The T Ang and Song Dynasties of China s1

The T’ang and Song Dynasties of China Global History and Geography I Name: ______E. Napp Date: ______

The T’ang dynasty lasted from 618-907 A.D. Much of its power was made possible by the canals built by China’s previous dynasty, the Sui dynasty. Canals allowed for communications to all parts of the empire. In addition, the Sui built granaries or storehouses for grains alongside the canals. These granaries were especially important in the transfer of rice to the north during times of famine. The canals and granaries greatly helped the T’angs. The armies of the T’ang consisted of both nobles and peasants. The nobles were used in the north and were very important in fighting nomads, because only nobles had horses and were accomplished cavalrymen or soldiers on horseback. Horses were incredibly important, and grew in numbers steadily until there were 700,000 horses on record. The peasants on the other hand, were used mainly in the south, where they occupied forts, were used for public works and served in the army. As the T’ang grew stronger, they sought to extend their borders and push back the groups who made incursions into their territories. The T’ang eventually expanded their empire to include a large area of central Asia all the way into Iran, Manchuria and almost the whole Korean peninsula, and into the Ili valley. The T’ang became the greatest power in Asia. The T’ang dynasty had the only female empress. This empress removed the legitimate heir in 690 A.D. and took the throne under the name Emperor Tse-t’ien. Her reign is actually a disruption of the T’ang dynasty, as she called her dynasty the Chou. This dynasty lasted for 15 years. She was able to gain power largely as a result of the hidden support of the Buddhist church. They called her a reincarnation of the Bodhisattva Maitreya, a Buddhist savior. She was also powerful as a result of earlier having been influential in placing her relatives in important administrative positions. The peasants especially suffered under her reign as they were heavily taxed and required to pay dues. While the peasants were being devastated, the favorites of the empress and the monasteries enriched themselves and enlarged their states. Questions: 1: How did canals and granaries benefit the T’ang? ______2: Describe the armies of the T’ang? ______3: Discuss the territory of the T’ang. ______4: Who benefited and who was harmed by China’s only female empress? ______Another View on China’s Only Empress

Even though according to the Confucian beliefs having a woman rule would be as unnatural as having a "hen crow like a rooster at daybreak," during the most glorious years of the T’ang dynasty a woman did rule, and ruled successfully. She was Wu Zetian, the only female in Chinese history to rule as emperor. To some she was an autocrat, ruthless in her desire to gain and keep power. To others she, as a woman doing a "man's job," merely did what she had to do, and acted no differently than most male emperors of her day. They also note that she managed to effectively rule China during one of its more peaceful and culturally diverse periods.

The Tang dynasty (618-906 AD) was a time of relative freedom for women. They did not bind their feet or lead submissive lives. It was a time in which a number of exceptional women contributed in the areas of culture and politics. So it is no surprise that Wu, born into a rich and noble family, was taught to play music, write, and read the Chinese classics. By thirteen years of age she was known for her wit, intelligence, and beauty, and was recruited to the court of Emperor Tai Tsung. She soon became his favorite concubine. But she also had eyes for his son, Kao Tsung.

When the emperor died and Kao Tsung took over, Wu was now twenty seven years old. In time she became a favorite concubine of the new emperor; giving birth to the sons he wanted. As mother of the future emperor of China, she grew in power. She managed to eliminate Kao Tsung's wife, Empress Wang, by accusing her of killing Wu's newborn daughter. Kao Tsung believed Wu, and replaced Empress Wang to marry the up and coming Wu Zetian.

Within five years of their marriage, Emperor Kao Tsung suffered a crippling stroke. The Empress Wu took over the administrative duties of the court, a position equal to the emperor. She created a secret police force to spy on her opposition, and cruelly jailed or killed anyone who stood in her way, including the unfortunate Empress Wang. With the death of Emperor Kao Tsung, Wu managed to outflank her eldest sons and moved her youngest and much weaker son, into power. She in effect ruled, telling him what to do.

In 690, Wu's youngest son removed himself from office, and Wu Zetian was declared emperor of China. During her reign, Empress Wu placed Buddhism over Daoism as the favored state religion. She invited the most gifted scholars to China and built Buddhist temples and cave sculptures. Chinese Buddhism achieved its highest development under the reign of Wu Zetian. Wu Zetian died peacefully at age eighty the same year. Notes: ______The Song Dynasty

The Song dynasty (960–1279) was culturally the most brilliant era in imperial Chinese history. A time of great social and economic change, the period in large measure shaped the intellectual and political climate of China down to the twentieth century. The early Song dynasty witnessed the flowering of one of the supreme artistic expressions of Chinese civilization: monumental landscape painting. Retreating to the mountains to escape the turmoil and destruction that occurred at the end of the T’ang Dynasty (618–906), tenth-century recluse-painters discovered in nature the moral order that they had found lacking in the human world. In their visionary landscapes, the great mountain, towering above the lesser mountains, trees, and men, was like "a ruler among his subjects, a master among servants." Later, Song court painters transformed these idealized images of nature into emblems of a perfectly ordered state.

Painters from all parts of the empire were recruited to serve the needs of the court. Over time, the varied traditions represented by this diverse group of artists were welded together into a harmonious Song academic manner that valued a naturalistic, closely descriptive portrayal of the physical world. Under Emperor Huizong (r. 1101–25), himself an accomplished painter and calligrapher, imperial patronage and the ruler's direct involvement in establishing artistic direction reached a zenith. While maintaining that the fundamental purpose of painting was to be true to nature, Huizong sought to enrich its content through the inclusion of poetic resonance and references to antique styles.

The momentous political shift during the early Song—from a society ruled by a hereditary aristocratic order to a society governed by a central bureaucracy of scholar-officials chosen through the civil-service examination—also had a major impact on the arts. As ruling elite, these Neo-Confucian scholars regarded public service as their principal calling, but disagreements sometimes forced them to retire from the government, during which time they often pursued artistic interests. These amateur scholar-artists pursued painting and calligraphy for amusement as a personal expression. Questions: 1: What was an important contribution of Song China? ______2: Describe Chinese landscape painting. Explain its symbolism. ______3: Why did many government officials become painters in Song China? ______

Explain the dynastic cycle: ______Wang Wei was a painter, calligrapher, musician and one of the greatest poets of the T’ang dynasty. His works often has a Buddhist perspective, combining an attention to the beauties of nature with an awareness of sensory illusion.

I did not know the incense storing temple, I walked a few miles into the clouded peaks. No man on the path between the ancient trees, A bell rang somewhere deep among the hills. A spring sounded choked, running down steep rocks, The green pines chilled the sunlight's colored rays. Come dusk, at the bend of a deserted pool, Through meditation I controlled passion's dragon. What is the meaning of the poem? ______

“Flow with whatever may happen and let your mind be free. Stay centered by accepting whatever you are doing. This is the ultimate.” Chuang Tzu