1. China in the Middle Ages
Sui-Tang Era

2. Introduction
Under the Tang and Song dynasties the Chinese society advanced in all areas
It was the largest empire on earth in terms of
Population
Territory
Hangzhou – capital of Song Dynasty
Famed for wealth, cleanliness, & markets
Centralized beaurcracy & strong military

3. Rebuilding the Imperial Edifice in the Sui-Tang Era
Wendi (nobleman) reunited traditional core areas of Chinese civilization
Establishes Sui dynasty by defeating Chen kingdom in 589
Lowered taxes, food reserves, & monitored food prices
Wendi murdered by his son Yandi

5. Sui Excess and Collapse
Yandi
Established milder legal codes
reorganized Confucian education
Scholar-gentry reestablished (fancy word for educated government officials)
Built new lavish capital Loyang
Unsuccessfully attacked Korea
Defeated by the Turks in 615
Yandi assassinated in 618

6. The Emergence of the Tang and the Restoration of the Empire
Li Yuan, the Duke of Tang, took throne
Laid basis for the golden age of the Tang
Used armies to unite China
Extends empire to Afghanistan, Tibet, Vietnam, Korea…
Nomadic people submitted to Tang
Completed and repaired the Great Wall

8. Rebuilding the Bureaucracy
Unity of Empire
Imperial succession strengthened
Aristocracy weakened by scholarly gentries
Confucian ideology revised
Six Ministries
War, justice, public works, etc…
Changan – new capital

10. Growing Importance of the Examination System
Trained state officials (educated them) in Confucian classics
Ministry of Rites – exams given to students on philosophical or legal classics, and Chinese history
Jinshi – people who passed the exam & gained social status & became elites
Birth connections were also important for office

12. State and Religion in the Tang & Song Era
Confucianism and Buddhism rivals
Mahayana (Pure land) Buddhism won widespread conversion due to refuge from war and turmoil
Chan (Zen) Buddhism common among elites & educated
Buddhism was a strong social, economic, and political force for Tang dynasty
Supported by Empress Wu
Tried to make Buddhism state religion
Endowed monasteries
50,000 monasteries by 9th century

13. Anti-Buddhist Backlash
Attacked by Confucian and Daoist rivals
Confucians support taxation of monasteries to gain revenue
Emperor Wu
Destroyed monasteries
Monks forced to become civilians
Monastic lands redistributed to taxpaying landlords
Confucianism becomes central ideology

15. Emperor Xuanzong Height of Tang Dynasty Mistress, Yan Guifei
Powerful and relatives gain political power
Revolt in 755 by An Lushan but crushed by Tang dynasty