History Of China
There really is no story as such. Every story is continually reinterpreted in the light of the prevailing ideas at the time of interpretation. So that the history in general and the history of China that concerns us here, becomes a fluid set of facts, interpreted at all times through a prism, when not enriched with new contributions of historiography.
This is a summary of some notes and chapters of the book Minimum History of China by Pedro Ceinos Arcones Now in kindle version for only € 2.99
This is a summary of some notes and chapters of the book Minimum History of China by Pedro Ceinos Arcones Now in kindle version for only € 2.99
Chinese prehistory
Traces of human presence have been found in China for almost 2 million years, since China's archeological exploration is still relatively recent, it is possible that new discoveries will emerge in the near future. The oldest remains found so far are the so-called Man of Yuanmou, a hominid who lived 1.7 million years ago in Yunnan Province, the Man of Lantian, who lived about 800,000 years ago in the vicinity of Xi'an, and the Beijing Man, who lived on the outskirts of this city about 400,000 years ago and in which the basic characteristics of man are already present: such as erect walking and the use of fire and tools. Human vestiges multiply in China from about 200,000 years ago. Since then there are remains of numerous hominids. However, it is considered that modern Chinese does not descend from any of these hominids, which were completely exterminated by the new homo sapiens from Africa.
Traces of human presence have been found in China for almost 2 million years, since China's archeological exploration is still relatively recent, it is possible that new discoveries will emerge in the near future. The oldest remains found so far are the so-called Man of Yuanmou, a hominid who lived 1.7 million years ago in Yunnan Province, the Man of Lantian, who lived about 800,000 years ago in the vicinity of Xi'an, and the Beijing Man, who lived on the outskirts of this city about 400,000 years ago and in which the basic characteristics of man are already present: such as erect walking and the use of fire and tools. Human vestiges multiply in China from about 200,000 years ago. Since then there are remains of numerous hominids. However, it is considered that modern Chinese does not descend from any of these hominids, which were completely exterminated by the new homo sapiens from Africa.
The Chinese Neolithic is so rich in materials that it prevents establishing a homogeneous panorama of economic and social development, not even regionally. For the clear trend that shows a higher density of settlements and a greater number of tools and ritual objects in the most modern, is interrupted by discoveries difficult to classify. Although the matriarchal culture of Yangshao (from 6,000 or 7,000 years ago) is considered as the archetype of the first Chinese agricultural cultures, and experts consider that it had a decisive influence on the subsequent development of the patriarchal culture of Longshan, in the center China, and the cultures of Hongshan, Dawenkou and Hemudu, in the coastal zone, can hardly be speculated on their true nature. Experts still do not agree on the meaning of a mysterious funeral ritual discovered in a tomb of the Yangshao era.
"In a tomb dated 6,000 years ago a tiger and a dragon have been discovered. Formed with shells of a river mollusk, on both sides of the corpse. The first tiger in the history of China and the first trace in that concept of yin-yang that defines his thinking ... Chang considers that the tomb must have belonged to a shaman, in which tiger and dragon would represent heaven and earth "(Ceinos.- The Tiger in China: Image and Symbol. P. 12).
"In a tomb dated 6,000 years ago a tiger and a dragon have been discovered. Formed with shells of a river mollusk, on both sides of the corpse. The first tiger in the history of China and the first trace in that concept of yin-yang that defines his thinking ... Chang considers that the tomb must have belonged to a shaman, in which tiger and dragon would represent heaven and earth "(Ceinos.- The Tiger in China: Image and Symbol. P. 12).
Nor is it very well known how to conceptualize the so-called Temple of the Goddess, of the Hongshan culture, or the magnificent jade disks called cong, belonging to the Liangzhu culture, north of Hemudu, so perfectly carved that a coherent explanation is not found.
A little later, not much, dates the establishment of the first tribes that will give rise to the Chinese nation in the Yellow River basin. These are the times when Huang Di, the Yellow Emperor, in command of an alliance of tribes, gets for his people the domain of the best lands in northern China, expelling his opponents, including the ancestors of the current Miao. After the Yellow Emperor, the civilizing hero of this tribe, another series of kings, today mythified, emerge who donate to the Chinese what will be the basis of their culture.
A little later, not much, dates the establishment of the first tribes that will give rise to the Chinese nation in the Yellow River basin. These are the times when Huang Di, the Yellow Emperor, in command of an alliance of tribes, gets for his people the domain of the best lands in northern China, expelling his opponents, including the ancestors of the current Miao. After the Yellow Emperor, the civilizing hero of this tribe, another series of kings, today mythified, emerge who donate to the Chinese what will be the basis of their culture.
First dynasties
It is said that the first dynasty is the Xia dynasty, of which there is hardly any news, although it can be said that it ruled a region of central China since the 21st century B.C. to the XVI. The Shang dynasty (16th century to 11th BC), its successor, is much better documented, not only by ancient Chinese historians, but by the abundant archaeological remains discovered of its time, especially inscriptions on turtle shells, bronze vessels of a extraordinary beauty, and the remains its capital Anyang, in the vicinity of Zhengzhou city. Where besides the remains of houses and palaces, there are numerous tombs of kings and princes with their wives and servants buried alive along with them. Anyang is only one of the Shang capitals, as it is said they had 6 more capitals during their 500 years of hegemony.
It is said that the first dynasty is the Xia dynasty, of which there is hardly any news, although it can be said that it ruled a region of central China since the 21st century B.C. to the XVI. The Shang dynasty (16th century to 11th BC), its successor, is much better documented, not only by ancient Chinese historians, but by the abundant archaeological remains discovered of its time, especially inscriptions on turtle shells, bronze vessels of a extraordinary beauty, and the remains its capital Anyang, in the vicinity of Zhengzhou city. Where besides the remains of houses and palaces, there are numerous tombs of kings and princes with their wives and servants buried alive along with them. Anyang is only one of the Shang capitals, as it is said they had 6 more capitals during their 500 years of hegemony.
"The shang state was heavily militarized. The organization of its army in companies of one hundred soldiers with bronze weapons and the use of war chariots from which the aristocrats fought, should have made it easy to maintain their supremacy among other states. The army did not it only served for external defense.In the country abounded fortified cities, whose government was entrusted to the nobles related to the royal lineage, who had a certain autonomy to dominate the people in their territory and collect taxes among the peasants. the king, they were only obliged to contribute taxes and assist him in the war "(Ceinos: Brief History of China, p. 40).
After defeating the last King Shang, the Zhou (S. XI to 770 BC), establish a fairly developed state near Xian, with numerous government officials. Designing a system of fiefdoms distributed to members of the royal family, they extend the territory of China for the first time to cover much of what today constitutes northern China. The system works efficiently for several centuries, with the feudal lords of each region engaged in continuous wars to integrate local populations under their jurisdiction in the Zhou world, but over time there is a loss of power of the central sovereign in favor of these peripheral lords, who gradually monopolize power in their hands, until they are considered capable, in the 7th century ane of challenging the emperor himself. Some of these gentlemen, allied to the nomads of the west, force them to abandon their capita and move it to the east, near Luoyang. They are then called Zhou from the East, but their power is more nominal than real, and the feudal lords have more and more autonomy. China fragments into numerous independent kingdoms in continuous war. It is the so-called Spring and Autumn period, for a famous book that chronicles the continuing military expeditions of these stations.
The Springs and the Autumns (770-476 B.C.): The development of agriculture and iron smelting is transforming a society of lords and slaves, existing in previous dynasties into a society more similar to the European Middle Ages. There were 140 Kingdoms during this time. Each one, a center of power. The society experiences considerable progress, the peasants work for those who offer them better conditions. Thinkers and philosophers travel from one state to another exposing princes to their theories for a better government. There is an unprecedented cultural boil. Important philosophical schools emerge that will mark the history of later China: especially the Taoist school of Lao Zi, which proposes a weak government, the Confucius school, which proposes a strong government, the biker, with the followers of Mozi and his politics of Universal love and the legist of Shang Yang and Han Fei, who proposes an equal government for all.
"Shang Yang and Han Fei argue that man is a wolf to man, and only where he feels the fear of punishment does man dare not violate the laws. That is why they propose rigorous laws equal to all, with which they intend to end the privileges of the nobles and to encourage the people to act in the right way.Its ultimate goal is to achieve the greatness of the state from which the welfare of the people can emanate, even if it has to sacrifice itself in the process.No wise men are needed to lead the country is enough with wise laws, because in them all relationships are perfectly defined with an objectivity that does not allow personal interpretations (Ceinos: Brief history of China, p. 76).
Little by little, power is concentrated around the most powerful states in such a way that by the year 475 B.C. Only seven states remain, which are constantly fighting each other, it is the time called The Fighting Kingdoms (475-221 BC) Since 350 BC. The State of Qin, located in the westernmost region, reaches an unprecedented wealth conquering the ancient kingdoms of Sichuan Province and establishing a more efficient administration based on the theories of the legist school. His wealth allows him to reach a political and military hegemony, which will enable Qin Shi Huang to defeat his enemies and unify China for the first time in 221 B.C., proclaiming himself the first emperor of the Qin dynasty.
After defeating the last King Shang, the Zhou (S. XI to 770 BC), establish a fairly developed state near Xian, with numerous government officials. Designing a system of fiefdoms distributed to members of the royal family, they extend the territory of China for the first time to cover much of what today constitutes northern China. The system works efficiently for several centuries, with the feudal lords of each region engaged in continuous wars to integrate local populations under their jurisdiction in the Zhou world, but over time there is a loss of power of the central sovereign in favor of these peripheral lords, who gradually monopolize power in their hands, until they are considered capable, in the 7th century ane of challenging the emperor himself. Some of these gentlemen, allied to the nomads of the west, force them to abandon their capita and move it to the east, near Luoyang. They are then called Zhou from the East, but their power is more nominal than real, and the feudal lords have more and more autonomy. China fragments into numerous independent kingdoms in continuous war. It is the so-called Spring and Autumn period, for a famous book that chronicles the continuing military expeditions of these stations.
The Springs and the Autumns (770-476 B.C.): The development of agriculture and iron smelting is transforming a society of lords and slaves, existing in previous dynasties into a society more similar to the European Middle Ages. There were 140 Kingdoms during this time. Each one, a center of power. The society experiences considerable progress, the peasants work for those who offer them better conditions. Thinkers and philosophers travel from one state to another exposing princes to their theories for a better government. There is an unprecedented cultural boil. Important philosophical schools emerge that will mark the history of later China: especially the Taoist school of Lao Zi, which proposes a weak government, the Confucius school, which proposes a strong government, the biker, with the followers of Mozi and his politics of Universal love and the legist of Shang Yang and Han Fei, who proposes an equal government for all.
"Shang Yang and Han Fei argue that man is a wolf to man, and only where he feels the fear of punishment does man dare not violate the laws. That is why they propose rigorous laws equal to all, with which they intend to end the privileges of the nobles and to encourage the people to act in the right way.Its ultimate goal is to achieve the greatness of the state from which the welfare of the people can emanate, even if it has to sacrifice itself in the process.No wise men are needed to lead the country is enough with wise laws, because in them all relationships are perfectly defined with an objectivity that does not allow personal interpretations (Ceinos: Brief history of China, p. 76).
Little by little, power is concentrated around the most powerful states in such a way that by the year 475 B.C. Only seven states remain, which are constantly fighting each other, it is the time called The Fighting Kingdoms (475-221 BC) Since 350 BC. The State of Qin, located in the westernmost region, reaches an unprecedented wealth conquering the ancient kingdoms of Sichuan Province and establishing a more efficient administration based on the theories of the legist school. His wealth allows him to reach a political and military hegemony, which will enable Qin Shi Huang to defeat his enemies and unify China for the first time in 221 B.C., proclaiming himself the first emperor of the Qin dynasty.
Unification and disintegration of China
The Qin dynasty It is the first dynasty of a reunified China and much larger than that ruled by the Zhou. The first emperor also unified the currency, the weights and measures, the written characters, the width of the roads and numerous other laws. He built huge palaces in Xianyang to turn his former enemies into courtiers, and unified the wall fragments built during the previous centuries in the Great Wall. Since he came to power he began the construction of his mausoleum, a part of it, the famous Terracotta Horses and Warriors, has been discovered recently. His cruelty and the numerous works he imposed on the people sowed discontent, and after his death, the rebels took advantage of the reign of a weak son, to end the Qin dynasty, and raze his capital Xianyang ..
Liu Bang established the new dynasty. The Han dynasty. China prospered rapidly. In the middle of a long period of peace, agriculture, industry and commerce flourished. During the long reign of Emperor Wu Di, the Chinese empire spread in all directions. General Zhang Qian was sent to the western regions to look for the much needed horses for the continuous wars against the Huns, on his return the Silk Road was inaugurated. Chinese silks were selling well in those lands, from which products hitherto unknown were arriving. Expeditions are sent to conquer the kingdoms located at the southern end of the country, sometimes achieving a purely nominal domain, and the Huns located beyond the wall are confronted with long and expensive wars. The Han dynasty extols the thought of the Confucian school, and begins to shape the network of officials that will rule China for centuries. Paper is invented, which helps to promote education, the seismograph and numerous new techniques that revolutionize the country. But the ideals that contributed to raising the dynasty are disappearing, the excessive expenses of Wu Di's military campaigns affect the entire population. The disgust of the people is increasing, revolutions arise in different parts of the country. The regime falls apart. A courtier, Wang Mang, takes advantage of the uncertainty to create a dynasty of short life, the rebellions of the Green Lumberjacks and the Red Eyebrows force to move the capital from Xi'an to Louyang in the year 25. That is when the call is established Eastern Han dynasty, which despite its nominal relationship with the one that preceded it, never managed to bring the population together under its leadership, ruling with the inertia of its first emperors until the rebellion of the Yellow Turbans and the prominence of the military that had to suffocate it, they ended up ending the dynasty.
The Qin dynasty It is the first dynasty of a reunified China and much larger than that ruled by the Zhou. The first emperor also unified the currency, the weights and measures, the written characters, the width of the roads and numerous other laws. He built huge palaces in Xianyang to turn his former enemies into courtiers, and unified the wall fragments built during the previous centuries in the Great Wall. Since he came to power he began the construction of his mausoleum, a part of it, the famous Terracotta Horses and Warriors, has been discovered recently. His cruelty and the numerous works he imposed on the people sowed discontent, and after his death, the rebels took advantage of the reign of a weak son, to end the Qin dynasty, and raze his capital Xianyang ..
Liu Bang established the new dynasty. The Han dynasty. China prospered rapidly. In the middle of a long period of peace, agriculture, industry and commerce flourished. During the long reign of Emperor Wu Di, the Chinese empire spread in all directions. General Zhang Qian was sent to the western regions to look for the much needed horses for the continuous wars against the Huns, on his return the Silk Road was inaugurated. Chinese silks were selling well in those lands, from which products hitherto unknown were arriving. Expeditions are sent to conquer the kingdoms located at the southern end of the country, sometimes achieving a purely nominal domain, and the Huns located beyond the wall are confronted with long and expensive wars. The Han dynasty extols the thought of the Confucian school, and begins to shape the network of officials that will rule China for centuries. Paper is invented, which helps to promote education, the seismograph and numerous new techniques that revolutionize the country. But the ideals that contributed to raising the dynasty are disappearing, the excessive expenses of Wu Di's military campaigns affect the entire population. The disgust of the people is increasing, revolutions arise in different parts of the country. The regime falls apart. A courtier, Wang Mang, takes advantage of the uncertainty to create a dynasty of short life, the rebellions of the Green Lumberjacks and the Red Eyebrows force to move the capital from Xi'an to Louyang in the year 25. That is when the call is established Eastern Han dynasty, which despite its nominal relationship with the one that preceded it, never managed to bring the population together under its leadership, ruling with the inertia of its first emperors until the rebellion of the Yellow Turbans and the prominence of the military that had to suffocate it, they ended up ending the dynasty.
Three Kingdoms: Wei, Shu and Wu. They are the result of the division of China after the fall of the Han dynasty and the struggles that spread across the country. It is briefly unified under the Eastern Jin, to be dismembered again in numerous short reign dynasties. Stresses at this time the Northern Wei dynasty (386-534), founded by the Tuoba, a town of the Huns family, which from their capitals, first in Datong and then in Luoyang, give a great boost to the establishment of Buddhism in China, beginning the construction of the majestic caves that have reached us to the present: Yunggan, Longmen, Mogao. In 581, Yang Jian, prime minister of the last emperor of the Northern Zhou takes power, and after defeating the southern dynasties unifies China again, establishing the Sui dynasty. The history of the Qin dynasty is repeated again. If the first built the Great Wall and an impressive network of roads that crossed the country, the Sui dynasty built the Grand Canal, another of China's cyclopean works. The people became impoverished with taxes to finance the great works and the War against Korea, so that during the reign of the second emperor of this dynasty, a succession of peasant wars was triggered that will only end with the seizure of power by Li Yuan , in the year 618, which founded the Tang dynasty, with capital in Xi'an.
The splendor of the Tang dynasty
The Tang dynasty (618-907) takes Chinese culture to its maximum splendor. The emperor distributes land among the peasants. New regions hitherto unused are broken. The arts are developed under the patronage of the imperial court. Laws favorable to the well-being of the people give a period of peace, the population grows, Buddhism spreads over China, trade with nearby countries multiplies. Poetry flourishes as it never had. The Silk Road is a great highway through which new ideas and new thoughts arrive. The influence of the Tang reaches Central Asia. Monks and students fascinated by the greatness of the empire come to China from Korea and Japan. Emperors prohibit local authorities from any abuse of foreigners. They will return to their country as ambassadors of Chinese culture, with the sciences, customs, arts and religion of China.
"To clearly understand the state of China during the Tang dynasty, it is convenient to divide it, as Bai Shouyi does, into three periods: A period of splendor, the result of the policies of Emperor Taizong, Empress Wu Zetian and the first part of Emperor Xuanzong, that would last from its foundation until the year 741. A turbulent period, characterized by the continuous struggles between the different estates competing for power, which would last from 742 to 820. And a period of decay characterized, as at the end of the dynasty They have, for the power of the eunuchs and the border generals that would last from 820 until the end of the dynasty in 907 (Ceinos: Brief History of China, p. 143).
In fact, it can be considered that the bloody rebellions of An Lushan and Shi Siming, in the eighth century, are the turning point of this dynasty, because although they ended up being stifled by the imperial troops, they meant the active intervention of the Uygur warriors in defense of the emperors. The privileges of these Uygures, the increasing militarization of a society that depended on the power of powerful generals to maintain a certain peace, and the corruption and injustice that are installed in the administration, create resentments throughout the country. New uprisings end the Tang dynasty in the year 907. It is followed by a period of wars and disorders that lasts 50 years, known in Chinese history as: The Five Dynasties and the Ten Kingdoms (907-960).
The Song dynasty (960-1279) unifies the country again. But harassed by nomadic people who have become strong in North China, they can only maintain peace by accepting humiliating treaties for which they must annually pay them huge amounts of money. It is interesting to note that, possibly scared by the disintegration of the Tang regime at the hands of its great generals, civil society is promoted during the Song dynasty. However, the pressures on the peasants to pay their tribute to the northern kingdoms renew the tension between them. The surveys are frequent. The starring Song Jiang in Liangshanbo, will be immortalized by the novel "At the water's edge". The Song end up being expelled from Northern China, moving their capital to Hangzhou, separated by swampy lands of that Yangtze River considered the border with the nomads. In Hangzhou, the Southern Song dynasty creates a tremendously modern regime, for the first time the income from trade taxes exceeds agricultural taxes, increasing social inequalities force the design of an embryonic social care system. In the city, located on the shore of the beautiful West Lake, arts and letters will flourish until the Yuan dynasty of the Mongols conquers China.
The Tang dynasty (618-907) takes Chinese culture to its maximum splendor. The emperor distributes land among the peasants. New regions hitherto unused are broken. The arts are developed under the patronage of the imperial court. Laws favorable to the well-being of the people give a period of peace, the population grows, Buddhism spreads over China, trade with nearby countries multiplies. Poetry flourishes as it never had. The Silk Road is a great highway through which new ideas and new thoughts arrive. The influence of the Tang reaches Central Asia. Monks and students fascinated by the greatness of the empire come to China from Korea and Japan. Emperors prohibit local authorities from any abuse of foreigners. They will return to their country as ambassadors of Chinese culture, with the sciences, customs, arts and religion of China.
"To clearly understand the state of China during the Tang dynasty, it is convenient to divide it, as Bai Shouyi does, into three periods: A period of splendor, the result of the policies of Emperor Taizong, Empress Wu Zetian and the first part of Emperor Xuanzong, that would last from its foundation until the year 741. A turbulent period, characterized by the continuous struggles between the different estates competing for power, which would last from 742 to 820. And a period of decay characterized, as at the end of the dynasty They have, for the power of the eunuchs and the border generals that would last from 820 until the end of the dynasty in 907 (Ceinos: Brief History of China, p. 143).
In fact, it can be considered that the bloody rebellions of An Lushan and Shi Siming, in the eighth century, are the turning point of this dynasty, because although they ended up being stifled by the imperial troops, they meant the active intervention of the Uygur warriors in defense of the emperors. The privileges of these Uygures, the increasing militarization of a society that depended on the power of powerful generals to maintain a certain peace, and the corruption and injustice that are installed in the administration, create resentments throughout the country. New uprisings end the Tang dynasty in the year 907. It is followed by a period of wars and disorders that lasts 50 years, known in Chinese history as: The Five Dynasties and the Ten Kingdoms (907-960).
The Song dynasty (960-1279) unifies the country again. But harassed by nomadic people who have become strong in North China, they can only maintain peace by accepting humiliating treaties for which they must annually pay them huge amounts of money. It is interesting to note that, possibly scared by the disintegration of the Tang regime at the hands of its great generals, civil society is promoted during the Song dynasty. However, the pressures on the peasants to pay their tribute to the northern kingdoms renew the tension between them. The surveys are frequent. The starring Song Jiang in Liangshanbo, will be immortalized by the novel "At the water's edge". The Song end up being expelled from Northern China, moving their capital to Hangzhou, separated by swampy lands of that Yangtze River considered the border with the nomads. In Hangzhou, the Southern Song dynasty creates a tremendously modern regime, for the first time the income from trade taxes exceeds agricultural taxes, increasing social inequalities force the design of an embryonic social care system. In the city, located on the shore of the beautiful West Lake, arts and letters will flourish until the Yuan dynasty of the Mongols conquers China.
Gengish Khan, elected chief of all Mongolian tribes in 1206 causes a military movement that in a few years will make his people the owner of an empire that stretched from Eastern Europe to Vietnam. The small dynasties that ruled North China were not opposition to the Mongols, who in the early thirteenth century already controlled half of the country. Paradoxically, those Song that despised the great military (the famous General Yue Fei was executed at the height of his career), were the only state in Asia and Europe, capable of stopping the Mongols. Their warlike technology, which endowed their armies with rudimentary machine guns and flamethrowers, and their ability to build impregnable defenses for the time, allowed them to resist the Mongol advance for more than 50 years, until Kubilai, the grandson of Gengish Khan, thanks to a combination of military and social factors, ends with the last generals and establishes the Yuan dynasty (1271-1368) with capital in Beijing. The Mongols design an ethnically stratified society: above the Mongols, secondly other allied peoples of the steppe, under them the Chinese of the North and at the bottom of the social ladder the Chinese of the South. The unfair situation did not give the dynasty great stability, and as soon as the military power of the Mongols was decreasing, the revolts became more dangerous. In 1351 there is the so-called uprising of the Red Turbans, due to the color of the fabrics with which the rebels were covered. A new rebellion in the Nanjing region will end the dynasty. It was during the Yuan dynasty that two of the first travelers from the West, Marco Polo and Ibn Battutah, met China, both of whom were deeply impressed by what they saw.
Ming Dynasty
The instability in the North during the last centuries had moved the economic center of China, from the Yellow River Valley to the Yangtze River, on whose banks Nanjing, Suzhou and Hangzhou, little further south were flourishing economic centers. The Mongols had repaired the Grand Canal, bringing it to Beijing to receive products from the South. When Zhu Yuanzhang took power in 1368 and founded the Ming dynasty (1368-1644) he established his capital in Nanjing, a clear reflection of Chinese reality. The third emperor of the dynasty, Chengzu, however moved the capital to Beijing, possibly fleeing dynastic struggles. This will be fatal at the end of the dynasty, when the overthrow of the Ming by the peasants puts an unarmed capital of the empire within the reach of the Manchu.
The instability in the North during the last centuries had moved the economic center of China, from the Yellow River Valley to the Yangtze River, on whose banks Nanjing, Suzhou and Hangzhou, little further south were flourishing economic centers. The Mongols had repaired the Grand Canal, bringing it to Beijing to receive products from the South. When Zhu Yuanzhang took power in 1368 and founded the Ming dynasty (1368-1644) he established his capital in Nanjing, a clear reflection of Chinese reality. The third emperor of the dynasty, Chengzu, however moved the capital to Beijing, possibly fleeing dynastic struggles. This will be fatal at the end of the dynasty, when the overthrow of the Ming by the peasants puts an unarmed capital of the empire within the reach of the Manchu.
"South of Guizhou, in the provinces of Guangxi and Yunnan, ethnic tension will be ongoing throughout the Ming dynasty. The settlers who arrive in Guangxi find a tropical climate, an administration that spans little more than cities and some important communication points, and the continued resistance of some natives.To govern the minorities themselves, the power of the Tusi or local governors, who nominally subject to the imperial power, remains almost completely autonomous.The growing dependence of the provincial authorities in these tusi to guarantee peace and order in the province will feed the lust for power of the most ambitious "(Ceinos: Brief History of China, p. 205).
During the Ming dynasty the contacts with the outside multiply. In the fourteenth century, Zheng He, the most famous navigator commands 7 fleets of numerous ships and thousands of men, touring the archipelagos of Southeast Asia, India, Persia, even Africa and Australia were stopovers of his travels. Shortly after Zheng He's travels, the first Portuguese navigators made their appearance on the Chinese coast. Soon the presence of missionaries and merchants would become familiar in coastal cities. The Ming emperors did not welcome the missionary wishes to penetrate the interior of the country, San Francisco Javier himself, one of the most ardent champions of this task, died off the coast of China in 1552. Another Spaniard, Augustinian Martin de Rada, was in Fujian in 1575, in his detailed descriptions Father Mendoza was based, of the same order to write in 1588 his History of China, for many years the most important work published in Europe about the celestial empire. The arrival of the Italian Jesuit Mateo Ricci to Beijing, where he managed to convert some princes and eunuchs, facilitated the penetration of the missionaries. But the Ming dynasty was already at its worst. To the despotic government of the last emperors was added an increasing participation of the eunuchs in the intrigues of the court, and a popular uprising ended them in the year 1644.
Qing dynasty
The Manchus, who had established their capital in Shenyang, from where they harassed the Chinese, saw the road open, and after a military walk over Beijing they established the last dynasty: The Qing Dynasty. Like the Mongols a few centuries earlier, they practiced ethnic segregation of the population. With two of its emperors Kangxi and Qianlong, China reached its maximum extent. But his greatness, based on the military repression of the people, and especially of ethnic minorities with numerous wars against the Miao, began to crumble as soon as the emperors weakened. It was the time when European powers began to frequent the port of Canton, where British ships traded mainly with silk and tea. To adjust the trade deficit contracted with the Chinese, who demanded to be paid in gold, the English began to introduce in China the opium they cultivated in India. The emperor banned that trade, not only because of its harmful effects on the people, but because it reversed the trade balance, now in favor of the British, and sent Canton to Commissioner Lin ready to make sure his orders were fulfilled.
The Opium War. The destruction of a shipment of English opium in the port of Canton served as a pretext for the English to attack Canton. It is what was called the I Opium War, in which the attackers, after an easy victory, imposed on the Chinese the Nanking Treaty (the first of the so-called Unequal Treaties) by which the Chinese government compensated the English for the destroyed opium and war expenses, yielded the island of Hong Kong, and opened another 5 ports to foreign trade, including Shanghai. The decline of the Qing dynasty was evident. The peasants were increasingly poor and exploited. Numerous revolts arose, the most important of which was the one led by Hong Xiuquan in 1851, which, beginning its activities among the Zhuangs, soon took control of much of central and southern China by establishing the Taiping Celestial Kingdom with capital in Nanjing, who adopted revolutionary egalitarian measures. The imperial weakness was exploited by France and England who launched the Second Opium War in 1860, increasing their influence over China. Russia and Japan also took advantage of the weakness of the Qing, exacerbated by the palatial intrigues of Empress Cixi, who led the last years of empire from the shadow, and took various Chinese territories.
Although the first reform movements emerged at the end of the last century among a Chinese bourgeoisie that was industrializing, Empress Cixi repressed them harshly. In 1899, the Yi He Tuan patriotic movement (known in the West as the Boxers for its mastery of martial arts) emerged, ready to end foreign influence. It only caused a new invasion and looting of Beijing by the Eight Powers, (England, France, Germany, United States, Russia, Japan, Italy and the Austro-Hungarian Empire). China was boiling, Western ideas had penetrated its products, and imperial corruption reached its zenith. In 1911, the Republicans, led by Sun Yatsen, succeeded in ending the last emperor, just a child, and with him, the imperial system in force for 2,000 years.
The Manchus, who had established their capital in Shenyang, from where they harassed the Chinese, saw the road open, and after a military walk over Beijing they established the last dynasty: The Qing Dynasty. Like the Mongols a few centuries earlier, they practiced ethnic segregation of the population. With two of its emperors Kangxi and Qianlong, China reached its maximum extent. But his greatness, based on the military repression of the people, and especially of ethnic minorities with numerous wars against the Miao, began to crumble as soon as the emperors weakened. It was the time when European powers began to frequent the port of Canton, where British ships traded mainly with silk and tea. To adjust the trade deficit contracted with the Chinese, who demanded to be paid in gold, the English began to introduce in China the opium they cultivated in India. The emperor banned that trade, not only because of its harmful effects on the people, but because it reversed the trade balance, now in favor of the British, and sent Canton to Commissioner Lin ready to make sure his orders were fulfilled.
The Opium War. The destruction of a shipment of English opium in the port of Canton served as a pretext for the English to attack Canton. It is what was called the I Opium War, in which the attackers, after an easy victory, imposed on the Chinese the Nanking Treaty (the first of the so-called Unequal Treaties) by which the Chinese government compensated the English for the destroyed opium and war expenses, yielded the island of Hong Kong, and opened another 5 ports to foreign trade, including Shanghai. The decline of the Qing dynasty was evident. The peasants were increasingly poor and exploited. Numerous revolts arose, the most important of which was the one led by Hong Xiuquan in 1851, which, beginning its activities among the Zhuangs, soon took control of much of central and southern China by establishing the Taiping Celestial Kingdom with capital in Nanjing, who adopted revolutionary egalitarian measures. The imperial weakness was exploited by France and England who launched the Second Opium War in 1860, increasing their influence over China. Russia and Japan also took advantage of the weakness of the Qing, exacerbated by the palatial intrigues of Empress Cixi, who led the last years of empire from the shadow, and took various Chinese territories.
Although the first reform movements emerged at the end of the last century among a Chinese bourgeoisie that was industrializing, Empress Cixi repressed them harshly. In 1899, the Yi He Tuan patriotic movement (known in the West as the Boxers for its mastery of martial arts) emerged, ready to end foreign influence. It only caused a new invasion and looting of Beijing by the Eight Powers, (England, France, Germany, United States, Russia, Japan, Italy and the Austro-Hungarian Empire). China was boiling, Western ideas had penetrated its products, and imperial corruption reached its zenith. In 1911, the Republicans, led by Sun Yatsen, succeeded in ending the last emperor, just a child, and with him, the imperial system in force for 2,000 years.
Modern ChinaAs soon as the Chinese Republic was established, the contradictions between a Nationalist Party without any military force, and unscrupulous military personnel, caused China to see itself again dismembered among the different Warlords, authentic kings of the territories they controlled. Amid this chaos, the Chinese Communist Party in Shanghai was founded on July 23, 1921, among its founders was Mao Zedong. The influence of the communists among poor farmers grew rapidly. Shortly after, Chiang Kaishek took control of the Nationalist Party, submitting the warlords, so that, in the early 1930s, the two main forces of China were these two parties. A nationalist offensive in 1934 forced the communists to leave their bases in Jiangxi, and carry out the Long March, which would take them to their refuge in Yan'an, near Xi'an, through 12,000 kilometers. There the main military theories that Mao would put into practice to conquer power were forged. The confrontations between communists and nationalists ceased in 1937, before the invasion of Japan. In two years Japan took control of the entire coastline of China, taking Nanjing, where it slaughtered the civilian population, and bombing the important areas out of reach. Neither the nationalists wanted to confront the Japanese army, nor the communists could. Japan was defeated by the United States at the end of World War II, and only then left China, on the Allied side. Communists and nationalists clashed again until the seconds were defeated by taking refuge in Chiang Kaishek with the remains of his army in Taiwan.
People's Republic of China. On October 1, 1949. From the Tian'anmen Gate in Beijing, Mao Zedong proclaimed the founding of the People's Republic of China. The land of the landowners was confiscated distributing them among the lacking peasants. The creation of an industry was promoted, and over the next 10 years the situation was improving under the direction of the Communist Party, which maintained a tight grip on state resources. A relaxation of control over the media, in 1957, led to serious complaints by intellectuals about corruption in the Party, censorship, intellectual isolation of the country. Critics were accused of rightists and suffered severe repression in reeducation camps.
The country was leaping forward with dubious results. Mao's dreams of reaching industrial production in developed countries in a few years led to the madness of the Great Leap Forward, when the abandonment of agricultural production starved millions of people. More realistic policies allowed the economy to improve during the following years, despite serious floods and the withdrawal of Soviet aid in 1960. But Mao seemed to have lost prominence within the party and in the government itself. In an attempt to recover the pfoder, Mao launched in 1966, again from Tian'anmen, the Cultural Revolution. The purity of communism had to be returned to the country, and the Party cadres themselves were purged, many of them suffered in prison, such as Deng Xiao Ping, or were sent to re-education centers in the countryside. The same fate was followed by professors, business directors, doctors, engineers, and those with an outstanding position. Children were encouraged to report their parents, husbands to their wives, and friends to each other. All of China plunged into chaos for a few years. The nightmare only ended Mao's death in 1976.
People's Republic of China. On October 1, 1949. From the Tian'anmen Gate in Beijing, Mao Zedong proclaimed the founding of the People's Republic of China. The land of the landowners was confiscated distributing them among the lacking peasants. The creation of an industry was promoted, and over the next 10 years the situation was improving under the direction of the Communist Party, which maintained a tight grip on state resources. A relaxation of control over the media, in 1957, led to serious complaints by intellectuals about corruption in the Party, censorship, intellectual isolation of the country. Critics were accused of rightists and suffered severe repression in reeducation camps.
The country was leaping forward with dubious results. Mao's dreams of reaching industrial production in developed countries in a few years led to the madness of the Great Leap Forward, when the abandonment of agricultural production starved millions of people. More realistic policies allowed the economy to improve during the following years, despite serious floods and the withdrawal of Soviet aid in 1960. But Mao seemed to have lost prominence within the party and in the government itself. In an attempt to recover the pfoder, Mao launched in 1966, again from Tian'anmen, the Cultural Revolution. The purity of communism had to be returned to the country, and the Party cadres themselves were purged, many of them suffered in prison, such as Deng Xiao Ping, or were sent to re-education centers in the countryside. The same fate was followed by professors, business directors, doctors, engineers, and those with an outstanding position. Children were encouraged to report their parents, husbands to their wives, and friends to each other. All of China plunged into chaos for a few years. The nightmare only ended Mao's death in 1976.
In mid 1977, Deng Xiaoping returned to power. A leader who had already demonstrated his pragmatism in the 1960s prompted that in 1978, during the Third Session of the XI Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, steps were taken to initiate the policy of reform and openness abroad. The reforms began with the peasants. The popular communes established during the Cultural Revolution were abolished, private initiative and private land use were promoted. The results were spectacular. The agricultural reform followed the industrial, financial, completely transforming the lives of the Chinese in a few years.
But not everything has been good news. Economic reforms came accompanied by a good dose of corruption, nepotism and inflation. In 1989, funerals by the missing leader Hu Yaobang degenerated into a demonstration of more than 150,000 people in favor of democracy. During the following days the agitation was increasing. Numerous students and discontented with the passage of modernization arrived in Beijing, camping many in Tian'anmen. The turmoil was increasing. Numerous sectors of the population were identified with the demands of the students. Workers, independents and even the police supported their demands. On the night of June 4, army units entered Beijing and attacked protesters. How many died? Hundreds of people, thousands. Nobody knows. China locked itself back for the rest of the year. Then economic reforms accelerated. Corruption and serious social contradictions still exist: unemployment, emigration to the cities, but the socialist market economy advocated in 1993 is raising the standard of living of the Chinese.
Pedro Ceinos Arcones. He is the author of "Brief History of China" Edited by Silex Ediciones. Sold out and published now as Minimum History of China. Now on Kindle from just € 2.99 (You already know that Kindle ebooks can also be read on your computer)
But not everything has been good news. Economic reforms came accompanied by a good dose of corruption, nepotism and inflation. In 1989, funerals by the missing leader Hu Yaobang degenerated into a demonstration of more than 150,000 people in favor of democracy. During the following days the agitation was increasing. Numerous students and discontented with the passage of modernization arrived in Beijing, camping many in Tian'anmen. The turmoil was increasing. Numerous sectors of the population were identified with the demands of the students. Workers, independents and even the police supported their demands. On the night of June 4, army units entered Beijing and attacked protesters. How many died? Hundreds of people, thousands. Nobody knows. China locked itself back for the rest of the year. Then economic reforms accelerated. Corruption and serious social contradictions still exist: unemployment, emigration to the cities, but the socialist market economy advocated in 1993 is raising the standard of living of the Chinese.
Pedro Ceinos Arcones. He is the author of "Brief History of China" Edited by Silex Ediciones. Sold out and published now as Minimum History of China. Now on Kindle from just € 2.99 (You already know that Kindle ebooks can also be read on your computer)
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