1. DIPLOMATIC CHALLENGES & RIVALS
SONG CHINA
DIPLOMATIC CHALLENGES & RIVALS
After the fall of the Tang, new states emerge in former Tang Territory:
Liao
Tanggut
Song
Song used seafaring and sailing technologies to forge maritime connections…

2. DIPLOMATIC RIVALS (cont.)
SONG CHINA
DIPLOMATIC RIVALS (cont.)
LIAO
Lasted from 916 – 1121 C.E.
Prided themselves on pastoral traditions
Were from Kitan ethnic group
Made no attempt to create a single elite culture
Kings presented themselves as Confucian rulers, Buddhist monarchs, and nomadic leaders

3. DIPLOMATIC RIVALS (cont.)
SONG CHINA
DIPLOMATIC RIVALS (cont.)
LIAO (cont.)
Had a strong military:
demanded annual payments of cash and silk in return for peace

4. DIPLOMATIC RIVALS (cont.)
SONG CHINA
DIPLOMATIC RIVALS (cont.)
CONFLICT WITH THE LIAO
Help the Jurchens of NE Asia to defeat the Liao
Jurchens establish the Jin Empire:
Drive the Song out of North and Central China in 1127
Song continued to reign in South China as the Southern Song Empire

5. TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCES
SONG CHINA
TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCES
Many of the innovations were based on ideas brought to China during Tang period
Many had to do with:
Math, Astronomy, Calendar making
Improved the compass – made it suitable for seafaring
Created the “Junk” – large ship with Stern mounted rudder.

6. TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCES (cont.)
SONG CHINA
TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCES (cont.)
Gunpowder! Boom! Defensive at first.
Invention of movable type allowed Song to mass-produce prep books for civil service tests
Also allows for information to be passed about agriculture; helps increase productivity
Literacy Rates ^

7. TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCES (cont.)
SONG CHINA
TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCES (cont.)
Overcrowding problems lead to improvements in waste management, water supply, and firefighting efforts. Foreigners impressed at Song cities.

8. POLITICS, ECONOMY, & SOCIETY
SONG CHINA
POLITICS, ECONOMY, & SOCIETY
Politics are dominated by civilian officials and pursuits
Civil service exam reaches mature form; exams break the domination of hereditary:
Men chosen for office based on merit (vs. bloodlines)
Poor men didn’t have time to devote to studying for test…

9. POLITICS, ECONOMY, & SOCIETY
SONG CHINA
POLITICS, ECONOMY, & SOCIETY
Credit system put in place (flying money)
Introduced the notion of government-issued paper money…causes inflation and is eventually withdrawn

10. POLITICS, ECONOMY, & SOCIETY
SONG CHINA
POLITICS, ECONOMY, & SOCIETY
Taxes raised on farmers; collected by private individuals
Tax collectors made money by collecting maximum amounts from people and sending in the least amount necessary to the empire
Much heavier tax burden on common people!

11. POLITICS, ECONOMY, & SOCIETY
SONG CHINA
POLITICS, ECONOMY, & SOCIETY
Rapid economic growth undermines traditional regulation of business:
Land no longer the only source for wealth… traditional hierarchy weakens
Cities, commerce, consumption, and credit boom!

12. POLITICS, ECONOMY, & SOCIETY
SONG CHINA
POLITICS, ECONOMY, & SOCIETY
Women’s status declined:
Subordination, disenfranchisement, and restrictions are put in place
Couldn’t own property or remarry
Footbinding
Lower classes had more independence than elites…

13. SONG CHINA