Elder Han. Ideology and culture of China during the Han dynasties
Synopsis Keywords: Qin Dynasty, Qin Shihuang, Han Dynasty, Liu Bang, peasant uprisings
Qin dynasty
Qin dynasty- a Chinese dynasty that ruled all of China between the Zhou and Han dynasties (221 BC - 206 BC).
At the head were no longer kings - vans, but emperors - di. Founder of the dynasty Qin Shi Huang- united China under his rule in 221 BC. e., dividing the country into 36 provinces governed by governors appointed by the emperor. He created a centralized, controlled state based on legalism - a doctrine that preaches absolute obedience and humility before the power of the emperor, while repressions were carried out against supporters of Confucianism: for example, in 213 BC. e. a decree was issued on the burning of unauthorized works in private possession, and in 212 BC. e. 460 Confucians were executed and a significant number were sent abroad.
Qin Shi Huang announced the cessation of all wars forever, confiscated weapons from local owners and melted them into several giant monuments glorifying him. A network of roads with a total length of 7500 km encircled the country, the roads were 15 m wide with three lanes, the central lane was intended for the emperor. He streamlined measures and weights, introduced a standard spelling of hieroglyphs, organized a rigid bureaucratic system of government, that is, everything that the ruler of each newly united monarchy does.
Qin Shihuang's reign was characterized by a large number of public works, which involved millions of citizens and slaves. During this period, the construction of the Great Wall of China began. For himself, the emperor built a unique tomb, which was guarded by an army of thousands of terracotta warriors and the huge imperial palace of Epan.
Death of Qin Shi Huang in 210 BC e. came during a trip around the country, in which he was accompanied by his youngest son Hu Hai, head of the office Zhao Gao and chief adviser Li Si. Fearing unrest, they concealed the death of the emperor and, having entered into an agreement, fabricated a letter on behalf of the emperor, in which not the eldest son of Fu Su, but the younger Hu Hai was declared heir to the throne. The same letter contained an order to "grant an honorable death" to Fu Su and the commander Meng Tian.
Hu Hai ascended the throne at the age of 21 under the name Er Shi Huangdi, however, in fact, he remained a puppet of the head of the office, Zhao Gao, and three years later was forced to commit suicide on his orders.
During the Qin dynasty, the territory of the state grew; it now included a large part of China. All the weight of war construction of the Great Wall , palaces, roads, etc. fell on the shoulders of peasants and slaves, who were subjected to cruel exploitation. The consequence of this was major peasant uprisings , under the blows of which the Qin dynasty fell. In October 207 BC. e. the capital of the Xianyang Empire was taken by the army of one of the leaders of the peasants, Liu Bang, who was proclaimed emperor and became the founder of the Han dynasty.
Han dynasty
Han dynasty- the Chinese dynasty and the period of Chinese history after the Qin dynasty before the era of the Three Kingdoms. The dynasty was founded by the Liu family. The initial period (206 BC - 9 AD) with the capital Chang'an is called the Early or Western Han Dynasty. The second period (25-220) with the capital Luoyang is called the Late or Eastern Han Dynasty. The dynasty was interrupted for 16 years as a result of the seizure of power by the usurper Wang Mang.
Dynasty Founder Liu Bang descended from peasants and was the leader of the rebels who managed to take the capital of Xiangyang and overthrow the Qin dynasty.
Eastern Han. As a result of the victory of the "red-browed" movement in 25, Emperor Liu Xiu founded a new han empire, called the Late (Hou) or Eastern (Dun) Han. The dynasty lasted until 220. In 184, the country began "Yellow Turban" uprising . They were peasants who, as a sign of defiance, put on bandages made of the color of the sun, which only the emperor could wear. The government did not have the strength to suppress the uprising, so the most powerful aristocrats took up the creation of armies. After the suppression of the uprising, real power was in the hands of the commanders of these armies, between which a struggle for the throne unfolded. In 196, the commander Cao Cao persuaded Emperor Xian-di to move from the ruined capital of Loyang to the capital of his province, Yingchuan-Xu. The actual house arrest of the emperor began, and the military leader Cao Cao actually became the ruler of China, maintaining the appearance of the rule of the Han dynasty. However, after Cao Cao's death in 220, his son Cao Pi ordered the assassination of Emperor Xian. After the execution of the last Han emperor, Cao Pi founded Wei dynasty, which began the period of the Three Kingdoms in the history of China.
"Yellow Turban" uprising- peasant uprising in China in 184-204. n. e. The rebels wore yellow bands on their heads, hence the name of the uprisings) The ideologist of the uprising was a preacher of the Taoist sect taipingdao("Way of Great Prosperity") was a magician and healer Zhang Jue who called for the overthrow of the Han Dynasty. The uprising was prepared systematically for ten years. In his sermons, Zhang Jue accurately named the day (it fell on April 4, 184) when the era of Great Prosperity will come on earth. On this day, as he predicted, “The Blue Sky (i.e., the Han Dynasty) will perish and the Yellow Sky (i.e., the kingdom of justice) will reign.” Zhang Jue called himself the Yellow Sky, acting as a messiah - the savior of mankind from the evil of the vicious world of the Blue Sky, Zhang Jue promised his adepts the protection of the Yellow Sky, salvation and longevity. Members of the sect underwent military training under the guidance of preachers, its detachments numbered 360,000 fighters. The uprising in a short time covered a significant part of the country. Throughout the year, government troops suppressed one hearth after another. Zhang Jue fell in battle. But the peasant masses did not stop fighting. Detachments of the "Yellow Turbans" united with the rebels of the "Black Mountains" (after the name of the Hei-shan area). In total, about 2 million people participated in the uprising, part of the rebels were slaves. It was not until 205 that the uprising was finally suppressed by the armed forces of the large feudal commanders Cao Cao, Liu Bei and others. The Yellow Turban uprising contributed to the fall of the Han dynasty and a temporary weakening of the exploitation of the peasants.
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Qin conquests
As already, after the reforms of Shang Yang, the kingdom of Qin turned into a powerful state. Since that time, the Qin rulers took the path of aggression. Using the internal contradictions of the ancient Chinese kingdoms and their civil strife, the Qin wang seized one territory after another and, after a fierce struggle, subjugated all the states of Ancient China. In 221 BC Qin conquered the last independent kingdom of Qi in the Shandong Peninsula. The Qin Wang took the new title "Huangdi" - Emperor - and went down in history as - "The First Emperor of Qin". The capital of the kingdom of Qin Xianyang was declared the capital of the empire.
Qin lacquer boat. From excavations in Hubei. 3rd century BC.
Qin Shi Huang did not limit himself to the conquest of the ancient Chinese kingdoms, he continued his expansion to the north, where the Xiongnu tribal union was taking shape. The 300,000-strong Qin army defeated the Xiongnu and pushed them back behind the Yellow River bend. To secure the northern border of the empire, Qin Shi Huang ordered the construction of a giant fortification - the Great Wall of China. He undertook conquests in South China and North Vietnam. At the cost of huge losses, his armies managed to achieve nominal subordination of the ancient Vietnamese states of Nam Viet and Au Lak.
The internal situation of the state
Qin Shi Huang extended the establishment of Shang Yang throughout the country, creating a military-bureaucratic empire headed by an autocratic despot. The Qin occupied a privileged position in it, they owned all the leading bureaucratic positions. Hieroglyphic writing was unified and simplified. The law established a single civil name for all full-fledged free people "black-headed". Qin Shi Huang's activities were carried out with drastic measures.
Terror reigned in the country. Everyone who expressed dissatisfaction was executed, according to the law of mutual responsibility, accomplices were enslaved. Due to the enslavement of the masses of prisoners of war and convicted by the courts, the number of state slaves turned out to be huge.
“Qin established markets for slaves and female slaves in pens along with cattle; governing his subjects, he completely controlled their lives, ”the ancient Chinese authors report, seeing this as almost the main reason for the rapid fall of the Qin dynasty. Long-distance campaigns, the construction of the Great Wall, irrigation canals, roads, extensive urban planning, the construction of palaces and temples, the creation of a tomb for Qin Shi Huang required enormous costs and human sacrifices - recent excavations have revealed the enormous scale of this underground mausoleum. The heaviest labor duties fell on the shoulders of the bulk of the working population.
Han Empire (2nd century BC - 3rd century AD)
In 210 BC, at the age of 48, Qin Shi Huang died suddenly, immediately after his death, a powerful uprising broke out in the empire. The most successful of the rebel leaders, a native of ordinary community members, Liu Bang rallied the forces of the popular movement and attracted Qin's experienced enemies in military affairs from hereditary aristocracy to his side. In 202 BC Liu Bang was proclaimed emperor and became the founder of the new Han Dynasty.
Archer of the Imperial Guard. Terracotta. End of the 3rd century BC. From the excavations of the tomb of Qin Shi Huang near Xi'an.
The first ancient empire of China - Qin lasted only a decade and a half, but it laid a solid socio-economic foundation for the Han empire. The new empire became one of the strongest powers of the ancient world. Its more than four centuries of existence was an important stage in the development of all of East Asia, which, within the framework of the world-historical process, covered the era of the rise and collapse of the slave-owning mode of production. For the national history of China, this was an important stage in the consolidation of the ancient Chinese people. To this day, the Chinese call themselves Hans, an ethnic self-designation originating from the Han Empire.
The history of the Han Empire is divided into two periods:
- Elder (or Early) Han (202 BC-8 AD)
- Younger (or Later) Han (25-220 AD)
Formation of the state of Liu Bang
Having come to power on the crest of the anti-Qin movement, Liu Bang abolished the laws of Qin, eased the burden of taxes and duties. However, the Qin administrative division and bureaucratic system of government, as well as most of the economic institutions of the Qin empire, remained in place. True, the political situation forced Liu Bang to violate the principle of unconditional centralization and distribute part of the land to his comrades-in-arms - the seven strongest of them received the title "wang", which has now become the highest aristocratic rank. The fight against their separatism was the primary domestic political task of Liu Bang's successors. The power of the Vans was finally broken under Emperor Wudi (140-87 BC).
In the agricultural production of the empire, the bulk of the producers were free communal farmers. They were subject to land taxes (from 1/15 to 1/3 of the crop), poll and household taxes. Men carried labor (one month a year for 3 years) and military (2-year army and annually 3-day garrison) service. Farmers made up a certain part of the population in the cities as well. The capital of the empire, Chang'an (near Xi'an) and the largest cities, such as Linzi, numbered up to half a million, many others - over 50 thousand inhabitants. Self-government bodies functioned in the cities, which were a characteristic feature of the ancient Chinese "urban culture".
Slavery was the basis of production in industry, both private and public. Slave labor, although to a lesser extent, was widely used in agriculture. The slave trade was booming during this time. Slaves could be bought in almost every city, they were counted in the markets, like working cattle, by the “fingers of the hands”. Shipments of chained slaves were transported hundreds of kilometers.
Spear tip. Shizhaishan. Han era.
Udi's reign
By the time of Wudi's reign, the Han state had turned into a strong centralized state. The expansion that unfolded under this emperor was aimed at seizing foreign territories, conquering neighboring peoples, dominating international trade routes and expanding foreign markets. From the very beginning, the empire was threatened by the invasion of the Xiongnu nomads. Their raids on China were accompanied by the deportation of thousands of prisoners and even reached the capital. Udi took a course for a decisive struggle against the Xiongnu. The Han armies managed to push them back from the Great Wall, and then expand the territory of the empire in the northwest and establish the influence of the Han Empire in the Western Territory (as Chinese sources called the Tarim River basin), through which the Great Silk Road passed. At the same time, Udi waged aggressive wars against the Vietnamese states in the south and in 111 BC. forced them to submit, annexing the lands of Guangdong and northern Vietnam to the empire. After that, the sea and land forces of the Han attacked the ancient Korean state of Joseon and forced it in 108 BC. recognize the power of Hanei.
The embassy of Zhang Qian (died in 114 BC) sent to the west at Wudi opened up to China a vast world of foreign culture. Zhang Qian visited Daxia (Bactria), Kangyue, Davan (Fergana), found out about Anxi (Parthia), Shendu (India) and other countries. Ambassadors from the Son of Heaven were sent to these countries. The Han Empire established ties with many states along the Great Silk Road - an international transcontinental route stretching for a distance of 7 thousand km from Chang'an to the Mediterranean countries. Along this path, caravans were drawn in a continuous line, according to the figurative expression of the historian Sima Qian (145-86 BC), "one did not lose sight of the other."
Iron, considered the best in the world, nickel, precious metals, lacquer, bronze and other art and handicraft products were brought from the Han Empire to the West. But the main export was silk, then produced only in China. International, trade and diplomatic relations along the Great Silk Road contributed to the exchange of cultural achievements. Of particular importance for Han China were crops borrowed from Central Asia: grapes, beans, alfalfa, pomegranate and walnut trees. However, the arrival of foreign ambassadors was perceived by the Son of Heaven as an expression of obedience to the Han Empire, and the goods brought to Chang'an were perceived as a "tribute" to foreign "barbarians".
Wudi's aggressive foreign policy required huge funds. Taxes and duties have increased greatly. Sima Qian notes: "The country is tired of continuous wars, the people are saddened, the reserves are depleted." Already at the end of Udi's reign, popular unrest broke out in the empire.
Wang Mang Rebellion and the Red Eyebrow Movement
In the last quarter of the 1st c. BC. a wave of slave uprisings swept the country. The most far-sighted representatives of the ruling class recognized the need for reforms in order to weaken class contradictions. Indicative in this regard is the policy of Wang Mang (9-23 AD), who carried out a palace coup, overthrew the Han dynasty and declared himself emperor of the New Dynasty.
Wang Mang's decrees prohibited the sale and purchase of land and slaves, it was supposed to allocate land to the poor by withdrawing its surplus from the rich community. However, three years later, Wang Mang was forced to cancel these establishments due to the resistance of the owners. Wang Mang's coin-melting and market-price rationing laws, an attempt by the state to intervene in the country's economy, also failed. The mentioned reforms not only did not mitigate social contradictions, but also led to their even greater aggravation. Spontaneous uprisings swept across the country. Of particular scope was the Red Eyebrow movement, which began in 18 AD. e. in Shandong, where the disasters of the population were multiplied by the catastrophic flood of the Yellow River. Chang'an passed into the hands of the rebels. Wang Mang was beheaded.
Rider squad. Painted clay. Shaanxi. First half of the 2nd c. BC.
Younger Han dynasty
The spontaneity of the protest of the masses, their lack of military and political experience led to the fact that the movement was led by representatives of the ruling class, who were interested in overthrowing Wang Mang and enthroning their protege. It was the offspring of the Han house, known as Guan Wudi (25-57 AD), who founded the Younger Han Dynasty. Guan Wudi began to rule the punitive campaign against the "Red Eyebrows". By 29, he managed to break them, and then suppress the rest of the centers of movement.
The scope of the uprisings showed the need for concessions to the lower classes. If earlier any attempts from above to limit private slavery and invade the rights of landowners aroused the resistance of the rich, now, in the face of a real threat of mass uprisings, they did not protest against the laws of Guan Wudi, which prohibited the branding of slaves, limited the owner’s right to kill slaves, and a number of measures aimed at reduction of slavery and some relief of the situation of the people.
In 40 AD In the second half of the 1st century, in the second half of the 1st century, skillfully using (and to a certain extent provoking) the Xiongnu split into northern and south, the empire began to restore Han dominion in the Western Territory, which under Wang Mang fell under the rule of the Xiongnu. The Han Empire succeeded by the end of the 1st century. establish influence in the Western Territory and assert hegemony on this segment of the Silk Road.
The Han governor of the Western Territory, Ban Chao, launched an active diplomatic activity at that time, setting the task of achieving direct contacts with Daqin (Great Qin, as the Hans called the Roman Empire). However, the embassy sent by him only reached Roman Syria, being detained by Parthian merchants.
Infantry squad. Painted clay. Shaanxi. First half of the 2nd c. BC.
Rise of the Han Empire
From the second half of the 1st c. n. e. intermediary Han-Roman trade is developing. The ancient Chinese first saw the Romans with their own eyes in 120, when a troupe of wandering magicians from Rome arrived in Luoyang and performed at the court of the Son of Heaven. At the same time, the Han Empire established links with Hindustan through Upper Burma and Assam and established maritime communications from the port of Bakbo in North Vietnam to the east coast of India, and through Korea to Japan.
In 166, the first "embassy" from Rome, as the private Roman trading company called itself, arrived in Luoyang along the southern sea route in 166. From the middle of the 2nd century, with the loss of the hegemony of the empire on the Silk Road, the foreign trade of the Han people with the countries of the South Seas, Lanka and Khanchipura (South India) began to develop. The Han Empire is desperately and in all directions rushing to foreign markets. It seemed that the Han state had never reached such power. About 60 million people lived in it, which was more than 1/5 of the world's population at that time.
Empire crisis
However, the apparent prosperity of the late Han empire was fraught with deep contradictions. By this time, there were serious changes in its social and political system. Slave-owning farms continued to exist, but the estates of the so-called strong houses were becoming more widespread, where often, along with slaves, the labor of “those who do not have their own land, but take it from the rich and cultivate it” was widely used. This category of workers found themselves in personal dependence on landowners. Several thousand such families were under the patronage of strong houses.
The area of arable land registered by the state was steadily declining, the number of the taxable population fell catastrophically: from 49.5 million people in the middle of the 2nd century. up to 7.5 million according to the census of the middle of the III century. The estates of strong houses became economically closed farms.
Funeral vestment of the wife of the emperor's brother Wudi from 2156 jade plates fastened with gold threads. Henan. 2nd century BC.
A rapid decline in commodity-money relations began. The number of cities compared to the border of our era has more than halved. At the very beginning of the III century. a decree was issued to replace cash payments in kind in the empire, and then the coin was officially abolished and silk and grain were introduced into circulation as commodity-money. From the second quarter of the 2nd c. almost every year chronicles note local uprisings - more than a hundred of them have been recorded in half a century.
Rise of the Yellow Turbans and the end of the Han Empire
In the context of a political and deep socio-economic crisis in the empire, the most powerful uprising in the history of ancient China, known as the Yellow Turbans, broke out. It was headed by the magician Zhang Jiao, the founder of a secret pro-Taoist sect that had been preparing an uprising for 10 years. Zhang Jiao created a 300,000-strong paramilitary organization. According to the reports of the authorities, "the whole empire accepted the faith of Zhang Jiao."
Wooden figurine of a rhinoceros. Gansu. Han era.
The movement broke out in 184 in all parts of the empire at once. The rebels wore yellow headbands as a sign of the victory of the righteous Yellow Sky over the Blue Sky - the unrighteous Han Dynasty. They destroyed government buildings, killed government officials. The uprising of the "Yellow Turbans" had the character of a broad social movement with an undeniable eschatological overtones. Acting under the religious guise of the teachings of the Way of Great Prosperity (Taipingdao), the Yellow Turban Movement was the first uprising of the oppressed masses with their own ideology in Chinese history. The authorities were powerless to cope with the uprising, and then the armies of strong houses rose to fight the Yellow Turbans and, together, they brutally cracked down on the rebels. To commemorate the victory, a tower of hundreds of thousands of severed heads of the "yellow" was built at the main gates of the capital. The division of power between the executioners of the movement began. Their internecine strife ended with the collapse of the Han Empire: in 220 it broke up into three kingdoms, in which the process of feudalization was actively going on.
Cultural achievements of the Han
scientific knowledge
The Han period was a kind of culmination of the cultural achievements of ancient China. On the basis of centuries of astronomical observations, the lunisolar calendar was improved. In 28 BC Han astronomers first noted the existence of sunspots. An achievement of world significance in the field of physical knowledge was the invention of a compass in the form of a square iron plate with a magnetic “spoon” freely rotating on its surface, the handle of which invariably pointed south.
The scientist Zhang Heng (78-139) was the first in the world to design a prototype of a seismograph, build a celestial globe, describe 2500 stars, including them in 320 constellations. He developed the theory of the Earth and the infinity of the Universe in time and space. Han mathematicians knew decimal fractions, invented negative numbers for the first time in history, and refined the meaning of the number π. Medical catalog of the 1st century. lists 35 treatises on various diseases. Zhang Zhongjing (150-219) developed methods of pulse diagnostics and treatment of epidemiological diseases.
Horse in a gallop. Bronze. From the burial of the commander. Gansu. Han era.
The end of the era of antiquity was marked by the invention of mechanical engines that use the power of falling water, a water-lifting pump, and the improvement of the plow. Han agronomists create essays describing bed culture, a system of variable fields and crop rotation, methods of fertilizing land and pre-sowing seed impregnation, they contain manuals on irrigation and melioration. The treatises of Fan Shenzhi (1st century) and Cui Shi (2nd century) summarized the centuries-old achievements of the ancient Chinese in the field of agriculture.
Ancient Chinese lacquer production is one of the outstanding successes of material culture. Lacquerware was an important item in the foreign trade of the Han Empire. Lacquer was used to coat weapons and military equipment to protect wood and fabrics from moisture, and metal from corrosion. They were trimmed with architectural details, items of grave goods, varnish was also widely used in fresco painting. Chinese varnishes were highly valued for their unique physical and chemical properties, such as the ability to preserve wood, resist acids and high temperatures (up to 500°C).
The Importance of Silk in Ancient China
Since the "opening" of the Great Silk Road, the Han Empire has become a world famous supplier of silk. China was the only country in the ancient world that mastered the silkworm culture. In the Han Dynasty, silkworm breeding was a domestic occupation of farmers. There were large private and state silk factories (some numbered up to a thousand slaves). The export of silkworms outside the country was punishable by death. But such attempts were nevertheless made. Zhang Qian, during his embassy mission, learned about the export of silkworms from Sichuan to India in a cache of bamboo staff by foreign merchants. And yet, no one managed to find out the secrets of sericulture from the ancient Chinese. Fantastic assumptions were made about its origin: Virgil and Strabo, for example, said that silk grows on trees and is “combed” from them.
Bull with a cart. Painted tree. Gansu. Han era.
Ancient sources mention silk from the 1st century BC. BC. Pliny wrote about silk as one of the most prized luxury goods by the Romans, because of which colossal sums of money were pumped out of the Roman Empire every year. The Parthians controlled the Han-Roman trade in silk, charging no less than 25% of its sale price for mediation. Silk, which was often used as money, played an important role in the development of international trade relations between the ancient peoples of Europe and Asia. India was also an intermediary in the silk trade. Relations between China and India develop until the Han era, but at this time they become especially lively.
the invention of paper
The great contribution of ancient China to human culture was the invention of paper. Its manufacture from the waste of silk cocoons began even before our era. Silk paper was very expensive, available only to the elite. The real discovery, which had a revolutionary significance for the development of human culture, was paper when it became a cheap mass material for writing. The invention of a publicly available method of producing paper from wood fiber is traditionally associated with the name of Cai Lun, a former slave from Henan who lived in the 2nd century, but archaeologists date the oldest samples of paper from the 2nd-1st centuries. BC.
The invention of paper and ink created the conditions for the development of the technique of prints, and then the appearance of the printed book. The improvement of Chinese writing was also associated with paper and ink: in the Han period, the standard style of writing Kaishu was created, which laid the foundation for the modern outline of hieroglyphs. Han materials and means of writing were, together with hieroglyphics, adopted by the ancient peoples of Vietnam, Korea, Japan, which in turn influenced the cultural development of Ancient China - in the field of agriculture, in particular rice growing, navigation, and artistic crafts.
Lacquer utensils with inscriptions: “Sir, taste the dish”, “Sir, taste the wine”. Hunan. Middle of the 2nd century BC.
Historical writings
During the Han period, the collection, systematization and commenting of ancient monuments is carried out. In fact, everything that remains of the ancient Chinese spiritual heritage has come down to us thanks to the records made at that time. At the same time, philology, poetics were born, the first dictionaries were compiled. Large works of artistic prose, primarily historical, appeared. The brush of the "father of Chinese history" Sima Qian owns the fundamental work "Historical Notes" ("Shiji") - a 130-volume history of China from the mythical ancestor Huangdi to the end of Wudi's reign.
Sima Qian strove not only to reflect the events of the past and present, but also to comprehend them, trace their internal pattern, "penetrate into the essence of change." Sima Qian's work sums up the previous development of ancient Chinese historiography. At the same time, he deviates from the traditional style of weather chronicles and creates a new type of historical writing. "Shiji" is the only source on the ancient history of the peoples neighboring China. An outstanding stylist, Sima Qian vividly and concisely gave descriptions of the political and economic situation, life and customs. For the first time in China, he created a literary portrait, which puts him on a par with the largest representatives of Han literature. "Historical Notes" became a model for subsequent ancient and medieval historiography in China and other countries of the Far East.
Ritual utensils. From excavations in Hebei.
Sima Qian's method was developed in the official "History of the Elder Han Dynasty" ("Han shu"). Ban Gu (32-93) is considered the main author of this work. The "History of the Elder Han Dynasty" is written in the spirit of orthodox Confucianism, the presentation strictly adheres to the official point of view, often differing in assessments of the same events from Sima Qian, whom Ban Gu criticizes for adherence to Taoism. "Han shu" opened a series of dynastic histories. Since then, according to tradition, each of the dynasties that came to power compiled a description of the reign of their predecessor.
Poetry
As the most brilliant poet among the galaxy of Han writers, Sima Xiangru (179-118) stands out, who sang the might of the empire and the most "great man" - the autocrat Wudi. His work continued the traditions of the Chu ode, which is typical for Han literature, which absorbed the song and poetic heritage of the peoples of South China. Ode "Beauty" continues the poetic genre begun by Song Yu in "Ode on the Immortal". Among the works of Sima Xiangru there are imitations of folk lyrical songs, such as the song "Fishing Rod".
Duck-shaped ceramic vessel. From excavations in Hebei.
The system of imperial administration included the organization of nationwide cults as opposed to aristocratic local ones. This task was pursued by the Music Chamber (Yuefu) created under Wudi, where folk songs were collected and processed, including “songs of distant barbarians”, and ritual chants were created. Despite its utilitarian nature, the Music Chamber has played an important role in the history of Chinese poetry. Thanks to her, the works of folk song art of the ancient era have been preserved.
Author's songs in the Yuefu style are close to folklore; for them, folk songs of various genres, including labor and love, served as the subject of imitation. Among the love lyrics, the creations of two poetesses stand out - “Lament for a Gray Head” by Zhuo Wenjun (2nd century BC), where she reproaches her husband, the poet Sima Xiangru, for infidelity, and “Song of my offense” by Ban Jieyu (1st century BC). BC), in which the bitter fate of an abandoned beloved is presented in the form of an abandoned snow-white fan. Yuefu's poetry reached its peak during the Jian'an period (196-220), which is considered the golden age of Chinese poetry. The best of the literary yuefu of this time were created on the basis of folk works.
Only in the rarest cases were songs preserved that expressed the rebellious spirit of the people. Among them are “East Gate”, “East of Pinling Mound”, as well as ditties of the yao genre, in which social protest sounds up to the call to overthrow the emperor (especially in the so-called tunyao, obviously slave songs). One of them, attributed to the leader of the "Yellow Turbans" Zhang Jiao, begins with a proclamation: "Let the Blue Sky perish!", in other words, the Han Dynasty.
A fragment of a funeral silk banner depicting the wife of Emperor Jindi. Hunan. Middle of the 2nd century BC.
By the end of the Han Empire, the content of secular poetry increasingly became anacreontic and fairy-tale themes. Mystical and fantastic literature is spreading. The authorities encourage theatrical ceremonies and secular performances. The organization of spectacles becomes an important function of the state. However, the beginnings of stage art did not lead to the development of drama as a kind of literature in ancient China.
Architecture
In the Qin-Han era, the main features of traditional Chinese architecture developed. Judging by the fragments of frescoes from the Han burials, the beginnings of portraiture appear in this period. The discovery of the Qin monumental sculpture was a sensation. Recent excavations of the tomb of Qin Shi Huang uncovered a whole "clay army" of the emperor, consisting of three thousand foot soldiers and horsemen, made in full size. This find allows us to speak about the appearance of portrait sculpture in the early imperial period.
Confucianism as a state ideology
From the time of Wudi, the transformed Confucianism, which turned into a kind of state religion, became the official ideology of the Han Empire. In Confucianism, ideas about the conscious intervention of Heaven in people's lives are reinforced. The founder of Confucian theology, Dong Zhongshu (180-115), developed the theory of the divine origin of imperial power, proclaimed Heaven the supreme, almost anthropomorphic deity. He initiated the deification of Confucius. Dong Zhongshu demanded "to eradicate all one hundred schools" except Confucian.
tower model. Glazed ceramics. Henan. 2nd century BC.
The religious and idealistic essence of Han Confucianism was reflected in the creed of Liu Xiang (79-8 BC), who argued that "spirit is the root of heaven and earth and the beginning of all things". Under the influence of the social and ideological processes taking place in the empire, Confucianism at the turn of our era split into two main sects:
- mystical, continuing the line of Dong Zhongshu (school of New Texts),
- and opposing it, which is more rationalistic in nature (the school of the Old Texts), of which Wang Mun acted as an adherent.
The state is increasingly using Confucianism in its own interests, intervening in the struggle of its various interpretations. The emperor acts as the initiator of religious and philosophical disputes, seeking to end the split of Confucianism. Cathedral of the end of the 1st century. AD formally put an end to the divisions in Confucianism, declared all apocryphal literature to be false, and established the doctrine of the New Texts school as the official religious orthodoxy. In 195 AD the state copy of the Confucian "Pentateuch" in the version of the New Texts school was carved on the stone. Since that time, the violation of the Confucian precepts, incorporated into the criminal law, was punishable up to the death penalty as "the gravest crime."
Secret Taoism and the penetration of Buddhism
With the beginning of the persecution of "false" teachings, secret sects of a religious and mystical persuasion began to spread in the country. Those who disagreed with the ruling regime were united by religious Taoism opposed to Confucianism, which dissociated itself from philosophical Taoism, which continued to develop ancient materialistic ideas.
At the beginning of the II century. Taoist religion took shape. Its founder is Zhang Daoling from Sichuan, who was called the Master. His prophecies about achieving immortality attracted crowds of the dispossessed who lived in a closed colony under his command, laying the foundation for secret Taoist organizations. By preaching the equality of all on the basis of faith and condemning wealth, the Taoist "heresy" attracted the masses. At the turn of II-III centuries. a movement of religious Taoism, led by the Five Measures of Rice sect, led to the creation of a short-lived theocratic state in Sichuan.
Chip players. Wooden sculpture. Gansu. Han era.
The trend towards the transformation of ancient philosophical teachings into religious doctrines, manifested in the transformation of Confucianism and Taoism, was a sign of profound socio-psychological changes. However, not the ethical religions of ancient China, but Buddhism, having penetrated into China at the turn of our era, became for the agonized late Han world that world religion that played the role of an active ideological factor in the process of feudalization of China and the entire East Asian region.
Wang Chong's materialism
Achievements in the field of natural and humanitarian knowledge created the basis for that takeoff of materialistic thought, which manifested itself in the work of the most prominent Han thinker (27-97). In an atmosphere of ideological pressure, Wang Chong had the courage to challenge Confucian dogma and religious mysticism.
In his treatise "Critical Reasoning" ("Lunheng"), a coherent system of materialistic philosophy is outlined. Wang Chong criticized Confucian theology from a scientific standpoint. The philosopher contrasted the deification of the sky with the essentially materialistic and atheistic assertion that "the sky is a body similar to the earth." Wang Chung supported his positions with intelligible examples, "understandable to everyone." “Some believe,” he wrote, “that the sky gives birth to five cereals and produces mulberries and hemp only in order to feed and clothe people. It means to liken the sky to a slave or slave, whose purpose is to cultivate the land and feed silkworms for the benefit of people. Such a judgment is false, it contradicts the naturalness of things themselves..
Fragment of wall painting. Liaoning. Han era.
Wang Chong proclaimed the unity, eternity and materiality of the world. Continuing the traditions of ancient Chinese natural philosophy, he recognized the finest material substance qi as the source of being. Everything in nature arises naturally, as a result of the condensation of this substance, regardless of any supra-mundane force. Wang Chong denied innate knowledge, mystical intuition, which the Confucians endowed the ancient sages, saw the way of knowledge in the sensory perception of the real world. “Among the beings born by heaven and earth, man is the most valuable, and this value is determined by his ability to know” he wrote. Wang Chong developed the idea of the dialectical unity of life and death: “Everything that has a beginning must have an end. Everything that has an end must have its beginning ... Death is the result of birth, birth contains the inevitability of death ".
He opposed the Confucian concept of the cultural exclusivity of the ancient Chinese, their moral superiority over supposedly ethically inferior "barbarians".
Ornamental figurines depicting mythical creatures. Gilded bronze, II-I centuries. BC.
On many specific examples, Wang Chong proved that customs, mores and human qualities are not determined by invariable innate properties. In this, he agreed with other Han thinkers who denied the fundamental differences between the "barbarians" and the ancient Chinese. Wang Chong was one of the most educated people of his time. He set broad educational goals, exposing from a rationalistic position the prejudices and superstitions common among the people.
Wang Chong's materialistic worldview, especially his doctrine of "naturalness" (tszyzhan) - a naturally necessary process of development of the objective world, played an important role in the history of Chinese philosophy. But in contemporary reality, Wang Chong's philosophy could not be recognized.
His creation was even persecuted for criticizing Confucius. Only a millennium later, his manuscript was accidentally discovered, giving the world the legacy of one of the most prominent materialists and educators of ancient times.
Brief conclusion
The Zhangguo-Qin-Han era for the historical development of China and all of East Asia, in principle, had the same meaning as the Greco-Roman world for Europe. The ancient Chinese civilization laid the foundations of a cultural tradition that can be traced further throughout the centuries-old history of China up to the New and modern times.
China Radio International
The Han Empire did not emerge immediately after the 206 B.C. The Qin Dynasty ended. The founder of the Han Dynasty, Liu Bang (Gaozu), assumed the title of emperor in 202 BC.
In 199 BC construction began on the Weiyangung palace complex in the new Han capital of Chang'an. Gaozu strengthened the central government and set the course for restoring the country's prosperity. In China, 143 inheritances were created. Each of the owners of the inheritance had the title "hou". The destinies and the title were inherited. From 195 to 188 BC the country was ruled by one of Liu Bang's sons --- Hui-di. After him, power passed into the hands of Liu Bang's widow --- Empress Lu, who died in 180 from a mysterious illness. Then another of the sons of Liu Bang, Wen-di, ascended the throne. He reigned for 23 years and revived Confucian traditions. After him, Liu Bang's grandson ruled. Jing-di (156-141 BC), who continued to pursue a policy of restoring the country's welfare, reduced taxes and fees in order to rapidly develop the economy.
He pacified the Huns (Xiongnu), extinguished the rebellions of the specific princes. The state power of the Han Dynasty increased. In 141 BC. Jing-di was replaced by Emperor Wu-di. Wu-di put a talented commander at the head of the Chinese army, who was ordered to discover the Huns, force them to fight and then destroy them. Intoxicated by their relentless success, the Huns became less cautious. A few months later, the Chinese army again won a major victory, and these successes had a great impact on the morale of the army, strengthened its fighting spirit and self-confidence. Then Wu-di decided to transfer the war to the territory of the enemy. He formed a large army of horse archers and put an experienced cavalry commander in charge of it. The appearance of a large army of Chinese cavalry stunned the Huns. They were forced out of Inner Mongolia. Wu-di, having stopped the war, began to develop agriculture. Then Emperor Zhao-di continued to develop the country's economy.
An attempt was made to weaken the wealthy "powerhouses". Power in the country was seized by Wang Mang --- father-in-law of Emperor Ping-di and regent for his young son. This happened in 8 AD. Wang Mang declared himself the founder of a new Xin Dynasty. He actively pursued reforms, was cruel and amassed many opponents. In addition, uprisings broke out in the country. Under the blows of the "Red Eyebrows" uprising in 232, the capital of Chang'an fell, and Wang Mang was killed. However, the Han generals defeated the rebels and nominated a new emperor, Liu Xiu, from their midst.
The Eastern Han Dynasty (Second Han Dynasty --- 25-220) is one of the powerful empires in Chinese history. The people during the Western Han Dynasty lived in abundance. It should be noted that from the moment when Wudi from the Western Han accepted the proposal of the outstanding thinker Dong Zhongshu “Respect only Confucianism, destroying other schools”, it was Confucianism that became the strategy of governing the state.
Thanks to the stability of politics and the economy, trade, culture, crafts and natural sciences developed rapidly. As the level of science and technology improved, the efficiency of production in the handicraft industry increased, which contributed to the flourishing of trade. The Eastern Han Dynasty through the great Silk Road established an exchange in culture and trade with the countries of Western Asia.
The Eastern Han dynasty reigned from 25 to 220.
Second Han Dynasty (Eastern Han: 25-220). In 23, the capital of the Xin Dynasty, Chang'an, fell. In 25, Liu Xiu, a representative of the House of Han, defeated Wang Mang (father-in-law of Emperor Ping-di and regent under the young Ying-di, who captured inⅧ in. power and proclaimed himself the founders of the new Xin Dynasty) and conquered power. Luoyang became the capital of the Eastern Han Dynasty. By order of Emperor Guan-U-di, a reform of the old policy was carried out, and the form of government was streamlined. Guan-U-di appointed six shangshu (ministers, high dignitaries) who managed state affairs. He also checked all the land holdings and distributed all the fields among the farmers, giving them the opportunity to feed themselves in order to stabilize the life of the people. In the middleⅠ in. thanks to the efforts of the emperors Guan-Wu-di (25-27), Ming-di (58-75) and Zhang-di, the Eastern Han dynasty flourished; production and culture developed; particular successes were achieved in foreign policy.
During the first period of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the country became stable due to the strengthening of the central government and unification. In this regard, its economy, culture, science and technology have risen to a new level. In 105, Cai Lun invented paper and paper production began. Since then, China has abandoned the use of bamboo writing boards. Papermaking technology became one of the four great inventions and discoveries of ancient China and spread all over the world. In the field of natural sciences, during the Eastern Han Dynasty, China achieved great success. For example, Zhang Heng produced scientific instruments, invented the armillary sphere and tellurium, a device for visually demonstrating the movement of the Earth around the Sun. In addition, the world-famous doctor Hua Tuo appeared. He is the first surgeon who operated on patients under anesthesia.
Essay on Chinese history
SECOND HAN DYNASTY (25-220)
PLAN
1. Calm in the state
2. Cyclical economic development
3. Administrative structure and social ladder of the empire
4. Events of political struggle and popular movements
5. The historical significance of the Han period
Literature
1. Calm in the state
Having become emperor and taking the name of Guang Wudi, the new ruler of the same Han dynasty actually continued the transformations initiated by the unsuccessful Wang Mang, aimed at strengthening the power of the state and weakening the positions of strong houses, the local power elite. Guan Wudi considered his main concern to be the need to give all farmers fields and give them the opportunity to feed themselves, giving the treasury a modest share, officially reduced at first to 1/30 of the crop. In order for every plowman to get his own field, almost all the land that was in the hands of the state after the reforms was distributed
Wang Mang, including a significant part of the fields of those strong houses that resisted the reforms and whose lands were confiscated. In parallel with this, the officials of the new dynasty carried out vigorous measures to put in order the irrigation system of the country, which had suffered greatly during the years of crisis and uprisings. Criminal convicts and the majority of private slaves were freed from the slave state, who were also given land plots.
All these measures played a positive role, and in a short time the Second Han Dynasty brought the country out of a state of severe crisis and provided it with the basis for prosperity, which manifested itself in various fields - in the field of agricultural technology (for example, the spread of the bed system and plowing with oxen, the use of a new agricultural systems), irrigation, trade (including along the Great Silk Road) and, finally, foreign policy (wars with the Huns, development of distant southern lands, etc.). Considerable successes were also achieved in the field of science and culture - the flourishing of mathematics (the treatise "Mathematics in Nine Chapters", summing up all the knowledge of the ancient Chinese in the field of operations with numbers, including negative ones, as well as the beginnings of geometry and algebra), the creation of hardly not the world's first seismograph, advances in urban planning and architecture, including the ability to build buildings with several floors, or such an important innovation for a country that respects the written text as the invention of paper.
In a word, a series of reforms, skillfully carried out by the first emperor of the second Han dynasty, Guan Wu-di (25-27) and his successors, especially Ming-di (58-75), yielded results and contributed to the stabilization of the empire, the flourishing of its production and culture. , the successes of both domestic and especially foreign policy. Suffice it to mention the successful campaigns of the famous Chinese commander and diplomat Ban Chao, who in the 70s. 1st century managed with a small detachment to subjugate to Han China a significant part of the small state formations located along the Turkestan part of the Great Silk Road (the Chinese called these lands the term "Si-yu" - the Western Territory), which not only promoted trade with foreign countries, but also significantly strengthened the position empire in its opposition to the Huns (Xiongnu).
2. Cyclical economic development
So, the desired stability has finally come to the suffering country. The time has come, if not for utopian Harmony and Order, then at least for peace and contentment. However, this did not last too long. Already at the turn of the I-II centuries. the situation in the empire began to deteriorate. In order to understand the reasons for this (let us recall that something similar happened with the first Han dynasty after Wu Di; similar processes were also characteristic of almost all subsequent dynasties of imperial China), it is necessary to consider the features of the Chinese dynastic cycle, which manifested themselves very clearly. from the first imperial dynasty - Han.
The cycles in question usually began and ended in an environment of severe economic crises, social turmoil, and political destabilization, most often manifested outwardly in the form of uprisings by the poor and the dispossessed. Regardless of whether the crisis ended with the victory of the rebels or their defeat, in any case, the new dynasty that replaced the collapsed one (even if it was foreigners invading from the north) began its rule with reforms. The mechanism of the cycle that began with reforms and ended with another crisis, for all its standardity, has always been, in general, quite complex, because a variety of factors, the strength and impact of which were by no means the same, exerted their influence on it. Therefore, each cycle had its own characteristics and different duration. However, their common feature was the interaction of a number of economic, socio-demographic and ecological processes, the resultant of which created a quite definite critical impulse. Usually it all started with violations in the field of agriculture and the traditional norms of the existence of a communal village, which turned out to be the starting point of the crisis.
How exactly did it look like? We have already said that since the reforms of Shang Yang in the kingdom of Qin and Shi Huang, administrative and social corporations from artificially created five- or ten-yards have been planted throughout China. During the period of the empire, these corporations included both poor and very rich households, including the so-called strong houses, and each within the five-yards was obliged to be responsible for neighbors on the principle of mutual responsibility. And although this system did not always act harshly, it was always remembered when it was necessary to strengthen the position of the power of the center. In practice, this meant that just during periods of weakening of this power, i.e. in moments of crises and even stagnation that usually preceded them, the communal village found itself in a state of destruction: everyone was responsible for himself, as a result of which the poor easily became a victim of a rich neighbor.
During the period of reforms or the emergence of a new dynasty, i.e. in the midst of a severe crisis or after it was overcome, as was the case in the Han during the time of Liu Bang, Wang Mang or Guan Wu-di, a radical redistribution of land took place. The traditional Chinese state from ancient times and almost until the 20th century. rightly considered itself the supreme subject of power-property and centralized redistribution, so that not a single reformer ever had a shadow of doubt about his right, even the obligation to wisely dispose of the land, namely, to make sure that every plowman had his own field and paid taxes accordingly. Land was allocated to all able-bodied farmers. Moreover, officials sought every opportunity to increase their number, for which the dependents were released or additional allotments were given to households, including sometimes slaves. These lands in the empire were traditionally called lands ming tian(people's), which, however, should not be misleading: it was not the right of the peasants to freely dispose of their allotments, but the right of the state to distribute these allotments, and, if necessary, redistribute them among the community members.
Along with the lands ming tian there was also a category of service lands - guan tian. They were intended as a reward for officials and the nobility, who were given a certain amount of these lands in the form of feeding with the right to use tax revenues from the peasants who cultivated these lands. All lands were usually distributed among the farmers, taking into account their location, fertility and general availability in a particular county. On average, a family had about 100 mu until the late Middle Ages. It was believed that the fields were distributed among the peasants more or less evenly and for a long period of time, and it was at this time that five- and ten-yards with mutual responsibility usually functioned. However, stability of this kind, as a rule, did not exist within the framework of a dynastic cycle for too long, most often for no more than a century.
The laws of the market, albeit limited in its capabilities, acted inexorably, and over time, other factors began to have an impact, primarily demographic and environmental. The essence of the process boiled down to the fact that the increasing population (its average value for China from the turn of the new era until the Ming dynasty fluctuated within 60 million, but during the crisis it usually decreased by three to four times, and in moments of prosperity it could increase significantly ) already in the first decades after the reforms absorbed all the free arable land, and this led to the fact that the rich in the countryside, by hook or by crook, began to take away their plots from their poor neighbors. Formally, it was forbidden to sell the land, but in fact it was possible to mortgage your plot or simply transfer it to a wealthy neighbor, remaining on your former land as a tenant. Sooner or later, but the transaction acquired legal force, and the treasury lost the taxpayer. As for those who acquired peasant lands, they usually had close ties with the district authorities and either enjoyed tax privileges or paid off higher taxes. This, of course, led to the fact that revenues to the treasury decreased.
3. Administrative structure and social ladder of the empire
The apparatus of power, in an effort to maintain the volume of tax revenues, due to which it existed, illegally increased the exactions from those who could give something else. The result was the ruin of an increasing number of farmers and a deepening crisis in the spheres of the economy (the decline of the economy, the death of the poorest peasant households), social relations (the discontent of the peasants, the emergence of robber gangs, rebellions and uprisings) and, finally, politics (the inability of the ruling elite to cope with the crisis, the dominance of temporary workers, a clear weakening of the effectiveness of the apparatus of power). This is where the dynastic cycle usually ended, and after the crisis and the accompanying uprisings or enemy invasions, the country found itself in a state of devastation, but at the same time a kind of catharsis, a kind of purification that opened the way to rebirth. Sometimes the cycle was lengthened due to well-timed and successfully carried out reforms that “blew off steam” and extended the existence of a particular dynasty, sometimes for a long time, for a century and a half. But in the end, the situation repeated itself, and another crisis swept away the dynasty.
The socially cleansing function of the dynastic cycle was very important for the empire as a viable structure, because it was precisely this function that guaranteed the stability of the system as a whole, even at the cruel cost of the suffering of millions. The change of dynasties was always convincingly explained by references to the theory of the Mandate of Heaven, and the realities were quite consistent with the letter and spirit of this ancient theory: who, if not bad rulers who have lost their de, were guilty of a crisis in the country?! Who better than them to pay for this with the loss of the mandate, which was transferred by Heaven into new hands?
Until the turn of the I-II centuries. the second Han empire was on the rise. Its administrative apparatus functioned successfully, the problem of recruiting which also deserves serious attention. In addition to the practice of nominating the wise and capable from the field, dating back to ancient times (for which all officials were responsible and which were most actively used by people from rich families and powerful houses), competent administrators were trained in special schools in provincial centers and especially in the capital (the Tai Xue school). ), where graduates were subjected to strict examination and divided into categories. Of importance, especially in the Han, was the practice of patronage, personal recommendation, for which the guarantors were responsible. Representatives of the highest nobility were in a special position, before whom all roads were easily opened. Later, such forms of career as the right to “shadow” (higher dignitaries could contribute to the promotion of one of their close relatives) or even the purchase of a rank, degree and position, though not from among the highest, gained some popularity.
The administration of the empire, formed in this way, had several levels. The highest level consisted of metropolitan dignitaries who managed the chambers (administrative, control, palace) and ministries (ceremonies, ranks, public works, military, financial, etc.). These departments also had their representations at the middle level of provinces and districts. The lower level of power was usually represented by only one nomenklatura official, the head of the county (counties in the empire usually numbered about one and a half thousand), whose functions included organizing management based on the rich and influential local elite. And although officials, as a rule, were not appointed to the places where they were from (moreover, they usually moved on average once every three years, so as not to grow in position and not get bogged down in abuses), elements of corruption in the empire always existed, and in moments of stagnation and crises increased a hundredfold. True, there were also control inspectors who opposed them, endowed with enormous powers. This has always served as a serious counterbalance to corruption, not to mention the fact that the traditional norms of Confucianism were irreconcilable to their violators, which also largely limited the appetites of those in power, prompting them to act cautiously and comply with the measure.
All these institutions, which took shape over the centuries, were worked out by practice and existed during the Han period in their most elementary and imperfect form, nevertheless contributed to the strengthening of the administration of the empire. It was thanks to them and the underlying Confucianism with its strict and uncompromising principles that at least the first half of the dynastic cycle had periods of stability and prosperity. They, to the best of their ability, held back destructive phenomena during the second half of the cycle, stagnation and crisis, and within each dynasty, these processes proceeded depending on the specific situation. During the reign of the second Han dynasties, events developed in such a way that already from the beginning of the 2nd century, when the process of land absorption and, accordingly, the strengthening of the positions of all the same strong houses, became noticeably intensified and more clearly manifested, the rulers of the empire were not only unable to counteract the crisis, but they also frankly withdrew from state affairs, leaving their management to temporary workers from among the relatives of the empresses and influential eunuchs who were in collusion with them, whose political weight and real significance were constantly growing.
4. Events of political struggle and popular movements
As a result, the court of the empire began to drown in intrigues, eunuchs and temporary workers, organized in cliques, sought to destroy each other and enthrone the next emperor from among their proteges. Naturally, the Confucian bureaucracy, which was gaining political power, but remote from the court, could not reconcile itself to this. Its representatives in the capital complained about the excessive spending of the court and the money-grubbing of temporary workers and eunuchs. In the provinces, dissatisfaction with relatives and proteges of court eunuchs and temporary workers, who felt impunity and committed arbitrariness, sharply increased. In an active political struggle in the middle of the II century. students of Confucian schools, especially the capital's Tai Xue, joined in. The already mentioned movement of “pure criticism” unfolded in full force in the country, aiming to glorify the names of the honest and incorruptible, opposing them to the reckless court. In response to this, influential eunuchs and courtiers attacked the ideological leaders of the Confucian opposition with cruel repressions. In the 70s. 2nd century the confrontation took on an open character, and the temporary workers clearly prevailed over their opponents.
While the political struggle at the top of the empire developed and became more and more acute, the crisis phenomena in the economy took on their completed form. Peasant lands passed into the hands of powerful houses, the number of tax-paying farmers was reduced, and, accordingly, the flow of taxes to the treasury decreased. The ruined community members joined the ranks of the dissatisfied, and there was less and less order in the country. In such a situation, many of the rural population preferred to give up their rights to land and go under the protection of those rich fellow villagers who could provide themselves and them with reliable protection in an increasingly alarming time. In the coming period of stagnation and confusion, and besides, against the background of sharp clashes at the court, the situation in the empire became unstable and uncontrollable. It was during these years that the social discontent of the people began to gain strength, which this time took the form of a sectarian-religious movement under the slogans of Taoism.
The philosophical doctrine of Lao Tzu and Chuang Tzu at the turn of our era was more and more definitely transformed into an inherently religious search for salvation and prosperity. Of course, Taoism as a doctrine in imperial China did not lose its religious and philosophical idea, which ultimately boiled down to merging with Tao, to achieving Tao. But at the mass national level, high philosophy was more and more clearly overwhelmed by religious and sectarian ideas, which were based on the natural desire of everyone to prolong life and achieve immortality (both through magical elixirs and talismans, and as a result of severe asceticism, dematerialization of the body) , and the age-old peasant ideals of great equality in a simplified organized society, free from pressure from the state and its bureaucracy.
The ideas of equality were reflected in the Taiping Ching treatise, which in turn became the foundation of the Taoist sect Taipingdao. The head of this sect, Zhang Jue, who became famous for the art of healing and, according to legend, saved many people during the years of the epidemic, at the turn of the 70s and 80s. 2nd century unexpectedly found himself at the head of a numerous and politically active movement of supporters of the new “yellow” sky, which in 184 (the beginning of the next 60-year cycle, which played the role of a century in China) was supposed to replace the “blue” sky of the Han Dynasty mired in vices. The supporters of the sect, who covered their heads with yellow scarves, planned to raise an uprising at this sacred moment, which, of course, soon became known to everyone in China.
The popular uprising, or rather, the rumors about its preparation were like a bolt from the blue for the ruling elites, mired in internecine struggle. Accusing and suspecting each other of collaboration with the rebels, they eventually almost united in the fight against the new enemy. With the uprising of the "yellow bandages", which broke out, as expected, at the beginning of 184, the authorities coped quickly enough, especially since its suppression began even before the fatal moment arrived. And although individual detachments of the rebels who retreated to the far regions of the empire continued to remind themselves of themselves for quite a long time, the main result of the failed uprising was that it, as it were, put an end to the protracted confrontation at the top and forced the most active and energetic forces in the empire to resort to the tactics of open struggle. which practically meant the end of the Han Dynasty.
Not only army generals intervened in the struggle at the highest level, but also the most powerful of the powerful houses in the field. During the hostilities, Luoyang was completely destroyed and burned, and the court moved to Chang'an, the ancient capital of the country.
New leaders came to the fore in the political struggle, among whom one of the representatives of the local elite, Cao Cao, became the most influential. He contributed to the return of the emperor to Luoyang and thus became the pillar of the throne. Soon it was Cao Cao, who held the emperor almost as his hostage, who managed to defeat his rivals. At the same time, naturally, he skillfully used his advantageous political face as the defender and savior of the empire and its symbol, the emperor. Having achieved the actual position of dictator already at the turn of the 2nd-3rd centuries, Cao Cao ruled the agonized empire for quite a long time. He frankly relied on force, and it was with the help of military force that he succeeded.
Here it should be noted that, relying on strength, a skilled politician and a highly educated intellectual from among the Confucian elite, Cao Cao skillfully flirted with scholars- shea, using their authority, he maintained the traditions of conversations in the style of "pure criticism", attracted prominent intellectuals of the empire to govern the country. But he clearly foresaw the coming collapse of the Han Dynasty, moreover, he himself prepared it. Having become the highest official and having appropriated all conceivable ranks and titles, Cao Cao accustomed his entourage to the fact that soon power in the empire would pass to a new dynasty. Before his death in 220, he unequivocally compared himself with the great Chou Wen-wang, making it clear that he entrusted his son Cao Pei with the task of completing the work he had begun and founding this dynasty. This is exactly what Cao Pei did. In 220, shortly after the death of his father, he seized the Han throne and founded the Wei dynasty. However, at the same time, two other contenders for the imperial throne founded two more states, Shu and Wu, in the southwest and southeast of the country. Subsequently, a millennium later, she was colorfully sung in the novel of the same name.
5. The historical significance of the Han period
Assessing the four-century rule of the Han Dynasty and the role of the “yellow bands” uprising in the collapse of the centralized empire, which was replaced by a four-century period of political fragmentation and almost incessant wars, not to mention the invasion of nomads, it is necessary to note the main thing: created by Confucius and adapted by the efforts of Wudi and Dong Zhongshu to the needs of a vast empire, the official ideology not only withstood all the hard tests that befell the country, but also proved its viability in practice. Moreover, despite the promotion of the military function and, accordingly, some belittling of the role of bureaucratic bureaucracy, despite the invasion of nomads and the long process of barbarization of the northern part of the country, finally, despite the strengthening of the positions of religious Taoism and Buddhism, which penetrated China just at the time described, with With its powerful intellectual potential, the Confucian tradition continued to be the foundation of Chinese civilization. Destructive processes were going on at the upper level of the empire, millions died in the fire of wars and barbarian invasions, but those who continued to live under these conditions remained not just Chinese, but, above all, Confucians. And the leading force in this regard was the same local elite, the same layer of educated shea, who kept and developed the tradition.
The Confucianization of the local elite during the Han period, followed by the constant concentration of its best representatives in the bureaucratic administration, led to the emergence of a fundamentally new quality, i.e. to the transformation of the ancient servants- shea in the zealous guardians of the great achievements of centuries of self-improving civilization. It was on this basis that a rigid stereotype was developed, a kind of Confucian genotype, the carriers of which were the aristocrats of culture and which with honor passed all the tests of timelessness. Ultimately, he, this genotype, played a decisive role in the revival of the great empire with its successfully functioning bureaucratic administration, the composition of which was recruited from top to bottom mainly through a competitive system of state examinations, which only a few and the most capable of among all the same Confucians withstood - shi.
Literature
1. Gray John Henry. History of Ancient China / A.B. Waldman (translated from English). - M.: Tsentrpoligraf, 2006. - 606s.
2. Fitzgerald Charles Patrick. History of China / L.A. Kalashnikov (translated from English). - M.: Tsentrpoligraf, 2005. - 459 p.
3. Arkhipov Dmitry Borisovich. Brief World History. Scientometric analysis / RAS; Institute of Analytical Instrumentation. - St. Petersburg: Nauka, 1999. - 189s.
The Han Empire did not emerge immediately after the 207 B.C. The Qin Dynasty ended. China has for many years been the scene of a fierce political struggle between contenders for the throne. The strongest among them were the newly created political formations of the Xiang and Han houses. The struggle between them ended in 202. BC, when the Han Liu Bang (Gaozu) who took the title of emperor, actually seized power in the entire Celestial Empire.
Gaozu was a native of the people, so advisers (from among the Confucians) helped him manage the empire. However, they could do little in the conditions of constant wars and rebellions. Therefore, Liu Bang was in no hurry to carry out reforms. He failed to completely recreate the centralized administrative system of government. Part of the territory came under the actual control of local military leaders, who recognized the power of the emperor.
Gaozu abolished the slave state of those Chinese who were forced to sell themselves under the threat of begging and starvation and allowed them to return to their former place of residence. Thus, he raised the influx of labor into the village. Taxes were reduced by 5-8 times. The effectiveness of the policy of Gaozu and his descendants in the agricultural and economic spheres helped to increase the Chinese population to 60 million people.
The emperors of the Han Dynasty pursued an active foreign policy. At first, this activity was largely forced. In the middle of the first millennium BC. in a sedate zone to the north of the main ethnic territory of the ancient Chinese - the basin of the Yellow River - a community is formed, the self-name of which became "Xiongnu" or "Xiongnu". With the development of social inequality and the emergence of nomadic nobility, the Xiongnu begin to feel the need for some items of prestigious consumption that they themselves did not produce. This circumstance was the main reason why the society of nomads - Xiongnu is dependent on the exchange with the farmers of the Yellow River basin. Sometimes such an exchange was peaceful in nature, more often it took the form of robbery and military raids. The structure of the Xiongnu association was taking shape, which was growing into a primitive state with its own army. At the head was Shanuyu, who was subordinate to 24 leaders. His army consisted exclusively of cavalry units.
The Great Wall of China reduced the danger of Xiongnu invasions. But the Xiongnu tribal alliance that then rallied constituted a serious threat to Han China. In addition, the supreme leader of the Xiongnu Shanyu Mode (209-174), along with the traditional lightly armed cavalry, introduced heavily armed cavalry into the army and thus strengthened the military power of the Xiongnu. Mode conquered a vast territory that reached the river. Orkhon in the north, r. Lyaohe - in the east and to the basin of the river. Tarim is in the west. After in 205 BC. e. the Xiongnu took possession of the Ordos, their incursions into the territory of the Han Empire became regular.
In 200 BC. e. they surrounded the army of Liu Bang near the city of Pingcheng. Negotiations ended with a conclusion in 198 BC. e. "a treaty based on peace and kinship" Liu Bang actually recognized himself as a tributary of the shanyu. The terms of the treaty were hard on China and considered shameful in subsequent tradition. However, this agreement, in fact, had favorable consequences for the young Han state, contributed to a certain normalization of relations between the empire and its formidable neighbor, which was superior in strength at that time, and served to stabilize the situation on the northern borders of the country. According to the historian of the 1st c. BC. Ban Gu, with this Xiongnu peace treaty, Liu Bang "intentioned to secure the peace of the frontier lands" and apparently succeeded in doing so for a while. However, the entire treaty of 198 did not stop the Xiongnu incursions. Their detachments penetrated far into the depths of Han China, threatening even the capital city of Chang'an. The foreign policy of this emperor was not very successful.
The question of an active struggle against the Xiongnu and the necessary reforms of the Han army in connection with this arose even under Wen-di. Under Jing-di, the imperial herds were significantly enlarged and the state pastures necessary for the creation of heavily armed cavalry were expanded, and the reorganization of the Han army was begun largely along the lines of the Xiongnu. Under Wu, the reform of the army was completed, which was facilitated by the iron monopoly introduced by Wu. In 133 BC. the peace treaty with the Xiongnu was broken and Wu Di headed for a decisive struggle against them.
Using the "border districts" as a military foothold, Wu-di launches active operations against the Xiongnu. Han troops in 127 BC ousted the Xiongnu from the Ordos. Fortifications and fortresses were erected along the banks of the Yellow River bend. The famous Han military leaders Wei Qing and Huo Qubing in 124 and 123 BC. pushed the Xiongnu away from the northern borders of the empire and forced the Shanyu to move his headquarters to the north from the Gobi Desert. This is how the nature of the war gradually changes: defensive at the beginning, it becomes for the Han a means of capturing more and more new territories. The first contacts of the Han with the countries of the “Western Territory” (as the territory of modern Xinjiang and Central Asia was called at that time) were also connected with military operations against the Xiongnu.
In search of allies in the fight against them as early as 138 BC. Zhan Qian was sent to the northwest to find the Massagetae tribes, defeated by nomads and moved to the west. At first, he was captured by the Xiongnu for a long thirteen years, but then he managed to escape and fulfill the assignment assigned to him. He failed to persuade the Massagetae tribes to go to war with the Xiongnu. However, during his journey, he visited Davan (Fergana), Kangjue (or Kangjue - the middle and lower reaches of the Syr Darya and the adjacent regions of the Central Asian Mesopotamia), lived for about a year in Dasya (Bactria). From local merchants, Zhang Qian learned about Shendu (India) and distant western countries, including Anxi (Parthia), as well as that these countries are aware of China as a “land of silk”, which foreign merchants willingly traded.
Now the top priority in foreign policy for the Han Empire was the capture of trade routes between the empire and these countries, the establishment of regular trade relations with them. In order to implement these plans, the direction of campaigns against the Xiongnu was changed, and Gansu became the main center of attack, since the trade road to the west, the famous Great Silk Road, ran here. Huo Qubing in 121 BC ousted the Xiongnu from the pasture lands of Gansu and cut off the Qiangs, the tribes of the Tibetan Highlands, from the allied with them, opening up the opportunity for the Han Empire to expand into East Turkestan. On the territory of Gansu up to Dunhuang, a powerful line of fortifications was built and military and civilian settlements were founded. Gansu became a springboard for further struggle for the mastery of the Great Silk Road, along which caravans were drawn from Chang'an immediately after the empire's positions were consolidated in Gansu.
To ensure safe routes for caravans, the Han Empire used diplomatic and military means to extend its influence to the oasis city-states of East Turkestan along the Silk Road. In 115 BC. an embassy headed by Zhang Qian was sent to the Usuns. It played an important role in the development of trade and diplomatic relations between Han China and Central Asia. During his stay with the Usuns, Zhang Qian sent envoys to Davan, Kangju, to the Yuezhi and to Daxia, Anxi, Shengdu and other countries, who were the first representatives of China in these countries. The Chinese discovered a hitherto unknown world for themselves: for the first time they received reliable information about Bactria, Parthia, Ferghana and other states of Central Asia. During 115-111 years. BC. trade links were established between the Han Empire and Bactria.
The Great Silk Road from Chang'an went northwest through the territory of Gansu to Dunhuang, where it forked into two roads (north and south of Lop Nor Lake) leading to Kashgar. From Kashgar, trade caravans followed to Ferghana and Bactria, and from there to India and Parthia and further to the Mediterranean. From China they brought iron, considered “the best in the world” (Pliny the Elder), nickel, gold, silver, lacquerware, mirrors, and other handicrafts. But, above all, silk fabrics and raw silk. Rare birds and animals, plants, valuable types of wood, furs, medicines, spices, incense and cosmetics, jewelry, precious stones and other luxury items were delivered to China, and slaves were also imported. It was at this time that some previously unknown agricultural crops (grapes, melons) penetrated into China.
Under U-di, the empire established ties with many states in India, Iran, and countries further west as far as the Mediterranean. According to Sima Qian, more than ten embassies were sent to these countries annually, which accompanied large trade caravans; ambassadors from close countries returned after a few years, and from distant countries, sometimes after ten years. It is known about the arrival of embassies to the Han court from a number of Western countries, including twice from Parthia. One of them brought to the Chinese court eggs of large birds (ostriches) and skillful conjurers from Lixian (obviously from Alexandria in Egypt).
The Great Silk Road played a huge role in the development of diplomatic, economic and cultural ties between the Far East and the countries of the Middle and Near East, as well as the Mediterranean. However, everything that was delivered to Chang'an along the Great Silk Road was considered by the Han emperor and his entourage as a tribute to the "barbarians", the arrival of foreign embassies with offerings was perceived as an expression of obedience to the Han Empire. The militant emperor (translation of the temple name Wudi) was overwhelmed by a global plan to expand the empire by ten thousand li and spread the power of the Son of Heaven throughout the world.
The reformed Confucianism, recognized as the state religion, proclaimed the doctrine of the absolute superiority of the "Middle State" (i.e. the Han Empire) - the center of the universe - over the outside world of the "outer barbarians", whose disobedience to the Son of Heaven was considered a crime. The campaigns of the Son of Heaven, as the world organizer of the universe, were declared "punitive", foreign policy contacts were treated as criminal law. The states of the Western Territory (East Turkestan) were forced to “pay tribute” with gifts from the Han court and the military force of the Han garrisons stationed in the fortresses of the river basin. Tarim. The cities of the Western Territory often refused the "gifts of the Son of Heaven", soberly considering them as an attempt of gross confusion in their internal affairs, a hidden intention to deprive them of the benefits of transit trade, which naturally developed along the Great Silk Road. With particular zeal, the Han ambassadors acted in Fergana, which held key positions on an important section of the Silk Road and owned "heavenly horses" - stately horses of the western breed, which were important for the heavily armed Wudi cavalry. The Davan people stubbornly resisted the harassment of the Han court, "hid their horses and refused to give them to the Han ambassadors" (Sima Qian). In 104 BC In the distant "punitive campaign" on the city of Ershi (the capital of Ferghana), a huge army of commander Li Guangli set out, who was awarded the title of "Ershi winner". The campaign lasted two years, but ended in failure. In 102 U-di undertook a new grandiose campaign to Ferghana. The horses were brought to the imperial stables, but they failed to conquer Davan. The campaigns in Fergana, which cost the empire extreme tension, ended, according to Wu himself, in the complete failure of the plans of the Han aggression in the West. The political dominance of Han Chinese in East Turkestan turned out to be unstable, short-lived and very limited. “The Han Dynasty rushed to the distant Western Territory and thereby brought the empire to exhaustion,” wrote the author of one early medieval history of China.