Centralization of Power and Ethnic Relations in the Tang Dynasty (with a focus on the northern region)

Author: Hongbin Li
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2003-02-01
Features: This book discusses the development and changes in the Tang Dynasty's society from the perspectives of ethnicity and politics, as well as the trends of these changes. It primarily focuses on the interaction between centralized political power and ethnic relations. The decline of central authority during the Wei, Jin, and Southern and Northern Dynasties period led to the central government losing control over the periphery, allowing various regional powers to rise rapidly and expand toward the Central Plains, creating a chaotic situation with northern ethnic groups migrating south to establish their own regimes. The aristocratic families and political forces of the Central Plains crossed the Yangtze River and settled in the eastern region, eventually forming a stalemate with the Central Plains. A significant outcome of this situation was the mutual integration and assimilation of multiple ethnic groups. The Sui and Tang dynasties, built on this foundation, particularly the Tang, exhibited more open ethnic concepts and attitudes with fewer barriers. During the Southern and Northern Dynasties period, the intermingling of ethnicity and culture was reflected in the absorption of northern nomadic and semi-nomadic cultures and racial factors into the traditional Central Plains culture, as well as in the continuous process of northern ethnic groups adopting Han culture and integrating into the Central Plains. In general terms, during the Wei and Jin period, the Central Plains showed a rapid influx of Hu culture, with a clear trend toward Huization. By the Southern and Northern Dynasties, ethnic integration in the north became the mainstream, with a trend toward Hu ethnic groups Sinicizing. The Tang Dynasty, established on this basis, generally demonstrated a cultural philosophy of indifference to ethnicity and a lack of distinction between different races. Behind this philosophy lay the Tang Dynasty's strong power. After its founding, the Tang Dynasty launched a powerful offensive to expand its territory while containing the Turks. It successively conquered powerful forces in the northern, northwest, and northeast regions, particularly defeating the Eastern Turks, which gave the Tang Dynasty control over vast northern territories. The Tang quickly established dependent prefectures and states, appointing tribal leaders and chiefs from various ethnic groups as prefects and magistrates, creating a governance system and distribution pattern that unified the Central Plains with the periphery. Meanwhile, the Tubo regime rose in the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, and the Abbasid Caliphate (Daishi) in the far-western region also rapidly expanded its power. After defeating the Eastern Turks, the Tang began advancing westward into the Western Regions, competing with the Western Turks, and later engaged in a struggle with the Tubo for control over the area, centered around the Four Garrisons of Anxi. It can be said that the Tang Dynasty's expansion surpassed any previous dynasty, reaching an unprecedented level of strength, and its next important task was to maintain this situation. In the early 7th century, powerful forces in Asia (such as the Tubo, the Abbasid Caliphate, and northern grassland powers) compelled the Tang Dynasty to limit its expansion, and the conflicts between them unfolded under new circumstances. The aggressive advances of the Tubo broke the Tang Dynasty's expansion in the late 7th century, halting its offensive. The Turks seized the opportunity to restore their empire, establishing the Second Eastern Turkic Khaganate (also known as the Later Turkic Khaganate). By the mid-8th century, An Lushan, leading large-scale rebellions of regional military governors, shattered the Tang Dynasty's strategic framework, marking a reversal for the dynasty as it gradually lost its centralized control. In fact, the formation of the military governor system was precisely the result of the Tang Dynasty's offensive strategy being disrupted. The military governor system replaced the earlier system of garrison troops, frontier defenses, and military campaigns, indicating a shift in the Tang Dynasty's offensive and defensive strategic framework (i.e., a shift from offense to defense). Due to the decline of the dynasty's prestige, the cultural concepts built on this foundation also began to change, gradually shifting from mutual integration and equality between the Central Plains and the "four barbarians" to distinct internal and external divisions, with the concept of "Huayi" (Chinese and non-Chinese) re-emerging. In the later Tang Dynasty, different regional centers emerged, such as Chang'an and Hebei, with the Chang'an court controlling one area and Hebei evolving into distinct cultural and racial differences. The people of Hebei were influenced by Hu culture, disregarded Confucian rituals, and were politically independent, posing an unprecedented challenge to the Tang Dynasty's centralized authority. Although the prestige of the dynasty was somewhat restored during the De and Xian dynasties, it never fully recovered. By the late Tang Dynasty, the intensification of internal and external conflicts led to the collapse of the Tang court. Northern regional and ethnic forces gradually merged, forming a new power structure: the Liao Dynasty established by the Khitan, the Western Xia established by the Dangxiang, several small dynasties established by the Uyghurs, and the Northern Song Dynasty established by the Han. These became coexisting phenomena in the new era. The division of power was the political foundation for the Tang Dynasty's ethnic concept differentiation. In the later period, the Tang Dynasty's concept of "Huayi" (no distinction between Chinese and non-Chinese) was replaced by "Huayi" (distinction between Chinese and non-Chinese) after the An Lushan Rebellion. The social concepts of the later period were reinforced with the return to tradition, particularly the pursuit of Confucian orthodoxy. Chang Changru pointed out the tendency of the later Tang society to become Southern Dynasties-like, indicating the end of Hu cultural influence on China since the Wei and Jin periods and the revival of the Central Plains' orthodox civilization [1]. In our view, this was the rise of cultural conservatism. This conservatism was reflected in ethnic relations as a re-emphasis on the concept of "Huayi" (differentiation between Chinese and non-Chinese), which led to the ruling group's ideas becoming closed off, decision-making becoming conservative, and ultimately triggering the division of local ethnic forces in the absence of central control. The resolution of this division, the reunification of all of China under a single dynasty, came much later with the Yuan Dynasty. The powerful factor behind this reunification remained the centralized political unity of the central government. Therefore, this paper argues that the openness or closure of ethnic concepts during the Tang Dynasty was closely linked to politics, economy, culture, and society at the time, but what is most important is its connection to the political strength of the central dynasty. The connotation of the Tang Dynasty's ethnic concepts was not abstract or generalized but rich in specific content and meaning. In other words, the existence or absence of the central dynasty's prestige was a significant factor in triggering changes in ethnic concepts. The openness of ethnic concepts in the early Tang (no distinction between Chinese and non-Chinese) and the differentiation of "Yixia" (non-Chinese) in the later period were indeed the results of shifts in central power. Historically, ethnic concepts changed with political circumstances, inherently tied to political power. As the central authority of the Tang Dynasty rose and fell, ethnic concepts were given different meanings and connotations. Taking the Tang Dynasty as an example, we explore ethnic issues in the 7th to 10th centuries, which holds universal significance. This exploration provides important insights into similar issues in Chinese history, as the Tang Dynasty's ethnic problems offer valuable lessons. When we emphasize the trend of the great unification of the Chinese nation, analyzing the twists and complexities of its evolution helps us better understand the patterns of this trend and gain a deeper insight into the driving forces behind the development of the Chinese nation.