Transcript China Reunites

China Reunites
Daily Lesson and Discussion Notes: 4-1
Objectives:



Explain how the Sui and Tang dynasties
rebuilt China’s empire
Discuss why Buddhism became popular
and spread
Describe the ideas of Confucius and the
new class of scholar-officials
Objective: 1

Explain how the Sui and Tang dynasties
rebuilt China’s empire
I. Rebuilding China’s Empire
(pages 253-256)
A. After the Han
empire ended in
AD 220, China
broke into 17
kingdoms and
became very
chaotic.
Warlords,
military people
who run a
government,
fought each
other for control.
B. China lost control of some of its
conquered people, such as the people
of Korea.
C. China was reunited in AD 581 by a
general named Wendi who declared himself
emperor. He founded the Sui dynasty.
D. Wendi’s son Yangdi took the throne after
his father’s death. Yangdi made important
improvements to China. His greatest
achievement was the Grand Canal, which
links the Chang Jiang (Yangtze River) and
Huang He (Yellow River).
E. Shipping products on the Grand Canal
helped unite China’s economy. An economy is
an organized way in which people produce,
sell, and buy things.
F. Yangdi’s improvements placed
hardships on the Chinese people.
They rebelled and killed Yangdi.
Objective 1:
Explain ho the Sui dynasty
rebuilt China’s empire

Emperor Wendi reunited China by force.
After he died, his son Yangdi continued
to rebuild China by forcing people to
work on public work projects – Grand
Canal, Great Wall. Both expanded the
size of the empire.
G. The Tang dynasty was established by one
of Yangdi’s generals. The Tang dynasty
ruled for about 300 years, from AD 618 to AD
907. The Tang dynasty brought about many
reforms to improve government. Reforms are
changes that bring improvements.
The Tang capital city of Changan may have had a population of one million people at its peak. The city
had large blocks that included houses, businesses, and temples set along straight street. Its layout inspired
the design of many later cities. The area containing the royal palace, shown below, was bordered by
parklands.
H. One of the most powerful Tang emperors
was Taizong. He reinstated the civil service
examination. Empress Wu added more
officials to the government and
strengthened China’s military.
I. The Tang dynasty expanded
China’s empire and regained much
of its power in Asia.
J. By the mid-AD 700s, the Turks began
to threaten the Tang dynasty’s hold in
Asia. They took control of central Asia
and the Silk Road, damaging China’s
economy. The Tang dynasty weakened
and fell.
K. A Chinese general established
the Song dynasty, which ruled for
about 300 years, from AD 960 to
AD 1279.
Objective 1:
Explain how the Tang
dynasty rebuilt China’s empire

The Tang dynasty carried out a number
of reforms that brought improvements.
The civil service examination was
reinstated. Farmers were given land.
The countryside was at peace. More
officials were added to the government.
The military was strengthened and the
size of the empire was expanded.
Objective: 2

Discuss why Buddhism became popular
and spread
II. Buddhism Spreads to China
(pages 256-257)
A. Buddhism was
brought to China
during the Han
dynasty about AD
150.
B. The Tang dynasty allowed people to
practice Buddhism and supported the
building of Buddhist temples.
C. Monasteries are places where monks and
nuns meditate and worship. In China,
monasteries provided services for people.
D. As Buddhism became more popular,
the Tang dynasty began to feel
threatened. The rulers ordered many
Buddhist monasteries and temples
destroyed in AD 845.
E. Buddhism spread from China to
Korea, and the Korean government
supported the religion.
F. Buddhism spread to the
nearby islands of Japan
Objective 2:
Discuss why Buddhism
became popular and spread

When China collapsed into civil war,
people everywhere were dying from
war and a lack of food and shelter. It
was a time of great suffering.
Buddhism taught that people could
escape their suffering by following its
principles.
Objective: 3

Describe the ideas of Confucius and the
new class of scholar-officials
III. New Confucian Ideas
(pages 258-259)
A. Confucius and his followers
believed government officials
should be wise.
B. Tang and
Song rulers
reinstated
civil service
examinations
. These
challenging
examinations
were
supposed to
recruit good
government
officials.
C. The Tang dynasty supported neoConfucianism to reduce Buddhism’s
popularity. Neo-Confucianism taught that
people should take part in life and help
each other.
D. The Song dynasty adopted neoConfucianism as their official philosophy, or
belief system.
E. The
examinatio
n system
created a
wealthy
class of
scholarofficials.
Objective 3:
Describe the ideas of
Confucius and the new class of scholarofficials


It is an ethical system rather than a
religion – it tells you how to behave in
life. Each person had a specific place
in society and certain duties to fulfill.
The ruler should be wise and the
people should obey the ruler.
Scholar-officials became a new wealthy
class in China. They began to influence
Chinese thought and government.