China and Japan

China

Ming Dynasty  Chinese drove out Mongol invaders in 1300’s  Ming Dynasty established  Time of great cultural achievement $10M Ming Vase

 Great Wall rebuilt and reinforced  Civil service exam for gov’t jobs reinstated  Voyages of Zheng He began in 1400’s

The Arrival of the Europeans  Portuguese arrived in 1500’s seeking trade opportunities  New World silver exchanged for Chinese porcelain, silk, and tea  Port of Macao established to regulate trade w/Europeans

Macao Today

 Arrival of New World crops in China boosted population  Jesuit missionaries tried to make converts, but were eventually expelled

Japan

Unification  Tukugawa Shogunate established in 1603, ruled until 1863  Capital moved from Kyoto to Edo (Tokyo)

 Greater economic integration led to growth of merchant class

The Arrival of the Europeans  Portuguese reached Japan in 1543  Western inventions like firearms, clocks, printing press introduced  Merchants soon followed by missionaries

The Spread of Christianity  Missionaries focused first on converting the daimyo and samurai  By end of 1500’s, shogun began to see Christianity as a threat  All missionaries were expelled and the practice of the religion was banned in 1614  Active persecution began and Christianity was reduced to an underground faith

Isolation  Isolation of Japan from Christianity turned into isolation of Japan from most outside influence  Dutch and Chinese could only trade through the port of Nagasaki  Only ended in 1863 w/Meiji Restoration