Chapter 20 Outline

Northern Eurasia 1500-1800

I. Japanese Reunification
A. Civil War and the Invasion of Korea
-During the 12th century, the Japanese islands were split apart in a feudal fashion.
There were daimyo who ruled over their areas of land and who had their own
systems of defense, government, bureaucracy, and taxation. They would pledge a
lose pledge to the emperor and shogun, but because these two figure heads
lacked political and military power compared to the daimyo, the daimyo often
fought against one another and bitter civil wars were waged between them. This
continued until the 1500s when a long and destructive civil war left warlords
fighting for power over all of Japan. These warlords desperately attempted to
unite all of Japan however they were all unsuccessful. One however did succeed;
in 1592 the warlord Hideyoshi managed to unite all of Japan, and after doing this
the warlord decided to launch a series of campaigns against Korea and China,
envisioning themselves as the rulers of all of Asia.
-During this same time period, Korea was largely influenced by China. The
Koreans accepted the fact that they were the weaker of the two central Asian
states, and agreed to paid tribune to the dynasty in power. Due to this Korea was
modeled off of China, using a slightly altered version of the Confusion system of
government. The Koreans also used the advent of the movable type and printing
press, developing their own language very similar to Japanese. When Hideyoshi
attacked the Koreans, the Koreans responded by using military technology refined
by the Chinese. Their attempt to repel the Japanese failed, and Japan’s forces
broke through and pushed on all the way to southern China. The Koreans were
devastated by this warfare, and even long after the Japanese withdrew and
signed a peace treaty with China. (It was China’s duty to protect Korea since
Korea was paying them tribune.) The Korean government fell apart and local
nobility seized tax-paying land, so even after parts of the government recovered,
their treasury and tax income was cut in half.
-The Chinese were also severely affected by this warfare as well. The weakening
of the Chinese armies led to the Manchu being able to invade and force China to
pay tribune.
B. The Tokugawa Shogunate, to 1800
-The Japanese were able to unite and create a centralized government system
called the Tokugawa Shogunate, established by a shogun named Tokugawa
Ieyasu. He set up the capital at now-day Tokyo, and the road between Tokyo and
Kyoto (the imperial capital) led to Japan’s economic growth. Tokugawa made sure
to keep the still powerful daimyo from fighting, and made sure that they would
make regular trips to Edo (Tokyo). He would pay them in rice and then in turn they
would use the rice to feed their people. The fact that they had to make these trips
helped to create a well-established road system in which commercial traffic could
travel and that would lead to more trade and economic growth.
-Japan had to adapt to this new era of peace and economic growth, and a good
example of this adaptation was the samurai. Since Japan was much more
centralized, samurai were not needed as much for warfare, so they needed to
adapt themselves into the new bureaucratic system of Japan. Japan experienced
many great things during this era in economic growth, art, society, trade,
 technology, and manufacturing. The merchants were especially important in this
process, even though many of other classes resisted the rise of the merchant
class.
C. Japan and the Europeans
-Japan had a mixed reaction to their interactions with the Europeans. The
Japanese walked away with the first gunpowder revolution, realizing how
important it was in their military. They also opened up new trade doors with the
Europeans, although there was not a huge amount of trade that went on, apart
from the porcelain trade.
-The Japanese also received missionaries from Europe who ended up converting
thousands of Japanese people to Christianity, and some daimyo even forced their
people to convert to Christianity. However the government soon became
suspicious of the missionaries, suspecting that they would try to take over or
revolt in Japan, and so the shogun began his prosecution of missionaries in 1617.
They soon put an isolation policy in to effect, cutting off Europe and China from
trade and executing foreigners who came into the country illegally. The Japanese
also forced people to renounce their Christian religion and obtain certificates from
Buddhist temples “certifying” their devoutness to Buddhism. They also tried to rid
themselves of the European influences, killing and executing Christians.
D. Elite Decline and Social Crisis
-During the 1700s, the Tokugawa dynasty was on the decline. The growing rate of
people far surpassed the rate of growth and development leading to the
underdevelopment of rural areas and the over development of more central areas.
The government was also destabilizing due to the economic growth spurred by
the merchants. Although this economic growth seems like it would be a good
thing, it was actually leading to economic issues of regulation the exchange of rice
and money as the Tokugawa sought to protect the rights of the samurai. There
was also debate about whether or not traditional social right trumped law and the
Shogun’s right to try people on violations of the law.

II. The Late Ming and Early Qing Empires

A. The Ming Empire
-The Ming dynasty was marked by great economic and social growth within the
dynasty. The Chinese were incorporated into the global economy after the advent
of the production line led to an increase in manufactured goods that were
demanded all throughout Europe. The Ming prospered from this European trade
gaining knowledge on trading and manufacturing skills and also advancing the
status of the merchants in China. The Ming was very much socially vibrant;
creating beautiful works of art and creating operas and plays reflecting city life.
-The Ming suffered from fatal flaws however, and the biggest one was a lack of
response. Ming manufacturers and farmers suffered from climate changes and
natural disasters, which caused a mass famine and revolting and then led to a
sharp decline in population. The Ming failed to respond to not only this crisis but
also the mass inflation suffered by all of Asia due to the massive influx of
American silver. This inflation caused the value of paper money to sharply
plummet, and instead of trying to stabilize the economy, the government
introduced new paper money. Workers in Ming factories revolted and protested
their poor wages and working conditions.
B. Ming Collapse and the Rise of the Qing
-The Ming collapsed largely due to their instability due to the large revolts taking
place within the dynasty. This huge instability took troops away from the borders
leaving them insecure and vulnerable to attack. With the military stretched thin
and the internal state in a state of warfare, the Ming dynasty was extremely
unstable. The main rebel leader, the Japanese pirates, and the Manchu took
advantage of this situation, killing the Emperor and taking over China. The
Manchu military leaders appointed a family to rule over China and they formed the
Qing dynasty.
C. Trading Companies and Missionaries
-The trade in China was very limited at first but late opened up, allowing certain
charter companies and countries to trade and missionaries to spread and preach
in China. The Jesuits became especially influential in their mission, learning
Confucianism values and the Chinese language. They helped to bring new
science and astronomy technology to China.
D. Emperor Kangxi
-The reigns of the Kangxi Emperors were ones of great posterity in economics,
military, and cultural achievements. The Emperors pushed public works projects
like waterworks and repairing roads, and establishing economic incentives for
people to move to underdeveloped areas. They encouraged foreign trade, sent
embassies to forge relationships, and resumed their military campaigns.
-Kangxi was a Manchu aristocrat’s son, and he gained power in 1669 after killing
his chief regnant. He was only 16 when he gained power, yet he was an
extremely qualified emperor. His reign was known for its expansion as well as
stability.
-Kangxi was able to solve many problems and feuds between China and other
countries. He not only negotiated a treaty between China and Russia but also
brought the area of Mongolia under control and eliminated the Mongol threat.
Kangxi was also very open to new ideas. Instead of persecuting the Christians
and the Jesuits, he welcomed them as advisors and accepted many of their
scientific and philosophical ideas.
E. Chinese Influences in Europe
-The Chinese not only received ideas from Europe, they gave them as well. The
Chinese shared their scientific ideas like the medical idea of inoculation to prevent
the spread of smallpox. The Europeans also had a high demand for Asian
products. Things like silk, tea, and wallpaper were highly coveted and demanded
items in Europe. The Chinese also shared their philosophy system with the
Europeans, and their poems were popular in the Europe states.
F. Population and Social Stress
-Over population became a huge problem in China towards the end of the Qing
dynasty. There were more people, which meant that there was less available land
per family and less land for farming. This created problems because in order for
the families to make money they had to revert to growing cash crops, which would
not provide food. This led to an agricultural decline, which was barely
supplemented by the introduction of Amerindian staple crops. The demand for
wood also increased leading to intense deforestation, which then led to wind and
water erosion which could not be controlled by the water works as they were very
poorly maintained. The government began its decline mainly due to the population
explosion. The government was better organized than the Ming, but they had the
same number of officials as the Ming and they could not handle the large
population.
III. The Russian Empire
A. The Drive Across Northern Asia
-The Russian people were a group of Slavic people who could trace their origin of
their religion to the Greek people, as the Russians were mostly Orthodox
Christians. The Mongols of the Golden Horde had ruled over them for over 200
years and made Moscow the political center of Russia. After they had freed
themselves from the Mongol’s suppressive rule, they expanded east into Siberia,
gaining the rich resources of Siberia like its furs, timber, gold, coal, and iron. In
1640-1689, the Chinese and Russians made the Treaty of Nerchinsk,
acknowledging each other’s boundaries and further weakening the Mongols hold
on East Europe. Prince Ivan IV pushed out the territories the other ways,
expanding his empire after he came to power as the Russian tsar in 1533.
B. Russian Society and Politics to 1725
-Because of the large expansions made by the Russian Empire, new cultures,
religions, and languages were incorporated into the Russian Empire. The
language barrier was fairly easy to overcome, but the religion and culture
difference created tensions between the Russians and the conquered peoples.
The original religion of Russia was Christianity, however due to a vast majority of
Muslims that were conquered, the religion eventually changed to Islam. The work
and jobs of the Russians and the conquered peoples differed too. The Russians
were mainly farmers, hunters, builders, scribes, or merchants while the conquered
peoples were usually herders, soldiers, or caravan workers.
-The Russian people were often very different from each other as well. Often
differences in class, background, and religious sect would cause tension and
riots. Sometimes the poor would rebel against the rich or the tsar to try to get a
better standing in society. However this was not entirely successful because a law
change in Russia forced the transformation of peasants into serfs.
C. Peter the Great
-Peter the Great was a Tsar who ruled from 1689-1725. Peter helped to end
Russia isolation and turn Russia’s trading and cultural influence towards Europe
instead of Asia. When he took the throne he was only a teen-in his younger years
his half-sister ruled the throne and Peter busied himself gaining practical skills
and raising his own group of supporters and military. When his sister tried to seize
control over all of Russia he overthrew her and sent her to a monastery.
-Peter the Great focused his efforts on expanding and modernizing the Russian
empire, securing ports on the Black Sea. After traveling to Europe, he realized
how backwards and un-modernized Russia was. He tried to westernize all of
Europe selectively picking the features that he though made the Europeans
strong. He started to make the elites of Russia dress like Europeans and used
westernization to strengthen the Russian state. He was an absolute monarch who
brought the church further under state control and helped to spur military
manufacturing and modernization. He did nothing to help the serfs though, which
were all suffering from heavy tax and work burdens.
D. Consolidation of the Empire
-Russia’s expansion eastward was motivated by the search for resources like
furs, which were highly coveted by the Europeans and Americans. Russia soon
dominated the fur industry in the North Pacific.
-Russia was the world’s largest empire when it came to land mass and its
economy was based on this large area of land.
IV. Comparative Perspectives
A. Political Comparisons
-During the 1500s to 1800s, the empires of Russia and China flourished, growing
over twice in size, population, and power. Japan did grow a great deal, however it
was not considered the same kind of empire as Russia or China. All three
countries did make great advancements in creating modernized militaries and
navies, yet all three still had more power from their size, not their weapons.
B. Cultural, Social, and Economic Comparisons
-While China and Russia were expanding, they both had to incorporate new
peoples and ideas into their societies and cultures, and both governments
practiced and encouraged assimilation of conquered peoples into the regular
population.
-The Chinese were particularly good at accepting new ideas, especially those who
accepted new scientific and philosophical ideas from the Jesuits.
-The social structures of both empires were hierarchal and oppressive especially
in Russia where the serfs had to suffer though high taxes and forced labor.