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Imperial China II

PRS101

Rhodalyn C. Wani

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Song Dynasty, AD 960-1279

Figure 1. Northern Song Dynasty, 960-1127 Figure 2. Southern Song Dynasty, 1127-1279

Emperor Taizu reunified China in AD 960, established capital at

the northern city of Bianjing.

By 1127, the Song lost control of Northern China to the Jin

Dynasty and moved their capital southwards in Linan.

Cities no longer administrative; centers of trade, industry, and

maritime commerce.

Song Dynasty ended with Mongol invasion in 1279.

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Song Dynasty, AD 960-1279

Imperial Examinations

paper (1st - 2nd c. AD)

books, printing

Yinprivelege

Neo-Confucianism

Fan Zhong-yan (called for

reforms in the education

system)

Wang Anshi (attacked basis

of local family wealth; curbcorruption in government)

Zhu Xi (emphasis on the

duality of liand qi; education

Scholar-gentry class

Figure 3. Song Imperial Examination

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Song Dynasty, AD 960-1279

Contributions:

Highly centralizedbureaucracy

Printing and education

spread leading to a rise in

wealthy commoners Bolstered naval strength as

well as maritime trade

Revolutionized technology

in using gunpowder Rise of Neo-Confucianism

and other refinements of

previous philosophies

Figure 4. Song

Dynasty Junk.

Figure 5.

Trebuchet

catapult used in

launching

explosives.

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Yuan Dynasty, AD 1279-1368

Figure 6.Yuan Dynasty

Founded by Kublai Khan under his grandfathers name. Fair amount of cultural exchange; but discriminations between

groups continued to exist.

Rivalry amongst heirs, natural disasters, and peasant uprisings

led to its collapse in 1368.

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Yuan Dynasty, AD 1279-1368 Contributions:

increased use of the written

vernacular: rise of drama and novel

Western influences in music and

performing arts

Tolerance for different religions:

Islam, Roman Catholicism

Advances in travel literature

(Marco Polo), cartography,

geography, scientific education

Beijing became the terminus of

the Grand Canal completely

renovated

improved maritime commerce and

first contact with Europeans

Figure 7.

Kublai

Khan

Figure 8.Yuan

dynasty armor

used during

Mongolinvasions.

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Ming Dynasty, AD 1368-1644

Figure 9. Ming Dynasty

Established by Zhu Yuanzhan (Hongwu vast military, a

peasant and Buddhist monk capital: Nanjing (S. capital) and

Beijing (N. capital)

Last native imperial dynasty in Chinese history

First quarter of the 15

th

century: peak; 1600s: decline

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Ming Dynasty, AD 1368-1644Contributions:

introduced terrace farming

construction of a vast navy

contributing during times of war

and trade

construction projects: Grand

Canal, Great Wall, and the

establishment of the Forbidden

City

attempt to restore classical

Chinese works in literature

heightened maritime trade

with the Europeans: Portuguese,

Spanish, and Dutch at the port

of Guangzhou (Canton)

Figure 10.

The

Forbidden

City.

Figure 11.

Ming

Dynasty

painting of

the

ForbiddenCity.