V. Trading Empires

Trading Empires of China

China A. The Sui Dynasty ( CE) 1. Short-lived dynasty a. Ended 300 years of chaos and civil war that followed the end of the Han dynasty b. Reunified China under one ruler and government 2. Sui Yangdi a. Second emperor of the dynasty -Completed the Grand Canal that linked the Huang He and Chang Jiang rivers -Made it easier to ship rice from the agricultural south to the north 3. End of the Sui a. The use of slave labor, high taxes, and military failure led to rebellion b. Sui Yangdi murdered with no heir

China (cont’d) B. The Tang Dynasty ( CE) 1. Emerged as soon as the Sui collapsed a. Early rulers restored the civil service exams and gave land back to peasants 2. The rulers wanted to restore China to a position of power in East Asia a. They expanded their control into Tibet (area north of the Himalayas) 3. Tang rulers established trade and political relationships with Southeast Asia a. Vietnam in particular 4. End of Tang rule a. Rulers hired mercenaries (a soldier hired into foreign service) called the Uighurs to fight for them b. The dynasty ended when the Uighurs overthrew the Tang ruler

China (cont’d) C. The Song Dynasty ( CE) 1. Eventually the Uighurs were pushed back north 2. China would experience a brief period of prosperity and cultural achievement a. Trade and manufacturing increased b. Technological advances and the creation of new products -development of steel, cotton, gunpowder, moveable type c. The silk roads were renewed, trade opened up to S. E. Asia -traded silk, porcelain, and tea in exchange for gems, wood, and tropical products 3. Problems remained between China and the northern nomads a. The Chinese capital was moved further south b. Would prove to be unsuccessful -within a few years a new threat from the north, the Mongols, would invade

China (cont’d) D. The Mongols (The Yuan dynasty, 1271–1368 CE) 1. Skilled nomadic horsemen from modern-day Mongolia a. Create the largest land empire in history b. Organized into clans, headed by a chieftain named Temujin -Took power and expanded the empire, took the name Genghis Khan or “world ruler” -Empire largest in 1227 (at the death of Temujin) c. Divided among his sons into khanates (territories controlled by a khan) 2. Kublai Khan, Genghis’ grandson conquered China a. He established the Yuan dynasty with a new capital called Khanbaliq (Beijing) 3. Period of expansion and Influence followed a. Called the Pax Mongolia -Confucianism, printing, poetry, art -Marco Polo (traveler from Med. Europe) b. Invaded Vietnam, S.E. Asia, and Japan 4. Eventually the dynasty collapsed a. spent too much on foreign conquests