Chapter 1 The Yellow river 1Prepared with assistance by Luc Guo

1. A Brief History of China 1.1 The origins of the nation 1.2 Rise and fall of the empire 1.3 China in the new millennium 2Prepared with assistance by Luc Guo

Keywords: Chinese nation, Chinese civilization, dynasty, Confucius, feudalism, revolution, collectivism Prepared with assistance by Luc Guo3

1.1.1 Cradle of the nation Xia, Shang and Zhou dynasties 1.1 The origins of the nation 4Prepared with assistance by Luc Guo

King Wu (c 1066 BC): “Here [Luoyi, a place in central China] is the center under heaven, from which all other states bear same distance when they come to pay tributes.” (ci tianxia zhi zhong, sifang rugong daoli jun) Prepared with assistance by Luc Guo5

Hezun: Early stories about China: Prepared with assistance by Luc Guo6

1.2 Rise and fall of the empire Qin, Han and Jin dynasties Sui, Tang and Song dynasties Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties Fall of the empire 7Prepared with assistance by Luc Guo

Events in the early 20 th century: 1912, China‘s final dynasty, the Qing, was replaced by the Republic of China (ROC); 1921, Chinese Communist Party (CCP) was founded; 1931, Japan invaded the Northeast China (Manchuria); 1937, Japan invaded China and the War of Resistance Against Japan began; 1945, Japan surrendered unconditionally and, thereafter, the Civil War between the Nationalists and the Communists broke out; 1949, the People‘s Republic of China (PRC) was founded, followed by the large-scale land reform and socialist transformation. Prepared with assistance by Luc Guo8

1.3 China in the new millennium Socialism in transition Capitalism, Chinese style? 9Prepared with assistance by Luc Guo

Figure 1.1 A dynamic view of the Chinese economy, AD Source: Created by the author based on Maddison (2001). 10Prepared with assistance by Luc Guo

Confucius said: Since the age of 15, I have devoted myself to learning; since 30, I have been well established; since 40, I have understood many things and have no longer been confused; since 50, I have known my heaven-sent duty; since 60, I have been able to distinguish right and wrong in other people‘s words; and since 70, I have been able to do what I intended freely without breaking the rules. Prepared with assistance by Luc Guo11

Case study 1 Understanding Chinese culture Prepared with assistance by Luc Guo12

ConfucianismTaoism Founder’s nameKongzi (Confucius)Laozi (Lao Tzu) Founder’s year of birth551 BCc. 600 BC Founder’s place of birth / living Qufu – lower reaches of Yellow river Luyi/Luoyi a – middle and upper reaches of Yellow river How the founder suffered from river flood Very seriousNot serious Overall goal Find peaceful and harmonious place of life No overall goal Rule of behavior Follow a certain relationship between people Follow the life according to the Tao Attitude toward flood control Narrow channel by high levees Wider flood plain between lower levees ( a ) Laozi spent most of his career first at Luoyi (capital of the Eastern Zhou dynasty) and later at the mountain areas in western China. Table 1.1 Confucianism versus Taoism: some basic facts 13Prepared with assistance by Luc Guo

Chapter conclusion: Starting with a brief history of China (called “ zhongguo” in Chinese, meaning “center under heaven”), this chapter is focused on various factors that could have shaped China’s existing political, economic and cultural characteristics. It investigates the causes and consequences of China’s periodic changes of feudal dynasties as well as their political, economic and cultural implications to the Chinese economy in the new millennium. 14Prepared with assistance by Luc Guo

Suggested reading Analects of Confucius (lunyu) by Confucius (an English text is available at: Bolton, P., and G. Roland (1997). “The Breakup of Nations: A Political Economy Analysis,” The Quarterly Journal of Economics, Volume 112, pp Friedman, D. (1977). “A Theory of the Size and Shape of Nations,” Journal of Political Economy, Volume 85(1), pp Shiji (records of the grand historian) by Sima Qian (an English introductory text is available at: Tao Te Ching (or daodejing) by Lao Tzu (or Laozi) (an English text is available at: Prepared with assistance by Luc Guo 15