During the later part of the Ming period, the government was weak and the throne was in danger. Not only was there an uprising by Han people, there were also invasions of the Mongolians from the North and the Manchus from the Northeast. After much struggle, the dynasty collapsed and the Manchus succeeded in ruling China and founded the Qing dynasty. The Qing emperors accepted the Han Chinese language as the official language and used the Han people to govern the country, although there was some mistrust of them as compared with the Manchu ministers. The early Qing emperors were very able and intelligent. Emperor Kangxi was a capable leader and administrator. Using Han people to serve in his government he established a strong government and expanded China's spheres of influence to neighboring countries. He was responsible for the compilation of a comprehensive dictionary which the Chinese still use today.
Bypassing the glorious years of Qing, I turn quickly to the 19th century when the Qing emperors were incompetent and the government was weak. It happened to be a high point of the British Empire. The Empire covered large areas in the continents of Africa, Europe, America, Asia and Australia. It included India, where economic power was exercised through the East India Company. Through this company, the British wanted to trade with China, as they desired Chinese goods such as porcelain, silk and especially tea. The British were consuming a large amount of tea at that time. To pay for the Chinese products they needed to export to China. The Chinese did not care much about the products that the British had to offer, except for opium. The Qing government wanted to stop the import of opium. The conflict of the two countries resulted in the Opium War of 1840. China was defeated. In the Treaty of Nanking signed in 1842, China not only gave up its right to prevent the import of opium, but was forced to give Hong Kong to the British and open its rivers for British shipping. China's government became even weaker following the defeat. The Chinese people were humiliated and angry at the British and the Qing government.
After the Opium War, other foreign powers obtained concessions from China through wars followed by a succession of unequal treaties. Controversies arose from attempts to open up Canton (now Guangzhou) to trade, resulting in a joint Anglo-French expedition against Peking in 1858. One consequence of this episode was the burning of the famous Yuan Ming Yuan, (the Summer Palace) a few miles west of the capital by the British and French troops. The Manchu government was compelled to sign the Treaty of Peking in 1860 and to give up further rights to both countries. A war with France ended with the signing of the treaty of Tientsin in 1885, conceding Vietnam as a French protectorate. Burma was seceded to the British in 1886. In 1897, Germany occupied Tsingtao, and obtained a lease of Kiaochow for 99 years. Similar leasing agreements were reached with Russia (for Dalian), Britain (Weihaiwei) and France (Kwangchowwan).
China's concessions included war indemnities, opening of city ports, surrendering of rights to inland water navigation and to railroad building, leasing of territories to foreign powers, and loss of territories formerly within China's sphere of influence as stated above. Areas in parts of Shanghai were leased to the British, the French and other foreign governments. Two of the most tragic events were the Sino-Japanese War of 1894–5 and the foreign invasion of 1900 after the Boxer Rebellion. Defeated in the Sino-Japanese War, China gave up Korea, a country formerly paying tribute to China, and Taiwan, a part of its territory. In reaction to the rebellion of the Boxers who had harmed foreigners, armies from eight countries (Britain, Russia, Germany, France, America, Italy, Austria and Japan, names that Chinese school children were told to memorize in history classes) invaded China and extracted indemnities from China after she was defeated. The American government later used a part of the war indemnity to support Chinese students to study in the United States. By the early 20th century many parts of China became semi-colonies of foreign powers.
Modernization became the dream of China's government and its people, and nationalism was aroused. Some government officials initiated what was known as the Hundred Days' Reform of the Qing government in 1898. It was supported by a weak and young emperor Guangxu but opposed by the strong Empress Dowager. The reformers were quite idealistic, but the reform movement was able to last only for 103 days. Other officials in the Qing government did not support the Hundred Days' Reform and preferred a more gradual reform, perhaps to establish a constitutional monarchy. A third group, outside the government, advocated a revolution to overthrow the Qing dynasty for its failure in dealing with the foreign invasions and in modernizing China. The fact that the rulers of Qing belonged to a minority ethnic group also weakened their support by the Han majority.
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
Ming, 1368–1644
Han people resumed their rule during the Ming dynasty. One distinction is the overseas expeditions during the period 1405–1433 led by Zheng He, a eunuch and confidante of the emperor of the Ming dynasty. According to Gavin (2003), on March 8, 1421 Zheng He sailed the largest fleet the world had ever seen from China. The fleet reached America 70 years before Columbus and circumnavigated the globe a century before Magellan. One of the areas explored was Taiwan, leading to an exodus of Chinese immigrants to this island. During the early period of the Qing dynasty that followed Ming, the Han Chinese in Taiwan assisted in a rebellion in the mainland to overthrow the rulers of the Qing dynasty. This was a part of Chinese history used by the current People's Republic of China's (PRC) government to base its claim that Taiwan is a part of China.
Yuan, 1279–1368
Before the Yuan dynasty, Han people ruled China. Han refers to the majority ethnic group in China. At least from the Han dynasty onward, Mongols from the north tried to invade China repeatedly. They finally succeeded and established the Yuan dynasty in 1279. The founder was Hubilie, the grandson of Genghis Khan. Yuan was very strong militarily. Genghis Khan built a Mongolian empire, which extended all the way to Europe. In occupying and ruling China, the Mongolians absorbed the culture of the Han Chinese. In studying Chinese history, Chinese children in later periods were told that the Han Chinese culture was so resilient that although invaders could conquer and rule China, they had to learn the Han culture and rule by adopting the Han way of life. This happened again later in the Qing dynasty. The resilience of the Chinese culture enabled China to survive the Western impact of the 19th century.
To anticipate later discussions, the last survival test was much more difficult to pass because the Western impact in the 19th and 20th century was much stronger and occurred during a period when the Chinese government was extremely incompetent and weak. The Western and Japanese imperial powers invading China with modern technology were much stronger militarily than any other invaders, including the Mongols and the Manchus who founded the Qing dynasty. They also had advanced forms of social and political structure and administrative skill that could replace China's. The impact occurred during a period when the Qing dynasty was on the decline and the ruling emperors were incompetent. Furthermore the attempt to modernize China through orthodox Communism was a mistaken course to take. In spite of these three very negative factors, China has managed not only to survive but also regain its strong position. This can be attributed to the resiliency of the Chinese culture and civilization, as I shall explain more fully in the remainder of this book.
To anticipate later discussions, the last survival test was much more difficult to pass because the Western impact in the 19th and 20th century was much stronger and occurred during a period when the Chinese government was extremely incompetent and weak. The Western and Japanese imperial powers invading China with modern technology were much stronger militarily than any other invaders, including the Mongols and the Manchus who founded the Qing dynasty. They also had advanced forms of social and political structure and administrative skill that could replace China's. The impact occurred during a period when the Qing dynasty was on the decline and the ruling emperors were incompetent. Furthermore the attempt to modernize China through orthodox Communism was a mistaken course to take. In spite of these three very negative factors, China has managed not only to survive but also regain its strong position. This can be attributed to the resiliency of the Chinese culture and civilization, as I shall explain more fully in the remainder of this book.
Song, 960–1126
Song dynasty also had its beautiful poems, although of different forms from Tang's. They are not made up of sentences of equal length, but have to fit into particular forms. They tend to be more romantic, dealing with the tragedy of love lost. Song suffered from invasions by people from the north, leading to the move of its capital city to the Southern city of Hangzhou along the Yangtze River. Song has its share of poets, scholars, calligraphers, painters, and statesmen. Song is also known for its highly developed market economy.
When I teach a course on the Chinese economy at Princeton I sometimes show how developed the Song economy was by showing a well-known painting "Along the River during the Qingming Festival." There are different versions of this painting, or similar paintings of this title. All show economic activities along the river. In the painting one can find restaurants, shops, and transportation by carts and boats, as well as people working, having leisure activities and trading. One can call the economy of Song a capitalist economy, although it differs from a modern capitalist economy as it lacks modern technology. An interesting question is why science and technology did not develop during the Song period. China had much scientific knowledge during that period, including mathematics and astronomy in particular. The state of scientific developments is documented by Joseph Needham (1956).
A plausible explanation can be found in China's social and economic structure. Scholars well versed in Chinese classics and government officials were accorded the highest position and commanded the highest respect in ancient Chinese society. Official positions were obtained by passing examinations on Chinese classics. Merchants and businessmen were not accorded a high social status in a Confucian society while money and wealth often came with government official positions. This social structure did not provide much incentive to study science, which was not taught to the children. Knowledge of Confucian classics and elegant calligraphy were more important. Furthermore, the economic advantage of technological innovation was limited because of the abundance of low-cost and high-quality labor. For an innovation to be economically viable it had to be capable of producing the same product at a lower cost than using labor. When an innovation was introduced the initial cost was high. It was only after much improvement and when the economy of large-scale production set in that the economic use of technology could replace China's cheap labor. The above two sets of considerations may explain partially why science and technology did not develop in China during the Song dynasty and later periods. They may not provide an entirely satisfactory explanation to some readers and even to me. The subject remains an interesting one for further study.
When I teach a course on the Chinese economy at Princeton I sometimes show how developed the Song economy was by showing a well-known painting "Along the River during the Qingming Festival." There are different versions of this painting, or similar paintings of this title. All show economic activities along the river. In the painting one can find restaurants, shops, and transportation by carts and boats, as well as people working, having leisure activities and trading. One can call the economy of Song a capitalist economy, although it differs from a modern capitalist economy as it lacks modern technology. An interesting question is why science and technology did not develop during the Song period. China had much scientific knowledge during that period, including mathematics and astronomy in particular. The state of scientific developments is documented by Joseph Needham (1956).
A plausible explanation can be found in China's social and economic structure. Scholars well versed in Chinese classics and government officials were accorded the highest position and commanded the highest respect in ancient Chinese society. Official positions were obtained by passing examinations on Chinese classics. Merchants and businessmen were not accorded a high social status in a Confucian society while money and wealth often came with government official positions. This social structure did not provide much incentive to study science, which was not taught to the children. Knowledge of Confucian classics and elegant calligraphy were more important. Furthermore, the economic advantage of technological innovation was limited because of the abundance of low-cost and high-quality labor. For an innovation to be economically viable it had to be capable of producing the same product at a lower cost than using labor. When an innovation was introduced the initial cost was high. It was only after much improvement and when the economy of large-scale production set in that the economic use of technology could replace China's cheap labor. The above two sets of considerations may explain partially why science and technology did not develop in China during the Song dynasty and later periods. They may not provide an entirely satisfactory explanation to some readers and even to me. The subject remains an interesting one for further study.
Tang, 618–901
Unification was achieved by the short-lived Sui dynasty (581–617). The rule of Sui was known to be harsh, with many laborers drafted to reconstruct the Great Wall and to build the Grand Canal going from south to north. A system of civil service examinations was introduced to select scholars well versed in Confucian classics to become government officials. Sui was succeeded by the glorious Tang dynasty (618–901). Tang was known for many great achievements. The Chinese people were also called the Tang people. Chinatowns in America today are still called the "Streets of the Tang People" in Chinese. The tri-colored Tang Horses made of clay are exhibited in art museums and admired by many.
Buddhism from India began to gain popularity in China during the Tang period. When trade with the West was flourishing, worshipers commissioned colorful religious paintings on the walls inside the caves along the Silk Route. These are among the art treasures of the world. For the Chinese, Tang poetry was the most appreciated achievement of this period. A book of 300 best known poems written by Tang poets can be found in every Chinese home, even if there is a collection of only a small number of books. The best-loved poems are simple, conveying an interesting or emotionally moving message. They are easy to memorize and rhyme beautifully. There are so many good poems for an ordinary educated Chinese to recite that even those who cannot read can recite a few popular ones.
One long poem tells the love story of a Tang emperor and his concubine. He spent so much time with her as to ignore the affairs of the state. A rebellion occurred and had to be suppressed, but the army did not want to fight unless he got rid of the concubine. He was forced to order the termination of her life, only to regret deeply after the rebellion was suppressed. The name of the poem is "Forever Sorrow" or "Everlasting Regret." On the one hand, a historian might point out the incompetence of the emperor and his negligence of the affairs of the state for the love of a woman, and consider his love affair improper. On the other, the poem arouses so much emotion, tenderness and sympathy on the part of the reader that only the enduring love on the part of a noble emperor is recognized without any thought of possible misconduct on his part. One can keep on reciting such a beautiful Tang poem and repeat it many times, each time with more understanding and deeper emotions.
Buddhism from India began to gain popularity in China during the Tang period. When trade with the West was flourishing, worshipers commissioned colorful religious paintings on the walls inside the caves along the Silk Route. These are among the art treasures of the world. For the Chinese, Tang poetry was the most appreciated achievement of this period. A book of 300 best known poems written by Tang poets can be found in every Chinese home, even if there is a collection of only a small number of books. The best-loved poems are simple, conveying an interesting or emotionally moving message. They are easy to memorize and rhyme beautifully. There are so many good poems for an ordinary educated Chinese to recite that even those who cannot read can recite a few popular ones.
One long poem tells the love story of a Tang emperor and his concubine. He spent so much time with her as to ignore the affairs of the state. A rebellion occurred and had to be suppressed, but the army did not want to fight unless he got rid of the concubine. He was forced to order the termination of her life, only to regret deeply after the rebellion was suppressed. The name of the poem is "Forever Sorrow" or "Everlasting Regret." On the one hand, a historian might point out the incompetence of the emperor and his negligence of the affairs of the state for the love of a woman, and consider his love affair improper. On the other, the poem arouses so much emotion, tenderness and sympathy on the part of the reader that only the enduring love on the part of a noble emperor is recognized without any thought of possible misconduct on his part. One can keep on reciting such a beautiful Tang poem and repeat it many times, each time with more understanding and deeper emotions.
Three Kingdoms
At the end of Han was the period of Three Kingdoms. As the name suggests, there were then three kingdoms contending to succeed Han to form a new dynasty. The history of this period was written in the Record of Three Kingdoms. A novel The Romance of Three Kingdoms, written by Luo Guanzhong, was based partly on the historical record. The novel is a very popular and exciting book for children and adults alike. It is a book of strategies, in war and in love affairs. A contemporary Chinese politician or diplomat can benefit from studying the strategies in the book, provided that she maintains her moral character. There are strategies for both offense and defense. Since there are three parties, any one can play the second against the third. This happened many times in the novel, and in actual history. The available strategies in a competition involving three parties are much more interesting and complicated than in a competition between only two. Perhaps there is something in the novel for the game theorists of today to study, although I have not thought much about the stories from the perspective of game theory.
One of the kingdoms finally won, after many interesting turns of events. The Jin dynasty was established, lasting from 265–420 AD. Because of the invasions of the nomadic people from the north, the country became fragmented. A succession of dynasties lasted from 304–589 AD. In spite of the political disunity, or perhaps because of the wars, there was progress in technology, including the invention of the gunpowder and the wheelbarrow and the improvement of Chinese medicine during the later part of this period.
One of the kingdoms finally won, after many interesting turns of events. The Jin dynasty was established, lasting from 265–420 AD. Because of the invasions of the nomadic people from the north, the country became fragmented. A succession of dynasties lasted from 304–589 AD. In spite of the political disunity, or perhaps because of the wars, there was progress in technology, including the invention of the gunpowder and the wheelbarrow and the improvement of Chinese medicine during the later part of this period.
Han, 206 BC–220 AD
The empire of Qin did not last long. A well-known Chinese classical essay examining the fault of Qin attributes its downfall to its authoritarian rule and failure to treat the people with kindness. After the death of the First Emperor, his son, the second emperor to be, was unable to rule. There came two powerful leaders of the states of Chu and Han. Their contention for the throne was so well remembered in China that the two sides of a Chinese chessboard are named after them. Chu started out as the much stronger of the two but finally lost to Han, which became the Han dynasty (206 BC–220 AD). The Chu leader was in a position to eliminate the leader of Han. In fact one evening he invited the Han leader for dinner with a plan to kill him. Dancing was staged at the dinner. Once the Chu host gave the signal, the dancer with a sword would kill the Han leader. There were only four persons at the dinner, with one advisor or assistant for each leader. When the dance advanced to the point for the Chu leader to give the signal, he made no movement. His advisor who helped stage the dinner was greatly disappointed, sighing that the kingdom was lost!
Qin, 200 BC
At the end of Zhou dynasty, many states rivaled for power. This is known as the Period of Warring States. Among them were seven strong ones. These states came about because the emperors of Zhou annexed territories to relatives and imperial officials for them to govern. These people gradually declared themselves kings of independent states. After much fighting and diplomatic maneuvering, the emperor of the state of Qin became the victor in 200 BC. Not only was his state strong, his army powerful and his ability as a leader truly exceptional, he also knew how to play one of the other six states off against another and broke the alliance once formed by them. Historians have blamed some of the other six states for appeasing Qin, but the military power and skillful diplomacy of the latter also contributed to its success. The victorious Qin emperor declared himself the First Emperor as he was anticipating many more emperors to come in his dynasty.
The performance of the First Emperor of Qin was impressive, though not necessarily moral. He was a very strong and able leader, skillful both in administration and in military and diplomatic affairs. He used highly developed armaments as now displayed in the Museum of Xi'an. Xi'an is the city where the world famous models of the Qin terracotta soldiers were buried in the tomb of the First Emperor. The tomb is about 1.5 kilometers in diameter. The several thousand soldiers are only guards of its entrance, a small part of the tomb. Since afterlife was considered more important than this life, much effort was made to construct the tomb for the emperor to enjoy his afterlife. Its construction was so complicated and intricate that with modern technology and much resource at its disposal, the current Chinese government has not found itself capable of excavating the main parts of the tomb. It is believed that the interior of the tomb is protected in such a way as to make it very difficult for intruders to get in without getting hurt or destroying the treasures inside.
The Qin Emperor succeeded in unifying the country as one political entity and unifying the written language and the system of weights and measures. Realizing the danger of decentralization by allowing too much power to the regional aristocrats, he centralized the administration by placing the regional and local governors under the control of the central government. One of the main criticisms of his rule was that he ordered the burning of many books and the burial of many dissenting scholars alive. The freedom of expression was curtailed. To his credit he also built, or connected, large sections of the Great Wall to protect China from invasion. The name China originates from the word "Qin" as pronounced much like "chin."
The performance of the First Emperor of Qin was impressive, though not necessarily moral. He was a very strong and able leader, skillful both in administration and in military and diplomatic affairs. He used highly developed armaments as now displayed in the Museum of Xi'an. Xi'an is the city where the world famous models of the Qin terracotta soldiers were buried in the tomb of the First Emperor. The tomb is about 1.5 kilometers in diameter. The several thousand soldiers are only guards of its entrance, a small part of the tomb. Since afterlife was considered more important than this life, much effort was made to construct the tomb for the emperor to enjoy his afterlife. Its construction was so complicated and intricate that with modern technology and much resource at its disposal, the current Chinese government has not found itself capable of excavating the main parts of the tomb. It is believed that the interior of the tomb is protected in such a way as to make it very difficult for intruders to get in without getting hurt or destroying the treasures inside.
The Qin Emperor succeeded in unifying the country as one political entity and unifying the written language and the system of weights and measures. Realizing the danger of decentralization by allowing too much power to the regional aristocrats, he centralized the administration by placing the regional and local governors under the control of the central government. One of the main criticisms of his rule was that he ordered the burning of many books and the burial of many dissenting scholars alive. The freedom of expression was curtailed. To his credit he also built, or connected, large sections of the Great Wall to protect China from invasion. The name China originates from the word "Qin" as pronounced much like "chin."
Zhou, 1122–211 BC
Mathematics was already fairly advanced in the Zhou dynasty in 1100 BC as imbedded in Yiching, The Book of Changes. This book can be found in most American bookstores. Besides Yiching, other books of the Zhou period were impressive, including the Book of Poems, the Book of Learning, the Book of Li (Rules of Social Conduct), and Spring and Autumn (History of the Late Zhou Period). There were many great thinkers during this period. Among them Confucius (551–479 BC) was the most celebrated. He is considered the originator of Chinese humanism. He established moral codes to guide human conduct, and a set of proper relations among different members of a society, between emperor and subjects, parents and children, older and younger brothers, and husband and wife. We will have more to say about Confucianism in Chapter 2 dealing with Chinese culture and in Chapter 3 dealing with the Chinese economy.
Besides Confucius, there were many other prominent philosophers. There was Lao Tse who was the founder of Daoism, advocating the return to nature and "doing nothing in following the course of nature." Lao Tse suggested that if there are no laws, there will be no laws to break and there will be no criminals. There was Han Fei-tze who taught almost the opposite by emphasizing the importance of the legal system. There was Guan Zhong who understood much economics including the incentives of different forms of government taxation. There were a hundred schools of thought contending, like a hundred flowers blooming and a hundred birds singing. It was a golden period of China's cultural development. The writings of that period are available today for us to read and enjoy.
Besides Confucius, there were many other prominent philosophers. There was Lao Tse who was the founder of Daoism, advocating the return to nature and "doing nothing in following the course of nature." Lao Tse suggested that if there are no laws, there will be no laws to break and there will be no criminals. There was Han Fei-tze who taught almost the opposite by emphasizing the importance of the legal system. There was Guan Zhong who understood much economics including the incentives of different forms of government taxation. There were a hundred schools of thought contending, like a hundred flowers blooming and a hundred birds singing. It was a golden period of China's cultural development. The writings of that period are available today for us to read and enjoy.
Shang, 1766–1121 BC
China has a recorded history of over 4,000 years, beginning with or before the Shang dynasty. The Chinese culture was advanced during the Shang dynasty. There was a written language as seen in the engravings on turtle shells. Some historians define history narrowly to include only what has been recorded, but even by this narrow definition the events recorded on turtle shells qualify Shang as a historical period. People told fortunes by first writing on the shells and then seeing where the cracks appeared after they burned the shells. This "oracle" language was in the form of symbols. It later evolved into characters used in the Chinese written language. The symbols or characters representing the sun, the moon, people and other objects simple to draw are obvious and understandable to anyone. The present-day characters for smile and crying are still distinguishable even by people not knowing the language. One looks like a smiling face, and the other a crying face (please see facing page). Bronze vessels from the Shang dynasty exhibited in museums show how advanced technology and art were at the time.
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