WHI 11.01, 11.02. and 11.02 Empires of Asia

Module 11

Empires of Asia

Multiple Choice

Which of the following is Not a name of a Ninja Turtle?

• Michelangelo

• Galileo

• Donatello

• Raphael

Objectives

• WHI.11 The student will apply social science skills to understand the civilizations and

empires of Asia, with emphasis on Japan and China, by

• WHI.11a locating and explaining major global and regional trade routes;

• WHI.11b explaining technological advances and transfers, networks of economic

interdependence, and cultural interactions; and

• WHI.11d evaluating the impact of the Mongol Empire throughout Asia.

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11.01:
Golden
Ages and
Empires in
China

(1)

China

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Golden Ages and
Empires in China

• The early Middle Ages in China were full

of upheaval after the collapse of the Han Dynasty in the early 200s AD.

• Its strong empire fractured, with three

separate regions (north, south, and west) ruled by different leaders.

• In the late 500s AD, Sui Wendi

established the Sui Dynasty of China by
reuniting the northern and southern
regions.

• The Sui Dynasty did not last.

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The Tang Dynasty

• In 618, a revolt against the emperor led

to the rise of Li Yuan and his son Li
Shimin.

• Li Yuan became the emperor of the new

Tang Dynasty, but within ten years, Li
Shimin replaced his father as emperor and took the name Tang Taizong.

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The Tang Dynasty

• The Tang Dynasty expanded China's

control over other nearby regions.

• It created "tributary states,"

self-governed kingdoms that sent tribute (payment) to China.

• Korea, Tibet, and Vietnam all continued

to be tributary states under control of the Tang.

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Tributary

states

The Tang Dynasty

• Government and land reforms were put in place

by the Tang, who worked to unify their lands.

• Land was re-distributed among peasants in many

cases.

• Empress Wu Zhao created a uniform government

based on the traditions of the Han Dynasty which had ruled China hundreds of years earlier.

• It made tax collection and problem-solving more

streamlined.

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The Tang Dynasty

• In 907, the last Tang emperor, Emperor Ai, was

overthrown after a series of natural disasters and
revolts in the late 800s AD weakened the Tang's
authority.

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The Song Dynasty

• After 50 years of upheaval, Zhao Kuangyin

unified China under the Song Dynasty in 960 AD.

• Its first leader was Zhao Kuangyin, and it lasted

for over 300 years.

• Despite constant threats of invasion from

northern regions, the Song ruled a prosperous
kingdom.

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The Song Dynasty

• Food surpluses were regular because of advances

in rice-growing in Vietnam and other southeast
Asian regions which sent rice supplies to China.

• The result was an uptick in trading, artistic

achievement, and scholarly activities.

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Chinese Society under the
Tang and the Song

• Social rankings were clearly arranged.

• The emperor was supreme, while just below him

were scholars who acted as officials in the government.

• Chinese society emphasized the importance of

both noble birth and academic learning.

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Chinese Society under the
Tang and the Song

• Most government scholar-officials were from the

"gentry," or landowning, class of people.

• After the gentry came the Chinese peasant

farmers, although there was a big gap between the power of the gentry and the power of the peasants.

• The lowest rank in society went to merchants

and traders. They were considered to be like
parasites by the Chinese because they lived off of the work and products of others.

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Chinese Society under the
Tang and the Song

• Chinese women gained greater social status

during medieval times than in later times.

• Despite this change, a married woman still lost

her "dowry", or marriage payment (usually inherited money or property).

• They were not permitted to remarry if her

husband died.

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Art, Architecture, and Literature Under the
Tang and the Song

• Culture flourished in medieval China.

• Daoism—a meditative religion that

originated in ancient China—influenced
artwork, especially in the form of
landscape paintings.

• Sculpture and architectural achievements

reflect the power of Buddhism in Chinese
beliefs.

• Chinese architects developed the

"pagoda," an ornate pavilion structure
that developed from the ancient Indian stupa structure.

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Art, Architecture, and Literature
Under the Tang and the Song

• Chinese artisans developed the crafting of

porcelain, which would be transported across
Southeast Asia, as well as along the Silk Road to
places in Central Asia and Europe.

• The production of silk continued as well.

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The Silk

Road

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Art, Architecture, and Literature

Under the Tang and the Song

• Poetry became a powerful art form under the

Tang and Song, especially among the scholar-gentry class.

• Li Bai, a member of the Chinese gentry who lived

from 701 to 762, composed over 2,000 poems.

• He was considered a genius by the Chinese.

• Li Bai showed how poetry was the most

respected form of writing in medieval China.

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The Ming Dynasty

• The Chinese military leader Zhu

Yuanzhang finally overthrew the last of
the Mongol emperors of the Yuan
Dynasty in 1368.

• His new dynasty was called the "Ming",

meaning "brilliant".

• This new empire was one of the most

productive and prosperous empires in
the world at its height of power.

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The Ming Dynasty

• Ming artists used a wider variety of

colors and more calligraphy in their
works.

• Artisans decorated porcelain with bright

blue and white drawings, which made
Chinese porcelain highly valued in many
corners of the world.

• Ming writers produced poetry, novels,

and the first-known detective stories.

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The Ming Dynasty

•Its peasants used new farming practices, such as new fertilizers, to
create food surpluses.
• Trade benefited from the construction of new canals.
• Extra food and canals led to the growth of cities such as Beijing and
Nanjing.

The Ming Dynasty

• The Ming were some of the world's first "explorers".

• They sent fleets of ships to promote the wonders of

their empire and to extend their influence in other
markets.

• The Ming explorer Zheng led seven expeditions

between 1405 and 1433, reaching Africa, the Arabian
Peninsula, India, and Southeast Asia.

• After Zheng died Ming rulers mysteriously forbade the

building of ships for sea travel.

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Multiple Choice

What trade route connected Asia to Europe?

• Silk Road

• Royal Road

• Trans-saharan trade route

• Roman Road

Multiple Choice

Which idea or technology did NOT come from China?

• Printing

• Compass

• Shipbuilding

• Paper Money

Multiple Choice

Trading along the Silk Road was aided significantly by the use of

• trade caravans

• desert camels

• river canoes

• ocean liners

Multiple Choice

Which geographical feature separates India from China?

• Himalaya Mountains

• Indian Ocean

• Gobi Desert

• Huang He River

11.01: Golden Ages

and Empires in China

(2)

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The Mongols

• The nomadic Mongol clans living just north

of modern-day China fought each other as
they moved their livestock across the
steppes, or unwooded grasslands, of
Central Asia.

• The Mongol chieftain Genghis

Khan—whose name means "Universal
Ruler"—united the Mongol clans in 1206
AD.

• He was one of history's most successful

conquerors, defeating and taking control of
a massive empire spanning much of Central
Asia.

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The
Momgols

• Genghis Khan's successors

expanded the Mongol Empire
across the continent of Asia as far
west as Central Europe.

• The Mongols are sometimes

called "The Golden Horde" when
referring to their "khanate", or
regional empire, in Russia.

• In the 1200s, this part of the

Mongol empire became an
independent khanate.

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The Mongols

• The Mongols were vicious warriors when fighting to

overtake territories, however they were tolerant as
administrators of their empire.

• They usually allowed locals to continue practicing their

own religions and speaking their own languages.

• In return, they expected large tribute (payments) to

demonstrate obedience and loyalty.

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The Mongols

• The empire was mostly peaceful and orderly under

Mongol rule.

• The Mongols prospered a great deal from taking these

territories, which gave them the ability to control the
Silk Road trade as well as other well-traveled over-land
trade routes.

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The Mongols

• The Mongols invaded and conquered large parts of China in

the late 1200s AD under Kublai Khan, Genghis Khan's
grandson.

• After winning a brief but brutal civil war against his younger

brother, Kublai Khan created the rich and prosperous Yuan
Dynasty, and ruled from 1271 until his death in 1294.

• This rule included his defeat of the remnants of the Song

Dynasty in China in 1279.

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The Mongols

•By 1300, the Mongol empire grew to include northern India, Persia,
the Rus' (Russia), and parts of the Middle East, such as the city of
Baghdad in modern-day Iraq.

The Mongols

•Kublai Khan guaranteed loyalty in his military and government by only
allowing Mongols to serve in high positions.
•He used local rulers to govern their own provinces, which saved him
the time, expense, and trouble of appointing officials.
• He also ordered the use of uniform paper currency (money) and
more efficient tax collection.

The Mongols

• The riches of the Silk Road trade

made Kublai Khan's empire
extremely rich.

• His court was one of the most

splendorous in modern history.

• Chinese products such as silk,

porcelain, paper and gunpowder
(which had been created in the 9th
century in China) were sold to places
in Europe and the Middle East.

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Marco Polo

• The visit of the Italian traveler and scholar

Marco Polo was a major moment in the
interaction between European and Asian
cultures.

• Kublai Khan welcomed him to his court,

meeting with him and creating a friendly
relationship.

• Marco Polo wrote a great amount about the

splendor of the court of the great Khan, and
the awe-inspiring nature of the empire.

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Marco Polo

Marco Polo

•Marco polo’s writings inspired European interest in Chinese trade and
culture which would lead to European attempts to trade with the
Chinese over the next several centuries.
•After Kublai Khan's death in 1294, a series of uprisings weakened the
Yuan Dynasty.

Multiple Choice

This map represents the Mongol Empire under the control of

• Kublai Khan

• Genghis Khan

• Mongke Khan

• Guyuk Khan

Multiple Choice

Who is described by these statements?

• Kublai Khan

• Genghis Khan

• Ogedei Khan

• Batu Khan

11.02 Feudual Age in Japan

1

Japan

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Japan’s
Geography

• Japan's lands were made up of an

archipelago, or group of islands sometimes
made from volcanic activity.

• Natural forces such as earthquakes,

volcanic eruptions, and tsunamis
(destructive tidal waves) influenced the
development of Japan.

• The fact that it is surrounded by the sea

allowed ancient Japan to become
isolationist, or inward looking and closed to
foreign control.

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Shinto

• The many forces of nature and

geographic barriers in the archipelago
led early Japanese people to develop
clans among the separate islands and
regions.

• The clans worshiped Kami, or natural

and divine powers.

• This worship of nature and other

divine powers came together in a
religion called "Shinto" which is unique
to Japan, even in the modern world.

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Early Interactions
With Other East
Asians

• Japanese religion was influenced

by its growing interactions with
other Asian peoples such as
those in Korea and China.

• Japan was first exposed to

Buddhism and Chinese culture
by Korean missionaries in the
500's AD.

• Japanese rulers began to send

"emissaries," or diplomats, to
study Chinese art and
technology.

Early Interactions
With Other East
Asians

• Nobles under the rule of Prince

Shotoku were sent to learn in
China, part of a long-standing
cultural interaction between
Japan and China.

• The Japanese built Nara, their

new capital city, in the 700's AD
and based it on the Tang Chinese
capital city of Xi'an.

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Early Interactions
With Other East
Asians

• The Japanese engaged in "selective

borrowing" of Chinese culture.

• This means that they adopted some

Chinese cultural ideas, but not all.

• For example, they created a new

Japanese written language based on
Chinese writing and their own "kana,"
or symbols that represent syllables.

• Japanese architecture borrowed ideas

from China, constructing pagodas and
Buddhist temples.

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Early Interactions
With Other East
Asians

• Not all interactions with the Chinese

were peaceful.

• In the 1270's and early 1280's, the

Mongol emperor Kublai Khan tried,
but failed, to invade Japan on two
different occasions.

• The fleet of ships he sent were

wrecked by typhoons (tropical storms)
during the fighting.

• The Japanese took this as a sign that

nature protected them, claiming that
they were saved by the "kamikaze"
(divine wind).

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Early Interactions With
Other East Asians

• Heian (modern-day Kyoto) served as

Japan's capital city from the late 700's
until almost 1200 AD.

• The imperial court of the "Heian Period,"

as it is called in Japanese history, enjoyed a
golden age.

• Poetry, art and literature flourished.

• Murasaki Shikibu, a Heian Japanese

imperial lady-in-waiting, wrote The Diary
of Lady Murasaki (1010), and The Tale of
Genji (1012).

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11.02: The Feudal

Age in Japan

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What does the diagram tell you
about the ways people were
valued in feudal Japanese society?

•By TheInfernoX (Links to an external site.) - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0
(Links to an external site.), Link

Feudalism in Japan

• Feudal society developed in

Japan.

• Although there was an emperor,

he was usually a "figurehead"
leader, meaning he had little
power.

• Power was in the hands of the

"shogun," or leading military
commander

• Kingdoms ruled by shoguns

were called "shogunates."

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Feudalism in Japan

• One kingdom was the Kamakura

Shogunate, created by the shogun
Minamoto Yoritomo in 1192 AD.

• Shoguns kept the loyalty of

regional Japanese lords, called
"daimyo," by distributing land to
them in return for pledges of
military support.

• The daimyo created their own

small military forces by giving
lands to the "samurai," or
warriors, of their regions.

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Feudalism in Japan

• The Samurai followed a strict

code of behavior and values
called "Bushido," which called
for bravery, honor, honesty, and
loyalty to the daimyo.

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The Ashikaga Shogunate
and the Tokugawa
Shogunate

• In the 1300s, local Japanese "warlords,"

or military strongmen, fought each other
for influence and power.

• They were loyal to their clans.

• One clan, the Ashikaga, grew in strength,

and set up the Ashikaga Shogunate in
1336.

• Their rulers sent diplomats to Korea and

to China.

• The "Flower Palace," named because of

its beautiful surrounding flower gardens,
was the home to Ashikaga leaders in its
capital city Kyoto.

The Ashikaga

Shogunate and
the Tokugawa

Shogunate

1500's AD

The Ashikaga
Shogunate fell apart
in the mid

1590

Japan fell into
fighting between
warlords again, until
it was united again
by the military
leader Toyotomi
Hideyoshi in 1590.

1600

By 1600, Tokugawa
Ieyasu had
overcome all rivals,
and became the new
shogun.

1868

The Tokugawa
Shoguns ruled an
agriculturally
productive and
mostly peaceful
Japan until 1868,
when it was
replaced by the
Emperor Meiji, who
modernized the
country.

Multiple Choice

The ethnic religion most commonly associated with Japan is

• Shintoism

• Daoism

• Christianity

• Confucianism

Multiple Choice

Which religion coexisted peacefully with Shintoism in Japan?

• Buddhism

• Christianity

• Hinduism

• Confucianism

Multiple Choice

Which title would go with "Military dictator"?

• Shogun

• Samurai

• Daimyo

Multiple Choice

Which title would go with "Feudal lords"?

• Shogun

• Samurai

• Daimyo

11.03(1)

Trade, and Invasions in Korea

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Korea

• The Korean peninsula,

because of its close location
to China, has been greatly
influenced by Chinese
culture, trade, and military
invasions.

• Ancient Chinese invasions,

such as that of the Han
Dynasty in the 2nd century
BC, brought Confucianism
and other ideas to Korea.

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Korea

• Between the 4th and 6th

centuries AD, Korea was split
into the Koguryo, Paekche,
and Silla kingdoms, each of
which occasionally fought
with China and each other.

• Chinese missionaries brought

Buddhism to Korea.

• Korean diplomats and monks

traveled to China, bringing
home Chinese art and
literature.

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Korea

• In 668, the Silla kingdom was able to overpower its neighbors and unite the peninsula

under the Silla Dynasty.

• However, Korea was still a tributary state to the Tang Dynasty in China during their rule.

• In 935, the Koryo Dynasty overtook the Silla.

Korea

• Confucian and Buddhist teachings were at

their height during this period.

• Using woodblock printing learned from

China, Korean writers produced Buddhist
texts.

• Artisans adopted Chinese techniques for

making porcelain, developing a blue-green
glaze for porcelain called "celadon", which is
uniquely Korean.

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Korea

1231 and the 1350s

During the Mongol
occupation of Korea
between 1231 and the
1350s, the Koryo were out
of power, but returned to
rule after the Mongols
withdrew.

1392

Their control only lasted a
few decades, and they
were overthrown by a
Korean general named Yi
Song-gye in 1392.

1897

The new leaders called
themselves the Choson
Dynasty, and they became
the longest-lasting Korean
dynasty, ruling until 1897.

Korea

• Choson Korea saw Korean development and

influence from invaders.

• King Sejong ordered the creation of a simpler

form of Korean writing in 1443 called "hangul.“

• It was based on the phonetics, or sounds of

words, in the native Korean language.

• It grew more popular than traditional Chinese

written language.

• Chinese was more complicated and had

thousands of characters.

• It also improved literacy, or the ability to read

and write, in Korea.

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Korea

• In the late 1500s, Japan sent a fleet of ships to invade Korea, but the Korean

navy, with a new-style of armored ships, pushed the Japanese out.

• Before leaving, the Japanese kidnapped many Korean artisans to take back

to Japan.

• The invasions of the Chinese and the Japanese led the Choson to enforce

strict isolationism, violently preventing any foreigners from Asia or Europe
from entering their kingdom for the next two centuries.

11.03(2)

Trade, and Invasions in Southeast Asia

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Southeast
Asia:
Influence of
Chinese and
Indian Trade

•Southeast Asia is a diverse geographic place.
•It includes the mainland, made up of the
modern countries of Myanmar (Burma),
Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, and
Malaysia.
•It also includes more than 20,000 islands
that make up the modern countries of
Indonesia, the Philippines, Singapore,
Brunei, and many others.

Southeast Asia

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Southeast Asia: Influence of
Chinese and Indian Trade

• The location of the islands and the mainland placed

Southeast Asia don the sea trade routes that transported
spices and gemstones between India and China.

• The strait of Malacca, where the city of Singapore is, saw a

large volume of trade traffic during medieval times.

• As a result, many cities along the coasts of the mainland

and ports in the islands became culturally diverse and
prosperous.

• Indian traders brought products such as cotton cloth,

perfumes, jewels to such ports to trade for timber, spices,
and gold.

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Southeast

Asia: Influence

of Chinese
and Indian

Trade

• Religions also spread to the region as a result of the

connecting of trade routes.

• First, Hindu priests spread their ideas through the

mainland and the islands.

• They were followed by Therevada Buddhists, who also

came from India and were traveling to China.

• Muslims from India likewise brought Islam to the island

kingdoms in modern Indonesia and the Philippines.

Pagan

• One of the earliest Southeast Asian

empires was that of Pagan, which
occupied most of modern-day
Myanmar (Burma).

• Pagan was united by King Anawrahta

in 1044 AD, using military conquest
and Buddhist ideas.

• The influence of foreign culture can

be seen in the construction of
"stupas", or Indian pagodas, and
thousands of Buddhist temples to
decorate his capital city, also called
Pagan.

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Stupas (pagodas)

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Khmer

• The leaders of Khmer, an empire made up of the modern

countries of Cambodia, Thailand, and Malaysia, reached their
peak of power between 800 and 1350 AD.

• Khmer rulers were mostly Hindu while most of its subjects

were Buddhists.

• Its most notable cultural achievement was the construction of

the massive and ornate temple at Angkor Wat, in Cambodia
today.

• It was dedicated to the Hindu deity Vishnu and was

transformed into a Buddhist temple in the 12th century.

• It is claimed to be the largest religious monument in the

world.

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Angkor Wat

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Srivijaya

• Indonesia's defining empire of the

medieval era was Srivijaya.

• It was based on trade between India

and China, and its cities were rich
and beautifully decorated.

• Hinduism and Buddhism both found

believers in the kingdom.

• Eventually, Indonesia came to house

a major Muslim community.

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Vietnam

• Vietnam's lifeblood were the rice paddies, or irrigated fields

for growing rice.

• As early as the 2nd century BC, Vietnam was invaded and

occupied by the Chinese under the Han Dynasty.

• Chinese emperors ruled Vietnam as a tributary state for the

next millennium (1,000 years).

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Rice paddies

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Vietman

• Vietnamese people absorbed Confucian ideas.

• Although most of Southeast Asians of this time period believed in

Theravada Buddhism, Vietnamese people mostly adopted Mahayana
Buddhism from China.

• The Vietnamese often rebelled against Chinese rule, and tried to gain

independence.

Vietnam

• In 39 AD, the sisters Trung Trac and Trung Nhi led

a revolt that pushed the Chinese out of Vietnam
temporarily.

• The Chinese returned shortly afterwards and

executed the sisters.

• Vietnam would not gain its independence from

China until 939 AD.

Multiple Select

Check the 3 early Korean Kingdoms.

• Silla

• Yi

• Paekche

• Koguryo

• Koryo

Multiple Choice

What type of pottery is this?

• porcelain

• Chinese

• silt

• celadon

Multiple Choice

What is the name of the Korean alphabet?

• Cuneiform

• Hangul

• Hieroglyphics

• Phoenician

Poll

In which empire would you have wanted to live?

• Han China

• The Mongol Empire

• Ancient Japan

• Ancient Korea