Due in 8 hrs exactly. The sooner turned in the better. Econ Hwk. Read powerpoints and answer word doc.
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lect20_f16_china1.pptxLect20 f16 China
f16
Europe and China
We want to explain why the Industrial Revolution occurred in Europe rather than China; before we do that, I will present some material on the history of China under the Ming and Qing dynasties
China
Ming dynasty 1380-1644; harsh rule, rigid class distinctions, less use of money, conception of China as agrarian
Zheng He’s expeditions 1405-31, but brought to an end; foreign trade prohibited until 1560
Incompetent emperors in late 1500s; bureaucratic struggles in the palace; see “stunned silence” Landes, p.336
China
General crisis of 17th century; cold weather and harvest failures in 1620s
Rebellion of generals led to civil war
Jurchen or Manchus came in from Manchuria; Ming dynasty fell in 1644; Manchus or Qing dynasty 1641-1911
China
China was an agrarian empire, but there was extensive trade with Asia and the Europeans around 1600; a powerful family (Zheng) engaged in piracy and trade and was very wealthy; in the period of the Ming-Qing transition, this family fought against the Qing from their bases in southern China and Taiwan
China
Coxinga (Zheng Zhilong) has become famous for his struggles against the Qing 1645-60; one can imagine a different history of China if the mercantile interest had triumphed over the agrarian vision of China, which the Manchus adopted
China
A general pattern was that rich merchants sought to train their sons to pass the imperial examinations and become government officials; private property might not be secure
Coxinga was an example, but he chose to fight the Qing rather than remain in office
China
Three Manchu emperors 1641-1799
Manchu minority ruled China, maintaining their separate identity and language
But they adopted Chinese institutions of rule and the agrarian orientation; they established internal peace and they greatly expanded the empire into central Asia and Tibet, putting an end to threat from nomads
Social classes
Emperor, govt officials, army, landowners, craftsmen, peasants
Examination system produced an imperial bureaucracy; top officials in the capital city; provincial governors; officials all the way down
Social classes
No strong landed aristocracy; landowners did exist and they collected rents, but in principle were bound by rules from imperial govt
Most landowners were from the class of exam takers who failed to get to the next level; they were the gentry class, well educated
Some gentry were merchants
Social classes
Craftsmen and peasants were born into their class; first Ming emperor (Hongwu) put renewed emphasis on this rigid class structure
Land tax was the main source of revenue; land census; plots identified, with tax obligations
Peasants also subject to labor obligations: roads, local projects
Social control
Peasants were organized into groups of 110 households(lijia); ten households rotated into the top spot and were responsible for all the others; failure to report a crime was a serious offense
The official bureaucracy had a right to know everything about you and your contacts; no secrets
Social control
Family lineages were kept; these are separate from the household groups; they apply to gentry as well
Your family or clan was a source of support
Clans organized business and finance, without much benefit of official courts
Official punishments could apply to clan members
Social control
In 1380 the new Hongwu emperor discovered that his chief minister was plotting against him
He was beheaded, but a reign of terror against the whole clan and associates; 40,000 deaths over the next few years
The head of a clan supervised his members; you could be cut off for misbehavior (and become a migrant to new territory)
Confucian philosophy
Society is very hierarchical; family is structured just like the empire; father at the head; strong duty to obey your father (and mother, less so); strong duty of head to care for the family
Static conception of society (not unlike Catholic Church); business not highly regarded; intellectual and artistic goals
Lots of moral rhetoric on exams
Confucian philosophy
The state has obligation to instruct the people
Village meetings led by officials; lectures on agricultural practice and proper behavior
Chinese law: a son may not strike his father, on pain of death; father can discipline his wife and children; example of a son who accidentally killed his father while trying to defend him; son was executed
State role in economy
State organized irrigation, canals, roads, postal service; state supervised academies for preparation for exams
State monopoly of grain trade; state-run granaries to prevent famine; massive movements of grain, esp on Grand Canal
State monopoly of salt trade; revenue source
Other markets were left alone
State role in economy
Markets developed in goods; in densely populated east, households specialized in silk and cotton textiles; craft production, with markets in towns
Regional specialization; international trade
“market economy without capitalism”
In this quote, capitalism means big business with political clout
State role in economy
State officials had ties to merchants, but officials were dominant; a rebellious merchant could be brought down
Emperors generally wanted peace and stability; protection from nomads; avoid peasant revolts by keeping taxes low
China
The 18th century was peaceful internally; great expansion of population into new territories; new crops from the Columbian exchange (potato, sweet potato, corn)
Expansion of market; regional specialization
After 1720 trade became officially approved; export of tea; import of cotton from India and silver from Europeans
Puzzle
Agricultural technology improved, but not much new technology elsewhere
This stagnation of technology contrasts with the earlier dynamism
China: advantages over Europe
Large internal market; good transportation system (rivers, canals, roads); good information system (common written language, good records), internal peace most of the time; absence of religious objection to new ideas; high cultural value on learning; respect for authority (competent govt, methods of control)
China: disadvantages relative to Europe
Business property not secure in event of disruptive tech change (wealthy businessmen seek to get sons into govt and wealth in land)
Single govt for whole area: no place for dissidents to escape;
Europe had military competition among states; led to strong state that could tax and organize armies (taxation level very low in China)
China disadvantages, cont.
Contract enforcement adequate, but not as strong as Europe (interest rates)
Science: China lacked European mathematics; model of nature as math system; China lacked rigorous proofs; Science and knowledge controlled by govt; BUT did science really matter for the Industrial Revolution? Mostly tinkering by people engaged in production
Role of govt
Chinese govt played prominent role in earlier technological dynamism, in many cases
Govt collected information and published manuals of good practice, esp in agric
But in Ming-Qing period, govt seems less interested in promoting tech change; perhaps due to character of these dynasties
Why not China?
Landes Interpretation See Landes pp. 51-59 and Chap 23
1. Rulers encouraged pop growth for revenue and soldiers
2. All power in the hands of emperor and mandarins, who were hostile to merchants
3. Lack of scientific method that emerged in Scientific Revolution in Europe: math, expts
Landes, cont.
4. Centralized power meant that whole society could turn away from external contact
5. Chinese sense of cultural superiority led them to reject foreign inventions
6. Examination system impeded acceptance of new ideas
