Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
4
Middle and Late Imperial
SUI UNIFICATION AND TANG SUCCESSION: 589-907
After over 350 years of internal division, China finally managed to pull
itself back together. This was accomplished by the Sui, a short-lived
dynasty (589-618) that used, like the Qin before it, extraordinarily
harsh measures to achieve unity. Also like the Qin, the Sui was
overthrown because of its harsh and totalitarian nature and replaced
by a milder, long-lasting dynasty. Just as Han followed Qin, so the Tang
(A.D. 618-907) followed the Sui.
The first Sui emperor surveyed Chinese farmlands and, with the
power of his new state, confiscated land from wealthy landlords who
had been charging outrageous rents for centuries and depriving
Chinese governments of their needed revenue. The new taxes he
imposed on China's peasants were lower than the former rents had
been, so the peasants welcomed this change. He also reestablished
the capital at Chang'an, the former Han capital, and began digging the
Grand Canal from southern China to Chang'an. This canal eventually
became an important waterway linking northern and southern China.
