Ancient China briefly and most importantly in facts, Chinese dynasties and culture. Ancient Chinese culture Ancient China concepts

“Ni-nan,” the cry of a swift was heard between the rafters of the bridge...
But by whom or what was his peace and sleep disturbed?
— A Taoist dispute between two friends whose speech is so unclear,
Looking at Mount Zhishan over a glass of wine...
(Liu Lisun. Poet of the Song era. “Poems on the Screen”)

State name China translated into Russian as “middle state”. The word comes from the name of the Khitan tribe, which ruled in the northern part of the state at the time when contacts between the country and European states first began to be established. Marco Polo gave the country the name Catai when he traveled to Asia. This is how Northern China came to be called. Southern China, conquered by the Mongols by that time, was called “southern barbarians” (Manji) by Marco Polo. The word Catai entered the English language as Cathai.
Today the official name of the country is the People's Republic of China (PRC). The name was changed in 1949 with the rise of the Chinese Communist Party to power. The form of government in the country is a socialist republic.
The total population according to 2007 data is 1.317 billion people. This is the largest population of a single country in the world. The bulk of the population is made up of ethnic Chinese (self-identified as Han) - about 92% of the population. In total, 56 nationalities live in China.
Territory of China 9,596,960 sq. km (in terms of territory, China is second only to Russia, the USA and Canada). The length of the land strip, excluding islands, is 18,000 km. China includes about 5,000 islands. The largest islands of China are Taiwan and Hanan.
The capital of the state is Beijing.
The official currency is the yuan.
The official language is Chinese, English is also spoken in Hong Kong, and Portuguese is spoken in Macau.

Religion of China

The main religions of China are Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism.
Confucianism arose in the 6th-5th centuries. BC. in China. The original name of the teaching is zhu. The founder of the doctrine is Confucius. Confucianism supports the cult of the earth and the cult of ancestors, and also accepts Heaven as the highest principle. The pinnacle of human development in Confucianism is the achievement of Tao. Tao represents the highest substance and replaces the concept of “God”. The main idea of Confucianism is the spiritual and social self-improvement of man. Education, constant spiritual development, respect for traditions and rules established in society are considered important. Morality and ethics in Confucianism are primary, and religion is secondary. Confucianism is rational and strives not only to show a person the path to achieve the Tao, but also pays attention to politics, ethics, social life, and the desire for an ideal structure of society. Confucianism does not teach about the origin of man, but teaches what a person should be from a moral point of view.

Taoism is the doctrine of Tao (the path), a Chinese religion that contains elements of traditional philosophy and science, as well as shamanism, mysticism and fortune telling. The emergence of Taoism presumably dates back to the 4th-3rd centuries. BC. The main sources of Taoism are the mystical cults of the kingdom of Chu, as well as the magical practices of the kingdom of Qi. The founders of Taoism are Emperor Huangdi and the sage Lao Tzu. Taoism contains a complex hierarchy of deities and demons, the pantheon is headed by the God of Heaven Shang Di, the founder of the religion Lao Tzu is also included in the pantheon. Taoism has never been considered an official religion. Just like in Confucianism, the main idea in Taoism is the achievement of Tao. Of great importance is the concept of wu wei, which is an understanding of when action is necessary and when inaction is necessary.
Buddhism is the doctrine of spiritual awakening, originating from the ideas of Buddha Shakyamuni. The emergence of Buddhism dates back to the 6th century. BC. The basis of Buddhism is beneficial truths: suffering, the causes of suffering, the state of liberation, the path to liberation. Buddhism is divided into Mahayana (Great Vehicle) and Theravada (teaching of the elders). In China, mainly in Tibet, Mahayana is practiced. The Great Vehicle is divided into the Great Vehicle (Mahayana) and the Lesser Vehicle (Hinayana). The teachings of the Lesser Vehicle are limited to the pursuit of individual enlightenment, while the Great Vehicle preaches universal enlightenment. Man in Buddhism is one of the particles of the universe, one of the executors of the universal world law. At the heart of the entire universe lies an ethical mechanism, which is set in motion by good and evil deeds. A person's life is just one moment in a long chain of rebirths. The world in Buddhism is illusory, just as all its pleasures are illusory. Everything is governed by the law of cause and effect - karma. The condition for each subsequent rebirth is the cumulative result of all previous ones. Death in Buddhism is not a final process, but a transition to another state. Personality is not a unity, but only a collection of dharmas (energy particles). The human soul also disintegrates into separate elements. Personality consists of five main elements: physicality, sensation, desires, ideas, cognition. Reincarnation of the same person is possible only if all the energy particles that compose it come together again. The soul is an individual consciousness that carries within itself the entire spiritual world, transforms with each new rebirth and strives for rebirth.

History of China from ancient times to the twentieth century

It was a very long way to the Jiangnan Tower - I walked it alone!
Only a bad month and the cold of dawn entered the Hua Qing Palace.
Only the whistling west wind decided to climb the Dynasty Tower;
Under the vault of the Changyang Chamber, the dull sounds of rain are heard...
(Wang Jian, poet of the Tang Dynasty. “Ode to the Hua-Qing Palace”)

Ancient China

In the 1st millennium BC. On the territory of modern China there were seven powerful kingdoms - Chu, Qin, Wei, Zhao, Han, Qi and Yan. Period from 481 to 221 BC. in the history of ancient China is called the period of warring states. During this period, the preconditions were created for the formation of an empire, which, at its greatest territorial expansion, extended from the Gobi Desert to the South China Sea, if we consider the extent from north to south, and also from the Liaodong Peninsula to the Pamir Mountains from east to west. The empire took shape towards the end of the 3rd century BC. and existed in this form until the end of the 2nd century. AD, after which it disintegrated.
The Warring States period was a time of successful development of productive forces because iron processing techniques were mastered. Until the 6th century. BC. Ancient China was still in the Bronze Age. The tools used in crafts and agriculture were primitive.
Iron tools, which began to be used in agriculture, contributed to its widespread development. Chinese agriculture used the plow, sickle, scythe, shovel, hoe and other tools.
The Chinese practiced deep plowing and used organic fertilizers. However, plow farming spread slowly and unevenly. It received relatively wide use at this time only in the north of China.
Serious irrigation work began on loess soils in the Yellow River basin. Large canals, dams and dams were created. This was primarily due to military and transport purposes, but the canals were also used for soil irrigation. A huge number of ditches were diverted from each canal, carrying water to the fields. Canals specially designed for irrigation also began to be built.
Agriculture was the main occupation in the economic life of the ancient Chinese kingdoms. In Northern China, wheat, sorghum and millet were mainly grown, and in Southern China, rice was mainly grown. Gardening (especially the cultivation of mulberry trees), as well as vegetable gardening, developed.
Cultivation of the land was a communal activity, not just slave labor. Agricultural production relied on the efforts of free farmers. Agriculture was considered an occupation worthy of honor and respect.
With the mining of iron and the skills to process it, crafts began to develop. Iron was used to make tools and weapons. The kingdoms of Chu and Han became famous for their swords, Zhao for their spades, and the Qin for their pikes and forts. By the 3rd century. BC. Iron tools and weapons became widespread and began to replace bronze and copper ones.
At the same time, the production of copper and bronze products, such as mirrors, vessels, ornamental details of chariots, and weapons, was developing. Weaving (especially silk weaving), ceramics, woodworking and lacquer crafts are developing, and painting on silk is flourishing.
Writing technology is being actively improved, construction is developing, which leads to the construction of magnificent palaces of kings and nobility, cities and defensive structures. On the northern borders of the kingdoms of Qin, Zhao and Yan, walls were built to defend against raids by nomadic tribes, which later became parts of the Great Wall of China.

Shipbuilding is developing successfully, especially in the coastal kingdoms. The Chinese invent the compass, which was first used for overland travel, and then began to be used by sailors.
V-III centuries BC. were marked by an increase in trade turnover within the kingdoms, as well as strengthening trade ties between the kingdoms. Commercial ties were established with neighboring tribes. The share of slave labor increased. There were several categories of slaves, designated by the terms nu, bei, tun, shi, fu, jie, pu, li. Slaves were divided into private and public, and the share of private slavery at this time increased significantly. Prisoners of war remained the main source of slaves. State slavery increased due to those convicted of crimes. Also, poor people, tramps and homeless people began to be enslaved. With the ruin of the community members, debt slavery developed, which later became the main source of private slavery. The slave trade in non-Chinese slaves developed. Slave labor was used in heavy work, construction, crafts and crafts, as well as in agriculture.
The emergence of Confucianism, Taoism and Fajia dates back to this time.
There was a progress in natural sciences and ideological sciences. Astronomy, known in the territory of the Chinese kingdoms since ancient times, developed. Elementary knowledge of anatomy and medicine appeared. Natural philosophy and literary creativity developed.

Early Middle Ages

The beginning of the medieval era in China was associated with the invasion of barbarians. Various nomadic tribes living to the north and west of China penetrated far into the interior of the country. Northern China was subjected to especially numerous invasions. Part of the North Chinese nobility was forced to leave their lands and emigrate to South China, where the influx of barbarians was less strong. The result of the barbarian invasions was, first of all, the political fragmentation of China into many small states, partly headed by barbarian leaders with their squads, partly (in the south) by representatives of the southern Chinese nobility of the semi-tribal, semi-slave-owning type. Period from 420 to 589 in the history of China became a period of many northern and southern dynasties.
The barbarians failed to destroy the state organization of slaveholding China. But their invasion still had some social consequences. Chinese slavery was not completely destroyed, but it was dealt a significant blow. The settled barbarians increased the number of the so-called free peasantry. Ordinary peasant warriors began to become dependent on those military leaders who managed to seize the largest number of lands, gradually turning them into serfs. It was during this period that Chinese estates, called zhuang-yuan, began to spread, which were no longer of a slave-owning, but of a feudal-serf character. Among the Chinese themselves, strong houses stood out, i.e. the richest and most powerful families, who rose above ordinary members of the clan and also became larger landowners, exploiting their impoverished relatives as dependent peasants. However, remnants of tribal relations persisted in China for a very long time. Back in the 10th and 11th centuries, serfs officially called themselves children and relatives of their master landowners.
The first attempt at political unification of China in the early Middle Ages was that of the Sui Dynasty. The founder of the Yangjin dynasty, or Yandi, was the head of the barbarian squads who served in one of the northern dynasties. In 589, Yangjin subjugated Northern and Southern China and conquered Annam. Under him, the irrigation system was restored and partly expanded. In particular, the Grand Canal was dug, connecting the Yellow River with the Yangtze River. About a million peasants gathered from different parts of China were involved in the construction of this canal. But the reign of the Sui dynasty turned out to be short-lived, and the unification of China itself under this dynasty was still fragile. Local power was in the hands of the local nobility. The intensifying raids of the Turkic tribes in the west required more forces from the empire, which it did not have enough.

In 618, one of the Western princes named Gaozu, half-Turkic by origin, seized power in the empire, marking the beginning of a new Tang dynasty.
The Tang Empire ruled China for about 300 years, from 618 to 907. The capital of the dynasty was the city of Chang'an (today Xi'an). The most brilliant representative of this dynasty was Gaozu's successor, Taizong (626-649). As a result of a series of wars, Taizong significantly expanded the borders of the empire. The territory of China, including dependent lands, vassals of the emperor, extended in the north to the Amur and Khingan, in the south to India and Siam, in the east to Korea (which Taizong also tried to capture), in the west almost to Iran. The vast empire under Taizong acquired the features of a complex bureaucratic monarchy, governed by numerous imperial officials at the center and locally.
Under Taizong, special knowledge was introduced for officials. All officials were divided into nine ranks. The central administration finally took shape in the form of six departmental chambers or ministries (ministries of officials, taxes, military, criminal courts, public works, religious ceremonies). Local governors were appointed. The emperor managed to turn the local nobility into officials, who received a number of social and official privileges thanks to their subordination to the center.

Under Taizong, a verification of land ownership rights was carried out, and the background of state lands on which state peasants sat, subject to many taxes and duties, was significantly increased. For their allotment, peasants were required to pay a tax in grain, a tax in handicrafts, and, in addition, perform heavy state corvee from 20 to 50 days a year. The bureaucratic nobility took possession of a significant part of the land; the possessions of some of the largest officials were tens of times greater than the possessions of one peasant family.
The Tang Empire continued to maintain its position as the largest state in Asia under Taizong's successors. Among them, the patroness of Buddhism, Empress Wuhou (689-705), especially stood out. In the VII-VIII centuries. China conducted intensive foreign trade with the Arab Caliphate, India, Siam and Annam. But in the 8th century, a deep crisis of the Tang Empire was already revealed. The peasants, crushed by taxes, levies, and all kinds of government duties, became poor and were forced to lead the most miserable lifestyle. Frequent epidemics due to famine claimed hundreds of thousands of peasant lives. The peasant plots themselves decreased in number, as they were systematically seized by powerful houses - larger farmers, officials, moneylenders. The decrease in the number of state peasants had an adverse effect on the income of the imperial treasury. At the same time, the process of feudalization strengthened the local nobility and gave rise to centrifugal aspirations among the imperial governors and generals themselves. The turning point in the history of the Tang dynasty was the uprising of the commander-in-chief An Lu-shan. In 785 he marched against the emperor with 120 thousand troops. In 786, An Lu-shan managed to capture the imperial capital of Chang'an. The emperor fled and only the next year suppressed the uprising with the help of hired barbarians. Following An Lu-shan's speech, uprisings of governors took place in Southern China, which also required great efforts from the emperor to suppress them.
The plight of the peasants led in the second half of the 9th century to the largest peasant uprising of 874-883. The uprising was led by a soldier of the imperial guard, a former small salt merchant Huang Chao. The Chinese peasant uprising of 874-883, which took place almost simultaneously with the Zinj uprising in the Baghdad Caliphate, is striking in its duration, mass scale, and energy. It was also not devoid of some organization, which allowed it to achieve major successes for a certain time. The uprising began in the northern provinces of Shandong and Hebei. Then it penetrated into Central China in Henan Province. Already in 874-875, Huang Chao had about 100 thousand armed peasants. In 879, Huang Chao made a campaign against Southern China, where he took the richest port of Canton. The rebels seized all the goods of numerous foreign merchants. In the hot climate of the south, a severe epidemic began among Huang Chao's soldiers. Huang Chao retreated north to the Yangtze River. Despite the consequences of the epidemic, his army continued to increase and by 880 numbered 250-300 thousand people. In 881, Huang Chao took Chang'an and proclaimed himself emperor under the name Da Qi. The peasant emperor expressed his social program through the mouth of his chief minister, who declared that Da Qi wanted nothing more than to benefit the common people. Huang Chao stayed in Chanan for two and a half years. In 883, the emperor of the Tang dynasty returned to the capital with the help of barbarian hordes - Uighurs, Tanguts and other northwestern nomads. The steppe barbarians mercilessly exterminated Chinese peasants. These bloody predators are popularly called “black crows.” Huang Chao himself, forced to flee from Changan, died the following year in Henan province, killed by one of his associates.
The Peasant War of 874-883 resulted in the death of many feudal lords and major officials. As a result, the number of state peasants increased again. The end of the Tang Dynasty was predetermined by a powerful peasant movement. The emperors of this dynasty ruled for some time after the suppression of the uprising. But their power no longer extended to all of China. In the north, at the beginning of the 10th century, a large barbarian state of a union of Khitan tribes was created, which captured Manchuria, part of Mongolia and part of Northern China. The capital of the new state was the city of Yangjing, later known as Beijing or Beiping.
In 907, the reign of the Tang dynasty ended. China has entered a period of complete fragmentation. In 960, China was unified under the rule of the Sun Dynasty. Its founder was Zhao-Kuan-Yin, one of the northern Chinese military leaders who won several victories over the Khitans. The capital of the new dynasty was initially the city of Changan. Later the center was moved south to Hangzhou.
The Song Empire was weaker than the Tang Empire. The unification of China under the Song Dynasty itself was not complete. Both in the north and in the south, some of the provinces did not recognize the authority of the Song emperors. The Turkic, Mongolian and other western nomadic tribes also did not submit to the empire, posing an ever-growing threat to its borders. The Song emperors waged wars with the Khitans, Korea, and Annam. But the results of these wars were not sufficiently certain to bring these countries under China's control. However, during the Song Dynasty, China's international ties strengthened again. Large foreign trade developed not only with Central Asia, India and Indochina, but also with Korea, Japan and Indonesia.
The class relations of the Song Empire in the 11th century led to deep antagonism, reminiscent of the times of the last Tang emperors. The number of state peasants, which increased slightly after the uprising of 874-883, decreased again. In the 11th century, the state received taxes from only half of the lands, since the other half of the lands were seized by privileged officials - feudal lords. The peasants were forced to pay huge sums in interest for their debts to moneylenders year after year. The role of the latter was often played by the officials themselves, who forced the peasants to take loans from them under the most severe usurious conditions. The situation of the peasants was becoming dire. Hunger strikes, epidemics, and the extinction of entire villages and regions became a kind of chronic phenomenon. The peasant movement again threatened to turn into a large peasant war on an all-Chinese scale. The desire of the imperial government to prevent a new peasant war and restore the shaken state finances was reflected in the rather radical reforms of one minister of the Song Dynasty, Wang An-shih.

At first, Wang Anshi (1021-1086) was one of the provincial officials. In the provinces, he could become closely acquainted with the most glaring facts of the poverty of the population, the arbitrariness of officials and the domination of moneylenders. Having risen to the post of imperial minister, Wang An-shih in the period 1068-1073. held several events of a financial, economic and social nature. First of all, he conducted a new land census and taxed the lands of the serving nobility, who by this time had almost stopped paying land taxes. Next, Wang An-shi freed the peasants from state corvee, replacing it with a cash tax. Peasants were obliged to pay land taxes partly in products, partly also in money. To avoid hunger strikes, Wang An-shi organized a system of state grain barns, from which the population was given bread in times of famine. In order to suppress usury, Wang An-shi created a state bank where peasants could receive loans at low interest rates. Interesting were Wang An-Shih's attempts to organize state trade, partly using the tax fund, partly by the state purchasing products from merchants. Wang An-shi tried to carry out a major reform in military affairs. He intended to replace the mercenary army with universal conscription. The main army was supposed to be the peasant militia. Every three households had to supply one infantryman, every ten households - one cavalryman.
Wang An-shih's reforms met sharp opposition from officials and feudal lords. In 1075, Wang An-shih was dismissed. His plans were considered “dangerous” for the state, although his goal was to streamline the feudal state, freeing it from the most harmful elements.
In the 12th century, the position of the Sunn Empire did not improve. In 1126, due to the danger of invasions by northern peoples, the emperors had to move the capital to the south, to Hangzhou. Since 1127, the Sun dynasty has already controlled southern China. Northern China became part of the new large state of Jin, which absorbed the former Khitan state. At the beginning of the 13th century, Northern China was conquered by the Mongols. But in the southern part of the empire that remained subordinate to the emperor, there was constant unrest. During the period 1127-1132, 93 mass uprisings were recorded in official chronicles. In a reduced form, limited to southern China, the Sunn Empire lasted until 1279, when it was conquered by Genghis Khan's grandson Kublai Khan. Kublai founded a new Mongol dynasty, called the Yuan in Chinese. Thus, China was included in the system of the Mongol states of Central Asia for a long time.
Chinese culture of the period VI-XI centuries. was very well developed. It was significantly superior in its development to contemporary European culture in many respects. In China, irrigated and partly garden farming was practiced. The production of rice, cotton, tea, and raw silk was already the basis of Chinese agriculture. A lot of iron, copper, gold, and silver were mined in China. Chinese crafts achieved great success during the Tang Dynasty. Chinese porcelain, Chinese silk and cotton fabrics, various iron and copper products, together with tea and raw silk, constituted the main items of Chinese export. In China in the 11th century there were over 2 thousand cities. Some of them, such as Canton and Hangzhou, each had one million inhabitants.
The Chinese have highly developed science. Already in ancient times they knew writing (hieroglyphic), they were the first to invent writing paper. The Chinese were the first to begin to practice book printing, however, in its simplest form - in the form of cutting out book text on wooden boards and then printing it on paper. In China, at the beginning of the 8th century, the official government newspaper “Capital Bulletin” was born, which existed until the beginning of the 20th century.
The Chinese studied mathematics, astronomy, geography, and history. They are credited with the invention of the compass and gunpowder. In 754, the Hanling Academy of Sciences was organized in China, which is the world's oldest scientific institution on a national scale. China was famous for its chronicles. More than 500 volumes of chronicles remain from the Song Empire alone. China had large libraries containing hundreds of thousands of manuscripts. In a number of cities there were higher schools where future government officials were supposed to study. The examinations for the title of mandarin included a requirement of knowledge, in addition to the science of government, also of philosophy (mainly in the form of Confucianism) and literature. Thanks to the great linguistic diversity of China, as well as as a result of intensive connections with neighboring countries, philology, the compilation of dictionaries, and the study of grammatical and syntactic forms have received great development in China.
Chinese literature was already represented by classical works in the early Middle Ages. During the Tang period, two poets stood out in particular: Li Bo (699-762) and Du Fu (712-770). The first was the author of numerous lyrical poems, in which he reflected a purely secular, cheerful, epicurean-materialistic worldview. The second wrote in a more solemn style, processing in his poems the rich material of folk mythological and heroic epics.
China in the Middle Ages did a lot for the development of architecture and fine arts. Chinese buildings - palaces, temples, towers, city gates - were distinguished by less bulkiness compared to Indian ones, lightness and elegance of decoration. They were created from a wide variety of materials - wood, marble, iron. Their decorations included rich carvings, porcelain, and gold. The roofs of imperial palaces and the houses of the city's rich were often covered with gold sheets.
Painting reached a high level of development in medieval China. In addition to beautiful easel painting, the art of drawing, engraving, woodcut, wood burning, etc. has become widespread. Each household item of the ruling classes amazed with its artistic execution. Various products made of porcelain, bronze, ivory, wood and stone created world fame for the art and hard work of Chinese master craftsmen, who often spent years and even decades of their lives on the production of individual artistic objects.

China in the XI-XV centuries

The Mongol monarchy, created first in the north of China under Kubilal (1259-1294), spread to central and then to southern China. In 1728, the city of Hangzhou, the capital of the former Sunn dynasty, was taken. In 1279, southern China was completely conquered. Since 1264, the new dynasty was called the Yuan Dynasty.
The Mongol conquest was as difficult for China as it was for other countries in Asia and Europe. Continuing for several decades (if we count the campaigns of Genghis Khan as the beginning), it cost China countless sacrifices of people and property. The Mongols devastated Chinese fields and partly turned them into pastures for their herds. Cities and villages were subjected to merciless plunder. Heavy taxes were imposed on the Chinese people. The new Mongol officials were even more cruel than the old Chinese mandarins. But the Mongols themselves were already subject to strong Chinese influence in the 13th century. They mastered the Chinese language, Chinese writing, and adopted the entire system of Chinese government. On the other hand, thanks to China's inclusion in the system of Mongol states, China was able to take part in international trade again, and even to a greater extent than it had under the previous national dynasties of Tang and Sun. Iranian, Arab, Uzbek, and Indian merchants appeared in China. According to the Venetian traveler Marco Polo, who visited China under Khubilai, Chinese silk, porcelain, iron and copper were exported to all corners of the world. Continuing their wars of conquest outside China, the Mongol khan-emperors sold their plunder in China. Possessing unlimited despotic power and a large labor force for captives, the Mongols carried out large construction of new roads and canals. They also patronized the development of Chinese industry, which provided such valuable exports. But the economic and political benefits were enjoyed mainly by the Mongolian nobility and the Turkic and Iranian feudal lords and merchants attracted by the new dynasty. The old Chinese bureaucracy and the Chinese merchants felt disadvantaged. The situation of the broad working masses of China not only did not improve, but over the decades, as bureaucratic-fiscal oppression and feudal exploitation intensified, it became increasingly worse. In the 16th century, there were repeated palace conspiracies against the Mongol emperors. In wider circles of the population, national revolutionary organizations were created with the goal of liberating the country from foreign domination. In 1351, in the provinces of Henan and Shandong, there was a revolt of the red turbans, prepared by an alliance called the “White Lily”. In 1356, red turbans threatened the very capital of the Mongol dynasty - Beijing. In the 60s of the 14th century, uprisings against the Mongols already took place in most Chinese provinces. The main driving force of the national movement was the peasantry. One of the leaders of the peasant rebel army, Zhu Yuan-cheng, was proclaimed emperor (1368). He took the name Hong Wu. The new dynasty he founded was called the Ming dynasty. She ruled China from 1368 to 1644. Its capital was initially the city of Nanjing, but then the center was moved again to the city of Beijing.
The new dynasty, which emerged from the lower ranks of the people, initially pursued a policy that somewhat alleviated the situation of the working people. Thus, tax lists were revised in order to distribute taxes more evenly. As a result of the confiscation of the lands of the Mongol nobility, the number of state peasants increased significantly. More than once Hong Wu issued decrees on the collection of arrears. At the end of the 16th and in the first half of the 15th centuries, irrigation work was intensively carried out in the country. The government patronized the development of crafts in the country. The tax burden was somewhat weakened in relation to urban artisans. But at the same time, the peasant emperor did not intend to make any social revolution. Large landownership and privileged officials were preserved, although at first they were subject to some restrictions. Quite soon, the strengthened dynasty undertook aggressive campaigns aimed at seizing new lands, as well as expanding Chinese foreign markets. Even under Hong Wu, the emperor's power extended to Korea. Under his successors, Annam was conquered and military expeditions were carried out to Indonesia, Indochina, and Malacca. Some of the petty rulers of these countries recognized the supreme power of the Chinese emperor. The Chinese began to move to Indochina and Indonesia. In the 16th century, the Ming Empire no longer had to attack, but defend its own borders. In the west it was threatened by the Mongols. In 1550, one of the descendants of Genghis Khan with a large army approached Beijing and burned its suburbs. In the second half of the 16th century, China had to wage a tense struggle against Japanese aggression. Nevertheless, the Ming Dynasty found the strength to repel the samurai, who were driven out of the continent at the very end of this century.
From the beginning of the 16th century, Europeans began to penetrate into China. Portuguese ships were the first to arrive there in 1516. In the 40s of the 16th century, the Portuguese founded several colonies on the coasts of China. But by the beginning of the 50s, they were all destroyed by the local population, outraged by the extortion of the colonialists. Only in Macau, captured in 1557, did the Portuguese manage to gain a stronger foothold. In the second half of the 16th and early 17th centuries. The Spaniards, Dutch, English, and French appeared in China. But the Ming government did not allow any deep penetration of foreigners into the interior of China. The trade turnover with China in the 16th century among European merchants was insignificant when compared with trade in India and Indonesia. The second half of the 16th century saw the first Russian relations with China.

China in the 16th-17th centuries

China in the 18th-19th centuries

By the end of the 18th century, trade between China and European and Asian countries increased again. The Chinese sold tea, porcelain, and silk to Europe, but did not purchase any European goods, preferring to receive silver for their goods. The British began to import opium from India to China, gradually introducing the local population to opium smoking. The coastal regions of China became especially dependent on opium supplies. In the 19th century, the Opium Wars broke out in China.

The first Opium War in China took place in 1840-1842 between Great Britain and China. Great Britain defended its interests in trade, including the opium trade. The reason for the outbreak of war was the arrest of opium smugglers in China and the destruction of their cargo. Great Britain won the war, mainly thanks to the actions of its fleet. On August 29, 1842, the Treaty of Nanjing was signed, which secured Britain's victory in the war and also established China's obligation to pay an indemnity of $21 million and transfer Hong Kong Island to Great Britain. The war marked the beginning of a long weakening of China, oppression by foreign powers and depopulation of the local population.
The Second Opium War took place from 1856 to 1860 between China on one side and Great Britain and France on the other. Great Britain and France demanded the possibility of unrestricted trade and the admission of their ambassadors to Beijing. The reason for the outbreak of war was again the arrest of opium smugglers on a British ship assigned to Hong Kong. The war again ended in the defeat of China; on October 25, 1860, the Treaty of Beijing was signed, according to which China pledged to pay Great Britain and France 8 million liang, as well as expand their trade zone. According to the treaty, Great Britain ceded the southern part of the Kowloon Peninsula.
In 1894, China went to war with Japan. The Sino-Japanese War lasted until 1895. The main reason for the war was Japan's claims to control Korea and Manchuria, which at that time were vassals of China. China lost this war, and the Treaty of Shimonoseki was signed on April 17, 1895. According to this agreement, Korea gained independence from China, Taiwan, the Penghuledao Islands and the Liaodong Peninsula were ceded to Japan. Japan also received the opportunity to build industrial enterprises in China and import industrial equipment into the country.
The consequence of the Sino-Japanese War and the signed Treaty of Shimonoseki was a triple intervention by France, Russia and Germany. On April 23, 1985, these countries turned to Japan demanding the return of the Liaodong Peninsula to China, fearing Japanese control over Port Arthur. On May 10, 1985, Japan returned the Liaodong Peninsula to China, however, at the same time increasing the amount of indemnity assigned for China's loss of the Sino-Japanese War.
In 1897, German Chancellor Wilhelm II obtained Nicholas II's consent to establish a German naval base at Jiaozhou in Shandong. In November 1897, the Chinese killed German missionaries in Shandong. In response, Germany captured Jiaozhou. The Chinese had to lease Jiaozhou from Germany for 99 years and allow Germany to build two railways in Shandong, as well as a number of mining concessions.
In 1898, in June, a period called the “hundred days of reform” began in China. The Manchu Emperor Zai Tian recruited a group of young reformers to develop reforms that would allow China to leap forward in its development. The reforms affected the education system, railways, factories, agriculture, the armed forces, domestic and foreign trade, as well as the state apparatus. In September 1898, a palace coup took place, led by Empress Dowager Cixi. The coup was successful and all reforms were canceled.

China in the twentieth century

The 20th century in China began with the Yihetuan Uprising in May 1900. During the uprising, 222 Chinese Christians were killed and the Catholic Cathedral of Petang was besieged. On June 21, 1900, Empress Cixi declared war on Great Britain, Germany, Austria-Hungary, France, Italy, Japan, the United States and Russia. The countries agreed to jointly fight against the rebels. On February 8, 1904, the Russian-Japanese War began with the liberation of Manchuria by Russian troops on Chinese territory. This war ended in the defeat of Russia.
In 1911, the Wuchang Uprising began in China, which resulted in the Xinghai Revolution, which lasted from 1911 to 1913. The Qing Dynasty was overthrown and China was proclaimed the Republic of China. Tibet came under British influence. On February 12, 1912, the first president of China was proclaimed - Yuan Shikai, who had previously been the prime minister and commander-in-chief of the Chinese army. In 1913, after Yuan Shikai suppressed uprisings in the central and southern provinces, a dictatorship was established in the country.

When World War I began, China declared its neutrality and the inadmissibility of military action on its territory. However, Japan launched military operations on the territory of Shandong Province, a German colony. Japan managed to achieve the seizure of German territories and take control of the entire province.
In 1915, China was again proclaimed a monarchy, and Yuan Shikai as emperor. However, already in 1916, Yuan Shikai died. After his death, China began to disintegrate into military fiefdoms led by militaristic factions that began active relations with other countries, especially Great Britain and Japan.
In 1912, the Kuomintang Party was created in Guangzhou Province. In 1921, the Chinese Communist Party was created. In 1923, cooperation was organized between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party of China through the mediation of the Comintern. On January 20, 1924, the first congress of the Kuomintang was held in Guangzhou. On June 16, 1924, the Whampoa Military Academy was founded under the leadership of Chiang Kai-shek. The Kuomintang set a course for cooperation with the CPC and the Communist Party of the USSR. In March 1926, Chiang Kai-shek carried out a military coup in Canton, expelled the communists from the city, and three months later he was elected chairman of the Kuomintang and commander-in-chief of the armed forces. Having achieved high power, Chiang Kai-shek invited German advisers led by the former Reichswehr general von Seeckt. In December 1927, a communist uprising occurred in Canton, which was brutally suppressed by the Kuomintang.

In the fall of 1931, Japan occupied China. On July 7, 1937, World War II began for China, which ended in 1945 with the defeat of the Japanese army. On April 24, 1949, the Chinese People's Liberation Army won the civil war, destroying the Kuomintang. On October 1, 1949, the People's Republic of China was proclaimed, which was recognized by the USSR on October 2, 1949.
In 1966, a cultural revolution took place in China, the leader of which was Mao Zedong, who fought to strengthen his position in the CCP. It actually lasted until 1976, i.e. until the death of Mao Zedong. Massive purges were carried out within the ranks of the CCP, helping to strengthen the power of Mao Zedong.

In 1978, with the coming to power of Deng Xiaoping and Hu Yaobang, economic reforms in China were launched. The course was taken to build a market economic system with Chinese characteristics. Following this course until the end of the 20th century allowed China to take the position it is in now, in the 21st century.

Snow and plum blossoms argue in the spring; no one is ready to give up.
The writer put down his brush, tired of philosophical works.
The plum must lose in whiteness - the snow is three fen whiter,
The snow will yield a whole duan to the fragrance of mei!
(Lu Meipo. Poet of the Song era. “Snow and Plum Blossom”)

§ 17. Ancient China

Natural conditions of Ancient China

In the southeast of Asia, fenced off from the world by high mountains, lies the Great Chinese Plain. In ancient times it was covered with dense forests. The two greatest rivers of Asia, the Yangtze and the Yellow River, flow through the vast expanses of the Chinese Plain. The soils along the banks of these rivers are so soft that they can be worked with even the simplest tools made of wood or bone. Therefore, agriculture spread here already in ancient times.

Ancient China

The most fertile lands are in the Yellow River Valley, where the oldest settlements of Chinese farmers were found. But during the rainy season, this river often overflows its banks and floods everything around. In addition, it happens that due to the softness of coastal soils, when it overflows, it erodes its banks and changes its course. At the same time, the river washed away human settlements and crops. It is no coincidence that in Ancient China the Yellow River was called the “Wandering River”, “River of a Thousand Calamities”.

Locate the valleys of the Yellow and Yangtze rivers on the map. Why, despite the dangerous nature of the Yellow River, did human settlements in China appear in the valley of this river?

Economy of Chinese people

The main occupation of the population of Ancient China was agriculture. Initially, the land was cultivated with a hoe, but over time it was replaced by a plow. Wheat, millet, and barley were grown, but the most common crop was rice. For the Chinese it is still the most important food product. The Chinese also grew another plant unknown in ancient times anywhere else - tea. Horticulture and gardening, breeding horses, cows, and pigs were also developed in China.

Ancient Chinese house layout

Another important occupation of the population was the production of silk - a translucent beautiful fabric. It was obtained by pulling the finest threads from the cocoons of silkworms (mulberry caterpillars). Silk was highly valued not only in China, but also far beyond its borders. The method of its manufacture was kept strictly secret. Possession of this secret brought huge profits to the Chinese, and gradually silk became the most important commodity exported from the country. The road connecting China with the countries of Western Asia and Europe was called the “Great Silk Road”.

In the 7th–6th centuries BC. e. In China they learned to process iron. This contributed to the growth of the economy. Using iron axes, people cleared the Yellow River and Yangtze valleys of dense forests and plowed them up. The appearance of a plow with an iron share made it possible to cultivate hard steppe soils that lay outside the river valleys.

Remember when people learned to process iron.

The emergence of the state

The first states in China arose at the beginning of the 2nd millennium BC. e. In the middle of the 1st millennium BC. e. there were already about a dozen states here. Their rulers fought among themselves, trying to expand their domains. In the end, the rulers of the Qin state managed to create a strong army and subjugate their opponents. Many years of wars ended with the unification of the country under the rule of the Qin ruler. In 221 BC. e. He proclaimed his state the Qin Empire and took the name Qin Shi Huang, which means “first Qin emperor.”

Woman. Ancient Chinese sculpture

Qin Shi Huang introduced harsh laws. The ruler imposed heavy taxes on the population of the empire. To avoid riots, he ordered the resettlement of noble people from the states he conquered to his capital, where vigilant supervision was established over them. Qin Shi Huang divided the vast empire into regions. At the head of each, he placed governors - high-ranking officials. They collected taxes, maintained order, and administered justice. The various regions of the empire were connected by roads. Qin Shi Huang also took care of the construction of irrigation canals and dams. He introduced uniform measures of weight and length for the entire empire, and uniform money. This made trade easier and contributed to its flourishing.

Warrior of Emperor Qin Shi Huang. Ancient Chinese sculpture

To perpetuate his name, Qin Shi Huang spent huge amounts of money on decorating the capital of the state. The Emperor also ordered the establishment of a huge protected park with many wild animals near the capital. In this park, 37 luxurious palaces were built for him. Qin Shi Huang was afraid of assassination attempts and therefore ordered the palaces to be connected by underground passages so that no one would know where he was.

Fight against northern nomads

Qin Shi Huang had to wage a fierce struggle with the Huns (Xiongnu) who lived north of the borders of China. These were warlike nomadic tribes that plundered Chinese cities and took people into slavery. The emperor gathered a huge army and defeated the nomad troops. He managed to push the borders of the empire further to the north.

Chinese coin

To secure new frontiers, Qin Shi Huang ordered the construction of powerful defensive structures. Over the course of 10 years, the hands of almost two million people built the Great Wall of China - a colossal structure made of earth, brick and granite blocks. Its height reached 10 meters, and its width was such that a chariot drawn by four horses could drive across it. The length of the wall was almost 4 thousand kilometers, and along its entire length, every hundred meters, there were powerful watchtowers. But the emperor did not have enough troops to defend the country, and the northern nomads continued their predatory raids.

Han Empire

The invasion of the Huns and the construction of the Great Wall undermined the strength of the state. The empire's treasury was depleted, and tens of thousands of people died during construction. Discontent was brewing in the country. When in 210 BC. e. Qin Shi Huang died and unrest began in the country. The Qin Empire outlived its founder by only a year and collapsed after a popular uprising. The rebels overturned all Qin laws and freed tens of thousands of government slaves.

In one of the regions of the empire - Han - the head of the rebel detachment was a simple village elder, Liu Bang. After the victory, he became the ruler of this area. Gradually, Liu Bang subjugated all of China. This is how a new state arose - the Han Empire, which existed until the 4th century AD. e.

the great Wall of China

Let's sum it up

Since ancient times, the inhabitants of China have been farming in the valleys of the Yellow and Yangtze rivers. At the beginning of the 2nd millennium BC. e. The first state appeared on the territory of this country. In 221 BC. e. The Qin Empire arose, and after its fall - the Han Empire.

Beginning of the 2nd millennium BC e. The emergence of a state in China.

221 BC e. The unification of China under the rule of Qin Shi Huang and the formation of the Qin Empire.

Questions and tasks

1. Tell us about the geographical location and natural conditions of Ancient China.

2. What were the occupations of the Chinese population?

3. Who and when created a unified state in China, what was it called?

4. When and why was the Great Wall of China built? Do you think it would have been possible to build it earlier? Justify your answer.

5. When did the Han Empire arise and who was its founder?

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§ 17. Ancient China Natural conditions of Ancient China In the southeast of Asia, fenced off from the world by high mountains, lies the Great Chinese Plain. In ancient times it was covered with dense forests. The two greatest rivers of Asia flow through the vast expanses of the Chinese Plain -

Chinese civilization (the ancestors of the state-forming ethnic group Han) - a group of cultures (Banpo 1, Shijia, Banpo 2, Miaodigou, Zhongshanzhai 2, Hougang 1, etc.) of the Middle Neolithic (ca. 4500-2500 BC) in the Yellow River basin, which are traditionally united under the common name Yangshao. Representatives of these crops grew grains (chumiza, etc.) and were engaged in breeding pigs. Later, the Longshan culture spread to the area: Middle Eastern types of cereals (wheat and barley) and livestock breeds (cows, sheep, goats) appeared.

Shang-Yin State

The Zhou period as a whole was characterized by the active development of new lands, settlement and ethnic mixing of people from various regions, fiefs (later kingdoms), which contributed to the creation of the foundation of the future Chinese community.

In the V-III centuries. BC. (Zhanguo period) China enters the Iron Age. Agricultural areas are expanding, irrigation systems are increasing, crafts are developing, and revolutionary changes are taking place in military affairs.

During the Zhanguo period, seven major kingdoms coexisted in China - Wei, Zhao and Han (previously all three were part of the kingdom of Jin), Qin, Qi, Yan and Chu. Gradually, as a result of fierce rivalry, the westernmost - Qin - began to gain the upper hand. Having annexed neighboring kingdoms one after another, in 221 BC. e. the ruler of Qin - the future emperor Qin Shi Huang - united all of China under his rule.

Qin Shi Huang, who built all his reforms on the foundations of legalism with barracks discipline and cruel punishments for the guilty, persecuted the Confucians, putting them to death (burying them alive) and burning their writings - because they dared to speak out against the severe oppression established in the country.

The Qin Empire ceased to exist shortly after the death of Qin Shi Huang.

Han Empire

The second empire in Chinese history, called Han (Chinese trad. 漢, simplified 汉, pinyin Han; 206 BC e. - n. BC) was founded by Liu Bang (Gaozu), a native of the middle bureaucracy, one of the military leaders of the revived kingdom of Chu who fought against Qin after the death of Emperor Qin Shihuang in 210 BC.

China at that time was experiencing an economic and social crisis caused by the loss of controllability and the wars of the military leaders of the Qin armies with the elites of the earlier destroyed kingdoms, who were trying to restore their statehood. Due to resettlement and wars, the rural population in the main agricultural areas has decreased significantly.

An important feature of the change of dynasties in China was that each new dynasty replaced the previous one in an environment of socio-economic crisis, weakening of the central government and wars between military leaders. The founder of the new state was the one who could capture the capital and forcibly remove the reigning emperor from power.

With the reign of Gaozu (206–195 BC), a new period of Chinese history began, which was called the Western Han.

In the period from 8 to 23 years. n. e. power is seized by Wang Mang, who proclaims himself emperor and founder of the state of Xin. A series of transformations begins, which are interrupted by an environmental disaster - the Yellow River changed its course. Due to a three-year famine, central power weakened. Under these conditions, the red-browed uprising and the movement of representatives of the Liu clan for the return of the throne began. Wang Mang was killed, the capital was taken, power returned to the Liu dynasty.

The new period was called Eastern Han, it lasted until AD. e.

State of Jin and Nan-bei Chao period (IV-VI centuries)

The Eastern Han was replaced by the Three Kingdoms period (Wei, Shu and Wu). During the struggle for power between the warlords, a new state was founded: Jin (Chinese: 晉, simplified: 晋, pinyin) jìn; -).

Tang State

The rulers of the Liu dynasty put an end to the performances of the nobility and carried out a number of successful reforms. The country is divided into 10 provinces, the “allotment system” has been restored, administrative legislation has been improved, the vertical of power has been strengthened, trade and city life have been revived. The size of many cities and the urban population have increased significantly.

Despite forced territorial concessions to neighbors, the Song period is considered the era of economic and cultural prosperity in China. The number of cities is growing, the urban population continues to grow, Chinese artisans are reaching heights in the manufacture of products from porcelain, silk, lacquer, wood, ivory, etc. Gunpowder and the compass are invented, book printing is spreading, new high-yielding varieties of grain are being developed, and cotton crops are increasing. One of the most impressive and effective of these innovations was the very conscious, systematic and well-organized introduction and dissemination of new varieties of early maturing rice from South Vietnam (Champa).

Yang Guifei, saddling horse, artist Xing Xuan (1235-1305 AD)

Genghis Khan created an organized and combat-ready army, which became a decisive factor in the subsequent successes of the relatively small Mongol ethnic group.

Having conquered the neighboring peoples of Southern Siberia, Genghis Khan went to war against the Jurchens and took Beijing.

Conquests in Southern China continued in the 1250s, after campaigns in Europe and the Near and Middle East. Initially, the Mongols captured the countries surrounding the Southern Song Empire - the state of Dali (-), Tibet (). Mongol troops under the leadership of Kublai Khan invaded Southern China from different directions, but the unexpected death of the Great Khan Möngke prevented the implementation of their plans. Kublai Khan, having seized the khan's throne, moved the capital from Karakorum to Chinese territory (first to Kaiping, and then to Zhongdu - modern Beijing). The Mongols managed to take the capital of the Southern Song state of Hangzhou only in . All of China was conquered, and the Song Empire was destroyed.

The heavy economic, political and national oppression imposed by the Mongol feudal lords held back the development of the country. Many Chinese were enslaved. Agriculture and trade were disrupted. The necessary work to maintain irrigation structures (dams and canals) was not carried out, which led to a terrible flood and the death of several hundred thousand people. The Great Canal of China was built during Mongol rule.

Popular discontent with the new rulers resulted in a powerful patriotic movement and uprisings, which were led by the leaders of the White Lotus secret society (Bailianjiao).

The Mongols, pushed to the north, began to actively develop the steppes of modern Mongolia. The Ming Empire subjugates part of the Jurchen tribes, the state of Nanzhao (modern provinces of Yunnan and Guizhou), and part of the modern provinces of Qinghai and Sichuan.

The Chinese fleet under the command of Zheng He, consisting of several dozen multi-deck frigates, made several naval expeditions to Southeast Asia, India and the east coast of Africa over the period from to. Without bringing any economic benefit to China, the expeditions were stopped and the ships were dismantled.

The Manchu dynasty in the Qing state ruled from to year. The highest authorities and the leadership of the army were in the hands of the Manchu nobility. Mixed marriages were prohibited, and yet the Manchus quickly became sinicized, especially since, unlike the Mongols, they did not oppose themselves to Chinese culture.

In the first two centuries of the Qing dynasty, China, closed from everyday contact with the outside world, emerged as a strong independent state, expanding in all directions.

During the war, the superiority of the Japanese army and navy led to major defeats for China on land and at sea (at Asan, July 1894; at Pyongyang, September 1894; at Jiulian, October 1894).

Triple intervention

The terms imposed by Japan on China led to the so-called "triple intervention" of Russia, Germany and France - powers that by this time already maintained extensive contacts with China and therefore perceived the signed treaty as detrimental to their interests. On April 23, Russia, Germany and France simultaneously, but separately, appealed to the Japanese government to refuse the annexation of the Liaodong Peninsula, which could lead to the establishment of Japanese control over Port Arthur, while Nicholas II, supported by the Western allies, had his own views of Port Arthur as an ice-free port for Russia. The German note was the harshest, even insulting, for Japan.

Japan had to give in. On May 10, 1895, the Japanese government announced the return of the Liaodong Peninsula to China, however, having achieved an increase in the amount of Chinese indemnity by 30 million taels.

Successes of Russian policy in China

In 1895, Russia provided China with a loan of 150 million rubles at 4% per annum. The treaty contained an obligation for China not to accept foreign control of its finances unless Russia participated in it. At the end of 1895, on the initiative of Witte, the Russian-Chinese Bank was founded. On June 3, 1896, a Russian-Chinese treaty on a defensive alliance against Japan was signed in Moscow. On September 8, 1896, a concession agreement for the construction of the Chinese Eastern Railway was signed between the Chinese government and the Russian-Chinese Bank. The CER Society received a strip of land along the road, which came under its jurisdiction. In March 1898, a Russian-Chinese agreement was signed on the Russian lease of Port Arthur and the Liaodong Peninsula.

Capture of Jiaozhou by Germany

In August 1897, Wilhelm II visited Nicholas II in Peterhof and obtained consent to establish a German naval base in Jiaozhou (in the then transcription - “Kiao-Chao”), on the southern coast of Shandong. In early November, German missionaries were killed by the Chinese in Shandong. On November 14, 1897, the Germans landed troops on the coast of Jiaozhou and captured it. On March 6, 1898, a German-Chinese agreement was signed, under which China leased Jiaozhou to Germany for a period of 99 years. At the same time, the Chinese government granted Germany a concession to build two railways in Shandong and a number of mining concessions in this province.

One Hundred Days of Reform

A short period of reforms began on June 11, 1898, with the issuance of the decree “On Establishing the Basic Line of State Policy” by the Manchu Emperor Zaitian (the name of the years of his reign was Guangxu). Zaitian attracted a group of young reformers - students and like-minded people of Kang Yuwei - to develop a series of decrees on reforms. In total, over 60 decrees were issued that related to the education system, the construction of railways, plants and factories, the modernization of agriculture, the development of domestic and foreign trade, the reorganization of the armed forces, the cleaning of the state apparatus, etc. The period of radical reforms ended on September 21 of the same year, when Empress Dowager Cixi carried out a palace coup and canceled the reforms.

XX century

Map of China proper at the beginning of the 20th century from the Brockhaus and Efron encyclopedia

Boxer Rebellion

Cixi, the emperor's widow (1900s).

In May 1900, a large uprising began in China, called the Boxer or Yihetuan Rebellion. On June 20, the German envoy Ketteler was killed in Beijing. Following this, the rebels besieged the diplomatic missions located in a special quarter of Beijing. The building of the Catholic Cathedral of Petang (Beitang) was also besieged. Mass killings of Christian Chinese began by the Yihetuans, including the murder of 222 Orthodox Chinese. On June 21, 1900, Empress Cixi (慈禧) declared war on Great Britain, Germany, Austria-Hungary, France, Italy, Japan, the United States, and Russia. The Great Powers agreed on joint action against the rebels. The German General Waldersee was appointed commander-in-chief of the expeditionary forces. However, when he arrived in China, Beijing had already been liberated by a small advance force under the command of the Russian general Linevich. The Russian army occupied Manchuria.

Railway map of China (1908)

Russo-Japanese War

After the fall of the monarchy, the ruler of Mongolia refused to obey the republic and separated from China. On November 3, he concluded an agreement with Russia. England took advantage of the internal struggle in China to turn Tibet into its zone of influence. Tibet rose up to fight and forced the Chinese garrison to leave the country. All subsequent attempts by the Chinese to restore their power there were thwarted by Britain. Russia agreed to consider Tibet a British sphere of influence, and England recognized Russian interests in independent (outer) Mongolia.

On March 22, 1916, the republic was restored. Yuan Shikai was forced to renounce the title.

The era of the militarists

After the death of Yuan Shikai, numerous military-feudal fiefdoms of various militaristic groups began to take shape in China. The largest was the Beiyang group, which subsequently split into the Fengtian group led by the former leader of the Honghuz gang Zhang Zuolin, the Zhili group led by General Feng Guozhang, and the Anhui group led by General Duan Qizhui. The province of Shanxi was dominated by the militarist Yan Xishan, who flirted with the Beiyang group, and in the province of Shaanxi it was dominated by General Chen Shufan. The camp of the southwestern militarists consisted of two large groups: the Yunnan one, led by General Tang Jiyao, and the Guangxi one, led by General Lu Rongting.

The provinces of Heilongjiang, Jilin and Fengtian were under the control of the Fengtian group, and the provinces of Shandong, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian, Jiangxi, Hunan, Hubei and part of Zhili were under the control of the Zhili group. The Fengtian and Anhui cliques were financed by Japan, the Zhili clique - by England and the USA. Li Yuanhong was a protege of the southwestern militarists. Vice President General Feng Guozhang was oriented towards England and the USA, and Prime Minister General Duan Qirui was pro-Japanese. In 1917, Japan began to provide large loans to Duan Qizhui, receiving more and more concessions for them, including concessions in Manchuria.

Kuomintang victory

Even during the Weimar Republic, Chiang Kai-shek's government received military assistance from Germany. With Hitler's rise to power, aid was increased in order to fight the communists. Factories for the production of licensed German weapons were created in China, German advisers trained personnel, and M35 Stahlhelm, Gewehr 88, 98, C96 Broomhandle Mauser were exported to China. China also received Henschel, Junkers, Heinkel and Messerschmitt aircraft, Rheinmetall and Krupp howitzers, anti-tank and mountain guns, for example, PaK 37mm, and Panzer I tankettes.

On November 25, 1936, Japan and Germany concluded the Anti-Comintern Pact, directed against the USSR and the communist movement. On December 12, 1936, the Xi'an Incident took place, forcing Chiang Kai-shek to unite with the Communists.

March of Chinese Communists in Beijing (1949)

Cultural Revolution

In 1966, CPC Chairman Mao Zedong launched a massive campaign to maintain the revolutionary spirit among the masses. Its actual task was to establish Maoism as the only state ideology and destroy the political opposition. Mass mobilization of youth, called "

Early China

China is one of the oldest civilizations in the world and one of the longest in terms of its existence. The oldest Neolithic cultures that appeared before civilization in China were Pengtustan, Jiahu, Peiliang - all of them date back to approximately the seventh millennium BC.

It is difficult to determine the time of the founding of Pengtustan, and the date given is from 9,000 to 5,500 BC, although domesticated rice has been found on its territory, which dates back to the seventh millennium BC. Some of the oldest evidence of rice cultivation was also found at Jiahu.

Another significant find at Jiahu were flutes dating from 7,000 to 6,600 BC. Peiliang was one of the earliest cultures in China to adapt pottery. In Jiahu and Peiliang, grain cultivation, livestock raising, and grain storage and redistribution developed. Reminders also indicate the presence of specialized crafts in these Neolithic cultures.

The Longshan culture is a late Neolithic culture that occupied the center and lowlands of the Yellow River Valley in China. The culture is named after the area of Long Shan, Shandong Province, where the first excavations were carried out, providing evidence of the existence of this community. Approximate founding date: 3000 – 2000 BC.

Erlitu culture (2200-1500 BC) is the name given by archaeologists to a society that existed in China during the early Bronze Age. The culture was named after the town of Erlitu in Yanshi, Henan Province. This culture spread widely throughout Henan and Shanxi provinces, and later appeared in Hubei province. Many Chinese archaeologists identify the Erlithu culture with the Xa dynasty, while Western scholars refuse to acknowledge this, since there is no reference to Erlithu in official historical sources.

The earliest dynasty whose existence has been confirmed by archaeologists is the Shang Dynasty, formed in 1750 BC. The Shang Dynasty is famous for its bronze artifacts and prophetic bones, which were a tortoise shell or a cattle shoulder on which the first Chinese characters were written. These items were found in the Yellow River Valley in Yinxu, the capital of the Shang Dynasty.

Subsequently, each dynasty of Ancient China contributed its share to the development of civilization. In ancient times, it was in China that gunpowder, paper, and matches were invented. The world's first paper money began to be printed here. The priests and then the alchemists of China developed many healing elixirs.

According to the scientific version, the construction of the Great Wall of China began in the 3rd century BC. The basis for the Wall was laid by small ramparts - the fortification of their territories by divided states within China.

For the first time, the Great Wall, as a means of protecting trade routes and peasants from the attacks of nomads, was built during the reign of Emperor Qin Shi Huang, who went down in history as the unifier of the Chinese land. People often use another name for the Great Wall of China - “Wailing Wall” or “The Longest Cemetery in the World.” Over the course of several thousand years, the Wall was built by millions of people, a huge number of whom remained here forever.

During this era, the Wall consisted of ditches and earthworks, compacted into wooden formwork.

The Shang Dynasty is not only famous for being the first dynasty whose existence was confirmed by archaeologists. During this era, writing actively developed. Initially, hieroglyphs were depicted on bones and bamboo, but these materials were too heavy and fragile to be conveniently transported and stored. During the Shang Dynasty, a transitional material from bones to the ideal material for writing - paper - was created. It is not surprising that such an expensive material as silk was used as it. During this era, the Chinese already had the skills to produce silk.

China is one of the largest and most populous countries in the world; it also occupies a leading position in the export of products. In addition, the Celestial Empire can easily boast of a multi-thousand-year history of the state, which, according to various estimates, begins from 3,500 to 5,000 years ago.

History of existence

To a greater extent, Ancient China was an imperial country, but some other eras can also be distinguished.

So, the largest periods of existence:

pre-imperial time (from the beginning of the Paleolithic until the emergence of the first state);
Ancient China (early forms of government and early empires);
classical period (from the 3rd century to 1912);
modern era.

Five Emperors and Three Dynasties

The early history of China is considered somewhat mythical during the reign of five emperors, who changed one after another:

Yellow Emperor;
Zhuan-xu;
Gao-Xin;
Shun.

These emperors at different times waged a fierce struggle for power in order to be on the throne. This has continued since the 27th century BC. e. and until the 23rd century BC. e.

After this there was a lull in the form of the first Xia dynasty, which ruled from the beginning of the 23rd century BC. e. and until the middle of the 18th century BC.

The eastern country began its active development during the reign of the next dynasty - Shang-Yin, which ruled in the 17th-11th centuries. BC e. and was divided into two eras - early Shang-Yin and late.

At this time, writing was born, so more is known about this period. The first political foundations of the state were also formed, and agriculture acquired a new form of soil cultivation.

The power struggle of the next dynasty, the Zhou, led to the overthrow of Shang-Yin.

The Zhou era in the early stages of the Western period (11th century BC - 771 BC) had exclusively central authority. But gradually decentralization of power occurred, especially in the Eastern period (771-475 BC).

The Zhou dynasty in ancient China is replaced by a period of warring kingdoms, where several independent states begin to fight for power and territory. The biggest of them were:

Zhao;
Qin;
Han.

Development of the eastern country

Despite the constant struggle that was waged during the times of warring kingdoms, Ancient China is changing in all areas of life. Bronze is replaced by iron, new crafts appear, cities expand.

Many works of art were created that are still very popular.

Two main philosophical and religious schools appeared - Confucianism and Taoism - thanks to Confucius and Lao Tzu. Both schools gained popularity over time, and in modern China a large part of the population professes these teachings.

Unification under the Kingdom of Qin

In 221 BC. e. The Qin dynasty manages to unite all the lands in a single state, which was facilitated by a single language, culture, and religion.

The Qin kingdom probably had the shortest reign - only 11 years, but during this time incredible reforms were carried out that affected almost all areas of the lives of ordinary people.

Emperor Qin Shi Huang was able to do something that no early emperor could do. In addition, the construction of one of the wonders of the world, which has survived to this day, the Great Wall of China, began precisely under this emperor.

Han era in Chinese history

The Han Empire quickly replaced the Qin, but during this period nothing was lost, but on the contrary, there was a significant expansion of territory: from the Gobi Desert to the South China Sea, from the Pamir Mountains to the Liaodong Peninsula.

Ancient China was great and militant during the Han era, because it was possible to crush the strong Huns and establish the Great Silk Road, which began to bring great profits to the state.

It is with the Han Dynasty that the history of Ancient China ends and the classical era begins.

If you want to learn more about the existence of Ancient China and its rule, we recommend that you watch the following video:

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