The Resilience of the Song Dynasty

EURICS and Université de Paris are organizing a public lecture "The Resilience of the Song Dynasty "
? 28.10.2021 - 16:45 (Paris)
? Université de Paris - Bâtiment Olympe de Gouges - Amphithéâtre Gouges 1 (1er étage) - 8, Place Paul Ricoeur – 75013 Paris

À propos de l'événement

How were the major Chinese dynasties able to control so much territory and last for centuries? The Song dynasty (960-1279) offers a good case for examining these issues because it faced formidable challenges but found ways to overcome them. Rather than ask what Song rulers and statesmen did wrong, in this talk Patricia Ebrey focuses on what they did right. She takes two cases. The first is how succession crises were solved, since a dynasty cannot survive unless heirs can be placed on the throne. The second is how the state survived the Jurchen invasion, which came close to destroying it in 1127-1131. Issues that get attention include the alliance of the monarchy and the official class, statecraft innovations, and a willingness to relocate the capital. The survival of the Song resulted in a period of division in Chinese history, so Patricia Ebrey ends by posing the question of how much the Song mattered in the long course of Chinese history.
Conférence
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The Resilience of the Song Dynasty
Université de Paris - Bâtiment Olympe de Gouges - Amphithéâtre Gouges 1 (1er étage) - 8, Place Paul Ricoeur