Unit 3: the Post-Classical World

600 – 1450 CE

Era of DisunityTechnological advances continued

Gunpowder, wheelbarrowBuddhism displaced ConfucianismTrade continued, but central government and

bureaucracy declinedChinese worried about foreign invaders and

influence of their cultures

Sui ChinaSilla

Parhae

Yamoto Japan

Harsha’ Empire

Chalukya

Frankish Kingdoms

GhanaAxum

Sassanid Empire

Byzantine Empire

Goal: Rebuild and reorganize China after the fall of the Han Dynasty

Methods of Change“Land Equalization” SystemReorganize Confucianism and civil serviceDrive out nomadic invadersEstablished army of professional soldiersConscripted labor for lavish projects

Fall:People were overworked and overtaxedAssassinate emperor to start Tang dynasty

South: majority population, rice productionNorth: millet production; less populated than

the SouthRivers ran east to west Built Grand Canal to connect North and South

Oldest and largest canal in the WorldPeople migrate to the North, make trade easier

Ghana

Carolingian

Byzantine

Abbasid Caliphate

Axum

Gurjara-Pratihara

Tang China

Parhae

Silla

Cordoba Caliphate

Heian Japan

States and Empires in 800 CEStates and Empires in 800 CE

Tang Dynasty 618-906 CE

Efforts to Improve Chinese Government:

Imperial examination system perfected

Tolerant attitude toward all religions (in the beginning)

Golden Age of foreign relations with other countries

GOAL: Conquest and Expansion • Uses armies to unite China• Extends borders to Afghanistan

Aristocracy weakened

Scholar-gentry elite re-established Educated civil servants 5% could become officials; rest stayed

local as social leaders Performed Confucian rituals, helped

collect taxes, keep paperwork Created meritocracy with best students

running country

The Growing Importance of the Examination System

Birth, connections important for office

Under influence of Buddhism, women enjoy relatively higher status

Rise of neo-Confucianism stops this trend Began in Tang, but not common until Song

New technologiesMore cosmopolitan culture

Cities growingSome have population as

large as 2 millionReestablish safety and

importance of Silk RoadImported tea, wood and

spicesExported manufactured

goods

High taxationPeasant rebellions led to more independent

local rule around 907 CEFor 50 years, regional war lords ruledBy 960, Song Dynasty centralized but not

able to unify due to outside groups challenging power

Mongol Empire

Russia

Song

China

Koryo

Kamakura Japan

Delhi Sultanate

Scandanavian Kingdoms

Mali

Zimbabwe

BeninOyo

France

Ethiopia

Ayyubid Caliphate

Almohad Caliphate

Poland

Rum

H.R.E.

Hungary

England

Portugal

Spain

States and Empires in States and Empires in 1237 CE1237 CE

Angkor

Song China 960 – 1279 CE

Not able to unite as much as Tang DynastyStrengthen Confucianism and civil serviceEstablished gov’t monopoly on tea trade Become sea power Create middle/merchant classMerchants gain a bit more esteem in Chinese societyDeemphasize military and reestablished tribute system

Libraries established; old texts recoveredNeo-Confucians reduce role of women

Promote arranged marriage and foot-bindingStress on personal morality, rational and secular thoughtImportance of philosophy in everyday life

• Hostility to foreign ideas

• Gender, class, age distinctions reinforced

Never that strong to begin with

Never able to unify all parts Warlords control large

parts in the northMilitary and economic

weaknessScholar-gentry given

control of army; ineffectivePaper money caused

inflationMongol invasion

Establish the Yuan Dynasty