Having come to power on the crest of a broad anti-Qin movement, Liu Bang abolished the cruel laws of Qin and eased the burden of taxes and duties. However, the Qin administrative division and bureaucratic system of government, as well as most of the establishments of the Qin empire in the field of economics, remained in force. True, the political situation forced Liu Bang to violate the principle of unconditional centralization and give away a large part of the land to his comrades-in-arms and relatives, and the seven strongest of them, along with the title
van,now the highest aristocratic rank. The Vanirs owned territories on the scale of entire regions, cast their own coins, entered into external alliances, entered into conspiracies and raised internal unrest. The fight against their separatism became the primary political task of Liu Bang's successors. The rebellion of the Vans was suppressed in 154, and finally their strength was broken under the emperor U-di (140-87 BC).The centralization and strengthening of the empire in the first decades of the reign of the Elder Han Dynasty created conditions for the growth of the economic well-being of the country, contributing to the progress in agriculture, crafts and trade, which ancient Chinese authors unanimously note. As in the reign of Qin, communal structures were an essential component of the Han imperial system. It was on them that Liu Bang relied in the anti-Qin struggle. With representatives of the city government of Xianyang (
fuloo -elder fathers), he concluded his famous "three articles" treaty - the first (?) Code of the Han Empire. Upon coming to power, Liu Bang granted honorary citizenship status to all family heads of community members.gunshi and granted the right to participate in the county administration to representatives of the community elite. To please her, first of all, Liu Bang legalized the sale of free slaves to private individuals, did not take any measures to limit transactions with land, which was not slow to affect the growth of private land ownership and slave ownership. The rise in production was especially noticeable in handicrafts, primarily in metallurgy. Slave labor was widely used here. Private entrepreneurs used up to a thousand forced laborers in mines and workshops (iron foundries, weaving, etc.). After the introduction under U-di of the state monopoly on salt, iron, wine and coin casting, large state workshops and crafts arose, where the labor of state slaves was used.Gradually, the country recovered from the consequences of many years of wars, economic disorder and destruction caused by hostilities and events that accompanied the fall of the Qin Empire. Restorative irrigation works were carried out, new irrigation systems were built, and labor productivity increased.
The number of trade and craft centers has increased. The largest of them, such as Chang'an, Linzi, numbered up to half a million inhabitants. Many cities at that time had a population of over 50 thousand people. The city becomes the center of social and economic life of the country. In the Han era, more than five hundred cities were built on the territory of the empire, including in the basin of the river. Yangtze. The cities were most densely located in the central part of the Great Plain of China (in Henan). Most cities, however, were small, earthen-walled settlements surrounded by fields. They functioned as community self-government bodies. Farmers also made up a certain part of the population in large cities, but artisans and merchants predominated in them. Wang Fu, who lived in the II century. n. e., reported: "[In Luoyang] there are ten times more people engaged in secondary crafts than farmers ... There are hundreds of regional and thousands of county cities in the Celestial Empire ... and everywhere in them the situation is like this."
In agricultural production, the majority of producers were free communal farmers. They were obliged to land (from 1/30 to 1/15 of the harvest), cash poll taxes and household taxes. Men carried out duties: labor (one month a year for three years) and military (two-year army and annually three-day garrison). According to the conditions of antiquity, this cannot be considered excessive burdens. In addition, the law provided for paying off obligatory services in money, grain, and also slaves. But all this was available to prosperous peasant farms and absolutely unacceptable for the ruined poor. With the small marketability of small farms, monetary forms of taxation had a particularly detrimental effect on them. Creditors withdrew from the manufacturer up to half of the product produced. "Nominally, the land tax is 1/30 of the crop, but in fact, farmers are deprived of half of the crop," reports the "History of the Senior Han Dynasty." The ruined farmers were deprived of their fields and fell into debt slavery. The dignitaries reported: “The treasury is getting scarcer, and the rich and merchants enslave the poor for debts and accumulate wealth in barns”, “How can ordinary people stand up for themselves when the rich are increasing the number of their slaves, expanding their fields, accumulating wealth?”, “Agricultural workers are working tirelessly for a whole year, and when the time comes for monetary requisitions, the poor sell grain at half price, and the poor borrow, obliged to return twice as much, so for debts many sell fields and dwellings, sell their children and grandchildren. Attempts by pressure from above to curb usury and prevent the ruin of farmers - the main taxable contingent of the empire - were made by the government more than once, but did not produce results. Self-selling into slavery for debts becomes an important source of private slavery, which at this time receives particular development.
The very act of sale into slavery, carried out with the help of merchants, made it legal to enslave a free man even if he was sold against his will. Cases of forcible capture and sale into slavery of free people were very frequent.
Early Han sources testify to the legalized practice of buying and selling slaves and the great development of the slave trade at that time. Sima Qian lists slaves as common market items. There was a permanent slave market in the country. Slaves could be bought in almost every city, like any marketable commodity, they were counted on the fingers, like working cattle - on the hooves. Shipments of shackled slaves were transported by slave traders hundreds of kilometers to Chang'an and other major cities of the country. Forced labor formed the basis of production in the mines and trades, both private and public. Slaves, although to a lesser extent, but everywhere, were used in agriculture. Indicative in this respect is the mass confiscation of private fields and slaves from violators of the law of 119 BC. e. on the taxation of property. This law, however, did not apply to the privileged circles of the bureaucratic and military nobility and, which is significant, to the communal elite - this once again shows how far the process of stratification of the community has gone.
Monetary wealth was an important indicator of social status in the Han Empire. According to this property, all land owners were divided into three main categories: large, medium and small families. Outside of these categories, there were super-rich people in the empire who could give loans even to the emperor, their fortune was estimated at one hundred and two hundred million coins, there were naturally few such persons. Sources refer a significant layer of the poor to the fourth category - small land owners. The property of large families exceeded 1 million coins. The majority were families of the second and third categories. The property of small families was estimated in the amount of 1,000 to 100,000 coins; these were small privately owned farms, which, as a rule, did not use forced labor. The main contingent, the most stable in socio-economic terms, was the category of medium-sized families. Their property ranged from 100 thousand to 1 million coins. Middle families usually exploited the labor of slaves on their farms, among them the less wealthy had several slaves, the more prosperous - several dozen. These were slave-owning estates, the production of which was largely intended for the market.
By the time of the reign of Wu-di (140-87), the Han state had turned into a strong centralized bureaucratic state - one of the most populous at that time on the planet, having reached its highest power.
The most important and priority foreign policy task of the Han Empire from the beginning of its existence was to protect the borders from the constant raids of the nomadic Xiongnu tribes.
The Great Wall of China reduced the danger of Xiongnu invasions. But the Xiongnu tribal union 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, p. Liaohe - in the east and to the river basin. Tarim - 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. "an agreement based on peace and kinship," Liu Bang actually admitted that he was 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. n. e. Ban Gu, with this peace treaty with the Xiongnu, Liu Bang "intentioned to bring peace to the frontier lands" and apparently succeeded for a while. However, the 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 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 needed for the creation of heavily armed cavalry were expanded, 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. e. the peace treaty with the Xiongnu was broken and Wu Di headed for a decisive struggle against them. Han troops in 127 BC e. ousted the Xiongnu from the Ordos. Fortifications and fortresses were built along the banks of the Huang He bend. Then the famous Han military leaders Wei Qing and Huo Qubing in 124 and 123 BC. e. pushed the Xiongnu back from the northern borders of the empire and forced the Shanyu to move his headquarters to the north of the Gobi Desert.
From that moment on, Wu's foreign policy in the northwest was aimed at conquering foreign territories, conquering neighboring peoples, capturing prisoners of war, expanding foreign markets and dominating international trade routes.
Back in 138 BC. BC, guided by the tried and tested method of ancient Chinese diplomacy - "subdue the barbarians with the hands of the barbarians", - Wu Di sent the diplomat and strategist Zhang Qian to conclude a military alliance with the Yuezhi tribes, hostile to the Xiongnu, who, under the onslaught of the Xiongnu, migrated from Gansu somewhere to the west. On the way, Zhang Qian was captured by the Xiongnu, after a ten-year stay with them, he fled and continued his mission. The Yuezhi were then already in Central Asia, conquered Bactria. Zhang Qian did not persuade them to go to war with the Xiongnu. However, during his journey, he visited Davan (Fergana), Kangjue (or Kangjue - obviously, 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), and also that these countries are aware of China as a "land of silk", which foreign merchants willingly traded. Upon returning to Chang'an, Zhang Qian described all this in his report to Wu.
Zhang Qian's information greatly expanded the geographic horizons of the ancient Chinese: they became aware of many countries to the west of the Han empire, their wealth and interest in trade with China. From that time on, paramount importance in the foreign policy of the imperial court began to be given to the capture of trade routes between the empire and these countries, and the establishment of regular relations with them. In order to implement these plans, the direction of campaigns against the Xiongnu was changed, Gansu became the main center of attack on them, since the trade road to the west, the famous Great Silk Road, ran here. Huo Qubing in 121 BC e. 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 secure the way for caravans, the Han Empire used diplomatic and military means to extend its influence to the oasis city-states of East Turkestan located along the Great Silk Road. In 115 BC. e. 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, Shendu and other countries, who were the first representatives of ancient China in these countries. During 115-111 years. BC e. trade links were established between the Han Empire and Bactria.
The Great Silk Road from the Han capital of Chang'an went northwest through the territory of Gansu to Dunhuang, where it branched into two main roads (to the 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, caravans 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.
(sy -with this name, apparently, the name of China was associated in the ancient world, where it was known as the country of "Sins" or "Sers"). Rare animals and birds, plants, valuable types of wood, furs, medicines, spices, incense and cosmetics, colored glass and jewelry, semi-precious and precious stones and other luxury items, as well as slaves (musicians, dancers), etc., were delivered to China. Particularly noteworthy were grapes, beans, alfalfa, saffron, some gourds, pomegranate and walnut trees borrowed by China from Central Asia at that time.Under Udi, the Han Empire established ties with many states on the territory of India, Iran and countries located further to the west up to the Mediterranean (it was not possible to finally identify some of the geographical names mentioned in Chinese sources). 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).
Great The 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 common for that era was perceived only as an expression of obedience to the Han Empire. The militant emperor (translation of the temple name Wu-di) was overwhelmed by the global plan "to expand the empire by ten thousand li and extend the power of the Son of Heaven (i.e., the Han emperor) throughout the world (literally, "up to four seas")".
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 surrounding world of "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 (as East Turkestan was called) were forced to "pay tribute" by 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 interference 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 Ferghana, which held key positions on an important section of the Silk Road and owned "heavenly horses" - stately horses of the western breed, which were of exceptional importance 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, a huge army of the commander Li Guangli, who had been granted the title of "Ershi Winner", set out on a distant "punitive campaign" against the city of Ershi (the capital of Fergana). The campaign lasted two years, but ended in complete failure. In 102 U-di undertook a new grandiose campaign to Ferghana. This time they managed to get "heavenly horses", but the empire was unable 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 China in East Turkestan turned out to be unstable, short-lived and very limited. The most impartial representatives of official historiography generally questioned the need for the Han Empire to expand into Central and Central Asia, noting its negative consequences both for these countries and, in particular, for China. "The Han Dynasty rushed to the distant Western Territory and thereby brought the empire to exhaustion," wrote the author of one of the early medieval histories of China.
Simultaneously with an active foreign policy in the northwest, U-di undertook a wide expansion in the south and northeast directions. The Yue states in South China and North Vietnam have long attracted ancient Chinese merchants and artisans as markets for goods and places for the extraction of copper and tin ores, precious metals, pearls, the acquisition of exotic animals and plants, and slaves. The Yue lands conquered under Qin Shi Huang fell away from the empire after the fall of the Qin dynasty, but trade ties with them remained.
Ancient Chinese sources record the existence in the II century. BC e. three independent Yue states: Nanyue (in the basin of the middle and lower reaches of the Xijiang River and North Vietnam), Dongyue (in the territory of Zhejiang province) and Minyue (in Fujian province). In the largest of them - Nanyue (Namviet) - the former Qin governor Zhao Tuo seized power. It was he who founded the local Viet dynasty Chieu, proclaiming himself an emperor, equal in power to Han. In 196 BC. e. An agreement was concluded between Han and Nanyue, according to which Liu Bang recognized Zhao Tuo as the legitimate ruler of Nanyue. But soon Zhao Tuo, in response to Empress Luihou's ban on exporting iron, cattle and other goods to Nanyue, severed diplomatic relations with the empire. Both countries were at war, but the empire did not have the strength to wage it.
From the very first years of his accession, U-di relied on the capture of the southern states. In 138 BC. BC, having intervened in the internecine struggle of the Vietnamese states, the Hans conquered Dunyue, after which Wu Di began preparing a big war against Nanyue.
The return in 125 BC also contributed to the intensification of Wu's foreign policy in the southwest. e. Zhang Qian from his trip to the Yuezhi, during which he learned about the trade route in southwestern China, through which goods from Shu (Sichuan) were delivered to India and Bactria. However, sent in 122 BC. e. to find this way, Han expeditions were delayed by tribes in southwestern China. It was not possible to "open" the route to India through Burma for the empire. Later, Wu-di got the opportunity to establish ties with India by sea, but this happened after the capture of Nanyue.
After the death of Zhao Tuo, taking advantage of internal unrest, Wu di brought large military forces into Nanyue. The war with Nanyue, which lasted intermittently for two years (112-111), ended with the victory of the empire. During this period, the empire conquered the rest of the Yue lands, only Minyue continued to maintain independence. According to Ban Gu, after the subjugation of Nanyue, the Han Empire established sea ties with India and Lanka (Sichengbu).
The route from the South China Sea to the Indian Ocean was probably through the Strait of Malacca. The ancient Chinese at that time were not strong in navigation, but the Yue peoples were skillful sailors since ancient times. Evidently, it was the Yue ships that brought the Han merchants to India, Lanka, and other parts of South Asia. After the conquest of Nanyue, most likely through the Yue peoples, ties were established between the Han Empire and the distant countries of Southeast and South Asia.
Dividing Nanyue into regions and counties, the conquerors exploited the locals, forcing them to work in mines, mine gold and precious stones, and hunt elephants and rhinos. Because of the constant anti-Han uprisings, Wu-di was forced to keep large military forces in the Yue lands.
Having completed the wars in the south, Wu-di took decisive action against the state of Chaoxian (cor. Joseon) in North Korea. This country, long before the emergence of the empire, maintained ties with the northeastern ancient Chinese kingdoms. After the formation of the Han Empire under Liu Bang, an agreement was concluded establishing the border between the two states along the river. Phesu. The Chaoxian rulers sought to pursue an independent policy and, in opposition to the empire, maintained ties with the Xiongnu. The latter circumstance, as well as the fact that Chaoxian prevented the empire from communicating with the peoples of South Korea, made Chaoxian another object of Han aggression. In 109 BC. e. Wu Di provoked the assassination of the Han ambassador in Chaoxian, after which he sent a "punitive" expedition there. After a long siege by land and sea, the capital of Chaoxian Wangomseong fell. Four administrative districts were established on the territory of Chaoxian, but three of them had to be abolished in connection with the ongoing struggle of the ancient Koreans for independence.
The wars of conquest, which Wudi waged continuously for many years in a row, devastated the treasury and depleted the resources of the state. These wars, which required colossal expenses and incalculable human losses, already at the end of Wu's reign led to a sharp deterioration in the situation of the bulk of the working population of the country and an explosion of popular discontent, which was expressed in open speeches by "embittered and exhausted people" in the central regions of the empire. At the same time, the anti-Khan uprisings of the tribes on the outskirts of the empire rose. "The country is tired of endless wars, people are saddened, reserves are depleted" - this is how his contemporary historian Sima Qian characterizes the state of the empire at the end of Wu's reign. After the death of U-di, there were almost no major conquest campaigns. Supporters of military conquests no longer met with support at the Han court.
Until the end of the 1st c. BC e.-beginning of the 1st c. n. e. The foreign policy of the Han Empire was mostly passive. Han troops only in 36 BC. e. undertook a long-range campaign against the Xiongnu, who had become more active in the Western Territory. This for some time strengthened the power of the Han Empire in the Western Territory, but after a few years the Xiongnu resumed raids on the northwestern borders of the Han Empire, and at the beginning of the 1st century. n. e. they managed to subjugate the entire Western Territory to their influence.
From the last quarter of the 1st c. BC e. a wave of slave uprisings swept the country. At the turn of the Christian era, the empire found itself in a state of deep internal crisis. Many statesmen saw its cause in the growth of large-scale landownership and slaveholding.
Through the entire internal history of the Early Han empire, the struggle against the concentration of private land ownership runs like a red thread, but by the end of the 1st century. BC e. it acquires exceptional sharpness. As the reports of the dignitaries Shi Dan, Kung Guang and He Wu, relating to this time, show, the question of land is closely connected with the question of slaves. These two social problems appear as the main ones in all reform projects and laws of the beginning of the Christian era. The most far-sighted representatives of the ruling class recognized the need for reforms in order to ease tensions in society.
An attempt to carry out such events was made under Emperor Ai-di (6-1 BC): the draft decree established the maximum size of private land holdings at 30 qing (about 138 hectares), and the number of slaves from the owners, depending from their social status, limited the norm to 200 slaves from high-ranking and well-born nobility and 30 slaves from commoners and petty officials (excluding slaves over 60 and under 10 years old). State slaves older than 50 years were proposed to be set free. However, this project provoked such a protest from the slave owners that there could be no question of its implementation, as well as other projects of this kind, although they concerned the restriction of slave ownership and land ownership only among commoners and small employees. After the failure of the reform policy, uprisings broke out in the country.
Such was the situation in which Wang Mang came to the fore - regent for the young heir to the throne, father-in-law of the previous emperor Ping-di (1-6 AD). A man of exceptional ambition, Wang Mang, as a clever demagogue, managed in a short time to gain popularity among the people and, at the same time, the support of court circles. Taking advantage of the favorable moment, he made a palace coup and in 9 AD. e. proclaimed himself emperor - the founder of the "Renewed Dynasty" and immediately announced his intention to carry out reforms in the most decisive way. Counting on the support of the broad masses of the population, Wang Mang announced the restoration of the happy order of antiquity and the revival of the Zhou "well" system of eight-yards, processing the ninth section in favor of the ruler. He promised to restore equal-sized plots, due to which land would be allocated to all landless and land-poor community members. This promise, of course, could not be kept. Wang Mang banned the sale and purchase of land and slaves and proclaimed all privately owned lands to be state lands, and private slaves to be "privately dependent", i.e., probably also subordinate to the state, but remaining at the disposal of their masters. At the same time, state slavery was not subject to restrictions, on the contrary, all those guilty of violating Wang Mang's laws turned into state slaves.
Referring to ancient Confucian treatises, Wang Mang even tried to justify the exclusive right of the state to own slaves. Under him, the number of state slaves again greatly increased due to enslavement for crimes. Wang Mang's laws enslaved the criminal along with his family and four neighboring families bound by mutual responsibility. Moreover, all these families, which were enslaved by the state, had their property confiscated, including their private slaves, which were transferred to the treasury. Such slaves were transported in huge batches over long distances to work in state mines and workshops. So, in 21 AD. e. "violators of the ban on casting coins, among the five families [obliged by mutual responsibility], were subjected to [arrest], confiscation of property and were turned into state slaves. Men on carts, in cages for criminals, women and children on foot with iron chains rattling around their necks Hundreds of thousands were transported [to Chang'an], handed over to the officials in charge of casting coins. While they were being delivered [there] ... six to seven out of ten died" ("History of the Senior Han Dynasty"). All this evidence suggests that Wang Mang's reforms were directed against the growth of private slavery, but not slavery as such.
With the goal of concentrating all sources of income in the hands of the state and creating a strong bureaucratic empire, Wang Mang greatly strengthened the fiscal and police functions of the state and enlarged the administrative apparatus. Officials and tax-farmers were interested in the implementation of Wang Mang's economic measures, which gave them the opportunity to profit from speculation in goods in the regulation of market prices and other abuses. Wang Mang sought to subordinate all lending operations to the treasury, issued decrees concerning the casting of coins and the rationing of prices in the markets, trying to achieve active state intervention in the economic life of the country. Wang Mang's reforms led to an extreme strengthening of the despotic oppression of the state; they not only failed to mitigate social contradictions, but caused their even greater aggravation. Wang Mang tried to save the day by announcing the repeal of all his land and slave laws, but to no avail. Spontaneous unrest and food riots began to flare up all over the country. Detachments of ruined community members, slaves, laborers operated throughout the country, taking different names - "Green Forest", "Bronze Horses", "Big Peaks", "Iron Shins", "Black Calves", etc. As a rule, they were scattered, although they often acted side by side. The "Red Eyebrows" movement, which unfolded in 18 AD, had a special scope. e. in Shandong, where the disasters of the population were multiplied by the catastrophic flood of the Yellow River, which abruptly changed its course (taking the direction it has now).
The Red Eyebrows movement shook the country for nearly a decade. It was incomparably broader in scope than Chen Sheng's anti-Qin rebellion and more uniform in composition than Liu Bang's. It broke out just as spontaneously as these powerful movements that preceded it. The rebels did not set any ahead of time planned and far-reaching ideological goals, except for the only one - the overthrow of the "usurper" Wang Mang. The masses of the dispossessed and exploited people took an active part in the movement. The fact that the movement did not have a narrow peasant character can be indirectly indicated by the fact that, although among the activities of Wang Mang there was a broadcast program for the restoration of the ancient system
jingtian -egalitarian communal land use - we do not see any positive response to it from those sections of the population who participated in the uprising. The rebels killed officials, canceled taxes, seized the property of the rich, but did not consolidate on any territory, but moved from all sides in one direction - to the capital of the Chang'an empire, and more precisely - to the imperial palace of Wang Mang. The first in 23 managed to take the capital to the detachments of the "Green Forest". Wang Mang was beheaded, his body was torn to pieces. In 25, Chang'an was captured by the "Red Eyebrows". Each rebel detachment declared its protege emperor. Simultaneously, in the city of Loyang, detachments of representatives of the ruling class proclaimed emperor the offspring of the Han house, Liu Xu, known in history under the temple name Guan Wudi (25-57). With inconsistency in actions, lack of military and political experience among the leaders of the rebels, as a rule, people from the lower classes, the whole movement at the last stage finally went on about certain layers of the nobility interested in overthrowing Wang Mang by the forces of the rebels, and then in restoring the Han dynasty and suppressing rebel movement. And indeed, Guang Wu-di began his reign with a "punitive campaign" against the "Red Eyebrows", which by the year 29 he managed to defeat, and then suppressed all other popular movements. The period of the "restored" Han dynasty, called the Younger or Later, begins with Emperor Guan Wudi; Luoyang became the new capital of the empire.Top of page >> Guan Wu-di
The most powerful uprising of the "Red-brows" in the history of China, which was an expression of the sharpest class struggle, led to some relief in the situation of the working population and the liberation of the mass of people from slave dependence, which was reflected in the decrees of Guang Wu-di.
The restoration of the Han Empire was accompanied by significant changes in its social and political structure. After the failure of the reforms and the suppression of the popular movement by the forces of the largest landowners, it became obvious that new real forces appeared in society, with which the ruling circles of the empire had to reckon.
The scope of the uprisings 17-25 years. showed the need, on the one hand, for concessions to the oppressed masses, and on the other, for the rallying of all sections of the ruling class, who transferred the function of suppressing the lower classes to the state and thereby sanctioned the restoration of the empire. If under Ai-di and Wang Mang any attempts by the state to limit private slavery and invade the rights of landowners met with desperate resistance, now, after the government of Guan Wu-di brutally cracked down on the rebels, private owners no longer protested against such laws of Guan Wu -di, as the preservation of freedom to those slaves who actually returned it to themselves during the uprisings, as the liberation of those sold into slavery due to hunger and forcibly enslaved during this period. If these decrees could not always and not be fully enforced, then in reality all state slaves enslaved for violating Wang Mang's laws, as well as some categories of private slaves, were actually freed. A decree of 1935 forbade branding private slaves, limited the owner's right to kill his slaves, and repealed the law on the shameful execution of slaves in the marketplace. Government measures were envisaged to protect some elementary rights of slaves. The decree even proclaimed (officially - for the first time) that a slave by nature is also a man. The laws of Guan Wu-di, which limited the arbitrariness of the masters, were perceived by them as inevitable measures necessary to prevent sharp class conflicts. At the same time, published by the government of Guan Wudi in 30-31. The "Law on the sale of people" introduced restrictions that streamlined the slave trade and the practice of selling free slaves into slavery, which contributed to the normalization of slaveholding relations. In all likelihood, Guan Wu-di relied on small and medium-sized farms; the large landowners - the so-called strong houses - apparently did not support these measures of his, in 52 they raised a rebellion, which Guan Wudi suppressed with his characteristic ruthlessness.
The government of Guan Wudi took decisive measures to repair the destroyed dams on the Yellow River, this area of the Great Plain of China now became directly adjacent to the capital (in connection with the transfer of the capital of the empire to Luoyang from the city of Chang'an, destroyed during the uprisings), for its improvement by Guan Wu -di paid special attention. The circulation of money was streamlined. The tax burden has been lightened. Farming and sericulture were encouraged. The poor were allocated state fields on preferential terms, including the lands of disgraced "strong houses".
During this period, the nature of landowning farms, especially the largest ones, began to change. Apparently, at that time, many farms used in the production of the so-called guests
(ke) . The Han authors defined the category of direct producers, called ke, as follows: "These are those who do not have their own land, but take it from the rich and cultivate it." The first mention of a large number of "guests" - ke orbinke -from landowners. So, for participation in the rebellions of the "strong houses", several thousand bingke personally dependent on them were executed.Slave-owning farms continued to exist, although slaves were now used more in specific types of production (on plantations of camphor and lacquer trees, in cattle breeding, in fish and salt industries). In agriculture, except for irrigation work, slave labor becomes less significant. Complaints about the unproductivity of slave labor first appeared in the 1st century BC. BC e. (in the government discussion "On Salt and Iron" 81 BC and the report of the dignitary Guang Yu, 44 BC). This was connected, in particular, with the improvement of labor skills and economic methods - an indicator of the rise of productive forces no less important than technical achievements.
A new type of field farming is developing, requiring careful care for literally every plant in the field. In the complex farms of the largest landowners, the labor of actually dependent (but still personally free) farmers is used. Researchers note the duality of their situation: on the one hand, they retained the right to acquire land, but on the other hand, they could not arbitrarily leave the plot of land they rented. The process of concentration of the earth took on a huge, hitherto unthinkable scale. "Strong houses", in no way connected with the bureaucratic nobility, possessed estates that stretched "from region to region". Their influence extended to the entire district, including small towns. At their disposal were thousands of slaves, herds of horses, herds of large and small livestock. They owned large workshops, a significant part of the working staff of which were chained slaves, and profited from trade and usury. On the fields of these huge estates, it was almost impossible to organize the necessary supervision of workers. Here labor was used more and more
butqu (personal guard planted on the ground) and all kinds of ke, known as "guest field workers"(dyanke), "hosted guests"(binke),"freeloaders" (ishike: letters. "ke for food and clothes") - something like clients or columns; many of them gradually turned into personally dependent workers, among them weretunnels -"youth-slaves". Need often compelled the poor who were indebted to cultivate the land of the "strong houses" under the difficult conditions of sharecropping. In the huge estates, which had several thousand "guest yards", there was a transition to a new type of exploitation of the direct producer, which left him some opportunity for independent management. Economically, these workers were not the property of the magnate and, as such, could not be merely an object of law. However, while remaining formally personally free, in administrative terms they fell out of the actual civilian population, were not taken into account by the population census, and the state could rather tax the slaves (as someone else's property) than this category of workers, which was actually not among the subjects of the empire - the taxpayers of the state.In the public sector, the so-called fields of military settlements have gained a certain distribution.
(tunypian) . For the first time, this form of state field farming arose on the northwestern borders of the empire at the turn of the 2nd-1st centuries. BC e., but then found application in the inner regions of the empire, which, perhaps, indicates the strengthening of the importance of state ownership of land. To study these farms, there are sources extremely rare for ancient China - authentic documents of economic reporting on bamboo planks. Agricultural work in these settlements was carried out by the settlers and their families, to whom the chiefs distributed seed, agricultural implements and livestock; the harvest (in whole or in the amount of 60%) was handed over to state barns, from where the farmers later received in-kind renditions and clothing. Issues and work performed were strictly taken into account. Despite the harsh conditions of exploitation, these "military settlers" were still not slaves in the legal sense, because cases of their subsequent enslavement by the authorities are known. Apparently, they were in the position of state-dependent people attached to the land of land users. This agrarian device, possibly associated with the re-creation of communities, became, to a certain extent, the prototype of the state allotment system.(juntian), widely used since the second quarter of the 3rd century. n. e. - already after the fall of the Han dynasty - in the Chinese states of the period of the so-called Three Kingdoms and in the early medieval Jin empire. At the turn of the 1st century n. e. all mankind numbered 250 million people and one-fifth of the world's population was represented at that time by the Eastern Han state, where more than 50 million people lived. Gradually, the empire restored military power and regained its position as a "world power". The border tribes that participated in the insurrection were pacified. In southern China, the Han emperors pursued a tough policy of forcible assimilation of the local population, imperial officials brutally oppressed the natives, and eradicated local cults and customs. In 40, a popular uprising broke out against the Han authorities in North Vietnam under the leadership of the Chyng sisters, which Guan Wu-di managed to suppress with great difficulty only by 44. In the second half of the 1st century, skillfully using (and to a certain extent provoking) the split of the Xiongnu into "northern" and "southern" and allowing the southern Xiongnu who submitted to the Hans to settle within its borders, the empire actively began to restore Han rule in the Western Territory, which by the end of the reign of the Elder Han fell away from China and fell under the rule of the Xiongnu. The younger Han Empire succeeded by the end of the 1st century. for a short time to restore its influence in the Western Territory and establish hegemony on the Great Silk Road. The commander Ban Chao, who operated in the Western Territory, launched an active diplomatic activity at that time, setting the task of achieving direct contacts with Daqin ("Great Qin Country", as the Hans called the Roman Empire). But the embassy sent by him only reached Roman Syria, having been deliberately detained by Parthian merchants. However, Han-Roman trade through intermediaries from the second half of the 1st c. n. e. has become quite regular. 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 communication from the port of Bakbo in North Vietnam (known to the Romans as Kattigara) to the east coast of India, and through Korea to Japan. In 166, the first "embassy" from Rome arrived in Luoyang along the southern sea route, as the private Roman trading company called itself. From the second half of the 2nd century, with the loss of the hegemony of the Han Empire on the Silk Road, Han foreign trade expansion to the countries of the South Seas, Lanka and Kanchipura (Kanchipuram in South India) began to develop. These links continue to be important. Expeditions are organized to the countries of the South Seas in order to capture slaves. The younger Han Empire is rushing in new directions to foreign markets, where luxury goods were the main international goods. The expansion of international relations of the Han state was accompanied by the flourishing of science, literature, philosophy, and art. According to contemporaries, the capital of the empire, Luoyang, struck with its magnificence. The luxury of the imperial palace and the splendor of the palaces of the nobility knew no bounds. Court poets and famous philosophers sang of the greatness and inviolability of the ruling dynasty, glorifying the empire as the limit of perfection, the advent of the "golden age" on earth.
The rapid rise of commodity-money relations was mainly due to the huge expansion of Han foreign trade. End of the 1st century marked by the rise of the economy and trade, success in crafts and agriculture. Water mills, water-lifting structures appear, blacksmith bellows are improved. Bed culture and a system of variable fields are being mastered. However, these improvements do not find any significant application, just as the non-moldboard heavy plow, designed for a team of two oxen, does not receive distribution. In practice, slaves were harnessed to it, and the desired effect did not work. Farmers refused to purchase iron agricultural implements made by state slaves, as they found them "unsuitable for work," according to sources. Although the law limited the arbitrariness of the master, where slaves were used in large numbers, they were kept in chains.
The prosperity of the Younger Han Empire was fragile and fraught with deep contradictions. At the moment of the greatest military and diplomatic successes of Ban Chao in the Western Territory, supporters of a passive foreign policy win at the court. They expressed the interests of those sections of the ruling class who were not interested in expanding foreign trade and further deepening commodity-money relations, since their huge estates increasingly became a self-sufficient economic organism, capable of limiting themselves to their internal markets. They said about these people: "So rich that he can open his market by closing the gate." In the phenomenal growth of family fortunes and the unbridled extravagance of the richest houses, contemporaries saw almost the root cause of the impoverishment of the state treasury and the mass ruin of farmers. Two poles of social reality: the accumulation of countless treasures in the hands of a few large landowners and the impoverishment of the masses of small and medium-sized owners - were identified by the beginning of the 2nd century. with extreme sharpness. Many politicians considered the situation that had arisen as a catastrophe for the state and directly connected it with the spread of commodity-money relations.
The struggle between two economic trends - private land ownership associated with the slave-owning economic structure, and the emerging new forms of land use - indirectly manifested itself in court discussions of the 2nd century. n. e., unfolding around the problem of money. In reports addressed to the highest name, advice appears to ban money and withdraw metal coins from circulation.
The underlying cause of the economic crisis was that the achieved level of commodity-money relations was excessively high for the productivity of labor that existed in society. Since in antiquity production, on the whole, was of a natural nature and not an increase in production, but self-reproduction was the goal of ancient society, commodity-money circulation affected only a relatively small part of the product produced; "capital" in the ancient world turned out to be commercial and usurious, i.e. had nothing to do with production. Thus, the growth of monetary savings development of production, as a rule, did not stimulate.
In 2 AD e. for the first time in China, a population census was carried out according to the number of households and souls, which gave the figures respectively: 12,233,612 households and 59,594,978 people.
At the beginning of the Younger Han's reign, the census registered only 21 million people in the empire. However, by the end of the 1st c. this figure increased to 53 million, which indicates the restoration of the state machine and the growth in the number of tax-paying citizens of the empire, and, consequently, a corresponding increase in treasury revenues. But after a decade and a half, the census showed a decrease in the subjects of the empire by almost 10% - and this in the absence of internal "disturbances" and external bloody wars. Obviously, part of the taxable population (and only they are recorded by the official accounting of the population of the Han Empire) gave itself under the patronage of large landowners. The reduction in the number of taxpayers did not mean their physical death, but marked their "death" civil in connection with giving themselves under the protection of private individuals. This situation was fundamentally different from the one that had caused alarm among Han politicians about one and a half to two centuries before. Then the reports of the authorities reported that, despite the reduction of the land tax to 1/30 of the harvest, the poor are actually deprived of half the crop in favor of the rich - usually their creditors, which forces the poor people to lay fields and give their family members into slavery. It was about community members who fell into debt bondage, but remained among the citizens - the taxpayers of the empire. There was no talk of any personal dependence of the needy people on private individuals at that time, in any case, as a mass phenomenon. Both then and now, the state cared about its income, about the amount of the taxable population of the empire, and painfully reacted to its reduction, but their fundamental difference was hidden behind the external similarity of the phenomena. Many debtors also sold their family members and themselves into slavery during this period, but the general trend of development became different. There was a noticeable increase in the number of low-power families who voluntarily handed themselves over to "guests", many gave land to "strong houses" for debts on the condition that it be used as persons personally dependent on land magnates. By the end of the II century. under the auspices of some of the largest representatives of the "strong houses" there were several thousand such families, among them ke, bingke, butqu, dianke, etc. . But hired labor is not indicative, it has always been used in private large landowning farms (due to the specifics of field cultivation, which needs additional workers in a difficult time), and hired workers were usually in the same position as the main producers of material goods in a given society. Apparently, wage labor did not have its own specific social coloring until the era of capitalism.
The practice of giving under patronage did not formally have the nature of a trade transaction, was not sealed by an act of buying and selling land and did not mean the enslavement of the debtor, fixing the "fortress" - purely personal, patronage relations, but in fact they led to the alienation of the land of debtors in favor of the lender or other "patron" "an impoverished community member and, ultimately, to the loss by the latter of some share of his civil freedom (which, due to the taxes and services associated with it, became a burden for him at that time), and patronage tied the one who surrendered under protection to the land, which, Obviously, it was in the interests of both sides.
Giving themselves under the patronage of "strong houses" and becoming dependent on them, the farmers, thereby, retained certain "rights" to their plots. At the same time, the patronage of the patrons, apparently, saved them from state taxes and duties. The fact that these processes were often based on debt transactions can be judged by the constant references of sources to the huge number of debtors of the land magnates.
From the subjects of the state, its free citizens, who fell into debt bondage, turned into people personally and land dependent, who fell out of the fiscal. For the government, this process meant the loss of income, for the land magnates - their acquisition, and obviously to the detriment of the state. Obviously, by the end of the described period, "guest yards" receive some kind of official status and begin to be taken into account by the authorities for tax purposes, but not as independent farms, but as taxable units assigned to "strong houses".
A peculiar situation arose: community members - the main taxable population of the empire - could dispose of their land, sell it on certain conditions to other individuals or legal entities, in particular, "strong houses", which, in turn, also had the right to dispose of their estates, expanding them to any conceivable limits; the state, whose subjects they were, had no real opportunity to prevent this. Both categories had all the rights of private ownership of land - possession, use and disposal of it, and quite independently of the state. Thus, neither the emperor personally nor the Han state at that time owned the land ownership of the entire territory of the empire, to which their public law sovereignty extended.
Over time, the heads of the "strong houses", having acquired their own armed forces and their own administrative apparatus, partially appropriated public legal functions and almost "naturally" turned out to be judicial power for their "dependents", as if standing between them and the state. The new dependence could be associated in their view with the patriarchal subordination of younger relatives in the home community, who, within each large family, were actually deprived of individual ownership of the means of production and a certain share of civil rights before. In the farms of the "strong houses", as they were enlarged, those forms of relations of power and property arose in their infancy, which made the land magnates in their own eyes fundamentally indistinguishable from the ruler, and their estates - indistinguishable from the state. The gradual combination in one person of the public-law functions of the sovereign and the private-law functions of the owner, which did not coincide in ancient society, testified to the emergence in the depths of the late Han empire of individual elements of early feudal relations. But this process has only just begun.
It seemed to the politicians of the empire that it was possible to restrain the concentration of land near the "strong houses" and delay the process of dispossessing the commoners of land by pressing down merchants and artificially reducing the flow of wealth into the country, which excessively incites a passion for profit. This was a conscious basis for changing the foreign policy of the empire. The desire for personal enrichment was opposed to the state interests of the country. But the real reason was rooted in the change in the nature of the economy of the "strong houses." New forms of dependence and land relations became dominant on the estates of land magnates, indicating a decrease in the marketability of private farms, further naturalization of production, and a change in the methods of collecting surplus product.
The reduction in the number of taxpayers naturally led to an increase in the oppression of taxes and duties for the remaining mass of the civilian population of the empire; according to some, however, greatly exaggerated, data, taxes allegedly exceeded the "legal" norms by 10 times.
The area of arable land registered by the state was shrinking more and more, the number of the taxable population fell catastrophically (from 49.5 million people in the middle of the 2nd century to 7.5 million in the middle of the 3rd century), entire communities, apparently, turned into "holders" land at "strong houses", since the entire community as a whole was responsible for the arrears of each family before the authorities. Food prices have skyrocketed. A rapid decline in commodity-money relations began. The estates of the "strong houses" increasingly became economically closed, self-supporting farms. The peasantry - still free - did not have the means to participate in the trade. City life froze. If at the turn of the Christian era there were 37,844 cities in the empire, then in the middle of the 2nd century. - only 17,303, i.e., over a century and a half, their number has more than halved. If at the beginning of the dynasty, self-governing cities were a characteristic feature of the imperial system, and it was their support that brought Liu Bang success in his struggle for power at first, but now the sources do not mention them. Officials proposed to calculate all fees in fabrics, and finally, in 204, a decree was issued to replace all cash payments in kind, in the early 20s of the 3rd century. in the kingdom of Wei (which arose on the ruins of the Han Empire in the Yellow River basin), the coin was abolished and silk and grain were introduced into circulation.
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 the sons of Liu Bang - 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 Liu Bang's sons, 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 AD) is one of the most 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 government.
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 seized power and proclaimed himself the founder of a 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. 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.
One of the urgent problems that Gaozu faced was the problem of rebuilding the country's economy. The wars of Qin Shi Huang, the uprisings and punitive expeditions of the Qin authorities, and finally, the five-year devastating war between pretenders to the throne caused enormous damage to the economy. Irrigation facilities were abandoned, the fertile lands of the country's regions were catastrophically reduced. Hundreds of thousands of people died, even more fled from their homes and hid from the hardships of troubled times in the forests. Gaozu saw a way out of this situation in the policy of concessions to the lower classes and easing the tax burden. Families with newborns were also exempted from duties. Residents who had previously left their native places were returned to their fields and dwellings. All those who had to sell themselves into slavery during the famine were declared free. The land tax was significantly reduced - now it was 1/15 of the crop. In the event of natural disasters, no taxes were levied at all. The seven largest military leaders who settled in the territory of some former kingdoms were granted the titles of wangs, and after that, more than 130 associates of Gaozu received hereditary possessions and began to be called hou. Thus, the system of districts and counties created under Qin was restored only in part of the territory of the empire. Having made a compromise, Gaozu managed to mitigate the contradictions between the military leaders of the anti-Qin coalition and achieve the unification of the country. Most of the contenders for the role of the unifier of the country use the policy of alliances with the most remote kingdoms. This is how the “vertical alliance” of Zhao and Chu and the “horizontal alliance” of Qin and Qi arose.
The result of the conclusion of the "horizontal union" was, in particular, that in 288 BC. e. the rulers of Qin and Qi agreed on a kind of division of spheres of influence: after defeating opponents, the Qin ruler had to take the title of "Western Emperor", and the Qi - "Eastern". For some time, success accompanied the kingdom of Chu. Having defeated a number of small and medium-sized neighbors (Yue, Lu, etc.), Chu significantly expanded its territory. However, Qin had the last word. In 246 BC. e. thirteen-year-old Ying Zheng ascended the throne. In 238 BC. e. he suppressed a conspiracy against his power and consolidated his position. Soon after, Ying Zheng began active military operations against his neighbors. In 230 BC. e. The kingdom of Qin inflicts a decisive defeat on the Han and seizes all of its territory.
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 Guan 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. Guang 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 timely 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, restrained 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 essentially 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 collaborating 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 to the fore 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 Chinese Qin and Han dynasties ruled the country in 221 BC. e. - 220 AD e. At that time, the state experienced several civil wars, adopted Buddhism from India and regularly repulsed the attacks of the aggressive northern nomads of the Huns.
Founding of Qin
Ancient unified China in 221 BC. e. Her reign fit in a very short period of 15 years, but even in this short period, a huge number of changes took place in the country that influenced the entire future history of the East Asian region. Qin Shi Huang ended the centuries-old era of the Warring States. In 221 BC. e. he conquered numerous principalities of Inner China and proclaimed himself emperor.
Qin Shi Huang created a well-governed centralized state, which in that era had no equal either in Asia or in the Mediterranean. Legalism, a philosophical doctrine, also known as the "school of lawyers", became the dominant ideology of the empire. Its important principle was that state titles and positions began to be distributed according to the real merits and talents of a person. This rule was contrary to the established Chinese order, according to which representatives of aristocratic noble families received high appointments.
The emperor proclaimed the equality of all the inhabitants of the country before the law. Public and clan self-government was subordinated to a single state system with multi-level administration. Qin Shihuang was very sensitive to the laws. The most severe punishments were provided for their violations. The proclamation of legalism as the dominant ideology led to mass repressions of supporters of the philosophy of Confucianism. For propaganda or possession of prohibited written sources, people were burned at the stake.
Rise of a dynasty
Under Qin Shi Huang, internal internecine wars ceased. The feudal princes had a huge amount of weapons confiscated, and their armies were reassigned directly to the emperor. The authorities divided the entire territory of the Chinese state into 36 provinces. Unification was observed in all spheres of public life. The system of measures and weights was streamlined, a single standard for writing hieroglyphs was introduced. Thanks to this, China for the first time in a long time felt like one country. Provinces have become easier to interact with each other. An extensive network of roads was built to revive economic and trade ties in the empire. Society has become more mobile and communicative.
Most of the population participated in the renewal of the country. A huge number of peasants and workers were involved in the construction of important infrastructure. The most significant project of the Qin era was the construction of the Great Length, which reached almost 9 thousand kilometers. The “construction of the century” turned out to be necessary to protect the country from northern nomads. Prior to that, they freely attacked the scattered Chinese principalities, which, due to their political enmity, could not give a significant rebuff to the enemy. Now not only a wall appeared on the way of the steppes, but also a lot of garrisons quickly interacting with each other. Another important symbol of the Qin dynasty was the Terracotta Army - the burial of 8 thousand statues of warriors with horses in the emperor's mausoleum.
Shihuang's death
Qin Shi Huang died in 210 BC. e. He died during another trip to China. The whole effective state system, which ensured the prosperity of the country, was created thanks to the emperor. Now that he is gone, China is on the brink of an abyss. The emperor's associates tried to smooth the blow - for some time they hid the news of the death of the ruler and fabricated a new will, according to which the youngest son of the deceased became the heir.
The new emperor Ershi Huang was a weak-willed man. He quickly became a puppet of his adviser Zhao Gao. This official under Qin Shi Huang was the head of his office and had great ambitions. The country shook with discontent with this gray eminence and his behind-the-scenes intrigues. Several uprisings broke out. The reason for the rebellion was also the disobedience of the workers involved in the construction of the Great Wall of China. 900 people did not have time to arrive at their site due to mud and bad roads. By law, they should have been executed. The workers, not wanting to part with their lives, organized themselves into an insurgent detachment. Soon they were joined by numerous dissatisfied with the new regime. The protest turned from social to political. Soon this army grew to 300 thousand people. It was headed by a native of the peasants named Liu Bang.
Ershi Huang in 207 BC. e. committed suicide. This led to more anarchy in China. A dozen pretenders to the throne appeared. In 206 BC. e. Liu Bang's army overthrew the last emperor of the Qin Dynasty Ziying. He was executed.
Rise of the Han Dynasty
Liu Bang became the founder of the new Han Dynasty, which eventually ruled the country until 220 AD. e. (with a short break). She managed to survive longer than all other Chinese empires. Such success became possible thanks to the creation of an effective bureaucratic system of government. Many of her traits were adopted from Shihuang. The Qin and Han dynasties are political relatives. The only difference in them is that one ruled the country for 15 years, and the other for 4 centuries.
Historians divide the period of the Han Dynasty into two parts. The first came in 206 BC. e. - 9 AD e. This is the Early Han or Western Han with Chang'an as its capital. This was followed by a short period of the Xin Empire, when another dynasty held power. A.D. 25 to 220 e. Han re-rule was moved to Luoyang. This period is also called the Late Han or Eastern Han.
Liu Bang's reign
With the coming to power, the Han dynasty initiated significant changes in the life of the country, which allowed society to consolidate and calm down. The former ideology of legalism was left in the past. The authorities proclaimed the leading role of Confucianism, popular among the people. In addition, the legislative acts of the early Han Dynasty stimulated the development of agriculture. Peasants (the vast majority of the population of China) received a noticeable relief in taxes collected by the states. Instead of the old source of replenishment of the treasury, Liu Bang went to increase fees from the merchants. He introduced many trade duties.
Also, the beginning of the Han Dynasty regulated relations between the political center and the provinces in a new way. A new administrative division of the country was adopted. Liu Bang throughout his life fought against the rebellious governors in the provinces (wans). The emperor replaced many of them with his own relatives and loyal supporters, which gave additional stability to power.
At the same time, the Han Dynasty faced a major challenge in the form of the Xiongnu (or Huns). These wild nomads of the northern steppes have been a danger since the time of Qin. In 209 BC. e. they had their own emperor named Mode. He united the nomads under his rule and was now going to war against China. In 200 BC. e. Xiongnu captured the large city of Shanxi. Liu Bang personally led the army in order to expel the savages. The size of the army was colossal. It included about 320 thousand soldiers. However, even such forces could not frighten Mode. During the decisive clash, he carried out a deceptive maneuver and surrounded Liu Bang's squad, representing the vanguard of the imperial army.
A few days later, the parties agreed to start negotiations. So in 198 BC. e. the Chinese and the Huns concluded the Treaty of Peace and Kinship. The nomads agreed to leave the Han Empire. In return, Liu Bang recognized himself as a tributary of the northern neighbors. In addition, he married his daughter to Mode. Tribute was an annual gift sent to the court of the ruler of the Huns. It was gold, jewelry and other valuables that a civilized country was famous for. In the future, the Chinese and the Xiongnu fought for several more centuries. The Great Wall, designed to protect against nomads and begun during the Qin Dynasty, was completed under the Han. The first emperor of this kind, Liu Bang, died in 195 BC. e.
Xin Empire
In subsequent years, China lost the stability that characterized the early Han Dynasty. The emperors spent most of their money on the fight against the Huns, unsuccessful intervention in the west and palace intrigues. Each new generation of rulers paid less and less attention to the issues of the economy, the rule of law and the well-being of their own subjects.
The Western Han Dynasty died out by itself. In 9 A.D. e. after the death of Emperor Ping-di, power, due to the lack of a direct heir, passed to the father-in-law of the late Wang Mang. He created a new Xin dynasty, but it did not last long. Wang Mang attempted to carry out drastic reforms. In particular, he wanted to rein in the slave owners and big magnates. His policy was aimed at helping the poorest sections of the population. It was a bold and risky course, given that the new emperor did not belong to the former ruling family and was in fact a usurper.
Time has shown that Wang Mang was wrong. First, he turned the powerful aristocracy against him. Secondly, his transformations led to chaos in the provinces. Local riots began. Peasant unrest soon received the name of the red-browed uprising. The cause for discontent was the flood of the great Yellow River. A natural disaster left a huge number of the poor without housing and livelihoods.
Soon these rebels allied with other rebels who were supporters of the former Han dynasty. In addition, they were supported by the Huns, who were glad of any opportunity for war and robbery in China. In the end, Wang Mang was defeated. He was deposed and executed in 23.
Eastern Han
Finally, in the year 25 after the end of the war and the red-browed uprising, the second era of the Han Dynasty began. It lasted until 220. This period is also known as the Eastern Han. On the throne was a distant relative of the former emperors Guan Wudi. The old capital during the war was completely destroyed by the peasants. The new ruler decided to move his residence to Luoyang. Soon this city, among other things, became the main Chinese center of Buddhism. In 68, the temple of Baimasa (or the temple of the White Horse) was founded in it. This religious building was erected with the support and patronage of Ming-di, a descendant and successor of Guan Wu-di.
The then history of the Han Dynasty was an example of political calm and stability. Palace intrigues are a thing of the past. The emperors managed to defeat the Huns and drive them into their empty northern steppes for a long time. Centralization and strengthening of power allowed the rulers to extend their power far to the west up to the borders of Central Asia.
At the same time, China achieved economic prosperity. Private entrepreneurs who were engaged in salt production and mining of metals got rich. A huge number of peasants worked for them. These people, leaving for the enterprises of magnates, stopped paying taxes to the treasury, which is why the state suffered significant losses. Economic interest forced Emperor Wu in 117 to nationalize metallurgy and salt production. Another profitable state monopoly was the production of alcohol.
External contacts
It was in the I-II century. every emperor of the Han Dynasty was known far abroad. At this time, on the other side of the ancient world, another civilization was flourishing - Roman. During the period of greatest hegemony, only the Kushan kingdom and Parthia were between the two states.
The inhabitants of the Mediterranean were interested in China primarily as the birthplace of silk. The secret of the production of this fabric has not left the East for many centuries. Thanks to this, untold wealth was earned through the trade in valuable material. It was in Han times that the Great Silk Road became lively, along which unique goods went west from the east. The first embassy from China arrived in Rome during the reign of Octavian Augustus at the beginning of the 1st century AD. e. The travelers spent nearly four years on the road. In Europe, they were amazed at the yellow color of their skin. Because of this, the Romans believed that in China there was "another sky."
In 97, the Eastern Emperor's army, led by the talented commander Ban Chao, set off on a raid to the west in order to punish nomads who robbed merchants who transported their goods along the Great Silk Road. The army overcame the inaccessible Tien Shan and ravaged Central Asia. After this campaign, ambassadors went far to the west, leaving their own descriptions of the Roman Empire, which in China was called "Daqin". Mediterranean travelers also reached the eastern countries. In 161, an embassy sent by Anthony Pius arrived in Luoyang. Interestingly, the delegation traveled to China by sea across the Indian Ocean.
During the Han Dynasty, a convenient route to India was discovered, which ran through Bactria in the territory of modern Uzbekistan. The emperors were attentive to the southern country. In India, there were many outlandish goods that interested the Chinese (from metals to rhinoceros horns and giant tortoise shells). However, the religious connection between the two regions has become much more important. It was from India that Buddhism entered China. The more intense the contacts between the inhabitants of these countries became, the more religious and philosophical teachings spread among the subjects of the Han Empire. The authorities even sent expeditions that were supposed to find a land route to India through modern Indochina, but these attempts were never successful.
Rise of the Yellow Turbans
The late Eastern Han Dynasty was distinguished by the fact that almost all of its rulers were on the throne in childhood. This led to the dominance of all kinds of regents, advisers and relatives. Monarchs were appointed and deprived of power by eunuchs and the newly-minted gray cardinals. Thus, at the beginning of the 2nd century, the Han dynasty entered a period of gradual decline.
The absence of a single centralized authority in the person of an adult and strong-willed monarch did not bode well for the state. In 184, it broke out all over China. It was organized by members of the popular Taipingdao sect. Its supporters preached among the poor peasantry, dissatisfied with their position and the dominance of the rich. The teachings of the sect claimed that the Han dynasty should be overthrown, after which the era of prosperity would begin. The peasants believed that the Messiah Lao Tzu would come and help build an ideal and just society. The opening occurred when the sect already had several million members, and its army numbered in the tens of thousands, and this figure was growing steadily. The fall of the Han Dynasty was largely due to this popular uprising.
End of the Han Dynasty
The peasant war continued for two decades. The rebels were defeated only in 204. The paralyzed imperial power was unable to organize and finance its own army to defeat the fanatical poor. And this is not surprising, because the Eastern Han dynasty was weakened by regular capital intrigues. Aristocrats and magnates came to her rescue, giving money for the army.
The commanders who controlled these troops quickly became independent political figures. Among them, the commanders Cao Cao and Dong Zhuo were especially prominent. They helped the empire to defeat the peasants, but after the onset of peace they stopped following the orders of the authorities and did not want to disarm. The Chinese Han Dynasty lost its leverage over the armies, which in two decades felt like independent forces. Warlords began incessant wars with each other for influence and resources.
In the north of the country, Cao Cao established himself, who in 200 was able to defeat all his opponents in this region. In the south, two more newly-minted rulers appeared. They were Liu Bei and Sun Quan. The confrontation between the three generals led to the division of the once united China into three parts.
The last ruler of the Han Dynasty, Xian-di, formally abdicated in 220. So the split of the country into several parts was already legally fixed, although in fact such a political system developed at the end of the 2nd century. The Han Dynasty ended and the Three Kingdoms began. This era lasted 60 years and led to a decline in the economy and even more bloodshed.
Han Empire
Han era(III century BC - III century AD) - the time of the highest political development of Ancient China. True, Gaozu did not completely recreate the centralized system of power: part of the country's territory was turned into inheritances given to some relatives and associates of the emperor. However, already in the middle of the II century. BC e. after several outbreaks of separatism, the independence of the destinies (and a significant part of them themselves) was over. Gaozu took a number of measures that dramatically improved the situation of the people and encouraged the development of production, and directed all his efforts to rebuild the country after the disastrous times of the end of the 3rd century. BC e .: he returned the rights to those free people who during this time were forced to sell themselves into slavery under the threat of starvation, provided communities with temporary benefits and reduced taxes compared to the Qin 10 times, to an extremely easy 1/15 of the harvest. Under Gaozu's successors, this rate was usually maintained.
Xiao Wen-di(180-157 BC), the son of Gaozu, went even further: he again reduced the cost of maintaining his court, completely stopped taking taxes from peasants, abolished corporal punishment and punishment for the guilt of a relative, as well as for blasphemy against the emperor, declaring that the common people were free to scold him in private conversations. It was the first and last such incident in Chinese history. Apparently, the whole traditional Chinese paradigm of respect and duty to the highest caused Wen-di a conscious rejection, and he believed that it was not so necessary to educate the people in the spirit of self-denial and that people should live for their own pleasure, as long as it is compatible with social in order.
At the same time, Xiao Wen-di was not a "philosopher on the throne" at all. This talented commander and administrator successfully fought against the nomads, suppressed the rebellions of the specific princes with lightning speed and extremely skillfully, avoiding executions and disgrace, manipulated the dignitaries. After the death of this unusual ruler, taxes were slightly increased, and the punishments he abolished were restored, but still the Han Empire did not oppress the people in the same way as the Qin Empire.
In general, according to Sima Qian (1st century BC), under the first Han emperors, “the common people were able to get rid of the hardships of the Zhangguo era. Both rulers and subjects together sought to rest. Punishments of any kind were rarely used. The people were diligently engaged in arable farming, there was plenty of clothing and food. The development of the economy was also facilitated by the fact that in the II century. BC e. formed the so-called Great Silk Road- a caravan road from China to the countries of Central and Western Asia, which ran from the Yellow to the Mediterranean Sea. In the following decades, centralization and tax oppression increased again.
Chinese observation post on the Great Silk Road
In the middle of the II century. BC e. Confucianism (albeit incorporating many features of legalism) was declared the only true teaching and the only ideology supported by the state. The dignitaries declared: "Everything that does not correspond to the teachings of Confucius must be eradicated, only then will the administration become unified, the laws clear, and the people will know what to follow." (Confucianism maintained this position until the 20th century.)
Later, at Woo-dee(140-87 BC), the Qin Institute of Inspectors was recreated and a new system for training officials was introduced. Only those who graduated from a special educational institution in the capital, where they studied primarily the Confucian canon, and passed the relevant exams, could get into their number. Any free person had the right to try to enter such institutions. In addition, local officials were obliged to search for and promote capable young men.
However, the Confucian idea that the "father"-ruler should give his subjects-"children" an example of virtue, that is, lack of concern for their own benefits, sometimes created paradoxical situations. In the 1st century BC e. Confucians stubbornly demanded the abolition of state monopolies, the profits from which went to support the frontier army, mainly because, by the very fact of such concern for replenishing the treasury, the state showed the people an example of the pursuit of profit, that is, for profit. When asked how, in this case, to defend China from the nomads, the Confucians answered: “If the emperor refuses to pursue profit, and only shows modesty and selflessness, improves and exercises his de energy, then the northern barbarians themselves will refuse attacks, disarmed by the invincible the magic power of the emperor's virtue."
At the end of the II century. BC e. the warlike Wu-di tried to launch large-scale external conquests. Long-distance campaigns were made to the north, against the Xiongnu, to the west, to the territory of Eastern Turkestan up to Fergana (the diplomat and commander Zhang Qian especially distinguished himself here), to the south and southeast, to the borders of modern Vietnam and Myanmar, and to the northeast, to Korea. Almost everywhere the Chinese were victorious. In total, the territory of the state increased by a third.
However, Wu-di's wars, which were mostly purely prestigious and unnecessary for the country (for example, the emperor wanted to get local horses famous for their breed from Fergana), cost her enormous human losses and material exhaustion. They not only did not bring production, but also demanded an increase in tax oppression for their financial security. A crisis began in agriculture, peasant families were ruined, and crop areas began to decline. At the end of his reign, U-di admitted in an official edict that he “tired the Celestial Empire” by wars only in vain, and repented of them.
In the 1st century BC e. a situation begins to take shape that was destined to repeat itself more than once in the history of China, each time with the same consequences. We are talking about getting the masses of the impoverished population into socio-economic dependence on large private owners. Since in China since the IV century. BC e. almost all values, from land to class rank, were the object of free sale, the processes of concentration of wealth among some owners and the ruin of others took on a wide scale. Self-sale and the sale of relatives into slavery for debts or because of hunger revived again. The number of Chinese slaves was constantly growing, approaching the number of foreign slaves; rich dignitaries and merchants could have several hundred slaves. The proportion of landless and land-poor peasants, who were forced to settle as tenants on the land of the rich nobility, who concentrated vast lands in their hands, rapidly increased. The rent was very high and reached half the harvest. For the same reasons wage labor spread.
The dynasty was aware that the growth of large landownership threatened its power, but all attempts to legally introduce a limit on the size of private property failed due to the resistance of large landowners, which included dignitaries in the capital and localities. The most unsuccessful attempt to cope with the growth of private landownership and private slavery was made by the usurper Wang Man at the beginning of the 1st century n. e. He tried to prohibit the slave trade, without returning, however, freedom to the slaves, and to carry out a land redistribution, giving each family a small plot and forbidding the purchase and sale of land. The reform aroused the resistance of large owners and was carried out with such ideological errors against common sense and abuses of officials that it created chaos in the economy and further worsened the situation of the people. Uprisings broke out all over the place.
The rebel armies fought against the forces of Wang Mang, and after his death in this struggle, with each other. From the seven-year turmoil in 25 AD. e. The winner was Liu Xiu from the ruling Han family. He declared himself emperor Guan Wu-di(25-57 years) and moved the capital to the east, to Luoyang. The reign of his house is called the era Late or Eastern Han(25–220).
The history of this period in its main features cyclically repeats the reign of the Elder Han. Guang Wu-di, like Gao-zu once, carried out extensive reforms aimed at revitalizing the economy and agriculture. By edict of the emperor, the vast majority of slaves, Chinese by origin, received freedom, it was forbidden to enslave the Chinese, and slave owners were deprived of the right to brand and kill their slaves. Taxes and duties were reduced. Particular attention was paid to the development of new lands in the south of China, in the Yangtze basin and to the south; the state encouraged the creation of irrigation systems here. At the same time, extensive state measures for irrigation were also taking place in the original agricultural areas.
All these measures again strengthened the position of the bulk of the peasantry and stabilized the situation in the empire. Taking advantage of this, the descendants of Guan Wudi after some time switched to active external expansion. In the 2nd half of the 1st - beginning of the 2nd c. n. e. wars were fought either with the Xiongnu, or with the states of Eastern Turkestan, or with the Kushan power penetrating there. Most of the 2nd c. n. e. The Late Han was already engaged in defensive wars against the new hordes of northern nomads and the western hill tribes of the Kokunor basin.
The population of the empire, as at the end of the Old Han period, reached 60 million people. And the crisis repeated again: more and more power began to be concentrated in their hands by large landowners and their clans (the so-called strong houses), which drew large masses of peasants into dependence on themselves.
This time the situation was more serious than under the Elder Han: if then the usual form of such dependence was free rent, which did not change the status of the tenant as a personally free person who was obliged to the state by poll tax and duties, now the tenants have become personally dependent on “strong houses”, and those sheltered them from state accounting and exploitation. The tax base of the state was shrinking, and it increased the exploitation of those peasants whom it still controlled. As a result, the state peasants went bankrupt and were forced to join the ranks of those dependent on "strong houses" that could provide them with land. The merging of large landed property and high ranks, as well as the general corruption of the bureaucracy, became another misfortune of that time.
Across the country, for a quarter of a century, rebellions organized by Taoist and close to them sects broke out, the most powerful was the uprising of the "yellow bandages" (184). It was suppressed not so much by the imperial troops as by the “strong houses”, who received full power in the field during these unrest, and then began to fight for the imperial throne. After 192, the Han emperor was already a puppet in the hands of their rival factions, and after his death in 220, China broke up into three kingdoms, in each of which the main power was the magnates - the heads of the "powerful houses" who constituted the state elite. This collapse is conventionally considered the end of China's ancient history.
In general, the Han era is rightfully famous as the classical, "golden" age of Chinese history. It was then, in fact, that the Chinese people themselves finally took shape, and the self-name of the Chinese is still the term "Han", that is, "people of the Han Empire."
From the book Empire - I [with illustrations] author4. The Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation of the 10th-13th centuries and the Habsburg Empire 4. 1. The Empire of the 10th-13th centuries is the sum of two layers Modern ideas about the Holy Roman Empire of the 10th-13th centuries are probably the sum of information from two historical periods. The first -
From the book Empire - I [with illustrations] author Nosovsky Gleb Vladimirovich19.1. Why the "Mongolian" Empire, the first and only truly World Empire, split after three hundred years. The reasons for the collapse of the Great Empire - such a large and centralized state formation - are apparently understandable. Of course they could be
From the book Empire - II [with illustrations] author Nosovsky Gleb Vladimirovich10. The "ancient" Roman Empire is the Great = "Mongolian" empire of the XIV-XV centuries. Here we briefly emphasize an important identification, which will be discussed in more detail in subsequent publications. According to the dynastic parallelisms listed in KhRON1, ch.6, and in detail
From the book Journey to the Ancient World [Illustrated Encyclopedia for Children] author Dinin JacquelineHan Empire Great inventions. Han City The Han Dynasty ruled over China for over 400 years. For China, it was an era of prosperity, marked by outstanding technological achievements. The Chinese invented many things that we take for granted today.
From the book Reconstruction of World History [text only] author Nosovsky Gleb Vladimirovich4. HOLY ROMAN EMPIRE OF THE GERMAN NATION OF THE X-XIII CENTURIES AND THE EMPIRE OF THE HABSBURGS 4.1. THE EMPIRE OF THE X-XIII CENTURIES IS THE SUM OF TWO LAYERS Modern ideas about the Holy Roman Empire of the X-XIII centuries are probably the sum of information from two historical periods [нх1]. The first -
From the book Mathematical Chronology of Biblical Events author Nosovsky Gleb Vladimirovich4.4. The Holy Roman Empire of the German nation of the X-XIII centuries and the Habsburg Empire 4.4.1. The Empire of the 10th-13th centuries is the sum of two layersModern ideas about the Holy Roman Empire of the 10th-13th centuries are probably the sum of information from two historical periods [нх-1].
author Team of authorsTHE WESTERN HAN EMPIRE The Han era is traditionally divided into two periods. The early one is called the Western Han, so named because the capital was located in the city of Chang'an (the south of the modern Shaanxi province), that is, in the west in relation to the city of Loi, the capital of the later Eastern Han. Becoming the founder
From the book World History: In 6 volumes. Volume 1: Ancient World author Team of authorsTHE EASTERN HAN EMPIRE? The first emperor of the new Eastern Han empire, Guangwu-di (25-57 AD), was a far-sighted politician whose reign was a time of transformation for the country. Having come to power by military means (see above) and suppressing the popular uprising of the "Red
From the book History of the Ancient World [with illustrations] author Nefedov Sergey AlexandrovichTHE EMPIRE OF HAN Above the battlefield of the sun, the disc rose Again, the soldiers are going to the mortal battle... Li Po. The events of four centuries ago returned to the stage and flashed before the eyes of historians at the speed of a film. Peasant plots were again crushed, again destitute sons
From the book History of the Byzantine Empire author Dil CharlesCHAPTER VII THE LATIN-CONSTANTINOPOLIAN EMPIRE AND THE GREEK-NICANE EMPIRE (1204-1261) I DECAY OF THE BYZANTINE EMPIRE The first result of the conquest of Constantinople by the Crusaders was a profound change in the face of the Eastern world. On the ruins of the Byzantine Empire in lush color
From the book History of China author Meliksetov A.V.2. Han Empire. Wu Di and Its Transformations The Chinese empire evolved as a centralized state over a number of centuries. In principle, an empire is the highest stage of the process of politogenesis. It can exist only on the basis of a centralized apparatus of power,
From the book History of the Ancient East author Lyapustin Boris SergeevichThe Han Empire The Han era (III century BC - III century AD) is the time of the highest political development of Ancient China. True, Gaozu did not completely recreate the centralized system of power: part of the country's territory was turned into inheritances given to some relatives and
From the book Book 1. Antiquity is the Middle Ages [Mirages in history. The Trojan War was in the 13th century AD. Evangelical events of the XII century AD and their reflections in and author Fomenko Anatoly Timofeevich10. The "Ancient" Roman Empire is the Great = "Mongolian" Empire of the XIV-XV centuries. Here we briefly emphasize an important identification, which we will discuss in more detail in subsequent publications. According to the dynastic parallelisms listed in the volume Numbers Against Lies,
From the book Medieval chronologists "lengthened history." Mathematics in history author Nosovsky Gleb Vladimirovich2. The Imperial Rome of Titus Livius (Empire I) and the Ancient Empire of Diocletian (Empire III)
From the book Book 1. Empire [Slavic conquest of the world. Europe. China. Japan. Russia as a medieval metropolis of the Great Empire] author Nosovsky Gleb Vladimirovich18.1. Why the "Mongolian" empire, the first and only truly world empire, split after three hundred years. The reasons for the collapse of the Great Empire - so large and centralized - are apparently understandable. Of course, there could be several. But not last
From the book Ancient East author Nemirovsky Alexander ArkadievichThe Han Empire The Han Dynasty spanned the period of Chinese history from 206 B.C. e. to 220 AD e. By the brief intermediate reign of Wang Mang (9–23 AD), it is divided into the early or Western Han (206 BC - 8 AD) and the late or Eastern Han (25–23 AD). 220 AD
