《中国的传统与转型》第三章.pptVIP

China: Tradition and Transformation Lecturer: Liew Jien 中国的传统与转型 SWUFE 3. Classic China: The Golden Age Of Chinese Thought 3.1 The Later Chou We do not know how long the early Chou maintained effective control over their wide conquests----perhaps not for long or only sporadically. The original bonds of loyalty between the kings and their vassals probably weakened over time. In 841 B.C, the tenth Chou king was driven out of his capital by its citizens, and an interregnum of thirteen years ensued. Marxist Chinese historians make much of this event as the first popular uprising in Chinese history. It produced considerable disruption, and perhaps this accounts for the fact that traditional Chinese dating becomes reliable only after that date. The next king managed to resuscitate Chou power and is said to have led armies of 3000 chariots and 30,000 men, as compared with the 350 chariots used in the original conquest, In770 B.C., however, what remained of Chou power was extinguished when “barbarians” in alliance with rebel Chinese principalities destroyed the capital. Tradition says that the thirteenth king, by lighting the beacon fires, had repeatedly summoned his vassals’ troops merely to amuse a favorite concubine, and now when help was really needed no one responded. The royal line was re-established at the subsidiary capital of Loyang to the east, but the Chou kings never again exercised any real political or military power, remaining only certain religious and ceremonial functions until their final extinction in 256 B.C. The period before 770 B.C. is called the Western Chou from the location of the capital, and the period after 770, the Eastern Chou. The Chinese, despite a strong emphasis on the decimal system in counting (they had little use for dozens，the seven-day week, and the like), have not traditionally counted time by centuries. Instead they have divided history into dynastic segments, such as the