Chapter 14 Key terms

chapter 14 key terms

Xuanzang

when: early 7th century C.E.

what:

• he followed his older brother into a monastery

• he defied the empire that ordered that subjects were forbidden to travel beyond Chinese borders

  • destination was India

  • wanted to study with knowledgeable Buddhist teachers and sages to learn about Buddhism from the purest sources.

• his guide abandoned him in the Gobi desert

• made his way to the oasis town of Turpan

  • the buddhist ruler gave him supplied to support his mission

• crossed three high mountain ranges

• faced attacks by bandits, as well as confrontations with demons, dragons, and evil spirits.

• arrived in india (in 630) and stayed for 12+ years

• when he returned home, even though he violated the ban on traveling, he received a hero’s welcome and an audience with the emperor.

• translated Buddhist treatises into Chinese and clarifying their doctrines

Sui Dynasty

who: yang zian (first emperor ) and Sui Yagndi (second emperor)

what:

• military expeditions into central Asia and southern China

• by 589 the house of Sui ruled all of China

• placed enourmous demands on their dubjects in the course of buildinga  strong, centralized government

• ordered the construction of palaces and granaries

• dispatched military forces to central Asia and Korea levied high taxes, and demanded compulsotory labor services.

when: 589-618 C.E.

Tang Dynasty

who:  Tang Taizong

what:

• after the seath of Sui Yangdi, a rebel leader proclaimed himself as emperor

• he was ruthless

• created extensive networks of transportation and communications

• they allocated land according to needs

• had a bureacuracy of merit and civil service exams

when: 618-907 C.E.
 

Tang Decline

when: mid 8th century

what:

• casual and careless elading brought the dynasty to a crisis and it never recovered

• An Lushan, a foremost military commander  mounted a rebellion and captured the capital at Chang’an (755)

  • short lived because he was murdered by a soldier (757)

• rebellion let the dynasty in a weakened state

• tang commanders couldn’t defeat rebellious forces so they callled in help from the Uighurs

  • Uighurs demanded the right to the capitals after their help

• tang never regained control of affairs after the crisis

• imperial armies couldn't resist Turkish peoples  and eventually the last Tang emperor abdicated his throne and the dynasty came to an end.

Song Taizu

who: the first Song emperor

when: he reigned from 960-976 C.E.

what:

• began his career as a junior military offifcer serving one of the most powerful warlords in northern China

• reputation for honesty and effectiveness

• his army subjected the warlords to their authority and consolidated Song control thorughout China

• persuaded his generals to retire honorably to a life of leisure

• organized a centralized administration that placed military forces under tight supervision

• regarded all state officials as servants of the imperial government

  • reward these officials handsomely

  • expanded the bureaucracy based on merit by creating more opportunities for individuals to seek a Confucian education and take civil service exams

• provided generous salaries for those who qualified for government appointments

  • placed civil bureaucrats in charge of military forces.

Song Decline

what:

• they had financial problems and the high salaries devoured surplus

• military problems

• extxternal pressures

• Song dynasty moved to the south

Agricultural change

what:

• development of fast ripening crops increased food supplies

• • found in Vietnam when they encountered strains of fast-ripening rice that enabled cultivators to harvest two crops per year

  • once it was introduced to fields in southern China, fast ripening rice quickly resulted in an expanding supply of food.

• new agricultural techniques

  • increased productivity  

  • heavy iron plows

  • harnessed oxen

  • water buffalo

  • enriched the soil with manure and composted organic matter

  • extensive irrigation systems

    • extended cultivation to difficult terrains

    • expanded china’s agricultural potential

Foot binding

what:

• involved tightly wrapping girls feet with strips of cloth that prevented natural growth of bones and resulted in malformed, curved feet.

• the girs could not walk easily or naturally

• needed canes to walk

• never became universal but wealthy families and some peasant families did it to enhance their attractiveness and gain control over the girls’ behavior.

• similar to veiling women in Mediterranean and Muslim lands

Technological advancement

what:

• porcelain

  • diffused rapidly andspread to Abbasid craft workers

  • chinese exported vast quantities of porcelain

  • fine porcelin has come to generally be known as chinaware

• Metallurgy

  • increased ten times from ninth to twelfth centuries

  • increased supply of iron and steel went into weaponry and agricultural tools

• Gunpowder

  • 10th century

  • Daoist alchemists discovered how to make gunpowder during the Tang dynasty

  • limited military effectiveness

  • diffused through Eurasia

• Printing

  • made it possible to produce texts quickly, cheaply, and in huge quantities

  • developed from wood blocks to movable type

• naval technology

  • chinese seafarers sailed ships fastened with iron nails, waterproofed with oils, furnished wiht watertight bulkheads, driven by canvas and bamboo sails, steered by rudders, and navigated with the aid of the “south pointed needle” aka the magnetic compass

  • magnetic compass soon became the common property of mariners throughout the Indian Ocean basin