The Spread of Civilization in

East and Southeast Asia

The Mongols

• 1200s spill out of the steppes of Central Asia under Genghis Kahn

• Highly trained, mobile armies

• China sees the first use of cannon in warfare

• Not oppressive; tribute; Pax Mongolica

Mongol Archer on Horseback

Muhammad ibn Mahmudshah al-

Khayyam

Iran, early 15th century

The Silk Road

China Under Mongol Rule

• Kublai Khan finally

defeats last Song

emperor

• Rules China, Korea,

Tibet from Beijing;

Yuan Dynasty

• Keeps Mongols

separate from

Chinese

• Marco Polo

Ming Restore Chinese Rule

• 1294 Yuan Dynasty declines

• Chinese despise the Mongols

• Heavy taxes, corruption, natural disasters lead to uprisings

• 1368 Mongols pushed back and the Ming come to power

Zhu Yuanzhang 1368 – 1398

First Ming Emperor

Trade and Exploration

• 1405-1433 Zheng He leads voyages to SE Asia, India, and the Middle East

• On his death, Emperor banned ship building

• 60 years later Columbus’ voyages made Spain a world power

Early 17th century Chinese

woodblock print, thought to

represent Zheng He's ships.

The Korean Peninsula

• Juts south from mainland; 70% covered by mountains

• Earliest people migrate from Siberia; most people live on western coastal plains

• 5400 mile coastline; thousands of islands

• Controlled by China; bridged between china and Japan

Korean Dynasties

• 676 AD the Silla

unites Korea;

Buddhism, trade with

China, civil service

• 918 Koryo dynasty;

moveable metal type

and porcelain

• 1392 Chosen

replaces Mongols;

500 years; alphabet

Japan and the Feudal Age

• Archipelago; Ring of Fire

• Four-fifths is mountains; people settled in river valleys, along coastal plains

• Seas isolate Japan

• Choose what to accept from China

• At times they sealed themselves off from the outside world

Early Traditions

• Clans/chief/god or goddess

• 500 AD Yamato Clan; first and only dynasty

• Direct descendents of sun god

• Shinto

• Language and Buddhism link Japan and Korea; leads to interest in China

Japan Goes to China

• 600s Japanese begin visiting China for trade and study

• Bring back Chinese ideas, technology, art

• ‘Heavenly Emperor’ modeled on the Tang

• Bureaucracy, central government, law

• Selective borrowing Todai-ji temple, Nara

Feudalism

• 1400s feudal warfare; warlords and armies fight for power

• Emperor’s a figurehead; real power is the shogun

• Daimyo; samurai; bushido

• Peasants, artisans, merchants

• Mongols and the kamikaze

Feudalism

A political, economic, and social

system based on loyalty, the holding

of land, and military service.

Shogun

Daimyo Daimyo

Samurai Samurai Samurai

Peasant Peasant Peasant Peasant

Land - Shoen

Land - Shoen

Protection

Loyalty

Loyalty

Food

The Tokugawas

• 1338-1590 increasing levels of warfare

• 1590 Tokugawa shogunate rules until 1868

• Centralized feudalism brings daimyo under control

• New laws, moral code; food surpluses; towns; trade

Zen Buddhism

• Self-reliance,

meditation, devotion

to duty

• Popular among

samurai

• Similar to bushido

with its emphasis on

discipline and

devotion to duty

Other Cultures of SE Asia

• South of China and East of India

• Two major regions

• Mainland; Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam

• 20,000 islands between Indian Ocean and South China Sea; Indonesia, Singapore, Brunei, the Philippines

Geography and Culture

• Mountains separate

mainland from Asia

• Separate river

valleys; early

civilizations

• Monsoons shape

trading patterns

• Indian culture spreads

to SE Asia; Islam

Shwezigon Paya

New Kingdoms

• 1044 Pagan; Irrawaddy Valley; Buddhist; 1287 falls to Mongols

• 800-1350 Khmer in Cambodia; Indian writing, architecture, art; rulers Hindu, common folk Buddhist

• 600-1200 Indonesia; Srivijaya; trade

Corridor within Myazedei

View of gatehouse and

boundary wall, Htilominlo

Temple (Pagan)

Exterior View of Myazedei from

South (Pagan)

Corridor within Myazedei

Aerial View of Angkor Wat

Temple Complex of Angkor Wat

Built in the early 12th Century for King Suryavarman II.

Vietnam

• Chinese not Indian influences

• Indian influence spread by trade; China sent their military

• 111 BC Han conquer Vietnam; stay in control for 1,000 years

• 39 AD the Trung sisters