Download 05 Interactions in the Late Classical Period

Interactions in the Late Classical Period
Han China
The Han dynasty of China began to decline around 100 C.E. Among the causes of its decline
were:
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Heavy taxes levied on peasants.
The decline of interest in Confucian intellectual goals.
Poor harvests.
Population decline from epidemic disease.
Social unrest, particularly by students.
A decline in morality.
Weak emperors and the increased influence of army generals.
Unequal land distribution.
A decline in trade.
Pressure from bordering nomadic tribes.
As political, economic, and social decay befell Han China, Daoism gained a new popularity.
In 184, the Yellow Turbans, a Daoist revolutionary movement, promised a new age of prosperity
and security which would be initiated by magic. Buddhism also spread as Chinese cultural unity
was dissolving.
The decay of the Han empire made it difficult for the Chinese to resist nomadic invaders living
along their borders. These invaders, or Hsiung-nu, had for decades been raiding Han China,
prompting the Chinese to pay them tribute to prevent further invasions. By 220, however, Han
China’s strength had deteriorated to the point that it could no longer repel a final thrust by the
invading Hsiung-nu, who then poured into the empire. The fall of Han China was followed by
centuries of disorder and political decentralization until Chinese rulers in the northern part of the
country drove out the invaders. In 589, the Sui dynasty ascended to power and continued to
establish order in China. In spite of significant threats to Chinese civilization, it did ultimately
survive. Confucian tradition endured among the elite classes, and the nomads eventually
assimilated into Chinese culture.
Rome
The golden age of Rome—the Pax Romana—came to a close with the death of Marcus Aurelius
in 180. Historians have noted a number of causes of the decline and fall of Rome including:
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Ineffective later emperors concerned more with a life of pleasure than a desire to rule
wisely.
The influence of army generals.
The decline of trade.
Increasingly high taxes.
A decreased money flow into the empire as conquests of new territory ceased.
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Population decline as a result of epidemic disease.
Poor harvests.
Unequal land distribution.
Social and moral decay and lack of interest the elite classes.
Roman dependence on slave labor.
The recruitment of non-Romans in the Roman army.
The vastness of the empire, rendering it difficult to rule.
Barbarian invasions.
Attempts to Save the Roman Empire
As the Roman Empire declined economically, small landowners were frequently forced to sell
their land to the owners of large estates, or latifundia. The self-sufficiency of the latifundia
lessened the need for a central authority such as the Roman emperor. Furthermore, the economic
self-sufficiency of the estates discouraged trade among the various parts of the empire and
neighboring peoples. The decline in trade eventually produced a decline in urban population.
Some emperors tried desperately to save the empire. Diocletian (ruled 284–305) imposed stricter
control over the empire and declared himself a god. When the Christians refused to worship him,
Diocletian heightened persecutions against them. The Emperor Constantine (ruled 312 to 337)
established a second capital at Byzantium, which he renamed Constantinople. Converting to
Christianity, Constantine allowed the practice of the faith in Rome. Although the western portion
of the empire steadily declined, the eastern portion, centered around Constantinople, continued to
thrive and carry on a high volume of long-distance trade.
The last measure that weakened the western Roman empire originated in the steppes of Central
Asia. In the fifth century, the nomadic Huns began migrating south and west in search of better
pasturelands. The movement of the Huns exerted pressure on Germanic tribes who already lived
around the border of the Roman Empire. These tribes, in turn, overran the Roman borders. By
425, several Germanic kingdoms were set up within the empire; by 476, the last western Roman
emperor was replaced by a Germanic ruler from the tribe of the Visigoths.
The eastern portion of the empire did not fall at the same time as the western empire. One reason
for its endurance was that it saw less pressure from invaders. Located on the Bosporus, it was the
hub of numerous trade routes and a center of art and architecture. Neighboring empires—most
notably the Parthians and, after 227, the Sassanids—served as trade facilitators. Not only did
they preserve the Greek culture, but they continued to bring Indian and Chinese goods and
cultural trends to the eastern, or Byzantine, empire. The Byzantine Emperor Justinian (ruled 527
to 565) had attempted to the capture portions of Rome’s lost territory. Justinian’s efforts were
largely in vain, however, as the western empire increasingly fragmented into self-sufficient
estates and tiny Germanic kingdoms. Trade and learning declined, and cities shrank in size. The
centralized government of Rome was replaced by rule based on the tribal allegiances of the
Germanic invaders.
Gupta India
The fall of Gupta India to invading forces was less devastating than that of Han China or
Rome. By 500, Gupta India endured a number of invasions by nomadic peoples who may have
been related to the Huns whose migrations drove Germanic peoples over the borders of the
Roman empire. Simultaneously, the influence of Gupta rulers was in decline as local princes
became more powerful. Until about 600, the nomads drove farther into central India. India
fragmented into regional states ruled by the princes, who called themselves Rajput.
Although political decline occurred as a result of invasions, traditional Indian culture continued.
Buddhism became less popular, while Hinduism added to its number of followers. Traditional
Indian culture met another challenge after 600 in the form of the new religion of Islam.
Other Contacts with Classical Civilizations
Although the civilizations of Han China, Gupta India, Greece, and Rome dominated world
history during the classical period, other societies and civilizations came into contact with and
were influenced by them. Indian merchants drew the people of Southeast Asia into long-distance
trade patterns. Contacts between India and Southeast Asia were further broadened by the spread
of Buddhism and Hinduism from India to Southeast Asia.
Trade contacts also drew Africa into the classical Mediterranean world. South of Egypt lay the
kingdom of Kush. The Kushites had long admired Egyptian culture and adapted their own
writing system from Egyptian hieroglyphics. Kush also was a center of the independent
invention of iron smelting. About 750 B.C.E., as Egypt weakened, Kush conquered Egypt. Kush,
in turn, was defeated by the Christian kingdom of Axum about 300 C.E. Axum and its rival, the
kingdom of Ethiopia, traded with parts of the Roman Empire along the eastern Mediterranean.
Greek merchants had carried Christianity to Ethiopia in the fourth century C.E.
Silk Road Trade
One of the most far-reaching of the contacts between classical civilizations and other societies
was the contact of the pastoral nomads of Central Asia with established societies. Central Asian
herders often served as trade facilitators along the famed Silk Roads that linked trade between
China and urban areas in Mesopotamia in the last millennium B.C.E. During the time of the
Roman Empire, the Silk Roads were extended to the Mediterranean world. Named for their most
prized trade commodity, the Silk Roads also were noted for the exchange of a variety of other
goods between East and West. Nomadic peoples frequently supplied animals to transport goods
along the Silk Roads. The Silk Roads served as an artery that transported not only trade goods
but also religious beliefs, technology, and disease.
Indian Ocean Trade
The Silk Roads included not only land routes across Central Asia and Europe but also sea lanes
in the Indian Ocean. Chinese pottery was traded along with Indian spices and ivory from India
and Africa. The Indian Ocean trade network, which included the South China Sea, involved
mariners from China, Malaysia, Southeast Asia, and Persia. Sailors used the seasonal monsoon
winds to chart their course and carry out voyages that linked sections from East Africa to
Southern China.
Trans-Saharan Trade
A third principal trade route in classical times was one across the Sahara. One of the most
significant developments in the trade across the Sahara was the use of the camel and the
development of the camel saddle. It is possible that the camel arrived in the Sahara from Arabia
in the first century B.C.E. Early Saharan trade patterns included the exchange of salt and palm
oil. During the days of the Roman Empire, North Africa also supplied Italy with olives and
wheat, and with wild animals.
Review Questions
1. During the classical period, Africa
a. was cut off from global trade patterns.
b. repelled Christian missionary efforts.
c. lost contact with classical civilizations.
d. saw new technology used in trans-Saharan travel.
e. saw the arrival of Buddhist missionaries.
2. The declining years of Han China and the Roman empire shared all of the following
EXCEPT
a. a decline in morality.
b. epidemic disease.
c. assimilation of invading peoples into imperial culture.
d. unequal land distribution.
e. decline in trade.
3. Attempts to save the Roman Empire from ruin included
a. the division of the latifundia.
b. initial acceptance of Christianity followed by increased persecution.
c. the emancipation of Roman slaves.
d. the establishment of a new capital in the eastern empire.
e. reducing the size of the empire.
4. The eastern portion of the Roman Empire
a. successfully restored the boundaries of the western empire under Justinian.
b. competed with the Parthians and Sassanids for trade.
c. was a center of trade, art, and architecture.
d. unlike the western portion, did not experience pressure from invaders.
e. was cut off from contact with cultures from the east.
5. The decline of Gupta India
a. saw the increased power of local princes.
b. resulted in the decline of traditional Indian culture.
c. unlike Rome, did not result in the fragmentation of the country.
d. occurred without pressure from invading peoples.
e. resulted in a decline in the popularity of Hinduism.
6. Silk Road trade
a. flourished in spite of constant interferences from nomadic tribes.
b. was confined to land routes across Asia.
c. bypassed Mesopotamia.
d. established links between the empires of Han China and Rome.
e. linked North Africa with Rome.
7. Indian Ocean trade
a. linked all areas of the Indian Ocean basin except Africa.
b. saw mariners utilize the geographic forces of the Indian Ocean.
c. declined with the fall of classical empires.
d. failed to establish connections with land routes.
e. concentrated on trade among neighboring peoples rather than long-distance trade.
8. The decline of Han China
a. saw the end of Chinese established traditions.
b. like Rome, saw invaders permanently dominate the empire.
c. witnessed Daoism, rather than Confucianism, gaining popularity.
d. was the end of Chinese dynastic rule.
e. resulted in the decline of Buddhism in China.
Answers and Explanations
1. D—The camel saddle was especially important to trans-Saharan trade during the classical
era. Africa traded with Rome (C) and was connected to Indian Ocean trade (A).
Christianity entered Axum and Ethiopia during this period (B). Buddhism did not reach
Africa (E).
2. C—Although barbarian invaders assimilated into the Chinese culture, the same did not
occur after the fall of Rome. The remaining four choices were common to both empires
in their period of decline.
3. D—In order to tap into the wealth of the eastern empire, Constantine established a new
capital at Constantinople, the former Byzantium. During Rome’s decline the latifundia
became larger, not smaller (A). Persecutions of Christians were followed by acceptance
of the religion, then by official status under Theodosius (B). Romans continued to rely
on slavery (C). The empire lost size during the declining years, but not as a result of a
deliberate effort to reduce its territory (E).
4. C—The Byzantine empire was a cultural center. Justinian’s efforts were only partially
successful in temporarily restoring some of the boundaries of Rome (A). The Parthians
and Sassanids acted as trade facilitators (B). The eastern empire experienced some
pressure from invaders, but not nearly to the extent that the western portion did (D). The
eastern empire was a hub of trade routes that offered cultural exchange with peoples to
the east (E).
5. A—After the fall of the Gupta dynasty, India was fragmented (C) into local principalities.
Indian culture, however, remained intact (B), and Hinduism remained the dominant
religion of India (E). Like Rome, Gupta India experienced pressure from invaders (D).
6. D—The Roman roads connected to the routes of the Silk Roads. Nomadic tribes often
assisted travelers and traders along the Silk Roads, providing horses and camels and
supplies (A). The Silk Roads also embraced the sea lanes of the Indian Ocean (B) and
went through Mesopotamia (C). Although North Africa traded with the Roman Empire,
its routes were not included among the Silk Roads (E).
7. B—Mariners used the monsoon winds to facilitate travel in the Indian Ocean. Africa was
connected to Indian Ocean trade (A). Trade in the Indian Ocean continued after the fall of
classical empires, especially after the entry of Islam into the region (C). The waters of the
Indian Ocean facilitated long-distance trade from China to Africa (E) and connected with
land routes from China to Rome (D).
8. C—Daoism enjoyed a resurgence of prosperity as Han China declined, whereas
Confucianism declined in popularity. Although Chinese traditions suffered initially, they
rebounded after the fall of the Han (A). Invaders eventually assimilated into the Chinese
culture (B). Chinese dynastic rule would continue into the early twentieth century (D).
Buddhism gained popularity in China after the fall of the Han (E).