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The Tang Dynasty Begins
Many Chinese today are so proud of achievements made during the Tang (tung) Dynasty that they still call themselves Tang jen or “Tang people.” During this time, the boundaries of China were extended and many artistic and economic changes enriched the culture.
The Tang reunited China in about 618 CE after a period of internal fighting among its states. The first Tang emperor, Tang Gaozu (tang gow zhu) defeated the major powers of the Sui (sway) Dynasty and as well as all others. The Tang united the states of China and a 250-year period of peace began.
Political System
Chinese Examination System
The Tang Dynasty improved the way that government jobs were given to people. In early China, emperors had appointed family and friends to serve in the government jobs. These were valuable positions since they gave the person power over others and more economic opportunity. Once people got the jobs, they could be passed to the next generation in the family. In that early system, it was hard for others to ever become part of the power system if they weren’t from the right family. The Han dynasty began to change this when they began the Chinese Examination System. This was a system of using tests to give jobs to the most qualified people. It let more people compete for jobs since it kept some rich who might use just money or their friendships and connections to bribe or buy their way to high positions.
The Tang changed the exam to test what they thought was most valuable in a political system. The Tang government thought that the political system should be guided by Confucian teachings that had been an important part of Chinese thinking since they were developed about 1,000 years earlier. Confucius was a writer and teacher who had said that rulers must control people by setting a good example. The Han had also believed in Confucian teachings, but they had also focused on the actual skills that were needed to do the job. The Tang began to focus almost totally on how well the person knew and followed Confucian teachings. Though China remained a system with farmers working land and paying taxes to a government with the emperor in full control, the Confucian ideas made the emperor and those he awarded job more responsible for being good to the people.
A New Social Class: The Educated
Though education for the wealthy had begun in the earlier Zhou Dynasty, the Chinese Examination System under the Tang encouraged more people to become educated in China. To learn enough to pass the examination to get a government job, a person had to spend several years reading and writing about Confucian ideas. Of those who studied and took the test, a very small number passed and got a position in the government. But, the jobs were valuable because they paid well and gave those who got them more power so many were willing to try.
As education expanded it created a new class of people, the educated who could read and write. Men were the only ones allowed to take the exams and gain government positions, so education was naturally limited to men. Very few women learned to read or write. The educated men who did not earn government jobs could still make money teaching, writing letters for those who could not write, and keeping records for businesses. Although the poor would not have been able to afford years of school, and women were not included, the Chinese Examination System did encourage education for more people.
Economic System
Land Ownership Changes
Changes in the way that land was awarded brought changes to the economic conditions of the kingdom. In earlier dynasties, the government controlled who could own land and the amount they could have. Even if someone got land, it still really belonged to the government. At first the Tang used that system also. Later, the Tang decided that people would be free to buy as much land as they could afford with no limit on the amount. The owner still paid the government taxes for what was produced on the land but it gave them the incentive to work hard to improve the land because they actually owned it. This policy of non-government control allowed those who could afford it to buy huge sections of land and “hire” hundreds of farmers to set up small farms and work their land for them. The smaller farmers paid owners taxes. This system led to the rich getting richer and the poor poorer as the wealthy bought up the rich land and there was less good land for small farmers.
Agriculture Changes
Another change in agriculture was the improvement of the plow. Farmers who could afford them were using cows to help pull plows with metal hooks that would dig the soil for planting. During the Tang, the plow was redesigned in a way that made it much easier to use and more crops could be grown. This plowing method was so effective that it can still be seen in use in many Southeast Asian farmlands. This method helped to increase the amount of crops that they got from the land because it was more efficient. It also saved time that the farmers could use to invent other helpful tools or products. With more surplus crops and products, farmers had more to trade. Again, not all could afford the new technology and the changes did not help their situations.
Trade Increases
More crops and products along with the time of peace meant that the focus on trade could again develop and expand. Foreign traders began pouring into China. They were attracted by products such as fine paper, items with a shiny, painted surface called lacquer ware, porcelain, dazzling arts and crafts, and a Chinese drink that was becoming popular called tea. Word had spread that the earlier Han Dynasty had discovered a way to make a fabulous fabric called silk that could be woven thickly for winter or thinly for hot weather. The Tang had improved silk’s quality to make it softer and smoother than any other fabric. It was the item that people from the west most wanted from China at this time. Demand for silk became so high that the trails that led from the west into China later became known as the Silk Road because so much silk was traded along this route.
Tang improvements to transportation encouraged travel, exploration, more trade, and the exchange of ideas. During the previous Sui Dynasty (589-618 CE) a man-made waterway called a canal had been built to provide faster and easier transportation for the military. It was near the eastern coast of China and ran north to south from about where modern Beijing is to Hang Zhou. The Tang extended the canal until it nearly connected China’s eastern seashores toward the Silk Road and other major trade routes. In addition, there was increased use of the sea route from the Persian Gulf and Arab kingdoms near present day Iraq that brought spices, Arabian horses, leather, glassware, and walnuts as well as Arabian music and dance into China. The Chinese culture was enriched and changed by the people they interacted with others were enriched in similar ways by contact with the Chinese.
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New Social Class: The Merchants
Increased trade, both within China and with outsiders, led to the increase of another class of people known as merchants. The merchant class had begun during the Han Dynasty, but during the Tang more and more people made their livings as the buyers and sellers of goods. They might bring in (import) items from other countries or parts of China to sell or make money by (exporting) or taking goods out of their area to sell elsewhere. As desire for the goods that people discovered or wanted increased, the merchant class increased. The increase of the merchant class naturally increased jobs for those with an education as the need to keep records of the trades and other record keeping increased. The merchant class was looked down upon at first since the teachings of Confucius that people followed made them think that making money from serving the needs of others was not a totally “honorable” thing to do. But as more and more money could be made, more people saw a value in making money in this way.
China Welcomes Foreign Ideas
The Tang government welcomed foreigners and their ideas as the expanded trade routes brought in other aspects of Asian, Western, and Mediterranean cultures such as new religions. One man, Xuan Zhang, led an expedition to India and brought back Buddhist sutras (scriptures). Though it took another 400 years for Buddhism to spread widely in China, it led many more to follow those beliefs. Several Emperors of the Tang showed special interest in Buddhism, especially the first female Empress, Wu Zetien. Since the Empress was a powerful figure and thought to have the mandate of Heaven to rule, her acceptance of Buddhism was a powerful influence on other people and drew attention to the religion. However, Buddhism was not the only belief that came in. Christianity, Islam, Judaism, and many other religions also were welcomed. Outside influence was great, but the achievements and beliefs of the Chinese were also being shared through the contact with others.
The open attitude of the Tang Dynasty encouraged people to interact with others. During the Tang, the many marriages between the Chinese and foreign people shows the open attitude of the government and society. The capital city during the Tang Dynasty, Chang’an, could be compared to today’s New York City. History books from that time tell how the streets were crowded with people of all types and cultures. People who visited such Chinese cities at this time shared and learned from the interaction that occurred there. The Chinese culture was enriched and changed by the people they interacted with others were enriched in similar ways by interacting with the Chinese.
The Arts Expand
The peaceful time of the Tang Dynasty that allowed people more time and resources for travel also allow people to become more creative. Literature, art, and music became popular as more people concentrated on enjoying arts and raising the quality of their creative work. Before the Tang, music was played only for official, ceremonial occasions. During the Tang Dynasty, it became more widely used and many poems were turned into music for common people. Two poets from this period, Li Bo and Du Fu, are still famous in China today and their poems are so well known that even children can recite them.
The Tang Fall From Power
The political system of the Tang changed and fell apart as the attitude of the rulers changed. A government that becomes dishonest and does not work the way it was set up to work is called corrupt and the Tang government became corrupt. Though there were 20 emperors in the Tang Dynasty, the last three slowly lost the support of the people as they cared more about their own interests than those of the county. In ways such as this, the last three emperors lost support as people turned to others who seemed more interested in running the country. In the closing years of the Tang Dynasty, regional military leaders who were trusted with huge territories saw the opportunity and took advantage of the weak government to slowly assume power for themselves. The country slowly divided into ten different states as military leaders first began to keep tax money that they owed to the king and eventually declared their territories to be independent and fought each other for power. The Tang era that is valued in modern times for its long history of creativity
* About These Documents
This collection of documents was developed in collaboration with MCPS and ___. They provide additional information and explanation of the political, economic, and social systems of each dynasty. Students and teachers may find them helpful when completing the Dynasty Project in the sixth grade Unit 3 guide The Impact of Economics in Ancient and Modern China. The additional readings are provided to also supplement student understand of the achievements of ancient China and their influence on other civilizations.
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