Transcript Notes.12.1 - Mona Shores Blogs

Chapter 12, Section
1
“Tang and Song China”
The Sui Dynasty
After the collapse of the Han Dynasty,
no emperor was strong enough to hold
China together until, in 589, an
emperor named Wendi united northern
and southern China.
 Wendi was the first emperor of the Sui
(sway) dynasty, which built the Grand
Canal.
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The Tang Dynasty
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After the Sui Dynasty came the Tang
Dynasty, which lasted for nearly 300 years.
Tang Taizong was the first ruler in the Tang
Dynasty.
The Tang Dynasty strengthened the central
government of China, including a network of
roads, canals, and an expanded
bureaucracy.
The Song Dynasty

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After the fall of the Tang Dynasty, rival
warlords divided China into separate
regions. Then, in 960, a general named
Taizu reunited China and proclaimed himself
the first Song emperor.
Song emperors tried to buy peace with their
northern enemies. They paid tributes of
silver, silk, and tea.
Prosperity and
Innovation

China grew in many ways during the Tang
and Song Dynasties:
– Population – nearly doubled
– Science and Technology – movable type,
gunpowder, porcelain, clock, paper money,
compass
– Agriculture – new variety of fast-ripening rice that
could be harvested twice a year
– Trade – Korea, Japan, India, Persian Gulf, Africa
Changes in China
During Tang & Song
More people moved into the cities.
 The power of the old aristocratic
families began to fade. A new class of
scholar-officials rose in influence.
 Women’s status declined further and
women’s work was deemed less
important. Foot-binding was practiced
for upper-class women.
