The Heyday of Feudal Sociaty - Sui and Tang Dynasties

During the 400 years from late Eastern Han Dynasty to early Sui Dynasty, the reunification of the forces in China had been growing. This indicated that Chinese nation, with Han nationality at the core, had become a relatively stable community, thus, Sui's reunification was a historical trend.

In 581, Yang Jian usurped the throne of Northern Zhou, and established Sui Dynasty. Yang Jian reigned as Emperor Wendi of Sui. In 589, Sui conquered Chen Dynasty, and reunified the northern and southern parts of the country. In 618, a farmer uprising brought about the end of Sui, with the death of Emperor Yangdi. During the farmer uprising, Li Yuan, a powerful Sui official, and his sons, seized the opportunity to revolt and established Tang Dynasty. The period from the reign of Emperor Taizong, Wu Zetian, and to the early part of the reign of Emperor Xuanzong is called the time of the "Begin Administration of the Zhenguan Reign Period" and the "Flourishing Kaiyuan Reign Period". The territory ruled by Tang Dynasty was broader than that of any of the previous dynasties. It reached East China Sea in the East, extended to the islands in South China Sea in the south, bordered Lake Balkhash in today's Kazakhstan in the west and extended as far as Outer Hinggan Mountains in the northeast. The minority ethnic groups inhabiting the border were gradually developed, and the country was very powerful.

During Sui and Tang dynasties, the economy of China prospered, exchanges with the outside world were frequent, and glorious scientific and cultural achievements apppeared. Calligraphy, painting and sculpture flourished in Tang Dynasty. In particular, Tang Dynasty poetry is regarded as the acme of this genre, represented by the greatest poets Li Bai and Du Fu. In the field of prose literature, Han Yu and Liu Zongyuan were outstanding. Tang was one of the richest and most powerful countries both in ancient China and in the world at that time.

During the period of Sui and Tang dynasties, Western countries were splitting and politics was in chaos. The economy and culture were in laggard development. In contrast, Asia was thriving. In Asia, two empire were very strong. One was the Arab Empire which crossed the European, Asian and African continents, and the other was the feudal societies of China, Sui and Tang dynasties. The burgeoning economy and culture of Sui and Tang dynasties influenced the countries around China, especially the countries in East Asia such as Japan and Korea. At that time, Japan especially sent people to study the system and culture of China. Chang'an, which today is Xi'an in Shaanxi province, the capital city of Tang Dynasty, was not only the political center of China at that time, it was also one of the centers for economic and cultural exchanges for the whole Asian region. Because of Tang Dynasty enormous international influence, Chinese were called the "People of Tang" by their neighbors. Until now, the overseas place where Chinese community in a foreign land is still called "Tangrenjie", which means Chinatown.