The Emergence of Modern China

Introduction: Change & Modernization

• the modernization of China  should be understood in the context of western expansion in the 19th century. 
• this expansion resulted in a Western-centred world order, 
• or it can be referred to a a Euro-centric world order.
• another term for this is Western imperialism.
• this means the imposition of western values on other cultures
• non-Western countries began to be transformed by Western activities 
• these activities were imposed upon non-Western countries
• they were forced upon non-Western countries by the West
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• the activities that are imposed are 
• a) ideas (democracy, capitalism, science), 
• b) techniques (geography & mapping, engineering)
• c) institutions (Western religion, Western form of Government).
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• they are imposed either through force or through some other type of pressure
• it is believed that these non-Western countries could not survive without this.
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• today the term Westernization is similar to modernization
• it is the West that began to become modern 
• this began with the emergence of the Enlightenment and the new science.
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• modernization is the transition of rural agrarian cultures into urban industrial cultures.
• it is a transformation from one to the other
• this process of transformation requires knowledge and technology
• it is this knowledge and technology that creates the process.
• for many countries this process or transformation is revolutionary
• that is because the traditional ways have been in place for so long
• sometimes these changes are disruptive to the country's historical past.
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• when looking at Japan (20th century) we can see the true impact of modernization 
• what was burrowed from the West was assimilated and absorbed 
• it was absorbed into its indigenous system
• sometimes, what is implanted into the indigenous system is too alien or different.
• this results in total rejection;
• so, the attempt to implant a liberal democratic system in China has been unsuccessful.
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• the traditional way of governing China collapsed in the 20th century
• for centuries it was governed by an imperial palace under the ruler, the emperor.
• internal decay and external aggression are usually the factors that traditionally brought about the collapse of a dynasty, only to be replaced by another traditional dynasty.
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• within 70 years of the First Opium Wars (the British-Chinese War of 1839-42), China saw 
• a) the establishment of a modern republican form of government
• b) within 110 years, the present Communist government.
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• so, we ask: what is the traditional way of governing in China?

Introduction: The Ming Dynasty

• China’s last dynasties, the Ming (1368-1644) and the Qing (1644-1911) 
• these marked a glorious end to the imperial tradition. 
• they heralded China’s troubled entry into the modern world
• although treated as a unit, the two dynasties are fundamentally different.
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• the Ming Dynasty is seen as a response by the  Han people to the experience of foreign rule
• they had succeeded the Mongol’s Yuan dynastic rule.
• efforts were made by the Ming founder to revive and strengthen traditional values 
• foreign contacts were discouraged
• the Ming government was preoccupied with defence of the northern frontier 
• this was due to the  concern about the possibility of renewed invasion.

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• Ming China grew to be the wealthiest and most populous society in the world
• during the 15th and 16th centuries, private and illegal commerce flourished
• this was when foreign demand for Chinese silk and porcelain brought in an influx of silver 
• this came from the emerging world trading system
• as the economy grew, wealthy urban centres developed
• in the lower Yangzi region the Ming elite developed a sophisticated and luxurious lifestyle.
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by the 1500s, Jesuit reports in Europe provided great descriptions of  Ming China
• they saw it as a prosperous and orderly society ruled by scholar-officials, 
• this was a vision of an alternative kind of polity 
• it was seized by Western Enlightenment thinkers who wished to transform their own societies.

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• in the early 17th century, there was government corruption
• they also neglected rural problems 
• this led to widespread insurrections and the overthrow of the Ming emperor
• this catastrophe was followed by the entry of Manchu forces from beyond the Great Wall
• the Manchus began the occupation of Beijing, where a new dynasty was proclaimed.

Manchu Rule in the Qing Empire: 

• the Qing Empire was a solution to the problem of an age-old conflict 
• the conflict was between 
• a) the materially wealthy agricultural population of China
• b) the militarily powerful peoples of the vast Asian heartland.
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• over the 2nd millennium, the military advantage tipped inexorably to the Inner Asian peoples.
• the Ming period was a heroic and successful effort to repel and resist the northern invaders.
• but the Qing was the conquest dynasty that solved the problem completely
• it united Han China with a large part of Inner Asia.
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• entering China, the Manchus claimed the Mandate from Heaven
• they portrayed themselves as champions of order
• they called their new state the Qing (Pure or Uncorrupt)
• this was a response to all that was wrong in China
• despite their small numbers, the Manchus were able to create a stable order
• they were able govern China for more than two and a half centuries.

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• by studying the history of China, they created institutions to the rule of multiple ethnic groups.
• a bi-national state structure was set up 
• it made use of a dual staffing system - Chinese and Manchu
• what enabled the Manchus to recruit talented Chinese officials via the exam system were:
• a) patronage of Chinese culture
• b) the promotion of Confucian orthodoxy, 
• c) continuation of the Ming law code
• d) the Ming bureaucratic institutions. 
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• Qing emperors patronized local rulers and religious leaders directly.

The End of Imperial China:

• during the Qing rule the population doubled to more than 300 million in the 1700s
• it rose to 450 million in the 1800s

• like their Ming predecessors, the Qing were more oriented toward Inner Asia
• they were less inclined toward the sea and maritime affairs
• the Manchus were to pay the price for their inattention to international affairs.
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• by the 1840s, China’s balance of trade was reversed
• a series of wars with the Western powers weakened their power
• humiliating unequal treaties eroded Qing sovereignty
• internally, the dynasty was rocked by domestic rebellions that challenged Qing authority
• but the Manchus did manage to survive for several more decades.
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• by late 19th century, the traditional values & institutions were no longer useful in the modern world
• the initial reform efforts were aimed at military modernization in the face of Western presence. 
• defeat by the Japanese in the 1890s made it clear that more profound changes were needed.
• after 1900, a desperate Qing government turned to even more radical measures
• such a measure was the ending the traditional examination system & drafting a constitution.
• the Qing dynasty was overthrown in 1911
• this ended two millennia of imperial rule
• it left behind a redefined, multinational China
• it occupied more than twice the territory of the Ming dynasty.

The Reconquest: 

• Zhu Yuanzhang,was the  founder of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) 
• he was only the second peasant in all of Chinese history to become emperor
• he brought an end to the first period during which all of China was subjected to foreign rule.

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• by the mid-1300s the Mongol Yuan dynasty (founded in 1279) was torn by 
• a) internal rivalries, 
• b) the rise of local rebellions
• c) a full-scale civil war. 
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• this was the world into which Zhu Yuanzhang was born, in central Anhui province
• he was the youngest son of a peasant family 
• they we're so poor that two of his older brothers were given up for adoption.
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• Zhu Yuanzhang was 16 years old (1344) when famine & plague killed his family members. 
• unable to even afford a burial plot for his parents, he joined a local Buddhist monastery 
• this is where he learned to read and write and gain a basic knowledge of Buddhist doctrines.
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• shortage of food compelled him to wander around as a begging monk
• this was an experienced that exposed him to the rebellion abroad in the land
• he joined an insurgent group that was animated by an ideology 
• this ideology combined ideas about the Maitreya, the Buddha of the Future, and the Manichean idea of a Prince of Rightness 
• it was believed that he would appear and deliver the world from its time of trouble
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• Zhu Yuanzhang rose rapidly to leadership of an armed force 
• he carved out a territory along the lower reaches of the Yangzi River
• he established a regional state at Nanjing
• he recruited advisers, and organized a formal government.
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• after a decade of fighting with rival regimes on all sides, Zhu Yuanzhang emerged victorious,
• a) he unified the Chinese heartland, 
• b) captured the Yuan capital at Beijing
• c) he drove the Mongols back into the northern grasslands
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• he appealed to the people’s expectations of an imminent world transformation 
• he wanted to cement a long-standing legacy
• he gave his new state the name Ming
• he took the reign name Hongwu – “vast military power.”

Founding the Ming: 

• Zhu did not subscribe to the messianic beliefs of many of his followers.
• during his rise to power he recruited learned advisers and studied Confucian doctrine
• his claiming the Mandate from Heaven was a call for a conservative restoration of order
• he condemned the Mongols fro their failure to observe Chinese moral standards
• this was in either in their familial relations or their political practices.

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• he was particularly horrified by the Mongol marriage institutions
• for example, a widow might be passed to other members of her husband’s family
• Zhu outlawed the many unorthodox cults that had flourished during the time of the civil war,
• he promoted orthodox Confucian notions about 
• a) social hierarchy, 
• b) filial piety
• c) undivided loyalty toward the ruler,
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Despotic Ruler: 

• Emperor Hongwu left an indelible imprint on China
• he was energetic, shrewd, pragmatic, and ruthless,
• he had a vision of what her wanted to do.
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• after 30 years of tireless legislation and adjustments, he fashioned an extensive set of institutions that would endure for centuries.
• his success did come at a great price. 
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• he held a deep-seated hostility toward many educated scholar-officials 
• these were the literati who surrounded him,
• they were the very people upon whom he depended to carry out his orders.
• his style of rule was more authoritarian than his predecessors in the Song or the Yuan.
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• his previous experience of warfare and political intrigue had left him bitter
• he was scarred with paranoia and highly alert to threats, both real and imagined.
• as emperor he 
• a) he had a suspicious nature, 
• b) he was intolerant of criticism
• c) he was impatient
• d) he had lethal capacity for anger frequently led to bloody consequences
• e) he could easily have you beaten to death.

The Vision of Hongwu: 

• Hongwu’s vision for Chinese society can be seen from essays and texts he issued to guide
• none are more revealing than the Grand Pronouncements or Great Warnings, or New Laws 
• in these texts, he showed his anger & frustration
• litanies of crimes and insubordinations had come to his attention,
• seeing limitations to his power, he reached out to the common people
• he tried to keep them on his side
• he declared local schools be established so sons of commoners could learn to read & write.
• students learned the text of the Great Pronouncements and the Ming Code
• groups were brought to the capital
• this was to compete in reciting what they had learned from these lengthy tomes.

National Reconstruction: 

• China’s reconstruction in the wake of Mongol rule occupied the first 3 Ming emperors f
• this lasted for half a century
• the founder Zhu Yuangzhang 
• a) completed the military pacification and occupation of Yuan territory, 
• b) organized a comprehensive administrative structure
• c) undertook economic recovery measures.
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• warfare, famine, and disease had reduced the population of north China,
• this is what he did:
• a)  he  moved great numbers of people from the south
• b) peasant families were given livestock and excused from taxation for a number of years
• c) criminals and their families were banished to the north for life
• d) soldiers were settled along the frontier in military colonies
• e) wealthy families from the lower Yangzi region were moved to Nanjing 
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• at Nanjing they could be watched where they enriched the capital
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• the new order, that the new Ming founder created, had two fundamental weaknesses
• these two became to be relate: geopolitical issues & succession issues.
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• the new Ming capital at Nanjing was far from the military sensitive northern frontiers 
• this entailed a dangerous, strategic weakness
• it obliged Zhu to entrust his largest military forces to commanders who were far away 
• because of that they were difficult to supervise
• the emperor did give some thought to creating a second capital in the north 
• this was so that he could maintain tight control over his field commanders
• but nothing came of this proposal.
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• managing imperial offspring was equally dangerous
• these were princes that competed for the throne
• the solution was to have only the heir apparent – the oldest son – remain in the capital.
• other imperial princes were sent to estates in frontier regions
• there they could participate in defence & oversee military commanders on Zhu’s’s behalf.
• this arrangement appeared to solve both problems.

Civil War & Usurpation: 

• trouble arose when the heir apparent died before taking the throne.
• to maintain a line of succession, his oldest son, Zhu’s grandson, was named heir.
• in 1360 this grandson came to the throne at the age of 20,
• he was threatened by a number of uncles in princely establishments in strategic areas.
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• the young emperor, began to slowly remove his uncles from their positions, 
• he began to strip them of their powers and placing them under surveillance
• this provoked the surviving uncle, Zhi Di, the Prince of Yan, stationed at Beijing, to 
• a) revolt 
• b) march south under the guise of saving the emperor from the influence of evil underlings
• a civil war followed, concluding with the fall of Nanjing to Zhu Di, who installed himself as emperor. He took the name Yongle (“Eternal Happiness”) and ruled between 1402-1424. 
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A Second Founding -  The Yongle Era: 

• what followed was almost a second founding of a dynasty
• in power Yongle proved to be an energetic and able ruler
• he mobilized and unleashed enormous forces in a series of actions
• these actions transformed the empire in numerous ways

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• he acted quickly to execute those who remained loyal to his predecessor 
• they were those who had disappeared and perhaps died during the usurpation
• he re-wrote the historical records to erase the rule of his nephew and bolster his own legitimacy. 
• he made sure the that imperial princes would no longer have military escorts.
• he solved the strategic problem by moving the capital to Beijing in the north,
• this was a heroic undertaking that entailed the rebuilding of the city
• it also required re-opening the Grand Canal 
• this was to bring provisions from the south.
• from Beijing, Yongle was able to directly oversee military affairs along the frontier.
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• in terms of domestic affairs, Yongle upheld the policies and principles of his father
• in the north it was another matter.
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• in the north he personally led five major military expeditions into Mongolia 
• he attacked & harassed the Mongol forces. 
• in the south he sent an army to invade Annam in the Red River delta 
• he attached it to China as a province. 
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• the most famous of his external initiatives was to send a naval expedition
• this was to be sent to  to the South Seas and Indian Ocean 
• it was to be commanded by Zheng He. 
• this was designed to enhance China’s standing
• by attracting many ambassadors from foreign lands, it would cast glory on Yongle himself
• in China, it bolstered his claim to ruling legitimacy.
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• Zhu Di died in Mongolia during the fifth northern campaign
• his career of aggressive and expansive rule did not survive hi
• many of his initiative were not sustained
• Ming power was never again projected into Mongolia
• Annam gained its independence three years after Yongle’s death
• this was  due to strong nationalistic resistance
• the extensive maritime expeditions were discontinued.

Beijing - the New Capital:

• the capital was rebuilt with certain modifications by the first emperor of the Ming 
• this was soon after it had been taken away from the Mongols in 1368.
• there was  much debate at court about where to settle a new capital
• it was decided that it would be established south of the Yangzi River at Nanjing
• Beijing was renamed Beiping. 
• Beiping was handed over to the charge of Zhu Di, the emperor’ s fourth son - Prince of Yan. 
• in 1402 he usurped the throne from his brother Jianwen & fire raged throughout Nanjing

• the new emperor, Yongle, started on a project of consolidation and fortifying the city 
• the city of Beiping was at the heart of his power base,
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A New Capital Constructed: 

• the new emperor’s plans for the relocation of his capital was announced publicly
• this was done by his granting it the name Beijing in 1403 
• this almost came to a stop when in 1421, just a year after the city had been officially accorded the status of principle capital, a fire destroyed a substantial part of the restored and expanded Forbidden City. 

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• there was a debate at court the debate to examine the causes and implications of the disaster
• this was when the emperor faced blunt criticism over the cost & inconvenience of the project.
• these arguments came too late
• Yongle had already quit Nanjing for the last time in 1417,
• he responded to his dissenting officials by having one imprisoned and another executed.
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• there was massive tasks of construction of palaces, walls, gates, 
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• there was also the bureaucratic re-organizations
• the re-location of the population was already underway
• by 1425, over a million people had decided to transmigrate 
• this would be into the Northern Metropolitan Region
• they decided either on their own volition or at the explicit command of the emperor.
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• the city was built according to the detailed blueprint of the Yuan city – walled and square
• after the death of the emperor Yongle in 1424 the destiny of the city was again threatened
• this was when his son and his successor decided that the centre of the empire be returned to Nanjing and Beijing be given the status of “temporary residence” (Xingzai). 
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• within a year, the new emperor died
• his successor, the Xuande – born in Beijing - emperor revoked his father’s command.
• gradually Nanjing’s claim as the rival city dissipated
• its bureaucratic structures were downgraded until 1441
• this was when the city’s status as dual capital was removed
• it then became known as ”former capital” – Liudu. 

Zheng He and His Travels: 

• in the early 1400s, Ming China sent seven great naval expeditions into the Indian Ocean
• some of these expeditions reachedArabia and Africa
• this achievement reveals both the Ming’s technological capabilities and political priorities.
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• the leader of the expeditions was a high-ranking eunuch named Zheng He (1371-1433)
• he was born Ma He to a prominent family in Yunnan province in Southwest China
• this was ten years before the province was incorporated into the Ming Empire.
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• his surname Ma was quite a common designation for Muslims
• both his grandfather and father were called Hajji
• this indicating that they had made the pilgrimage to Mecca
• Ma He’s father was killed resisting the Ming conquest of Yunnan in 1381
• Ma He was captured and castrated
• he was presented to the Ming imperial court as part of the spoils of the war
• he was assigned to the service of the Prince of Yan, Zhu Di, the 4th son of the Ming founder. 
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• the fief of the Prince of Yan was in Beijing
• it had, until recently, been the capital of the Yuan Dynasty.
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• the young eunuch proved to be an able servant and gained his master’s trust.
• he grew up to be tall and stout,
• he displayed the good capacity for military affairs when the Prince of Yan led armed forces along the frontiers

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• the Prince of Yan revolted and marched on to the capital in Nanjing, 
• Ma He distinguished himself in the fighting
• after the Prince of Yan took the reign name Yongle, Ma He emerged as a trusted lieutenant.
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• in 1404, he was granted the surname Zheng
• he was given the title of Director (taijian)
• this implied the head of a eunuch agency in the imperial household
• he was a person the emperor, could always trust implicitly’
• this was the background that caused Zheng He to be placed in command of the expeditions
• he had no naval experience.

The Fleets of Yongle: 

• at Yongle’s command, a ship-building program was undertaken along the southern coast.
• by the summer of 1405, more than 1100 ships had been built or rebuilt as oceangoing crafts. 

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• the vessels were of different sizes.
• the largest, called treasure ships (bao chuan), were built in a shipyard outside of Nanjing.
• they were 440 feet long and 186 feet wide, the largest wooden ships ever built
• besides the treasure ships there were 
• a) horse ships (370 ft length), 
• b) supply ships (289 ft. length), 
• c) billet ships (240 ft. length
• d) battleships (180 ft. length) loaded with cannons.

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• the great sizes & their numbers allowed the fleets to carry large amounts of Chinese goods
• these would be for gifts &barter, supplying food, water, &equipment for months at sea.
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• besides the head commander and his officers there were all kinds of crew
• a) navigators, 
• b) interpreters, 
• c) medical and religious specialists
• d) craftsmen 
• e) a sizeable military force –foot & cavalry were the passengers on board.
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• the first voyage in 1405 was staffed by 27,000 men.  It had 62 ships and 255 smaller crafts.
• the six voyages that would follow later were all similar in size.

The Voyages and Expeditions: 

• in all there were seven voyages from 1405 to 1433
• they usually took two years 
• this is because the fleet had to wait for the monsoon winds
• these winds made it easier to sail south in the winter and north in the summer
• all the voyages followed the same basic route. 

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• from the mouth of the Yangzi River, the fleet sailed down the coast
• it would stop sat Changle in Fujian province & at Qui Nohn in Champa (now part of Vietnam) ,
• then it continued southwards to Sumatra and the Strait of Malacca
• from the northern end of Sumatra, the route went 
• a) westward across open water to Ceylon (Sri Lanka) 
• b) then around to the major trading centre of Calicut (Kozhikode) 
• this was on the Malabar Coast of southeaster India
• this was as far as the first three voyages went
• the next four voyages went from Calicut northwest to Hormuz
• this was a great regional trading centre at the mouth of the Persian Gulf in Iran.

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• beyond Hormuz the last 3 expeditions sent detached squadrons westward 
• this would be along the southern coast of Arabia to Aden, at the mouth of the Red Sea. 
• Zheng He and a handful of his subordinates went north from there to visit Mecca
• the most distant points reached by ships were as far down as the east coast of Africa,
• this area included Mogadishu in Somalia and as far south as Malindi in Kenya.

Military Force: 

• on several voyages, Zheng He’s forces engaged in combat
• on the 1st expedition (1405-1407) the fleet came into conflict with a Chinese pirat
• they resided n Palembang in Sumatra
• more than 5000 pirates were killed in the fighting; 
• their leader was captured and taken back to Nanjing and executed.
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• on the 2nd voyage (1407-1409), the fleet stopped in Java on the return route back to China
• there they intervened in local politic
• they came into conflict with a local ruler and set up a regional rival before leaving. 
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• during the 3rd voyage (1409 –1411), the king of Ceylon tried to capture the Chinese ships
• Zheng He and his men fought hard & captured the king and took him back to Nanjing.
• Emperor Yongle set him free and allowed him to return home.
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• on the 4th voyage (1413-1415), Zheng He’s men fought with a local leader 
• this was in northern Sumatra
• the local leader was captured and taken to Nanjing. 
• these incidences illustrate that while the Ming government was not interested in acquiring territory overseas, it did not hesitate to use military power to intervene in local affairs and keep order.
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• the presence of Chinese pirates in Southeast Asia shows that the Ming founder’s ban on overseas trade had not stopped Chinese from going abroad – it really only served to criminalize any of those who decided to do so.

Diplomacy: 

• the purpose was to show the Chinese wealth & power to the rulers of overseas states.
• wherever he went Zheng He handed over gifts of silks and porcelains to the local rulers
• these were to be seen as examples of China’s sophistication
• they were also tokens of the emperor’s goodwill.
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• what the Chinese wanted in return was 
• a) ceremonial tribute, 
• b) gifts of any distinctive products
• c) the formal recognition of the superior status of the Ming emperor.
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• his 4th voyage which went beyond India to Iran, Arabia, and Africa, was notably successful
• it brought back tribute and envoys from 19 countries.

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• Chinese records show that He’s voyages reached 30 countries from Southeast Asia to Africa.
• some were sizeable kingdoms, for example Champa, Cambodia, Thailand, & Bengal
• most areas were smaller island or coastal trading communities, some too small to identify.
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• by the 1420s, the voyages served their purpose in legitimizing Yongle’s rule
• by then the court was moved to a new capital at Beijing.
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• after a 6th voyage (1421-1422), the emperor ordered that the trips be temporary suspended.
• Emperor Yongle never again returned to Nanjing and died while on a campaign in Mongolia.
• his son and successor listened to advisers at the imperial court 
• they opposed further voyages on account of the great expense
• Zheng He was assigned to be a garrison commander of the now auxiliary capital at Nanjing.
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• he was called back to action, one more time, 
• this was when the next emperor, Yongle’s grandson, ordered a seventh voyage (1431-1433).
• after that the voyages ended for good
• Chinese attention then turned itself to the northern border.
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The Director of the Three Treasures: 

• Zheng He’s voyages showed the complexities of religious life in the Ming dynasty.
• he came from a Muslim family, and he may have visited Mecca, 
• but Zheng He was a professed Buddhist
• he is often referred to as the San Bao Taijuan – the Director of the three Treasures. 
• the three treasures are the “three jewels” of Buddhism: 
• a) the Buddha, 
• b) the Dharma or law
• c) the Sangha, or monastic community.
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• Zheng He’s religious life is seen from the inscriptions on stone steles that he had erected 
• these were done at various places and times
• in 1405, he asked the Minister of Rites to write an epitaph for his father’s grave
• in 1411, he went to his hometown in Yunnan to make an offering in person.
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• although he was a eunuch in the imperial court, he still honoured his father
• this was as Confucianism would have a filial son do
• at the start of his voyage &upon his return, ,Zheng He always made offerings 
• these were at the temples of the Celestial Empress, Tian Ho
• it was to her that he gave credit for his ongoing safety at sea
• as a modern man he embraced a number of religions that were prominent during his time.
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• in 1911 a stele erected by Zheng He was discovered in Ceylon (Sri Lanka)
• the inscription is in Chinese, Tamil, and Persian
• it details the things that he offered to the temple:
• a) gold, 
• b) silver
• c) silk, 
• d) incense burners, 
• e) lacquer utensils & other symbolic objects. 
• the Chinese text there records Emperor Yongle’s reverence for Buddhism
• the Tamil inscription tells of his respect for the Hindu god of the Tamils
• the Persian inscription records that the offerings were made to Allah, the God of Islam.

Ming Law & Government: 

• Ming China had legal & governmental institutions reach their highest peaks.
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• the Ming founder Zhu Yuanzhang was a tireless and inventive legislator
• he codified rules governing many aspects of Ming society 
• this included aspects from the imperial clan down to rural village community.
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• the emperor’s most enduring achievement was the Great Ming Code of 1397. 
• the Code had 460 articles
• they were organized by sections on 
• a) personnel,
• b) revenue,
• c) rites,
• d) military affairs, 
• e) penal affairs
• f) public works. 
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• it was a penal code that specified how the traditional five punishments should be applied
• the five traditional punishment were 
• a) beating with a light stick, 
• b) beating with a heavy stick, 
• c) penal servitude, 
• d) life exile, 
• e) death by strangulation or decapitation.
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• the Code was designed to uphold an idealized social harmony
• the punishments were harshest for those who transgressed against their superiors.
• specific consideration was given to 
• a)the young, 
• b) the elderly, 
• c) women,
• d) persons with disabilities.
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• punishment was generally lighter for those who voluntarily confessed
• in many cases, payment of fines could reduce or eliminate punishment.
• to inhibit any social change, Zhu commanded that the Code could never be altered.

Enforcing the Code: 

• the Ming dynasty did not have specialized judicial institution
• the Code was enforced by district magistrates
• the magistrates functioned as judges whenever legal cases arose
• they were assisted by the local staff of constables, bailiffs, jailers, and coroners
• they handled prisoners and gathered information. 
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• there were no lawyers
• some literate persons studied the codes and assisted in offering pleas before the magistrate.
• guilt was assumed in most cases where the crime was alleged
• torture was often applied to extract confessions, which confirmed the charges.
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• civil disputes, involving property, were meant to be resolved by arbitration 
• this was done under the supervision of community and lineage elders
• despite this, stubborn disagreements were often taken to the magistrate for resolution
• there was limited appeal to higher levels of government
• all death sentences were reviewed at the capital
• pardons and reductions in punishment were constantly routine features of the legal system..

Civil Administration: 

• the Ming gov’t was the largest & most rationally organized administrative system in the world. 
• it was divided into parallel military and civil hierarchies.
• 
  
• civil officials were recruited through the triennial examination system
• military officials were recruited through a combination of examinations and heredity.
• 
  
• there were nine official ranks
• each were divided into sub-ranks
• they were distinguished by brocaded squares worn on their uniforms
• birds were for civil officials and animals for military officials.

• the number of officials holding civil ranks rose to about 24, 000 in the course of the dynasty
• about 1,500 were stationed in the capital where they staffed the six government ministries of a) personnel, 
• b) revenue,
• c) rites, 
• d) war, 
• e) justice
• f)  works.
• 
  
• 
  
• Ming officials were subjected to regular posting for a long term away from their home province,
• this was to avoid conflicts of interest.
• their careers were centrally managed
• they often alternated service spent in the provinces with assignments in the capital.
• 
  
• all officials were evaluated very three years
• those that were deficient were demoted or punished. 
• 
  
• there was a censorial system that existed to 
• a) monitor effectiveness, 
• b) detect any criminality and incompetence, 
• c) alert the emperor to the various problems.
• 
  
• the majority of civil officials were assigned to 
• a) the provincial, 
• b) prefectural, 
• c) sub-prefectural
• d) districts (or county) offices throughout the Ming territory

• 
  
• to northern and southern areas around Beijing & Nanjing, there were 13 provinces
• below the level of provinces, there was a civil government
• with it the administration of justice & collection of taxes, were carried out by 158 
• more than 1,000 district magistrates aided by a much larger number of local functionaries,
• these local functionaries lacked civil service degrees.
• the territory they administered was about 1.5 million sq. miles – 3.9 sq. km
• that is just about half of the area of China today.
• 
  
• a district magistrate would have authority over 60,000 individuals
• in the villages the responsibility lay in the hands of the elders and tax captains 
• they would oversee the delivery of grain and labour service.

The Eunuchs: 

• one of the flaws or weaknesses of the Ming was the interference of the eunuchs i
• this took place in civil and military affairs. 
• the palace was staffed with eunuchs
• they were the only men allowed to be in the headquarters of the concubines,
• in this way they had access to the attention of the emperors
• because of that they were often able to obtain favours.

• 
  
• the eunuchs were ranked and organized according to specialized agencies
• these agencies responsible for a variety of services:
• a) household chores, 
• b) dealing with food, 
• c) clothing, 
• d) rituals, and 
• e ) entertainment.

• often the eunuchs wee given sensitive assignments
• this is when they acted as spies and often where sent to spy on magistrates.
• the number of eunuchs increased to about 10,000 in the capital
• others were scattered throughout the empire on imperial business
• some advanced to high positions in the imperial court 
• some became dictators in the imperial court.

The Ming Scholar: 

• the Ming scholar was a member of a tiny and much privileged elite.
• the scholar preferred the safety of that study to the dangers of the office at the end.
• 
  
• early in the 17th century, the eminent Chinese painter, art critic, and influential arbiter of good taste, Li Rihua (1565-1635) wrote the following description of the scholar’s study: 
• 
  
•   “His study will be situated there where the brook twists and turns its way through the hills. In total, the structure will not exceed two or three bays, with an upper story from which to observe the clouds and the mists. All around 100 slender bamboo plants will grow, to welcome the fresh wind and to the south will stand a tall pine tree… to the east will be housed all the Daoist writings and Buddhist sutras and to the west, the Confucian classics. In the centre will be placed a bed and a desk strewn with examples of fine calligraphy and painting.”
• 
  
• this is an idealized description of an almost unattainable space & ritual
• it was only years spent in such a study that scholars could best provide for the their families, 
• some achieved some sort of fame as well

• the scholar is often referred to as the literati
• this was a terminology of the Jesuits 
• shi (scholar) or wenren (men of letters) are the Chinese terms.

Literacy, the Essay, and the Examinations: 

• such opportunities, was severely circumscribed by the luck of wealth and locality,
• it involved prodigious feats of memory.
• from a very early age, the son of a family that was rich enough would have that opportunity
• this was the task of acquiring the very terse and difficult classical language,
• 
  
•  when he entered school he was expected to know around 1,500 to 2,000 of these characters.
•  he would then proceed to the memorization of the various books of the Confucian canon
•  he would also proceed to the training in the art of composition..
• 
  
• this last skill, revolved around acquiring the mastery of a tightly-defined form of composition, - this is the much maligned “eight-legged” essay (baguwen),
• it involved addressing, through a prescribed sequences of stages, the topic given to them. 
• the process began first with “broaching the topic” and ended with a “conclusion” 
• this included a series of antithetical statements – “the eight legs”
• to master these classical & rhetorical traditions required  enormous knowledge
• this was knowledge of more than 10,000 Chinese characters
• this was a requirement to be allowed to write the exams in the first place.
• 
  
• at the 8th lunar month of every 3rd year, all candidates would gather 
• this was at various provincial capitals
• on the 9th, 12th and 15th  days of that month they go to examination cells

• the successful candidates – “raised men” – juren - would be allowed to start the next stage
• this was the Metropolitan examinations held in the capital, the 2nd month of the next year,
• then the student would undergo the rigors of three-day tests.

• a successful candidate would be called the “presented scholar” – jinshi 
• this would give him the privilege of meeting the emperor or his rep and be given a rank.
• 
  
• of the 90 times of the Ming dynasty a sum total of 24, 874 students achieved that status

A Constricted Curriculum: 

• the Ming scholar had available to him more readily than ever before a wide range of texts, - these were scholarly ones either as a manuscript copy, or increasingly, a wood block imprint, 
• this was acquired from one of many libraries
• these were from private, official, or monasteries - or from the commercial book merchants.- soon enough the actual curriculum became more and more narrowly defined
• it began focusing on the commentaries to the Confucian canon 
• these were developed by the Song dynasty’s neo-Confucian Zhu Xi (1130-1200)
• i was believed that this was the key to the wisdom of the sages of old
• this wisdom would move society toward universal peace and order - so they thought.

Office and its Dangers: 

• eligibility for office was everything for the Ming scholar
• as long as one maintained one’s registration, one was exempt from 
• a) tax (money or labour) 
• b) a variety of sumptuary laws
• c) they were also immune from prosecution for various crimes 
• d) they would immediately become a member of a national elite
• the actual salaries were generally low during the Ming, 
• but office holding could prove to be a profitable venture. 
• 
  
• it was the sole acceptable method of social mobility
• yet the holding of office had its drawbacks
• for example, when the supply exceeded the demand
• the bureaucracy at most increased to 24,000 men.
• 
  
• there was intense factionalism at the imperial court during the Ming especially, 
• so, few men could enjoy a steady career free of anxiety of dismissal and disgrace. 
• 
  
• the tasks to be done were quite extraordinary in nature
• every job had to be scrutinized, reviewed, and evaluated
• for example, the district magistrate was responsible for the well-being of some 90,000 people
• this population was spread over an area of1300 sq. miles
• 
  
• his duties consisted of the following:
• a) tax collection, 
• b) supervision of the census, 
• c) the administration of justice, 
• d) the undertaking of local rites, 
• e) the maintenance of the education system &public works of the locale
• f) the proper distribution  of famine relief. 
• 
  
• sometimes it was worst if a scholar was one of the1,500 officials in the capital 
• this was where the eunuchs & their bodyguards maintained a reign of terror over them
• at times the officials were punished through public whippings.

Travels & its Delights: 

• during the reign of Emperor Wanli, there was much peace
• the scholars could afford to turn their attention to 
• a) painting, 
• b) calligraphy, 
• c) collecting and exchange of writings  
• 
  
• they also turned their attentions to the despised forms of 
• a) the vernacular and theatre, 
• b) the short story, 
• c) the novel, 
• d) the opera, 
• e) arts and crafts
• f) engaging in excessive tea-drinking.

• 
  
• by the late period there was a growing tendency for scholars to indulge in travels 
• this was for its own sake 
• the delights of travel were obsessively taken up by scholars.
• 
  
• the achievement of the Ming scholars was 
• a) founding libraries
• b) producing anthologies of the preserved numerous written works from extinction.

Foreign Trade: 

• the beginning of the Ming dynasty brought an end to the “pax mongolica” 
• this had created long distance trade across the Eurasian landmass.
• by the end of this era, China was the centre of maritime commerce.

• 
  
• unlike his Mongol predecessors the Ming founder was not interested in foreign trade
• he advocated defence of the northern frontier
• he discouraged his people from any maritime contact with other countries
• under his rule foreign trade fell to a low point.
• 
  
• the situation began to change in the early 1400s with Emperor Yongle (1402-1420), 
• having just usurped the throne, he expanded China’s external contacts. 
• this was for official trade both by land and by sea. 

• Yongle was anxious to build up Ming military power
• to do this he needed horses, which were in short supply in China.
• he established “Tea-Horse” Markets along the northern frontier 
• this is where Inner Asia horses were purchased in exchange for Chinese tea. 
• 
  
• the Veritable Record is the most important account of the Ming period,
• it contains annual totals for the number of horses acquired, 
• it rose from just under 40, 000 in 1403 to more than 1.3 million in 1423.
• outsiders were made aware of Ming demand for horses both through tribute and trade. 
• 
  
• emperor Yongle undertook a quite different trade initiative
• he sent a series of great naval expeditions, led by the eunuch Zheng He to the Indian Ocean.
• the route to southern Asia was well known to the Chinese traders.
• Arabs had conducted maritime commerce with China for centuries.
• Zheng He was able to recruit Chinese Muslims who spoke Arabic 
• they acted as interpreters when he reached the Indian Ocean.
• 
  
• Yongle’s expeditions were strictly for diplomatic purposes.
• their official exchanges of gifts can be characterized as “tributary trade”.
• there were some items, especially spice, that China could not produce,
• it could only be obtained through trade.
• these expeditions carried many fine pieces of porcelain, along with other valuables,
• they were to be given to the rulers of other states as gifts of the Ming emperor.
• 
  
• dated Ming porcelains were used to decorate the ceilings of the Ardebil Shrine in Safavid Iran.- - other fine pieces can be seen among the treasures of the Ottoman Empire 
• they are on display in the Topkapi Palace Museum in Istanbul.
• it is easy to assume that thee may have been private trade taking place as well.

The Growth of Maritime Trade: 

• Yongle’s, imperial policy emphasized the exclusion of foreign contact,
• but soon the growth of foreign trade was in the private sphere.
• despite the lack of imperial enthusiasm, and the ban on seafaring, maritime trade grew 
• 
  
• Chinese products were well known overseas and demand was strong
• tributary trade was succeeded and it was eclipsed in volume by commercial trade
• this was because Ming kilns and merchants tried to satisfy the foreign demand 
• these demands came from Japan, Southeast Asia, and the Indian Ocean.
• 
  
• by the second half of the 16th century, Western ships, especially Portuguese and Dutch, were carrying ever increasing volume of Chinese porcelains to Europe.
• single vessel could carry as much as 70,000 items
• it became possible for European customers to order Chinese items to be manufactured with a family coat-of-arms or other Western style decoration.

• 
  
• to purchase Ming goods, Japanese, Portuguese, and Dutch traders brought silver to Chinese ports.
• this flow of bullion was substantially increased when, in the second half of the 16th century, the Spanish established a foothold in the Philippines.
• 
  
• the Portuguese and Dutch came to China by sailing around Africa & across the Indian Ocean,
• but he Spanish came to Asia by crossing the Pacific
• Spanish vessels, laden with silver from the mines of the New World, left Acapulco and crossed the Pacific on favourable winds for Manila.
• 
  
• silver was exchanged with the Chinese merchants from Guangzhou and Fujian province 
• they were exchanged for everything the Spanish needed to build 
• the Spanish needed to sustain their new colonial outposts
• they needed food, livestock, furniture, tools, and everyday items.
• the Manila galleons soon returned to New Spain stuffed with quantities of silks and porcelains
• this was for ale in the Americas and trans-shipments to Iberia.

Ming Money: 

• early in the Ming dynasty, the government issued paper money 
• this was in denominations equal to strings of copper coins
• paper money was convenient for the government 
• this was because it served to facilitate payments to soldiers and officials in the north
• but the notes were not supported and rapidly fell into disuse

• 
  
• 
  
• 
  
• small transactions were carried out with copper cash 
• but the large payments required the use of ingots of silver
• these ingots of silver were not coined and were cumbersome.

• 
  
• 
  
• 
  
• with China’s commercial economy expanding, demand for silver soared. 
• from mid-16th century, the Chinese willingness to exchange fine products for silver precipitated a global flow of silver to China
• this came directly from Japan and New Spain, 
• it came indirectly on the Portuguese and Dutch ships from Europe.
• 
  
• inside China, the silver was substituted for taxes in the form of labour services 
• these services were owed to the government
• this greatly facilitated long distance transactions and commerce
• the Chinese trading boom had begun and the empire’s prosperity was guaranteed.

Mongol & Japanese Foes: 

• Ming security was challenged by Mongol troops in the north and by piracy along the coast. - 
• invasion from the north threatened the dynasty’s existence
• coastal incursions cause disruption and economic loss without endangering the empire.
• 
  
• after the fall of the Yuan in 1368, Mongol remnants continued to pose a threat in the north
• some strategic positions taken by the Ming garrisons had to be abandoned.
• the Ming military defence in the north combined diplomacy with the use of military force. -
• tribal leaders were granted titles as head of guard units 
• they were encouraged to settle in areas along the border as defensive buffers.
• at the same time, Ming military outposts were established in strategic areas
• they were supported either by part-time farming or transport of daily supplies from the south.-
• these elements were not satisfactory
• the loyalty of tribal leaders to the Ming ruler was subject to change
• soldiers in fixed outposts could not match the mobility of the raiders 
• this is because the raiders had exceptional horses.
• 
  
• during the founding emperor’s reign, imperial princes joined with the Ming commanders to pursue and harass Mongol leaders. 
• Zhu Di, the Prince of Yan stationed in Beijing, was the most active in this military task.
• in 1302, he usurped the throne and took reign name Yongle.
• he subsequently move the capital north to Beijing
• he used it as a base from which to lead five major military campaigns into the grasslands. 
• the largest of these campaigns mobilized half a million men
• this included more than 10,000 mounted cavalry & larger numbers of foot soldiers
• it also included transport workers. 
• in 1424, Emperor Yongle was killed in action during the fifth campaign.
• 
  
• subsequent emperors were unable to match Yongle’s military prowess.
• one who did try was the ineffectual emperor Yingzong
• he was captured and taken prisoner by Mongol forces at Tumu in 1449.
• the dynasty was saved when officials installed Yinzong’s brother on the throne
• they organized an effective defence of the capital.
• they were unable to raise the ransom for the captive emperor
• the Mongols then returned him unharmed
• Ming defence policy shifted away from campaigning 
• it shifted to reliance on static walls, fortifications and outposts
• 
  
• the Great Wall was an impressive artifact of this period.

The Increasing Threat of Piracy:

• after the mid-14th century, tributary trade declined in importance 
• this was when he Ming court turned its attention to the defence of the northern border. 
• coastal and overseas trade continued to grow 
• it could not be confined within the few ports like Guangzhou and Ningbo 
• these place were where the government allowed foreign merchants to call.
• by the1520s, illegal traders and desperate commoners formed small pirate band
• they operated from offshore islands, making raids along the coast.
• they were soon joined by growing numbers of Japanese, intent on trade and plunder
• this led the Chinese officials to label all the outlaws “Japanese pirates” wokou 
• this was a derogatory term that might be interpreted as “dwarf bandits”.
• in actuality, a majority of those involved were Chinese
• they had many connections to wealthy merchant families and local officials.

• 
  
•  by 1550s, the level of violence escalated dramatically.
• the whole area of the southern coast became a real total war zone,
• armed bands raided and plundered cities, and even established fortified bases
• the government responded by 
• a) trying to enforce its prohibition on maritime trade, 
• b) remove the civilian population from the coast, 
• c) built its own fortifications
• d) raise troops to do battle with the raiders
• 
  
• after a decade of confused and destructive fighting, a degree of order was restored
• Ming government policy changed 
• maritime trading was again permitted along the southern coast.
• 
  
• it was just at this point in time that Western ships began to reach Chinese waters 
• this was in significant numbers
• in 1557, the Portuguese were allowed a permanent trading post 
• this was on a peninsula at Macao, near Guangzhou 
• it was a facility they maintained until 1999. 
• 
  
• the Spanish took possession of the Philippines in the 1570s 
• it was there they had come into conflict with Chinese pirates.
• they fought the pirates 
• they pleaded with Ming coastal officials to let them establish a trading post similar to Macao.
• when the Dutch appeared on the scene it was as much in the role of pirates as of merchants.
• they looted the Chinese ships, 
• they raided along the coast
• in 1622 attacked the Portuguese at Macao
• two years later they established a base, Fort Zeelandia, on the island of Taiwan 
• this was beyond the reach of the Ming authorities
• by early 1600s, the Western Pacific was an active venue for
• a) international piracy and trader,
• b) competition in which the English and Japanese played significant roles.

An Empire in Decline:

• the end of the empire came on April 25th 1644 
• this was one of the most dramatic and cataclysmic dynastic transitions in Chinese history
• 
  
• as the troops of the rebel leader Li Zicheng (1605-1645) entered the outer suburbs of the capital the ill-fated Emperor Chongzhen (1611-1644), (in his 17th year of his reign), took himself to the Imperial Hat and Girdle Department on Coal Hill and hanged himself. The night before he had killed his consorts and injured his daughter, leaving behind a suicide note.
• 
  
• within 6 weeks of his arrival Li Zicheng had withdrawn from the city
• he would die in obscure circumstances the next year
• his dynasty, Shun, had collapsed and Beijing, in flames, was occupied by another army,
• that army was that of the Qing under the command of regent Dorgon (1612-1650).
• his first public act, after securing the city, was to ensure and oversee the appropriate burial and respect the memory of the last Ming emperor.

What Went Wrong?

• the reverberations of this transition from Ming to Qing lasted for much of the next half century. 
• various Southern Ming imperial aspirants withdrew further and further southwards, t
• those who had chosen to live through the drama (rather than become martyrs) positioned themselves – if only provisionally – along a spectrum of engagement that stretched from armed opposition to retreat from public life to close accommodations with the new Manchu masters of the empire.
• 
  
• the middle years of the Wanli's (1563-1620) reign was the turning point of the end of the Ming. 
• 
  
• the late Ming was an age of 
• 1) explosive economic and commercial development, 
• 2) a rapid rise in population (150 to 175 million by end of 15th century 
• 3) increased levels of urbanization. 

• 
  
• these changes brought with them increased levels of social mobility and of literacy 
• these changes also served to unsettle China’s ruling elite 
• it did this by by undermining existing status relationships
• an expanded and commercialized publishing took advantage of this mobility,
• the flourishing popular culture showed a willingness to question and undermine existing neo-Confucian orthodoxies.
• 
  
• accompanying such socio-economic challenges were 
• 1) the age-old signs of severe dynastic decline, 
• 2) an incompetent & extravagant emperor uninterested in the administration of his empire, 
• 3) the consequent expansion of eunuch power, 
• 4) intense factionalism and wide-spread corruption among officials, 
• 5) localized natural disasters and food shortages, 
• 6) increased expenditures on a number of wasteful and failed military campaigns, 
• 7) rampant inflation and increasing disparities in wealth.
• 
  
• between 1572 & 1582, daily administration was by Zhang Juzheng (1525-1582), 
• he was the emperor’s former tutor and current Grand Secretary
• he  introduced the “Single-whip” method of taxation, 
• this was a uniform and consolidated form of tax 
• it was imposed based on detailed knowledge of local circumstances, 
• it was payable in silver throughout the empire. 
• It served to improve the efficiency of the imperial bureaucracy 
• it replenished the emperor’s reserves of grain and bullion.
• 
  
• piecemeal measures imposed on the empire could not server to reform a government system
• this system was committed to preserving the agrarian simplicity of a golden Confucian age
• it was an age that was long gone
• with the death of Zhang Juzheng the empire was incapable of dealing with the threats, 
• these threats were both internal and external, to its political order
• it was these continual threats that eventually overran and destroyed the empire.
• 
  

The Jesuits in China:

• from the 1580s, the Jesuits inaugurated an intercultural conversation or dialogue 
• this was between East and West that has continued until the present day.
• 
  
• the loyal members of the order of the Society of Jesus was established in 1541 
• it was founded by by St. Ignatius Loyola 
• they were dedicated to procuring the advancement of people’s souls 
• they did this by combining Christian doctrine with secular knowledge.
• 
  
• 
  
• those Jesuits who ventured eastward were an intellectual elite from throughout Europe, 
• they were trained in an Aristotelian scholasticism 
• they were disciplined 
• they were committed to their mission of converting the Chinese to Catholicism
• it was a mission, that involved a two-way exchange of knowledge
• they wanted to understand the history, geography, languages, and literatures of the peoples of the East 
• they wanted to spread this newly found knowledge
• they were also intent on making available to the Chinese  the best that Europe had to offer.
• 
  
• their mission usually focuses on the labours of one man
• this was an Italian Jesuit named Matteo Ricci (1532-1610)

• his initial progress toward Beijing where the Wanli Emperor  sat, was slow and problematic.
• Ricci was stoned, robbed and arrested.
• his companions died and his boat was shipwrecked
• throughout this Ricci struggled to understand the languages of China. 
• he did not have available to him the usual tools of grammar an dictionaries
• in this respect his success was remarkable
• he began his study of Chinese in early 1580
• within a year or so he was able to hear confessions in the newly acquired language
• by the1590s he had begun to translate the five books of Confucius into Latin
• in 1595, he issued his first full composition in Chinese – the Treatise on Friendship.

Communicating Across Cultures: 

• the textual and linguistic conditions for the work Ricci was engaged in were complex.
• the language spoken by the Jesuits in China was Portuguese,
• but their letters back home were written into many languages
• many of these letters were translated into Latin and circulated widely throughout Europe
• these tracts, excerpts, and summaries of these reports were made available to English readers as early as 1625

Cultural Immersion: 

• the late imperial Chinese world that greeted Ricci was governed by a set of  laws 
• these laws sought to regulated all aspects of consumption – housing, food, clothing.
• the commercial revolution of the times had served to loosen the grip on such controls
• yet the rules that governed the official robes and accoutrements of the scholar-official continued to be strictly observed
• Matteo Ricci accompanied his fellow Jesuit, Michele Ruggieri (1543-1607) to the city of Zhaoqing 
• this was to establish the first inland mission in 1583, 
• they were dressed in the robes of a Buddhist monk, having also shaven their hair and faces. 
• by early 1590s, Ricci had begun to realize the disadvantage of this way of dressing.
• Buddhists had little status in educated circles or society 
• they tended to be treated with contempt by both scholars and officials
• by now Buddhism was recovering from a long phase of intellectual and organizational decline
• on the advice of a Chinese acquaintance, the Jesuits decided they should dress in robes of the Confucian scholar
• he had to first get permission to do this
• he appeared in public with this new way of dressing in 1595 – with this, his prestige grew.

• he had become a Western Confucian schola
• he dressed in a scholar’s robe and produced texts expected of men of high education
• by shifting in his dress, he also shifted in his perspective,
• he went  from being an outsider to becoming an insider
• he went from observer to participant – Matteo Ricci had become one of them.

China’s Place in the World: 

• Matto Ricci had carried with him to China a map of the world
• it quickly attracted the attention of Chinese scholars he met
• he was always asked for copies of it
• Ricci would rewrite them to include Chinese names of places.
• in making thee maps Ricci placed China at the centre of the world
• he increased its area size to accord it with the traditional view of the empire as being the Middle Kingdom, at least culturally and politically, if not geographically
• Ricci realized that for his map to be accepted as true, he had to accommodate the Chinese perspective even though it was scientifically incorrect
• this was such as the world being flat and square
• his hope was to gain their trust in order to eventually convert them to Christianity.
• 
  
• his scientific toolkit wad a sideline to his particular mission
• it was designed to impress and interest people 
• this was done rather than to communicate the truths about the shape and state of the world.
• 
  

The Acceptance of Christianity: 

• the Jesuits sought to perpetrate their own understanding of religious circumstances of China.
• Ricci dismissed both Daoism and Chinese Buddhism as irrelevant
• he argued that the Chinese believed a “natural religion” 
• he believed that was very much in keeping with Christianity. 
• as Ricci said: “ Of all the pagan sects known in Europe, I know of no people who fall into fewer errors in the early ages of their antiquity than did their Chinese. From the very beginning of their history it is recorded in their writings that they recognized and worshipped one supreme being, whom they called the King of Heaven … One can definitely hope that in the eyes and mercy of God, many of the ancient Chinese found salvation in the natural law.” 
• 
  
• for Ricci, the Chinese had been Christians all along, without realizing it.
• it appeared that beliefs, expressed in Confucianism, were presented by the Jesuits as being essentially secularist.

• 
  
• this argument led to the Jesuits ‘s greatest and significant aspect of accommodations
• this was the use of pre-existing Chinese terminology for their Christian concepts
• 
  
• for the Jesuits, the Chinese could continue to undertake their own rites and rituals
• these were those associated with ancestor worship 
• and they could become Christians at the same time.
• 
  
• the Catholicism they brought to China was transformed by its Chinese circumstances.
• in this respect, there exists an extraordinary historical irony in the fact that after the Kangxi emperor declared in 1692, that Christianity was no longer to be listed as a ruinous doctrine, a series of Papal Bulls of 1704, 1707, 1715, & 1742 condemned what it now labeled the “Chinese Rites” and banned any further accommodations of the type that Ricci had undertaken, a decision reversed in 1939.

Ricci’s Death in Beijing: 

• Matteo Ricci did not live to either celebrate the victory or to suffer the defeat of his  efforts. A
• the time of his death, the estimated number of Chinese Catholics stood at around 2,500 
• they had grown to about 200,000 in  1700. 
• as a token of favour, Ricci was buried just beyond the inner walls of Beijing
• this was an an order that had been granted to him by the emperor.
•