Overview
The Tang dynasty (618–907 CE) is universally regarded as one of China’s greatest historical periods — a cosmopolitan empire stretching from Korea to Central Asia, a magnet for merchants, monks, and diplomats from across the known world, and the incubator of classical Chinese poetry’s golden age.
Founding
The Sui dynasty (581–618), though it unified China after centuries of division, burned itself out through the colossal labor of the Grand Canal project and catastrophic military failures in Korea. Li Yuan, a Sui military governor, rose in revolt and proclaimed the Tang dynasty in 618 CE.
Emperor Taizong and the “Reign of Zhenguan”
Li Yuan’s second son, Li Shimin, staged a coup at the Xuanwu Gate, killing his brothers, and became Emperor Taizong (太宗, r. 626–649). His reign became the standard against which all subsequent emperors measured themselves:
- He instituted a meritocratic civil examination system.
- He actively sought remonstrance from his officials, famously saying: “A ruler who uses bronze as a mirror can see whether his appearance is proper; a ruler who uses history as a mirror can understand the rise and fall of states; a ruler who uses men as mirrors can know his own mistakes.”
- Tang armies expanded to their greatest extent, accepting the submission of steppe kingdoms; Taizong was honored with the Central Asian title Tian Kehan (“Heavenly Khan”).
Empress Wu Zetian
The only woman in Chinese history to rule in her own name, Wu Zetian (武则天) rose from concubine to empress regent to, in 690, founding her own dynasty (the Zhou). She expanded the civil examination system, elevated commoner-scholars over the aristocracy, and oversaw the flourishing of Buddhist art. She died in 705 at roughly 80 years old, and the Tang dynasty was restored.
The Golden Age of Poetry
The mid-Tang is considered the supreme era of Chinese poetry. Three names tower above all others:
- Li Bai (李白, 701–762): The “Immortal Poet,” celebrated for romantic, Daoist-inflected verse and his legendary love of wine.
- Du Fu (杜甫, 712–770): The “Sage Poet,” whose anguished, precise verse documented the suffering of the An Lushan Rebellion.
- Wang Wei (王维, 699–759): Poet, painter, and Buddhist, whose jueju quatrains capture landscape with painterly precision.
The An Lushan Rebellion (755–763)
The An Lushan Rebellion — launched by the general An Lushan against the aging Emperor Xuanzong — was one of the most devastating events in premodern world history. Estimates of deaths range from 13 to 36 million. The rebellion shattered Tang central power; the dynasty limped on for another century and a half but never recovered its former strength.
Cosmopolitanism
At its height, Chang’an (population ~1 million) was arguably the world’s largest city. Its streets thronged with:
- Sogdian, Persian, and Arab merchants
- Nestorian Christians, Manichaeans, and Zoroastrians
- Buddhist monks from India, Japan, and Korea
- Diplomatic missions from 70+ states
This openness infused Tang culture: Tang pottery figures depict Central Asian musicians, Bactrian camels, and polo players. The pipa (琵琶) lute, borrowed from Central Asia, became central to Chinese music.
Legacy
The Tang ended in 907 CE, but its cultural and institutional influence endured. The classical verse forms it perfected — the lüshi regulated poem and the jueju quatrain — remain the pinnacle of Chinese poetic tradition. Chinese communities in Southeast Asia still call themselves Tángrénjiē (唐人街, “Tang People’s Street”) — or, as English-speakers render it, Chinatown.