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In the hall of ancestors in the house of Yang Jian, the commander of the state of Northern Zhou, the hereditary ruler of the Sui fief, wooden tablets with the names of his deceased forefathers stood on a dais. In front of the tablets, Yang Jian reverently bowed his knees more than once, reporting to the souls of the ancestors about the victories and asking for help in new endeavors. In 581, he seized the Northzhou throne and proclaimed himself sovereign. The souls of the departed must have experienced immeasurable joy when one day Yang Jian reported to them: “Now I am di-lord. The North of the Celestial Empire is subject to me! Having extended his power to northern China, in 589 he undertook a campaign to the south, overthrew the southern Chen dynasty and captured its ruler Hou Zhu. Now, in front of the sacred tablets that Yang Jian worshiped, the ruler of the southern lands meekly bowed his head. So Yang Jian informed the ancestors that his opponent was defeated and the dual power in the Celestial Empire was over. China again became united under the rule of the Sui Dynasty founded by him. The year was 589.

As usual, the first ruler of Sui China, Wen-di (as Yang Jian began to be called), eased taxes. The sovereign himself set an example of modesty in clothing and food. However, he was soon killed by his son Yang Guan, who ruled under the name of Yang-di, who behaved differently. He spared no expense to decorate his palace and parks. The reconstruction of the city of Luoyang employed 2 million people. At the request of Yang-di, the trees there bloomed and turned green all year round: in winter, leaves and flowers were made of silk. In one county, all the birds were killed: their down went to the sovereign's blankets.

Obsessed with the idea of connecting the two great rivers of China - the Yangtze and the Yellow River, Yang-di ordered the construction of the Grand Canal. But even this useful undertaking became hated by the people. Even women were driven to forced labor. Many people died from overwork. A heavy burden on the shoulders of the people lay a huge tribute, which the Sui court paid to its neighbors - the Turks, in order to avoid wars with them.

The Sui Empire was not famous for military successes. 1 million soldiers were sent to fight Korea on 300 ships. The result of the war did not justify the costs and human losses. The people responded to the Korean campaigns with uprisings. And the Huangdi Yangdi himself was held by the Turkic Khan Shibi in a siege for a month at the "inner" Great Wall. It was built on the orders of Yang-di at the cost of huge human casualties, as a second line of defense against the nomads from the north. Having released him, the Turk

Yang-di at that time was far outside the capital. Admiring himself in the mirror, he said: “I want to know who will have the honor to take my head off my shoulders? And soon he was killed by those close to him. The Sui dynasty did not last even 30 years.

The throne of the emperor of China was occupied by Li Yuan under the name of Gaozu. He initiated the Tang Dynasty (618-907). Buddhist monks were among the first to experience the change of power. Seeing them as a threat to the well-being of the country, he closed many Buddhist monasteries and ordered their inhabitants to do useful things instead of praying.

The Tang house inherited economic devastation. In a number of places the lands were empty. Little revenue came into the treasury. The new rulers saw a way out of this situation in egalitarian land use: the land was received primarily by the poor and those who paid taxes and served their duties. The order of egalitarian land use tied the peasant to the land, forced him to bear state duties, pay land tax and trade tax. Gradually, through the labor of the peasants, the wasteland became arable land, bringing large harvests. Treasury revenues also increased.

China during the years of the power of the Tang house was the leading power in East Asia. Maritime trade flourished. The economic upsurge contributed to the development of cities - centers of trade and crafts, and had a great influence on the development of culture. No wonder the Tang period is called the "golden age" of poetry.

The state power is characterized by the creation of a system of competitive examinations, which led to the emergence of a scientific class personally devoted to the ruling dynasty.

However, the system of egalitarian land use did not take root in the country. Its decline and disappearance were facilitated by the oppression of the peasants by large landowners and officials, the unauthorized seizure of land by those in power, the buying up of allotments by merchants and usurers, and growing taxes to the treasury. A simple worker had to pay with sweat and blood for the ambitious aspirations of the Tang emperors.

The expansion of China's borders, the increase in tributaries from among foreign rulers was the goal of the foreign policy of the Tang dynasty for almost 300 years of its existence. The refusal of the ruler of Korea to consider himself a subject of the emperor of China led to the invasion of Chinese troops into its territory. Tang China fought with Tibet, the states of the Turks, interfered in the affairs of India, tried to subjugate Vietnam. The advance of Tang China to the West was stopped only by the troops of the Arab Caliphate, who defeated the Tang army in 751 on the Talas River. In 754, 200,000 Chinese soldiers died in an unsuccessful attempt to conquer the southern neighbor, the state of "savages" Nanzhao. The struggle with Tufan (Tibet) and the Uighur Khanate ended just as ingloriously.

Media, News, Publishing

среда, 24 июня 2020 г.

Engins militaires

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Engins militaires

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среда, 24 июня 2020 г.