Introduction
In this essay I am going to write a brief summary of the Period of Division, the Sui Dynasty, and the Tang Dynasty, which all happened between 220 CE – 907 CE. This essay is based on the second chapter of the book, “History of China” by J.A.G. Roberts, Third Edition, 2011.
The Period of Division (220 CE – 589 CE)
During the Period of Division, China was divided into three kingdoms: the Wei Kingdom or the North Kingdom, ruled by Cao Cao, son of Cao Pei. The Shu Han Kingdom or the South-West Kingdom, ruled by a descendant of the Han royal family. The Wu Kingdom or the South Kingdom, ruled by Sun Quan.
In 263 the Wei subdued the Shu Han Kingdom and invaded the Wu Kingdom. One of the Wei generals, Sima Yan, started the Western Jing dynasty, uniting China. In 290 CE Sima Yan died and the country descended into a civil war, which gave the Xiangnu (ancestors of the Mongols), an opportunity to sack Luoyang, the capital of the Wei.
By 311 CE the Xiangnu had claimed Luoyang and started their own dynasty. China was constantly under attack by non-Chinese people, including the Tuoba Empire.
The Tuoba agreed to intergrate with the Chinese and they prospered side by side for years. When the Tuoba decided to move their capital from Pingcheng to Luoyang in 493 CE, the Ruanruan (ancestors of the Mongols), invaded. The Tuoba abandoned Luoyang, allowing the Ruanruan to sack Luoyang.
The Sui Dynasty (581 CE – 618 CE)
In the middle of the sixteenth century China was comprised of four main political divisions, the Northern Wei, the Northern Zhou, the Northern Qi, and another group which has not been mentioned.
In 581 CE the Northern Qi was defeated by the Northern Zhou who joined forces with the Chen. In 587 CE the Northern Zhou overran Liang and overpowered the Chen. That same year, Yang Jian claimed the throne and started the Sui Dynasty after killing his son-in-law and the Yuwen family who could have stolen the throne from him. He then took on the name Wendi.
Once Wendi was emperor he built a new capital. Wendi was aware that the Northern Zhou way of governing could not unify China. So he tried to rule by the principles of the Han. He also got rid of cruel punishments and lessened taxes.
Wendi’s second son, Emperor Yangdi claimed the throne after Wendi died because of his mothers’ wish. The people hated him because of his power lust, lavishness, and licentiousness. He was also suspected to have killed his father for the throne.
Yangdi continued to build the river works his father started and drafted hundreds of men and women to do free labor like slaves. Yangdi also tried to conquer Korea after hearing about Korea and Turkey’s alliance.
Because of Yangdi’s terrible ruling the people rebelled, which ended the Sui dynasty. Yangdi was murdered by a descendant of the Yuwen family, whom his father had deprived of the throne in 618 CE.
The Establishment of the Tang Dynasty (618 CE – 626 CE)
Li Yuan, who was the leader of the rebellion that took down the Sui Dynasty, was also the founder of the Tang Dynasty. Within one year after the rebellion Li Yuan captured Chang’an and started the Tang Dynasty. Li Yuan was given the name of Gaozu. It took Gaozu six years to gain control because of rebellions and false claims to the throne.
The second son of Gaozu, Li Shimin, forced his father off the throne and murdered his older brother to claim the throne. He then took the name Taizong.
Taizong reigned from 626 CE – 649 CE. Even though Taizong used harsh means to get to the throne, he was considered one of the best rulers China has ever seen. Taizong set up schools and colleges, reserving special ones for children of high ranking officials. In 629 CE, Taizong built seven monasteries where the people could pray to the souls of soldiers who died in battle.
Around the time when Taizong claimed the throne, Eastern Turks, under their king Xieli, tried to invade Chang’an. Taizong had to bribe the soldiers to leave. In 628 the Turkish had an internal split and Taizong used this to his advantage. He befriended Xieli’s enemies and defeated him. In 645 Taizong led an invasion on Korea after learning about their unification as one country. Taizong’s armies were set back because of Korea’s harsh winter conditions. Bigger plans were made in 649 CE, but Taizong died before they were carried out.
Before Taizong’s death, he gave his throne to his eldest son Li Chengqian. The people did not Li Chengqian because he was a suspected homosexual. The people wanted the throne to go to the second eldest son, Li Tai. Li Tai and Li Chengqian fought over who should get the throne and tried to eliminate each other. Taizong eventually skipped both sons and appointed Li Zhi (one of his other sons), to the throne. Li Zhi would reign as Emperor Gaozong.
Emperor Gaozong and Empress Wu
Emperor Gaozong started his reign carefully. He was dependent on advice from his father’s ministers, including his uncle Zhangsun Wuji.
Emperor Gaozong suffered from health problems and was succeeded by two of his sons, but his consort, Empress Wu was the effective ruler. Gaozong died in 683 CE and was succeeded by Zhongzong, his third son. Empress Wu forced Zhongzong to abdicate for his brother, who reigned for six years after that. In 684, a revolt broke out. Empress Wu used this as an opportunity to eliminate all her enemies in court. She then created a secret police and led a reign of terror, which convicted her as a mass murderer. In 690 CE, Empress Wu seized the throne and started the Zhou Dynasty. Empress Wu ruled from 690 CE – 705 CE.
Even though Empress Wu started her own dynasty, historians do not see a difference between the Tang’s traditions and the Zhou’s. Empress Wu favored the Buddhists, and they in turn, supported her and saw her as the reincarnation of Maitreya Buddha.
In 605 CE, a tribe called the Qidan (spoke a language that is considered to be ancestral to Mongolian), attacked Chinese territory and were defeated. In 695 CE, the Qidan rebelled against the Chinse and gained a victory in Beijing. Empress Wu made a marriage alliance with the Turks and defeated the Qidan.
Towards the end of Empress Wu’s reign her authority started to fail. Her excessive building projects left a dent in the treasury and her attempt to raise the taxes to compensate sparked problems. In 697 CE Empress Wu became infatuated with the rich Zhang brothers. Empress Wu’s senior officials murdered the Zhang brothers, forcing her to abdicate in 705 CE. She died later that year.
The Reign of Xuanzong (712 CE – 756 CE)
After the rule of Empress Wu a short period of unfit rulers followed, until the throne went to Xuanzong in 712 CE. Xuanzong’s rule is considered to be separated into three parts. The period of solidification and improvement, the central period where constructive policies were still being applied and where the main problems started, and the final period, where rebellion sparked.
The first period lasted until 720 CE. During this period Xuanzong was advised by several ministers, including Yao Chang, who was chief minister to Empress Wu. Several of his suggestions were applied, including the ten-point system where administration problems were addressed. The number of chief ministers was lessened and their authority increased. The biggest improvement during this period was the military.
Earlier in the dynasty, the military had proved to be unfit to deal with the threat the Turks, Qidan, and Tibetans posed. To solve the problem the frontier of the empire was split into nine sectors, each led by a military governor.
In the middle period of Xuanzong’s reign many of the polices that were implemented in the first period was followed by new ministers. One of Xuanzong’s advisors suggested that they reduce the distance that grain had to be carried overland. This cut the costs of transportation, increased the amount of grain available, and allowed Xuanzong to establish his capital permanently in Chang’an.
In 736, a man named Li Linfu rose to power and became dictator. Li Linfu understood Xuanzong’s longing to establish a strong, centralized, and financially sound government.
In 745 CE, Xuanzong was 60 and stopped playing an active role in the government. He became obsessed with Yang Guifei, the most famous beauty in China history.
The Rebellion of An Lushan (755 CE – 763 CE)
The rebellion of An Lushan is considered to be the start of the fall of the Tang Dynasty, even though the dynasty continued on for another century and a half after the revolt.
Unlike most rebellions, this one was not started by the people, but by a soldier named An Lushan. After Emperor Xuanzong gained the favor of Yang Guifei he appointed many of her relatives with roles in the government. One of the more noticeable people appointed was Yang Guozhong, who claimed the role has the most authoritative figure in court after the death of Li Linfu in 752 CE.
Before Li Linfu’s death he appointed non-Chinese governors to be the new military governors for the nine sectors by the frontiers. This let An Lushan, who was half-Turkish and half-Sogian, a chance to rise up in the government.
After the death of Li Linfu a rivalry started between Yang Guozhong and An Lushan. An Lushan soon realized that Yang Guozhong was trying to destroy An Lushan’s relationship with the emperor. Aware that he could lose his spot in the government, An Lushan marched all the way to Luoyang and seized it. Declaring the establishment of a new dynasty. The next eight years was a civil war between Yang Guozhong and An Lushan.
Yang Guozhong miscalculated an attempt to reclaim Luoyang which forced the emperor to abandon his capital at Chang’an and run north. The emperor’s commander of escort blamed Yang Guozhong for almost killing their emperor and had him and Yang Guifei killed. An Lushan was also assassinated in 757 CE. But his death did not stop the rebellion. It was only when Emperor Xuanzong’s grandson, Emperor Daizong, rose to the throne in 762 CE and defeated the rest of the rebels with the help of the Uighurs.
The rebellion left some places of China abandoned and other parts suffering serious economic and social disarray. The fall of the capital was a fatal blow that the Tang Dynasty never recovered from.
The Post Rebellion-Restoration (762 CE – 802 CE)
After the rebellion the Tang never fully recovered, but that does not mean they went into a time of dynastic deterioration. The Tang made many reforms before falling in 907 CE.
One of the first reforms was made by Yang Yan. He made the ‘two-tax system’, which combined several taxes into one, which would have to be paid twice a year. This applied to everyone, no matter their rank. The ‘two-tax system’ also helped reinstate imperial control over taxation.
Emperor Xianzong (ruled from 805 CE – 820 CE), also made some improvements. In 806 CE he sent military force into Sichuan and replaced the general who refused to follow central government commands. He also sent military force to control provinces. This worked well in the central provinces but was ineffective in the north east.
During the rebellion China lost their pasture lands to Tibet. These pasture lands were where they acquired their war horses. Now they had to purchase their horses for a high price from the Uighur. Between 780 CE – 789 CE, Emperor Dezong tried to negotiate a term of peace with Tibet, which involved giving away two large areas of territory. Tibet refused, which forced Dezong to make an alliance with the Uighurs. Dezong married his daughter to the leader of the Uighurs and they would exchange Uighur horses for China silk. The Uighurs would also stand with China against Tibet. This alliance was honored and kept until 840 CE, when the Uighur Empire fell.
The Fall of the Tang Dynasty
The first signs of the fall started in 820 CE, when a string of young emperors could not control disorder in their court. There was lots of infighting, specifically with the eunuchs, who were in the right positon to influence the emperor and determine who would be next in the line of succession.
Then rebellions started, first in the lower regions of Yangzi during Emperor Xuanzong’s reign. Then in the 860s Nanzhao attacked Annam, which exhausted the Chinese reserves.
The rebellion that ended it all was in 874 CE. This rebellion was started by the people because of the constant floods, drought, and over taxation. It was only in 884 CE that imperial forces were able to end the rebellion with the help of the Shatuo, a Turkish tribe.
The next 23 years was uneventful. Even though the emperor moved back to Chang’an and tried to rule, it was over. The Tang had lost their power. The official end was in 907 CE, when Zhu Wen, a former lieutenant of the Tang, stretched his command a large section of north China and started the Liang Dynasty.
Conclusion
This essay covered the Period of Division, the Sui Dynasty, and the Tang Dynasty. In my opinion, the Tang unified China better than the Sui did. The Tang lasted much longer and unified China as one country for a long time. The next essay will be about the Song and Yuan Dynasties. Thanks for reading!
Sophia Elahi RPC Blog 