DOCSLIB.ORG

The Fight for the Republic in China by BL Putnam

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
The Fight for the Republic in China by BL Putnam The Fight For The Republic In China by B.L. Putnam Weale The Fight For The Republic In China by B.L. Putnam Weale Produced by Robert Rowe, Charles Franks and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team THE FIGHT FOR THE REPUBLIC IN CHINA BY B. L. PUTNAM WEALE PREFACE This volume tells everything that the student or the casual reader needs to know about the Chinese Question. It is sufficiently exhaustive to show very clearly the new forces at work, and to bring some realisation of the great gulf which separates the thinking classes of to-day from the men of a few years ago; whilst, at the same time, it is sufficiently condensed not to overwhelm the reader with too great a multitude of facts. Particular attention may be devoted to an unique feature--namely, page 1 / 644 the Chinese and Japanese documentation which affords a sharp contrast between varying types of Eastern brains. Thus, in the Memorandum of the Black Dragon Society (Chapter VII) we have a very clear and illuminating revelation of the Japanese political mind which has been trained to consider problems in the modern Western way, but which remains saturated with theocratic ideals in the sharpest conflict with the Twentieth Century. In the pamphlet of Yang Tu (Chapter VIII) which launched the ill-fated Monarchy Scheme and contributed so largely to the dramatic death of Yuan Shih-kai, we have an essentially Chinese mentality of the reactionary or corrupt type which expresses itself both on home and foreign issues in a naively dishonest way, helpful to future diplomacy. In the Letter of Protest (Chapter X) against the revival of Imperialism written by Liang Ch'i-chao--the most brilliant scholar living--we have a Chinese of the New or Liberal China, who in spite of a complete ignorance of foreign languages shows a marvellous grasp of political absolutes, and is a harbinger of the great days which must come again to Cathay. In other chapters dealing with the monarchist plot we see the official mind at work, the telegraphic despatches exchanged between Peking and the provinces being of the highest diplomatic interest. These documents prove conclusively that although the Japanese is more practical than the Chinese--and more concise-- there can be no question as to which brain is the more fruitful. Coupled with this discussion there is much matter giving an insight into the extraordinary and calamitous foreign ignorance page 2 / 644 about present-day China, an ignorance which is just as marked among those resident in the country as among those who have never visited it. The whole of the material grouped in this novel fashion should not fail to bring conviction that the Far East, with its 500 millions of people, is destined to play an important role in post-bellum history because of the new type of modern spirit which is being there evolved. The influence of the Chinese Republic, in the opinion of the writer, cannot fail to be ultimately world-wide in view of the practically unlimited resources in man-power which it disposes of. In the Appendices will be found every document of importance for the period of under examination,--1911 to 1917. The writer desires to record his indebtedness to the columns of The Peking Gazette, a newspaper which under the brilliant editorship of Eugene Ch'en--a pure Chinese born and educated under the British flag--has fought consistently and victoriously for Liberalism and Justice and has made the Republic a reality to countless thousands who otherwise would have refused to believe in it. PUTNAM WEALE. PEKING, June, 1917. CONTENTS I. GENERAL INTRODUCTION page 3 / 644 II. THE ENIGMA OF YUAN SHIH-KA III. THE DREAM REPUBLIC (From the Manchu Abdication to the dissolution of Parliament) IV. THE DICTATOR AT WORK (From the Coup d'etat of the 4th. Nov. 1913 to the outbreak of the World-war, 1. August, 1914) V. THE FACTOR OF JAPAN VI. THE TWENTY-ONE DEMANDS VII. THE ORIGIN OF THE TWENTY-ONE DEMANDS VIII. THE MONARCHIST PLOT 1 DEGREE The Pamphlet of Yang Tu IX. THE MONARCHY PLOT 2 DEGREES Dr. Goodnow's Memorandum X. THE MONARCHY MOVEMENT Is OPPOSED The Appeal of the Scholar Liang Chi-chao XI. THE DREAM EMPIRE ("The People's Voice" and the action of the page 4 / 644 Powers) XII. "THE THIRD REVOLUTION" The Revolt of Yunnan XIII. "THE THIRD REVOLUTION'" (CONTINUED) Downfall and Death of Yuan Shih-kai XIV. THE NEW REGIME--FROM 1916 TO 1917 XV. THE REPUBLIC IN COLLISION WITH REALITY: Two TYPICAL INSTANCES OF "FOREIGN AGGRESSION" XVI. CHINA AND THE WAR XVII. THE FINAL PROBLEM:--REMODELLING THE POLITICO-ECONOMIC RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CHINA AND THE WORLD APPENDICES--DOCUMENTS AND MEMORANDA THE FIGHT FOR THE REPUBLIC IN CHINA CHAPTER I page 5 / 644 GENERAL INTRODUCTION The revolution which broke out in China on the 10th October, 1911, and which was completed with the abdication of the Manchu Dynasty on the 12th February, 1912, though acclaimed as highly successful, was in its practical aspects something very different. With the proclamation of the Republic, the fiction of autocratic rule had truly enough vanished; yet the tradition survived and with it sufficient of the essential machinery of Imperialism to defeat the nominal victors until the death of Yuan Shih-kai. The movement to expel the Manchus, who had seized the Dragon Throne in 1644 from the expiring Ming Dynasty, was an old one. Historians are silent on the subject of the various secret plots which were always being hatched to achieve that end, their silence being due to a lack of proper records and to the difficulty of establishing the simple truth in a country where rumour reigns supreme. But there is little doubt that the famous Ko-lao-hui, a Secret Society with its headquarters in the remote province of Szechuan, owed its origin to the last of the Ming adherents, who after waging a desperate guerilla warfare from the date of their expulsion from Peking, finally fell to the low level of inciting assassinations and general unrest in the vain hope that they might some day regain their heritage. At least, we know one thing definitely: that the attempt on the life of the Emperor Chia Ching in the Peking streets at the beginning of the Nineteenth Century page 6 / 644 was a Secret Society plot, and brought to an abrupt end the pleasant habit of travelling among their subjects which the great Manchu Emperors K'anghsi and Ch'ien Lung had inaugurated and always pursued and which had so largely encouraged the growth of personal loyalty to a foreign House. From that day onwards for over a century no Emperor ventured out from behind the frowning Walls of the Forbidden City save for brief annual ceremonies such as the Worship of Heaven on the occasion of the Winter Solstice, and during the two "flights"-- first, in 1860 when Peking was occupied by an Anglo-French expedition and the Court incontinently sought sanctuary in the mountain Palaces of Jehol; and, again, in 1900, when with the pricking of the Boxer bubble and the arrival of the International relief armies, the Imperial Household was forced along the stony road to faroff Hsianfu. The effect of this immurement was soon visible; the Manchu rule, which was emphatically a rule of the sword, was rapidly so weakened that the emperors became no more than rois faineants at the mercy of their ministers. [Footnote: As there is a good deal of misunderstanding on the subject of the Manchus an explanatory note is useful. The Manchu people, who belong to the Mongol or Turanian Group, page 7 / 644 number at the maximum five million souls. Their distribution at the time of the revolution of 1911 was roughly as follows: In and around Peking say two millions, in posts through China say one- half million,--or possibly three-quarters of a million; in Manchuria Proper--the home of the race--say two or two and a half millions. The fighting force was composed in this fashion: When Peking fell into their hands in 1644 as a result of a stratagem combined with dissensions among the Chinese themselves, the entire armed strength was re-organized in Eight Banners or Army Corps, each corps being composed of three racial divisions, (1) pure Manchus, (2) Mongols who had assisted in the conquest and (3) Nothern Chinese who had gone over to the conquerors. These Eight Banners, each commanded by an "iron-capped" Prince, represented the authority of the Throne and had their headquarters in Peking with small garrisons throughout the provinces at various strategic centres. These garrisons had entirely ceased to have any value before the 18th Century had closed and were therefore pure ceremonial and symbolic, all the fighting being done by special Chinese corps which were raised as neccessity arose.] The history of the Nineteenth Century is thus logically enough the history of successive collapses. Not only did overseas foreigners openly thunder at the gateways of the empire and force an ingress, but native rebellions were constant and common. Leaving minor disturbances out of account, there were during this period two huge Mahommedan rebellions, besides the cataclysmic Taiping rising which lasted ten years and is supposed to have destroyed the page 8 / 644 unbelievable total of one hundred million persons. The empire, torn by internecine warfare, surrendered many of its essential prerogatives to foreigners, and by accepting the principle of extraterritoriality prepared the road to ultimate collapse. How in such circumstances was it possible to keep alive absolutism? The answer is so curious that we must be explicit and exhaustive.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • The Multiple Identities of the Nestorian Monk Mar Alopen: a Discussion on Diplomacy and Politics
    _full_alt_author_running_head (neem stramien B2 voor dit chapter en nul 0 in hierna): 0 _full_alt_articletitle_running_head (oude _articletitle_deel, vul hierna in): Introduction _full_article_language: en indien anders: engelse articletitle: 0 Introduction 37 Chapter 3 The Multiple Identities of the Nestorian Monk Mar Alopen: A Discussion on Diplomacy and Politics Daniel H.N. Yeung According to the Nestorian Stele inscriptions, in the ninth year of the Zhen- guan era of the Tang Dynasty (635 AD), the Nestorian monk Mar Alopen, carry- ing with him 530 sacred texts1 and accompanied by 21 priests from Persia, arrived at Chang’an after years of traveling along the ancient Silk Road.2 The Emperor’s chancellor, Duke3 Fang Xuanling, along with the court guard, wel- comed the guests from Persia on the western outskirts of Chang’an and led them to Emperor Taizong of Tang, whose full name was Li Shimin. Alopen en- joyed the Emperor’s hospitality and was granted access to the imperial palace library4, where he began to undertake the translation of the sacred texts he had 1 According to the record of “Zun jing 尊經 Venerated Scriptures” amended to the Tang Dynasty Nestorian text “In Praise of the Trinity,” there were a total of 530 Nestorian texts. Cf. Wu Changxing 吳昶興, Daqin jingjiao liuxing zhongguo bei: daqin jingjiao wenxian shiyi 大秦景 教流行中國碑 – 大秦景教文獻釋義 [Nestorian Stele: Interpretation of the Nestorian Text ] (Taiwan: Olive Publishing, 2015), 195. 2 The inscription on the Stele reads: “Observing the clear sky, he bore the true sacred books; beholding the direction of the winds, he braved difficulties and dangers.” “Observing the clear sky” and “beholding the direction of the wind” can be understood to mean that Alopen and his followers relied on the stars at night and the winds during the day to navigate.
    [Show full text]
  • The Fight for the Republic in China
    The Fight For The Republic In China B.L. Putnam Weale The Fight For The Republic In China Table of Contents The Fight For The Republic In China.....................................................................................................................1 B.L. Putnam Weale........................................................................................................................................1 PREFACE......................................................................................................................................................1 CHAPTER I. GENERAL INTRODUCTION...............................................................................................2 CHAPTER II. THE ENIGMA OF YUAN SHIH−KAI...............................................................................10 CHAPTER III. THE DREAM REPUBLIC.................................................................................................16 CHAPTER IV. THE DICTATOR AT WORK............................................................................................22 CHAPTER V. THE FACTOR OF JAPAN.................................................................................................27 CHAPTER VI. THE TWENTY−ONE DEMANDS...................................................................................33 CHAPTER VII. THE ORIGIN OF THE TWENTY−ONE DEMANDS....................................................50 CHAPTER VIII. THE MONARCHIST PLOT...........................................................................................60
    [Show full text]
  • Hams 10 Lard 1°
    DO YOU WANT L-UI NO. 63. PLAINFIELD.PLAINFIELD. N.N. J..J.. THURSDAYTHURSDAY.. DECEMBEDECEMBERR 2211 18931893.. ML BABCOCK'S FUNERAL. ENTHUSIA8TEENTHUSIASTIC KNIGHTSKNIGHTS OOfF PYTHM8-PYTHIAS' YOUTHFULYOUTHFUL BEAUXBEAUX ANDAND BELLEBELLESS FULLY UP TO THE TIMES. A BANKS DOORS CLOSED. allr Ladca, to Wh.m tka Plum TaJL tkis Half U Mate Ua SlrtM.j laoafttoa Th» W»Ii WaUk tka Cfcristlaa Ik* St. MltUaa, of STMT T«rk, Callapaat u Tuaa, IHU to Cawa tka Dutt i« t Dtpatr MIM £BC* |. Huricu Put ia a Tarv Lum-ta D Soeiaty of ta« mat PiMBTtarlaa Ckatek Aa Aged I*s>. am Csateal Avsna, Tall laa Ora.dCb»nctllor.—amid Xaeta AppUu* FROM PARK AND •nt trIKM at D>a*lJ*m Is HoIdUf, Is 4 I (SPECIAL TO THE CODRIER.) tar KtA lattatMJ IijariM Wbiefc tn Pr»d laars la Bateau*, art Tkaa tat Mta W.rt Oina, ud th. Tout 0»«aU and i. Atuadai aa iu OfaaJaf ATENUE8. NEW YORK,nee, 21.—The doorso Tair tsriNS Taaafk th.ir Isttat waa aot Ealfkta Strikt oat fcr •aautkimi to Bat. Wan Sorry Tkn tka BictpU— Camt to b J Xaaj Plaiafleldars. the St. Nicholas Bank ai Disasvsnt uttl TtiUrdij. tk- funeral wvkM of George n • ML 23 Broad street, were closed this more ThThee annualannual district . meetinmeetingg oofr TheThe lecturelecture rooroomm ofof ththee FirsFirmt PresPrvu.- 'Aunty1' Yarnell, an old woman KnightKnights* oror PythiasPythias wawass heldheld Ilan UnitCaltj; Miss Eugenie Harrigan, tbe daughter byterian. Chnrch at Duneilen looked ' by Superintendent C. >f. Preston. ■‘Aunty" Yaraell, an old woman w iii« house on west t.trnin bylenan Church d I-unelleo looked 'he Superintendent posted s> little' pentpast ninetyninety-tw Awoo yeanyears laIs confinecon leadd ttoo herber Lodge-odge roomroom lastlast nlgbnightt witwithh DistricDistrictt or Mrs.
    [Show full text]
  • Han Dynasty Classicism and the Making of Early Medieval Literati Culture
    University of Pennsylvania ScholarlyCommons Publicly Accessible Penn Dissertations 2013 In Pursuit of the Great Peace: Han Dynasty Classicism and the Making of Early Medieval Literati Culture Lu Zhao University of Pennsylvania, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://repository.upenn.edu/edissertations Part of the Ancient History, Greek and Roman through Late Antiquity Commons, and the Asian History Commons Recommended Citation Zhao, Lu, "In Pursuit of the Great Peace: Han Dynasty Classicism and the Making of Early Medieval Literati Culture" (2013). Publicly Accessible Penn Dissertations. 826. https://repository.upenn.edu/edissertations/826 This paper is posted at ScholarlyCommons. https://repository.upenn.edu/edissertations/826 For more information, please contact [email protected]. In Pursuit of the Great Peace: Han Dynasty Classicism and the Making of Early Medieval Literati Culture Abstract This dissertation is focused on communities of people in the Han dynasty (205 B.C.-A.D. 220) who possessed the knowledge of a corpus of texts: the Five Classics. Previously scholars have understood the popularity of this corpus in the Han society as a result of stiff ideology and imperial propaganda. However, this approach fails to explain why the imperial government considered them effective to convey propaganda in the first place. It does not capture the diverse range of ideas in classicism. This dissertation concentrates on Han classicists and treats them as scholars who constantly competed for attention in intellectual communities and solved problems with innovative solutions that were plausible to their contemporaries. This approach explains the nature of the apocryphal texts, which scholars have previously referred to as shallow and pseudo-scientific.
    [Show full text]
  • Astrology and Cosmology in Early China: Conforming Earth to Heaven David W
    Cambridge University Press 978-1-107-00672-0 - Astrology and Cosmology in Early China: Conforming Earth to Heaven David W. Pankenier Index More information Index AHeng (asterism), 244 uniqueness of Ding (Pegasus), Abrabanel, Don Isaac, 413, 417 145 Account of the Proferring Emperor (Xian di Vega-Altair, 377 zhuan ), 423 Warring States, in Kao gong ji , Against Aggressive Warfare (Fei gong ), 129 196, 256 and the Weaving Maid (star), 376 Airs of Yong (Yong feng ), 127 in Western Zhou, 126 Albumasar (Abu-Ma’shar),¯ 407, 411 zheng “correct,” 140 alignment in Zhou bi suan jing , 107 accuracy of, 122, 147 Align-the-Hall (lodge yingshi ), 35, 52, accuracy of in Egypt, 108, 117 53, 60, 61, 128, 129, 132, 144, 179, 195, astral, 95 318, 320, 321, 349, 375, 408, 409, 419, astral in Egypt, 98 428, 429, 432, 433, 435, 459, 470, 474, astronomical in Qin and Han, 317 477, 478, 481, 482, 489 cardinal, 11, 83 1953 BCE planetary massing in, 179 cardinal, in Huainanzi , 130 accuracy of polar alignment, 137 cardinal, in the Neolithic, 119 anciently included Eastern Wall, 135 cultural variability in, 100, 147 as Celestial Temple, 136, 144 of the Dipper, 271 Alioth, 372 Five Planets, 9, 206, 289, 301, 425 alignment function of, 374 Five Planets, in the Song Dynasty, 426 Allan, Sarah, 112, 116, 139, 206, 233, 241 Five Planets, in the Tang Dynasty, alligator 431 bones, 62 inaccuracy, 113, 122 drum, 62 of Luminous Hall (Mingtang ), 148, Neolithic trade in, 62 344 range in Neolithic, 62 Neolithic, at Puyang , 339 seasonal associations, 62 by Pegasus, 131, 137 seasonal behavior, 67 polar, 99, 101, 350 Yangtze, 62 polar, in Egypt, 109, 140 Altair, 376, 377, 454, 472.
    [Show full text]
  • The Administration of Spain Under Charles V, Spain's New Charlemagne
    THE ADMINISTRATION OF SPAIN UNDER CHARLES V, SPAIN’S NEW CHARLEMAGNE Joseph Beard, B.A. Thesis Prepared for the Degree of MASTER OF ARTS UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS May 2005 APPROVED: Laura Stern, Major Professor Marilyn Morris, Committee Member Peter Lane, Committee Member Harold Tanner, Chair of the Department of History Sandra L. Terrell, Dean of the Robert B. Toulouse School of Graduate Studies Beard, Joseph, The Administration of Spain Under Charles V, Spain’s New Charlemagne. Master of Arts (History), May 2005, 232 pp., 3 tables, bibliography, 110 titles. Charles I, King of Spain, or Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, was the most powerful ruler in Europe since Charlemagne. With a Germanic background, and speaking French, Charles became King of Spain in 1516. Yet secondary sources and available sixteenth century Spanish sources such as Spanish Royal Council records, local records of Castro Urdiales in Castile, and Charles’s correspondence show that he continued the policies of his predecessors in Spain, Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castile. He strove to strengthen his power and unify Spain and his empire using Castilian strength, a Castilian model of government, Roman law, religion, his strong personality, and a loyal and talented bureaucracy. Charles desired to be another Charlemagne, but with his base of power in Spain. TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES………………………………………………………………...……..iii Chapter 1. INTRODUCTION AND HISTORIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW………...…………1 Introduction Historiographical Review Thesis Statement and Chapter Contents 2. THE GOVERNING IDEAS AND ACTIONS OF CHARLES AT THE BEGINNING OF HIS RULE IN THE NETHERLANDS, THE HOLY ROMAN EMPIRE, AND SPAIN……...……………………………………………….......44 Introduction Charles’s Childhood and General Political Theory of Europe Burgundy before Charles’s Reign The Netherlands during Charles’s Reign The Holy Roman Empire before Charles’s Reign The Holy Roman Empire during Charles’s Reign The Political Theory Charles Developed Conclusions 3.
    [Show full text]
  • Turandot's Homecoming: Seeking the Authentic Princess of China in A
    TURANDOT’S HOMECOMING: SEEKING THE AUTHENTIC PRINCESS OF CHINA IN A NEW CONTEST OF RIDDLES Ying-Wei Tiffany Sung A Thesis Submitted to the Graduate College of Bowling Green State University in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of MASTER OF MUSIC August 2010 Committee: Vincent Corrigan, Advisor Mary Natvig Per F. Broman © 2010 Tiffany Ying-Wei Sung All Rights Reserved iii ABSTRACT Vincent Corrigan, Advisor The negative portrait of Chinese culture in Puccini’s Turandot hindered this opera’s acceptance in China. Wei Minglun’s Sichuan Opera performance Chinese Princess Turandot (1995) and Zhang Yimou’s collaboration with Zubin Mehta on Puccini’s Turandot premiere in Beijing, however, brought Turandot home at the end of twentieth century. This thesis explores Turandot’s transformation and reception in China by analyzing the Chinese cultural representation and authenticity of these two Chinese versions. To provide a historical context, the thesis traces Turandot’s origin from Nizami’s Haft Paykar (1197) to Puccini’s opera. It also includes discussion of varied Chinese adaptations from 1995 to 2010. Ultimately, this thesis investigates issues of Orientalism, Occidentalism, authenticity, and hybridism in Turandot’s homecoming. Because the Orientalist image of Turandot has been modified by cross-cultural context, I propose that Orientalism and Occidentalism can be distinguished by how a work is made and how it is perceived. iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to first thank to my family in Taiwan. Without their spiritual and financial support, I would not have had a chance to study abroad. I also want to express my gratitude to Dr.
    [Show full text]
  • THE TANCI FICTION JING ZHONG ZHUAN by YU ZHANG A
    THE FEMALE REWRITING OF GRAND HISTORY: THE TANCI FICTION JING ZHONG ZHUAN by YU ZHANG A DISSERTATION Presented to the Department of East Asian Languages and Literatures and the Graduate School of the University of Oregon in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy June 2013 DISSERTATION APPROVAL PAGE Student: Yu Zhang Title: The Female Rewriting of Grand History: The Tanci Fiction Jing zhong zhuan This dissertation has been accepted and approved in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy degree in the Department of East Asian Languages and Literatures by: Maram Epstein Chairperson Tze-lan Sang Core Member Yugen Wang Core Member Bryna Goodman Institutional Representative and Kimberly Andrews Espy Vice President for Research and Innovation; Dean of the Graduate School Original approval signatures are on file with the University of Oregon Graduate School. Degree awarded June 2013 ii © 2013 Yu Zhang iii DISSERTATION ABSTRACT Yu Zhang Doctor of Philosophy Department of East Asian Languages and Literatures June 2013 Title: The Female Rewriting of Grand History: The Tanci Fiction Jing zhong zhuan This dissertation has examined the tanci fiction Jing zhong zhuan, or A Biography of Dedication and Loyalty, authored by a gentry woman writer Zhou Yingfang in the late nineteenth century. I argue that by adapting the well-known patriotic story of General Yue Fei in Chinese history, Zhou Yingfang suggests new directions in grand historical narrative in her own voice and from her own perspective. Negotiating the writing conventions of earlier legends, she turns the stereotyped masculine image of Yue Fei into a hero in both public and domestic settings.
    [Show full text]
  • Toward a Zeal for Classicism Intellectual Transitions from 74 BC to AD 9 China
    Chapter 1 Toward a Zeal for Classicism Intellectual Transitions from 74 BC to AD 9 China ometimes we assume that we are more normal than we actually are, Sespecially when it comes to beliefs. Words like orthodox, heterodox, conservative, radical, and hater imply a spectrum in which we sit in the sweet middle spot and others fall on the less normal, and hence less cor- rect, range. Words like pagan, Pharisee, and zealot from biblical traditions embody this spectrum. Was Judas a good or bad person? The New Testa- ment Gospels and the Gospel of Judas would give you opposite answers.1 Nevertheless, both seek to convince you that their ideas are the norm; both compete over the middle spot in the spectrum. At the end of the first century BC in China, Liu Xin railed against his colleagues and insisted on adding several texts to the canon of the Five Classics. While his colleagues were still outraged by this extreme move, an incident added more fuel to the controversy: Liu’s enemy Li Xun 㛶⮳ (fl. 15–5 BC) convinced the emperor to depart from the classics in general. A similar spectrum seems to have formed: Liu Xin and Li Xun fell on two poles of the spectrum, and the others sat in the middle as the normal ones. But from the perspective of Li, was not everyone conservative, and from that of Liu, was not Li too radical and others too conservative? If so, how do we make sense of the different spectra in their minds? This chapter tells the story of radicals and conservatives in first century BC China, except they are more than radicals or conservatives.
    [Show full text]
  • Tang-Song Transition Theory”
    Journal of chinese humanities 6 (2020) 129-152 brill.com/joch Dispelling the Myth of the “Tang-Song Transition Theory” Yang Jiping 楊際平 Professor of Department of History, Xiamen University, Xiamen, Fujian, China [email protected] Abstract Administrative statutes in the Tang clearly recognized that the fields of commoners could be held through private ownership. Field ownership structures in the recently restored Tang Statutes, while seeming to support ideas of land nationalization, did not actually change the private landowning practices that had been in place since the Qin and the Han dynasties. Numerous tenancy contracts unearthed in Dunhuang and Turfan dating back to the Tang and Five Dynasties show ample evidence that, prior to the establishment of the double-tax system in 780, a highly developed system of contract tenancy was already in place. Tenancy was clearly the leading form of agricul- tural production outside subsistence farming. This proves that the labor force during the Sui and Tang dynasties consisted not of “slaves and tenant farmers” or “agricultural dependents and serfs” but of commoners who were legally free. The Sui, Tang, and Five Dynasties, as described by Japanese historian Naitō Konan, bear no resemblance to the historical reality of this period. In many instances, Naitō’s arguments have dis- torted the history of these dynasties in an effort to make China’s history fit neatly into the framework of medieval European history. Consequently, his premises, arguments, and his central conclusion are all wrong. It is crucial that we dispel the myth of Naitō’s “Tang-Song transition theory” and return to historical reality.
    [Show full text]
  • Notes on Translations of the East Asian Records Relating to the Supernova of Ad 1054
    Journal of Astronomical History and Heritage, 9(1), xx-xx (2006). NOTES ON TRANSLATIONS OF THE EAST ASIAN RECORDS RELATING TO THE SUPERNOVA OF AD 1054 David W. Pankenier Department of Modern Languages and Literature, Lehigh University, 9 West Packer Avenue, Bethlehem, PA 18015, USA. E-mail: [email protected] Abstract: The East Asian records of the ‘guest star’ of 1054 that produced the Crab Nebula have been re-evaluated more than once during the past decade. Although some of the apparent inconsistencies in the records have now been addressed, doubts about the reported position of the supernova still persist. The published translations of the records, moreover, are still unsatisfactory in certain respects. Here I offer corrections to the translations of several records, present a previously-unreported contemporaneous account of the guest star, and suggest an explanation of why the Song Dynasty astronomers erroneously placed SN1054 southeast of ! Tau. Keywords: Crab Nebula, supernova, SN1054, East Asia, China, Song Dynasty, history of astronomy 1 BACKGROUND will take these as the basis for my comments. Let me begin with their translation of the record from the Song In the book Historical Supernovae and their Remnants, huiyao (2002: 120; modified 2004: 96). Stephenson and Green (2002) provide a thoroughgoing and authoritative study of the East Asian records that report the appearance of a ‘guest star’ in AD 1054. A 2.1 Song huiyao (Composition of Essential Documents of the Song Dynasty) subsequent paper by Stephenson (2004) adds the results of further study of the technical terminology. A Zhihe reign period, first year, seventh lunar month, previous re-evaluation of the East Asian and Western 22nd day [= 27 April 1054] ..
    [Show full text]
  • Representing Kingship and Imagining Empire in Southern Dynasties Court Poetry
    T’OUNG PAO 18 T’oung PaoXiaofei 102-1-3 Tian (2016) 18-73 www.brill.com/tpao International Journal of Chinese Studies/Revue Internationale de Sinologie Representing Kingship and Imagining Empire in Southern Dynasties Court Poetry Xiaofei Tian* (Harvard University) Abstract Before the fifth century, the imperial identity of a ruler seems to have disabled him as a writer rather than encouraged him to be more prolific. Literary production gradually became centered in the court by the mid-fifth century, and a distinct feature of Southern Dynasties literature is the phenomenon that emperors and princes joined with their courtiers in the act of writing poetry on social occasions. This paper focuses on a number of poems by Emperor Wen of the Song (r. 424-453), Yan Yanzhi (384-456), Xie Tiao (464-499), Shen Yue (441-513), and Liu Xiaochuo (481- 539) that represent kingship and empire and thereby become a means of disseminating and implementing imperial power. In particular, it examines the physical and discursive construction of the capital Jiankang. We see thereby that Southern Dynasties court poetry was instrumental in the performance of sovereignty and the envisioning of the new, southern empire. Résumé Avant le Ve siècle, le fait d’accéder au titre d’empereur semble avoir réduit ceux à qui cela arrivait à l’incapacité en tant qu’auteurs, plutôt que de les encourager à une prolixité accrue. Vers le milieu du Ve siècle en revanche, la production littéraire tendit à se concentrer sur la cour, et l’un des traits particuliers de la littérature des dynasties du Sud est de voir empereurs et princes se joindre à leurs courtisans pour composer des poèmes lors de réunions amicales.
    [Show full text]