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The Ming Dynasty was also the first to establish [[tribute]] relations with Japan (briefly, under the [[Ashikaga shogunate]]), and with the [[Ryukyu Kingdom|Ryûkyû Kingdom]]. Though the Ming, at times, implemented strict policies of [[hai jin|maritime restrictions]], in other ways, or at other times, it was also a high point of trade and foreign relations.
The Ming Dynasty was also the first to establish [[tribute]] relations with Japan (briefly, under the [[Ashikaga shogunate]]), and with the [[Ryukyu Kingdom|Ryûkyû Kingdom]]. Though the Ming, at times, implemented strict policies of [[hai jin|maritime restrictions]], in other ways, or at other times, it was also a high point of trade and foreign relations.
The population of China is believed to have been around 60-90 million at the beginning of the Ming, growing to around 125-150 million by the end of the period.<ref>[[Albert M. Craig]], ''The Heritage of Chinese Civilization'', Third Edition, Prentice Hall (2011), 100.<br>Benjamin Elman, ''A Cultural History of Civil Examinations in Late Imperial China'', University of California Press (2000), 130.</ref>
The population of China is believed to have been around 60-90 million at the beginning of the Ming, growing to around 125-150 million by the end of the period.<ref>Craig, 100.; Benjamin Elman, ''A Cultural History of Civil Examinations in Late Imperial China'', University of California Press (2000), 130.</ref>
==Policies==
The founder of the Ming, the Hongwu Emperor, is often described as an autocrat and despot. He abolished the Grand Secretariat which in previous periods had handled important matters of state, insisting instead on handling such matters himself. Later emperors, however, were not as able, or as willing, to handle such a load, and during certain reigns, government processes slowed down and backed up dramatically. In the late Ming period, a succession of emperors showed little interest in governance; one even remained illiterate throughout his reign. As a result, the re-established Grand Secretariat and palace eunuchs gained considerable power at over policy and administration.
==Demographic & Economic Expansion==
==Demographic & Economic Expansion==
Song agricultural advances, including new strains of rice, combined with the expansion of lands under cultivation, contributed to a considerable increase in agricultural production throughout much of the country. This boost in the food supply, combined with commercial growth, fueled a considerable expansion of population, which in turn further fueled commercial and urban growth. These in turn led to an increased need for administrative organization both in the cities and the provinces, and so the scholar-bureaucrat class grew in numbers and importance. By the end of the Ming period, the ''jìnshì'' degree, held only those who had passed the top levels of the [[Chinese imperial examinations|civil examinations]], became quite standard for anyone claiming elite status, while the social value or status of the degrees held by those who passed only regional and provincial exams decreased considerably.
Song agricultural advances, including new strains of rice, combined with the expansion of lands under cultivation, contributed to a considerable increase in agricultural production throughout much of the country. This boost in the food supply, combined with commercial growth, fueled a considerable expansion of population, which in turn further fueled commercial and urban growth. These in turn led to an increased need for administrative organization both in the cities and the provinces, and so the scholar-bureaucrat class grew in numbers and importance. By the end of the Ming period, the ''jìnshì'' degree, held only those who had passed the top levels of the [[Chinese imperial examinations|civil examinations]], became quite standard for anyone claiming elite status, while the social value or status of the degrees held by those who passed only regional and provincial exams decreased considerably.
Areas of northern China which became relatively depopulated during the period of Mongol rule were resettled during the Ming, and the [[Grand Canal]] was reopened in [[1415]], reconnecting a vital trade route between north and south. Expanded Chinese settlement of certain upland areas of the southwest led to conflicts with the [[Miao people]], while many Chinese also began settling on the island of [[Taiwan]] and in various parts of Southeast Asia.<ref>Craig, 101.</ref>
Areas of northern China which became relatively depopulated during the period of Mongol rule were resettled during the Ming, and the [[Grand Canal]] was reopened in [[1415]], reconnecting a vital trade route between north and south. Expanded Chinese settlement of certain upland areas of the southwest led to conflicts with the [[Miao people]], while many Chinese also began settling on the island of [[Taiwan]] and in various parts of Southeast Asia.
The lower Yangzi region surrounding the cities of [[Hangzhou]] and [[Suzhou]] (and modern-day [[Shanghai]]) became increasingly densely populated and commercialized over the course of the Ming period. Ninety percent of agricultural land in that region came to be owned by absentee landlords, who rented out the land to tenant farmers, and who came to chiefly grow cash crops such as cotton and silk. Textile merchants in the cities began to organize and oversee entire streams of production, from the tenant farmers producing raw materials, to networks of spinners, weavers, and dyers working out of their homes in rural areas and provincial cities & towns, to their own storefronts in the big cities. While rural areas and big cities (Beijing, Hangzhou, Canton) saw considerable growth over the course of the Ming period, it was these provincial cities which saw the most urban expansion. Even so, regional economic activity remained far stronger than national networks.<ref>By contrast, Edo period Japan saw considerable national integration, with goods from all regions passing through [[Edo]] and [[Osaka]], and making their way throughout the country.</ref> Urbanization brought with it the further expansion & development of urban landscapes which first emerged in a serious way in the Song Dynasty, filled with restaurants, teahouses, and brothels.
The lower Yangzi region surrounding the cities of [[Hangzhou]] and [[Suzhou]] (and modern-day [[Shanghai]]) became increasingly densely populated and commercialized over the course of the Ming period. Ninety percent of agricultural land in that region came to be owned by absentee landlords, who rented out the land to tenant farmers, and who came to chiefly grow cash crops such as cotton and silk. Textile merchants in the cities began to organize and oversee entire streams of production, from the tenant farmers producing raw materials, to networks of spinners, weavers, and dyers working out of their homes in rural areas and provincial cities & towns, to their own storefronts in the big cities. While rural areas and big cities (Beijing, Hangzhou, Canton) saw considerable growth over the course of the Ming period, it was these provincial cities which saw the most urban expansion. Even so, regional economic activity remained far stronger than national networks.<ref>By contrast, Edo period Japan saw considerable national integration, with goods from all regions passing through [[Edo]] and [[Osaka]], and making their way throughout the country.</ref> Urbanization brought with it the further expansion & development of urban landscapes which first emerged in a serious way in the Song Dynasty, filled with restaurants, teahouses, and brothels.
==References==
==References==
*[[Albert M. Craig]], ''The Heritage of Chinese Civilization'', Third Edition, Prentice Hall (2011), 98-113.
*Valerie Hansen, ''The Open Empire'', New York: W.W. Norton & Company (2000), 369-407.
*Valerie Hansen, ''The Open Empire'', New York: W.W. Norton & Company (2000), 369-407.
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[[Category:Historical Periods]]
[[Category:Historical Periods]]
