Transcript 4-1 Notes: China Reunites

4-1 Notes: China Reunites
China is Reunited
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
The Han dynasty ended in 220
A.C.E. – China broke into 17
kingdoms – Warlords fought
with each other for control
China lost control of Korea
581 A.C.E. – General Wendi
declared himself emperor after
reuniting China by force
New dynasty was called the
Sui (581-618 A.C.E.)
When Wendi died, his son
Yangdi took the throne
Yangdi failed to take Korea
back by force
Yangdi angered farmers by
forcing them to rebuild the
Great Wall and the Grand
Canal, pay high taxes –
Farmers revolted, Yangdi killed
The Grand Canal
• Yangdi ordered that
the Grand Canal be
built to connect the
Chang Jiang (Yangtze)
and the Huang He
Rivers (Yellow River)
• The Grand Canal
united two of China’s
busiest rivers, which
helps people ship
goods between
northern and southern
China
• World’s largest
artificial waterway
Tang & Song Dynasties
• 618 A.C.E. – One of Yangdi’s
generals took over, declared
himself emperor, and set up
the Tang Dynasty (618 – 907
A.C.E.)
• Taizong, most powerful Tang
emperor, reinstituted the civil
service exams so
government officials would be
hired based on skill, not
family connections
• Tang dynasty expanded but
lost control of the Silk Road
to Turks and declined
• Song dynasty ruled from 960
– 1279 A.C.E.
• Song dynasty moved their
capital farther south to
Hangzhou
Buddhism in China
•
•
•
•
•
•
Buddhism is an Indian religion that
teaches people to use meditation
and prayer to free oneself
dependence on things (thus
freeing you from worry and pain)
Buddhism was brought to China in
150 A.C.E., a time of great
violence and suffering
Buddhism attracted many Chinese
looking to escape suffering
Buddhism was at first supported
by the Tang – Many Chinese
became monks and nuns who
lived in monasteries
Many Chinese did not like
Buddhism because they accepted
donations and did not allow their
monks or nuns to marry,
weakening respect for family life
845 A.C.E. – Tang officials who
feared Buddhism’s growing power
ordered that many Buddhist
temples and monasteries be
destroyed, forever weakening
Buddhism in China
Neo-Confucianism
•
•
•
•
•
Confucius believed that good
government needed wise rulers
who benefitted their subjects,
just like a family (“familial piety”)
Confucianism became unpopular
in China after the fall of the Han
dynasty and the disappearance
of civil service exams
Both the Tang and Song
dynasties supported a new type
of Confucianism (“NeoConfucianism” to reduce
Buddhism’s popularity
Neo-Confucianism taught that
this life was just as important as
the afterlife, which encouraged
others to do good
Also taught that people could
find peace of mind and harmony
by following Confucius