance, Reformation,
Growth National states, expansion into new world, rise
modern science, industrial revolution, rise of capitalism.
Why: look to past for ideals; look in since many foreign
invasions and alien rule. Growing ethnocentrism
-17 Ming Emperors. Mostly autocratic. Use of Grand
secretaries (like cabinet); Eunuchs got power.
- want to return to pre-Mongol rule so built up exam
system. Anyone rise to top; 300 private academies. 1407
encyclopedia with 11000 volumes;
- 200 yr peace increased economic growth, population,
etc.
- Wang Yang-Ming influential philosopher. Meditation and
intuitive knowledge, and not investigation of things as Zhu
Xi.
- Foreign relations – anticommericallism. China oldest,
parent. Source of knowledge – hence not aggressive,
imperialistic, even though sailed 100’s yrs before Europe.
Gave up seafaring – E coast left to non Chinese from
which emerge imperialism.
1600
1662
Matteo Ricci
Qing
(Ching
1800
Hong Xiuquan
1912
Manchu conquest of Ming, Last dynasty. Reach peak of power and
influence. Orderly, prosperous until 19th century when fell due to
inflexibility, rebellions, and invasion again - from the West.
-Rise of Manchu dynasty same time as Am. Colonies. Social system
change little. Stable in 1700’s. Disaster in 1800’s. Keep order but no
adapt to outside forces.
-Manchu’s strong leader like Mongols. Only 2% of population.
Manchu no engage in trade, intermarrying or follow Chinese customs.
But require all Chinese to braid hair in queue and shave rest as
symbol of submission. However, Chinese culture overtook Manchus..
Stayed in power by becoming as Chinese as possible. Very
conservative and rigid. Reject other nation’s views, ideas.
-Decline in 1800’s: military ineffective; political corruption; jobs
pressure with great growth. Increase in local rebellions. 142 million
in 1741 to 432 mill in 1851. Hard to handle.
-Now Western contact: First Portuguese pirates, 1514, island fortress
outside Canton River mouth; expel in 1522 to Macao. Jesuits in late
Ming, early Ching. Matteo Ricci – accommodate message to
Chinese. Adopted Confusion culture. Christianity as system of
wisdom and ethics like Han Confuc. Many converts. Introduce West
science, medicine. Missionaries saw emperor daily. Jesuits became
sinicized. Add to Confucian ideas, but try to rid Buddhism, Taoism.
Split. Confucian scholars hostile to Christianity. Increasingly viewed
as secret cult. 1722 turn against, suppress.
-Canton trade taken over by British and others in guilds, 1784
Americans.
-Decline at same time as West. Imperialism increase. Slow to
change, Govt passive.
-Brits start opium trade. Chinese starting smoking opium after
tobacco introduced from US. Chinese merchants couldn’t pay taxes,
into debt of British merchants. Brits bring in Navy. First Anglo-Sino
War 1839, when Chinese govt try to stop opium trade- opium war.
Brit. Won – cede Hong Kong, open 5 ports to Brits.
-Brits start opium trade. Chinese starting smoking opium after
tobacco introduced from US. Chinese merchants couldn’t pay taxes,
into debt of British merchants. Brits bring in Navy. First Anglo-Sino
War 1839, when Chinese govt try to stop opium trade- opium war.
Brit. Won – cede Hong Kong, open 5 ports to Brits.
-West impact undermine traditional order. More wars. Opium trade
expands. New missionaries. Protestant Robert Morrison . Catholic
priest dress like Chinese but protestant own culture, attach Taoist
and Buddhist idols.
-Increased rebellions by peasants from 1850-1870. Pop +, floods,
famine, poor govt plus West. Secret societies.Largest rebellion led
by Hong Xiuquan – based on old testament. Equality, no slavery
alcohol, tobacco, opium, idols. Try to eradicate “demon devils” –
alien Manchus. End, 20 Mill dead.
-Govt restrengthen temporarily. But more ports open, legalize import
of opium. Missionaries travel interior. Behind changes stood power
of British Empire. Increase challenge of West to China, but structure
still unchanged. In contrast to Japan, which underwent Meiju
restoration, China slow to change. And 1862-1875 weak boy
emperor, dominate by mother, Emperor Dowager, who had no clue.
Great reconstruction tasks like Civil War but lack industrial capacity.
Inflation, treasury spend.
-China lose war to Japan in 1894; destabilize, divide China into
spheres of influence.Decline.
1912
KMT
1949
PRC