The Sui and Tang Dynasties (581 - 907) was the collective name of the Sui Dynasty (581-618) and the Tang Dynasty (618-907). It was also one of the most prosperous periods in Chinese history. They were the two unified empires that had gone through two long periods, the Five Barbarians and the Northern and Southern Dynasties. They were more open-minded in terms of national thinking. The two dynasties achieved unprecedented development in politics, military, culture, economy, and technology. The emperors of the Sui and Tang dynasties were more open-minded in governing the country, which also influenced the neighboring countries to pay tribute to China and learn from it.
Sui Wendi reunified China after more than 280 years of war. At the end of the Sui Dynasty, the country was severely divided. After nine years of war, the Tang Dynasty was established. Therefore, historians often referred to the Sui and Tang Dynasties as the same. During these 300 years, China's feudal society had developed greatly.
During the heyday of the Sui Dynasty, it extended north to the northeast of Liaoning, west to the Taklamakan Desert in Xinjiang, east to the East China Sea, and south to the north and south of Yue. During the heyday of the Tang Dynasty, it extended north of Lake Baikal and the Outer Xing 'an Mountains, west to the Aral Sea in Central Asia, east to Sakhalin Island, and south to the north and south of Yue.
The Sui Dynasty was established in 581 AD. Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty was the founding emperor. His main contribution was to establish a new system of selecting officials. The law was not more cruel than the Northern and Southern Dynasties, and the granaries were built. simplify the local government system.
During the Sui Wendi period, the country was prosperous and powerful, and the politics were clear. It was a great situation in Chinese history. In order to commemorate the achievements of Sui Wendi, people called the Sui Wendi period the " Founding Emperor's Rule." Emperor Yang's excessive and brutal collection of taxes caused the people to be in dire straits. The people revolted on a large scale, causing serious wars. Emperor Yang fled to Jiangdu, but the rebels rebelled and were hanged in Jiangdu. The Sui Dynasty only existed for a few decades before it was declared extinct.
The Tang Dynasty had existed for a total of 289 years, from its establishment in 618 to its destruction by Zhu Wen in 907. The Tang Dynasty was divided into early and late periods, with the An Lushan Rebellion as the boundary. The early period was the prosperous period, and the late period was the decline period. Emperor Gaozu of the Tang Dynasty established the Tang Dynasty, and Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty, Li Shimin, led the army to complete the great cause of unification in ten years. After Li Shimin successfully ascended the throne through the Xuanwu Gate incident, he made great efforts to make the Tang Dynasty unprecedentedly prosperous in China's feudal society. The "Zhenguan Rule" appeared, and it was in a leading position in politics, economy, culture and other aspects at that time. After that, during the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty, the Kaiyuan Era of Prosperity appeared again. The country was strong and the people were rich. However, it was also during the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty that the An Lushan Rebellion took place, and the Tang Dynasty began to decline.
During the Sui and Tang Dynasties, there were many achievements in the system of laws and regulations, such as the system of three provinces and six ministries, the imperial examination system, the two-tax law, etc., which had a far-reaching impact on later generations. The imperial examination system sprouted in the Northern and Southern Dynasties, and was truly formed in the Tang Dynasty. The Sui and Tang Dynasties adopted a relatively open policy to the outside world, and the economic and cultural exchanges between China and foreign countries were frequent. Tang poetry was the most successful in literature. Chen Ziang of the early Tang Dynasty, Li Bai and Du Fu of the prosperous Tang Dynasty, Bai Juyi and Yuan Zhen of the middle Tang Dynasty, Li Shangyin and Du Mu of the late Tang Dynasty were outstanding representatives. The ancient prose movement initiated by Han Yu and Liu Zongyuan had a great influence on later generations. Yan Zhenqing's calligraphy, Yan Liben, Wu Daozi, Li Sixun, Wang Wei's paintings, music and dance such as the Rainbow Feathers Dance, and many other grotto arts were passed down to later generations. In terms of science and technology, printing and gunpowder, two of the four great inventions of China, appeared during this period.
In the later period of the Tang Dynasty, politics was chaotic, from the struggle of the Niu and Li factions to the monopoly of power by eunuchs. At the end of the Tang Dynasty, the Huangchao Uprising broke out. One of the leaders of the uprising, Zhu Wen, began to betray and surrender to the Tang Dynasty. Later, he replaced the Tang Dynasty and became emperor himself, establishing the first dynasty of the Five Dynasties, the Later Liang Dynasty.
The Sui Emperor Yang Guang and the Tang Emperor Li Yuan were both grandsons of Dugu Xin, the pillar state of the Western Wei Dynasty. Yang Jian and Li Bing (Li Yuan's father) were sisters. Therefore, most historians called Yang Sui and Li Tang the Sui and Tang Dynasties. During the Sui and Tang Dynasties, they were all relatives. What was less obvious was that Li Shimin's Princess Linchuan was Zhou Fashang's granddaughter-in-law. Northern Zhou destroyed Northern Qi in 577. After unifying North China, the country flourished. However, Emperor Xuan of Northern Zhou, Yuwen Bin, was extravagant and flashy. He indulged in wine and sex, was corrupt in politics, and had five empresses at the same time. Concubine Yang Jian took the opportunity to send the important ministers of the Northern Zhou Dynasty out, and the government gradually fell into his hands. On the 8th of June, 580, Emperor Xuan of the Northern Zhou Dynasty died of illness. Yang Jian supported the young Emperor Jing of the Northern Zhou Dynasty, Yuwen Chan, as the Prime Minister. On March 4th, 581, Emperor Jing of the Northern Zhou Dynasty abdicated the throne to Yang Jian. Yang Jian ascended the throne and became Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty. He established the Sui Dynasty and the Northern Zhou Dynasty perished. Emperor Wen of Sui intended to destroy the Chen Dynasty in the south and adopted Gao Wei's strategy: It interfered with the agricultural production of the Southern Chen Dynasty and destroyed the military reserves of the Chen State, causing the Chen State to suffer heavy losses and be exhausted. On October 26, 587, Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty deposed Xiao Cong, the Latter Ruler of Xiliang, and Xiliang perished. The following year, the Sui Dynasty launched the war to destroy the Chen Dynasty. Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty ordered Yang Guang, Yang Jun and Yang Su to be marshals of the march, but the actual commander was Gao Wei. The three armed forces were all decided by Gao Wei, and the troops were divided into eight routes to attack the Chen Dynasty.
On February 10, 589, the allied forces entered Jiankang City and captured the Latter Ruler of Chen. Soon, the Chen army was either ordered to surrender by Chen Houzhu or to resist the Sui army and was destroyed. Only the Lingnan area was protected by Lady Xian. In September 590, the Sui Dynasty sent an envoy, Wei Guang, and others to appease Lingnan. Lady Xian led the crowd to welcome the Sui envoy, and all the states in Lingnan became Sui territory.
At this point, the Sui Dynasty ended the 280 years of division between the north and the south since the Yongjia Rebellion of the Western Jin Dynasty and completed the unification of China. In order to consolidate his regime, Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty abolished the six officials of the Northern Zhou Dynasty and officially established the system of three provinces and six departments. The local system removed the county level and formed a two-level system of prefectures and counties. Reorganizing the local system and seizing the world's weapons after pacifying the Southern Chen Dynasty weakened the local power and consolidated the autocratic central system. Although the Sui Dynasty abolished the nine-grade system since the Wei and Jin Dynasties, it still implemented the inspection system.
Move the Kanto and Jiangnan clans to Daxing City to strengthen control. On the economic side, the reduction of punishment and corvee, the implementation of the equal land system, rent regulation and population survey to control the source of taxes, the unification of currency and weights and measures to rectify the trade environment. The system of equal land and the method of transferring household registration allowed farmers to get rid of the control of the landlord and transform into registered households of the state, which became the reason for the growth of agriculture in the Sui Dynasty. Sui Wendi advocated frugality and forbade excessive spending on his own prince. All of these formed a kind of social ethos, allowing wealth to quickly accumulate in the early Sui Dynasty. Due to the large increase in cultivated land, crop production increased. Chang 'an and Luoyang's official granaries stored up to ten million stones of grain, while the smallest had millions of stones. At the same time, there were new developments in the handicraft industry. The shipbuilding technology had reached a very high level, and they could build a magnificent five-story warship. Luoyang's business flourished for a time. Tens of thousands of wealthy merchants lived there, and the economy was prosperous.
The rule of Founding Emperor and the Sui Dynasty's heyday gradually declined from the first year of Renshou in 600 to the seventh year of Daye in 609. In his later years, Sui Wendi advocated severe punishment, changing the policy of governing by doing nothing in the early period of Founding Emperor. He was also suspicious of the old friends of the meritorious officials and killed the founding officials and generals. On August 21st, 604, Yang Guang succeeded to the throne as Emperor Yang of Sui. In the early years of Emperor Yang, the country was still prosperous. Emperor Yang managed the eastern capital, opened the canal, built roads, and built the Great Wall, which led to the economic and trade development of the Guanzhong area and the northern and southern regions. He also conquered the surrounding countries and expanded the territory of the Sui Dynasty.
However, because Emperor Yang himself was greedy and tyrannical, these actions caused damage to society. As Chang 'an was located in the west, it was difficult to supply food. In 604, Emperor Yang of Sui sent Yang Su and Yuwen Kai to build the eastern capital in Luoyang. The next year, the capital was moved to Luoyang to control the economy of the east and south of the Yangtze River. Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty pushed for the construction of the Sui and Tang Grand Canal. The Grand Canal brought many benefits: it connected China's important water systems and formed a transportation network; It led to the development of coastal cities and the rise of many commercial cities. Among them, Jiangdu (now Yangzhou) became the economic center of the Sui Dynasty. It promoted the cultural development and ethnic integration of various regions. Some people believed that this made Chinese civilization an organic whole civilization. However, due to the urgent construction of the Grand Canal by Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty, it brought a lot of burdens to the people.
Because Emperor Yang had expended a large amount of manpower and resources, and had gone on expeditions everywhere, he had over-expended the Sui Dynasty's national strength. The war against Goguryeo was the most intense, bringing about the decline of the Sui Dynasty. In April 583, the Sui army divided into eight routes to the Northern Expedition. The Sui general Zhangsun Sheng used the strategy of sowing discord to make the Turkic Khaganate, which had been divided into the Eastern and Western Turks during the Northern Zhou Dynasty, attack each other. In 599, the Eastern Turkic Tuli Khan surrendered to the Sui Dynasty, and in 611, the Western Turkic Chuluo Khan also surrendered to the Sui Dynasty. In 605, Wei Yunqi led the Turkic army to defeat the Khitans and basically solved the foreign invasion in the north. Apart from the north, the Tuyuhun Khaganate in the Qinghai region of Longxi also frequently invaded the Sui Dynasty. In 596, Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty sent Princess Guanghua to marry Tuyuhun to appease him. In 608, Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty sent troops to defeat Tuyuhun and set up a prefecture. However, in the same year, Yang Guang sent Fu Shun to manage it, but he could not reach it and returned. After that, Tuyuhun returned to his hometown and attacked Heyou of the Sui Dynasty. The Sui Dynasty was unable to defend itself. Along with this expedition, the Sui Dynasty's Chang 'an counties and the northwestern counties would be transported to the Great Wall, billions of them every year. The journey was dangerous and far away, and they were robbed by bandits. Those who died and did not arrive would have their homes destroyed by the prefectures and counties. As a result, the people lost their jobs, and the western half of the Sui Dynasty became poor first.
In the late Sui Dynasty, the Turks rose up. In the eleventh year of Daye (615), the Turkic Shibi Khan led his army to surround Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty at Yanmen. Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty caused chaos at the end of the Sui Dynasty. China was severely weakened, and the Turks rose to unprecedented power. From the Khitans and Shiwei in the east to the Tuyuhun and Gaochang countries in the west, they all belonged to the Turks. Dou Jiande, Xue Ju, Liu Wuzhou, Liang Shidu, Li Gui, Wang Shichong, and others in Hexi, Longyou, and the Central Plains also submitted to the Turks and were included in the sphere of influence of the Turks. The Turks had reached a level of power that 'Rong and Di were unprecedentedly strong.'
Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty waged wars many times, causing the people to be in dire straits. As early as the sixth year of Emperor Yang's great cause (610), there were four civil uprisings due to resistance to the recruitment of the military system, but they were quickly suppressed by the Sui army. In the seventh year of Emperor Yang's Daye (611), the middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River in the east of the country (Yuzhou Road, Jizhou Road, and Yanzhou Road) were flooded, drowning more than 40 counties. Wang Bo led his troops to Changbai Mountain (Zhangqiu, Shandong Province) on Yanzhou Road to launch a civil revolt against Emperor Yang's expedition to Goguryeo. He sang the famous Song of Death in Liaodong. At that time, the scope of the mass uprising was mostly concentrated in Yuzhou Road, Jizhou Road, Yanzhou Road, Qingzhou Road and Xuzhou Road in the east of the country, and was soon suppressed by the Sui army. In 613, Liu Yuanjin occupied Wujun and claimed to be the emperor. He was destroyed in the same year. Until Yang Su's son, Yang Xuangan, rebelled in Liyang (now northeast of Jun County, Henan Province). The sons of the high-ranking officials of the Sui Dynasty participated, but Yang Xuangan was quickly suppressed by Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty.
On April 11, 618, Yuwen Huaji, Sima Dekan, Pei Qiantong, and the others launched a mutiny, killed Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty, and supported Yang Hao as emperor. Soon after, Yuwen Huaji killed the king of Qin Yuhao and proclaimed himself Emperor Xu and established the country. The following year, he was jointly exterminated by Tang General Li Shentong and Xia King Dou Jiande. On May 25, 619, Wang Shichong proclaimed himself emperor and established Zheng.
In 617, Li Yuan killed Wang Wei and Gao Junya and rebelled in Taiyuan. Soon, Li Yuan led his sons to break through Qu Tutong who was guarding Guanzhong and occupied Daxing City, the capital of Sui Dynasty. Li Yuan supported Yang You as emperor, which was Emperor Gong of Sui Dynasty. He respected Emperor Yang of Sui Dynasty as Taishang Emperor, appointed himself as the prime minister, and was granted the title of King of Tang Dynasty. In Yangzhou, Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty was enjoying himself and did not want to return to Guanzhong. In the end, he was killed by Yuwen Huaji and other rebels in the coup of Jiangdu in 618. Li Yuan took this opportunity to force Emperor Gong of Sui to abdicate in May of the same year and establish the Tang Dynasty, namely Tang Gaozu. The capital was renamed Chang 'an.
Before entering Guanzhong, he first sent an envoy to flatter Li Mi, the Wagang Army who occupied Henan, so that it could become a barrier to the east. After entering Guanzhong, he sent Li Shimin to pacify Xue Ju and Xue Rengao in Jincheng in the northwest, and sent Tang envoys An Xinggui and An Xiuren to capture Li Gui of Wuwei alive. In 620, he sent Li Shimin to defeat Liu Wuzhou and Song Jingang who invaded Hedong (now Shanxi Province). Later, Emperor Shichong of Luoyang and Emperor Dou Jiande of Hebei announced an alliance to jointly resist the Tang Dynasty. In 622, Li Shimin defeated the allied forces, captured Dou Jiande, and Wang Shichong surrendered. Dou Jiande's remaining Liu Heita was also defeated by Li Jiancheng, and Hebei was thus pacified. In 623, Fu Gong led Du Fuwei's remaining troops to rebel against Tang in Danyang. The following year, he was captured and killed by Tang troops, and Jiangnan was pacified. In 621, Tang general Li Jing won the battle of Tang Ping and Xiao Xi, and Liang Emperor Xiao Xi surrendered to Tang in Jiangling. The following year, Feng Ang of Lingnan surrendered, and Lin Shihong of Qianzhou died. The headquarters of China belonged to the Tang Dynasty.
In 626, Li Shimin launched the Xuanwu Gate Rebellion, killed Prince Li Jiancheng and King of Qi Li Yuanji, and took control of Chang 'an. Li Yuan knew the situation well, so he abdicated the throne and became the Retired Emperor. Li Shimin succeeded to the throne as Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty.
Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty worked hard to make the country prosperous and accepted advice like a stream, gradually restoring the national strength of the Tang Dynasty. In terms of internal affairs, Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty implemented the system of equal land and rent regulation to promote agricultural development. In terms of the official system, he improved the system of the Sui Dynasty, forming the three provinces and six departments and the imperial examination system, limiting the development of imperial power and aristocratic hereditary habits. Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty did not care about his background and recruited a large number of capable ministers, such as Fang Xuanling, Du Ruhui, Zhangsun Wuji, Wei Zheng, Ma Zhou, Gao Shilian, Xiao Yu, and other civil officials, as well as generals such as Yuchi Jingde, Li Jing, Hou Junji, Cheng Zhijie, Li Shiji, and Qin Shubao. In addition, Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty sent officials to inquire about the living conditions of the common people everywhere, and then wrote the merits and demerits of each official on the screen to praise and criticize them.
Externally, Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty adopted the strategy of active defense, stopping war with war, and appeasing the four directions with Jimi and force. At the end of the Sui and the beginning of the Tang, the Eastern Turkic Khaganate in the north was extremely powerful. They often invaded the south and interfered with the forces of the Central Plains. In the early years of the Tang Dynasty, many things were waiting to be done. In 626, the Eastern Turks suddenly attacked Chang 'an and led their army to Jingyang, which was not far from Chang' an (now Jingyang County, Xianyang, Shaanxi Province). In response, Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty personally led Gao Shilian, Fang Xuanling, etc. to confront the Turkic Khan across the Wei River and set up an alliance on the Wei River. Later, Emperor Taizong actively dealt with the Turks, sowing discord between the Jieli and Tuli Khans, as well as the relationship between the Turks and the surrounding tribes. In 627, the vassal tribes of the Eastern Turks, Xue Yantuo, Huihe, Bayegu, and Tongluo, did not agree with the decree of the Jieli Khan and the reform of the national customs. They all broke away and established Xue Yantuo as a Khan. The Tuli Khan also surrendered to the Tang Dynasty. In 628, Liang Luoren, a native of Shuofang, killed Liang Shidu, who occupied Xiazhou, and surrendered to the Tang Dynasty. And after the Eastern Turks split, they encountered heavy snow, causing their livestock to freeze to death and starve. In 629, Li Jing led the cavalry to attack and destroy the Eastern Turks. The next year, the northern tribes paid tribute to Chang 'an. The tribes respectfully called Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty the Heavenly Khan. In 635, he sent Li Jing to capture Tuyuhun, in 657, he sent Su Dingfang to conquer the Western Turkic Khaganate, and in 641, he sent Princess Wencheng to marry Tubo Zampu Songzan Ganbu. All of these stabilized the relationship between the Tang Dynasty and the four countries.
Zhenguan period of national stability, economic recovery and development, known as the "Zhenguan rule." According to Zi Zhi Tong Jian, in the fourth year of Zhenguan (630), a bucket of rice was only three or four coins, and there were only 29 people sentenced to death in the whole year. His political achievements in Zhenguan became a textbook for the Japanese and Silla emperors, and later emperors imitated him.
After the death of Emperor Taizong of Tang Dynasty, Li Zhi ascended the throne, namely Emperor Gaozong of Tang Dynasty. At this time, the Tang Dynasty inherited the rule of Zhenguan, the national strength was prosperous, and history called it the rule of Yonghui. At that time, there were veteran generals such as Li Ji, Su Dingfang, Xue Rengui, famous ministers such as Zhangsun Wuji and Chu Suiliang. He continued to implement the equal land system internally and selected lower-level but talented officials. In 659, the Western Turks were wiped out, and the territory expanded westward to the Aral Sea and the Amu Darya. The Tang Dynasty established the Andong Protectorate on the Korean Peninsula, which indirectly prompted Silla to unify the Korean Peninsula.
After the middle of Gaozong, the regime was gradually controlled by Empress Wu Zetian. - After the death of Emperor Gaozong, Prince Li Xian ascended the throne as Emperor Zhongzong of Tang Dynasty. Because of the disagreement with Zhongzong, Wu Zetian soon deposed Zhongzong as King of Luling and changed his four sons Li Dan as emperor, which was Tang Ruizong. After suppressing Xu Jingye's rebellion, Wu Zetian deposed Emperor Ruizong in 690 and changed the name of the country to Zhou, which was Wu Zhou. The capital was Luoyang (known as the Divine Capital), and Li Dan was appointed as the heir, becoming the only female emperor in Chinese history. During the reign of Wu Zetian, the country had developed more than during the Zhenguan period. The implementation of the equal-field system continued to develop agricultural production; The imperial examination system was further improved, creating the palace examination and the martial arts examination. Wu Zetian attacked the Guanlong Group since the Northern Zhou Dynasty and vigorously promoted officials who had passed the imperial examination. At that time, they were called "North Gate Scholars". Many of them were scholars from the east and south of the Yangtze River. He also promoted talents like Di Renjie, Zhang Jianzhi, Zhang Renyuan, Yao Chong, and other famous generals. Culture and art also improved. At that time, Buddhism flourished, and Buddhist temples were built frequently during the Zhou Dynasty. However, another feature of Wu Zetian's rule was strong control, mainly including strict suppression of Xu Jingye and other opposition parties, slaughtering of Tang imperial princes and ministers and generals who supported the Tang Dynasty. They encouraged informants, secretly monitored officials and dukes, and promoted the cruel official system. Support Wu Sansi, Shangguan Wan 'er and other henchmen. These were often criticized by historians in later generations.
In 705, when Wu Zetian was seriously ill, Prime Minister Zhang Jianzhi and General Li Duozuo supported Prince Li Xian and launched a coup. They killed the Empress's male pet Zhang Yizhi's brother and forced Wu Zetian to abdicate. Li Xian, Emperor Zhongzong of Tang Dynasty, was reinstated. His younger brother Li Dan was granted the title of King of Anguo and his sister Princess Taiping was granted the title of Princess Taiping of Zhenguo. History called it the Dragon Revolution. Li Dan's son, Li Longji, launched the Tang Long Rebellion with the help of his aunt, Princess Taiping. He killed Empress Wei and the Wu family's forces and supported Ruizong, Li Dan, to restore him to the throne. After Ruizong's restoration, he made his son Li Longji the crown prince and agreed to his sister Princess Taiping's intervention in the political situation. There was often a power struggle between the two sides. In 712, Emperor Ruizong decided to abdicate the throne, and Prince Li Longji ascended the throne, namely Emperor Xuanzong of Tang Dynasty.
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