Song China to the Thirteenth Century

PAX MONGOLICA : THE STEPPE EMPIRE OF THE MONGOLS HIST 1301 | History Song China to the Thirteenth Century The Song dynasty had phenomenal demographic and economic expansion, although controlling a smaller area than previous powerful dynasties. For the most part, its emperors lived and ruled according to a system that was more closely aligned with the principles and values outlined by Confucius and his adherents than any of their predecessors had been. But such rules had their limits, particularly in protecting the land from the growing might of the seminomadic steppe peoples who were increasingly emulating their more settled neighbours' technologies and way of life. The mandarins, or civil servants selected by the imperial court, were tasked with advising and disciplining the generals on foreign policy issues in order to maintain the dynasty's power. Throughout China's more than two millennia of Confucian rule, which lasted from the second century BCE until 1911 CE, the Mandarin class occupied a central position in the social and political order during periods of stability. Initially supporting the early Han emperor in charge of the region's landed aristocracy, mandarins were chosen through a procedure that, by the time the Tang dynasty reached its zenith, had developed into a test system based on Confucian classics. The Song implemented changes that made the examination process more merit-based and less susceptible to nepotism and favouritism, which greatly advanced the Confucian ideal of administration by scholar-officials. The Song reforms served as the foundation for the selection of Chinese government officials up to the early twentieth century, when the Mongol Yuan dynasty disrupted the system. The major means of achieving or retaining social status in China was to have sons in the Mandarin class, which included the highest ranking officials. Women were excluded from the benefits, even the daughters of current leaders. While families of current mandarins had a distinct edge in getting their sons ready for the examinations, it was common for a village to choose a kid of a peasant or artisan family and offer academic help. This action would not only move that family up the social ladder, but it would also improve the village's access to public servants. Even though Emperors Taizu and Taizong, the founding brothers of the Song dynasty, had both served in the armed forces, they established a system of governance in which the mandarins used their Confucian pacifism to defend the state by buying off potentially hostile neighbours to either attack them or not to attack them on behalf of the Song. This doctrine was based on the idea that non-Chinese peoples who failed to accept disciplined Confucian norms caused the Tang dynasty to collapse by spreading across their lands. It required unsustainable resources to keep such areas pacified. A proverb from the time said, "Do not waste good men making soldiers; do not waste good iron making nails," perfectly captured the Song attitude towards the armed forces. Simultaneously, Song engineers were the first to devise practical military applications for gunpowder, including flamethrowers, early cannons that fired projectiles handed, and bombs that were loaded with shrapnel that were fired by catapults and then by rockets. The Song possessed formidable military technology, but they were seldom able to use it to its full potential due to their strong adherence to Confucian nonviolence and concern over a robust force that may jeopardise civilian authority. The Song dynasty of China placed more emphasis on internal economic growth than the Tang dynasty's emphasis on gaining wealth through territorial expansion. Agriculture was centred on producing a food surplus rather than just enough food for sustenance, which allowed for a significant growth in population and, consequently, in urbanisation. Farming households in rural areas also had more purchasing power at that time. A large portion of this was caused by advancements in agricultural technology, which raised crop yields and the quantity of cultivable land that was accessible. For instance, the development of chain-driven pumps enabled irrigation, which transformed barren slopes into cultivable land. New rice varieties that matured rapidly enough to produce two harvests annually were planted by peasants. By controlling food prices and agricultural markets, as well as by using innovative technology that significantly raised irrigation productivity, the Song government fostered economic growth. In addition, it dispersed the seeds of more productive crops and maintained irrigation and transportation infrastructure. To put it briefly, more land was available for farming, which increased harvests and the amount of products available. China saw a massive population explosion as a result of the rise in food supply, which freed up labour for use in industries other than agriculture. In the early eleventh century, around fifty-five million individuals were counted in the first comprehensive Song census. There were about 120 million a century later. At its height, Song China boasted dozens of cities with populations exceeding 100,000 and at least three cities with populations exceeding one million; during the same period in Europe, no city—aside from Constantinople, the capital of the Byzantine Empire—even came close to reaching these sizes following the fall of the western Roman Empire. According to some academics, by the eleventh century, Song China was going through an industrial revolution akin to that of Britain in the eighteenth century. The dynasty witnessed an increase in iron output from around 65 million pounds around the year 1000 to more than 250 million pounds by 1100, mostly due to the surplus labour created by the population boom. This was nearly twice as much as Britain would generate even seven centuries later. In some bigger towns, there were large-scale factories producing textiles and paper using water-powered machinery. The Song became a more mobile and connected society as a result of these advancements as well as the building of improved roads and canals. The economic gains associated with the use of machines were distributed because of the increased productivity, which allowed commodities to be exchanged over longer distances. This also created a larger demand and opportunity for merchants and other support workers to interact and convey these items.