The Tang and Song dynasties had their own advantages in ancient China, but the Song Dynasty died of foreign races, so that most people feel even more sorry!
We can still compare the advantages and disadvantages of the two dynasties through economy, urbanization, culture, science and technology, foreign exchanges, national strength, world governance, and the impression of future generations.
economy
In the economically developed dynasties in Chinese history, there are fewer than two Song dynasties. The main reason is that during the two Song Dynasties, heavy agriculture was not suppressed, science and technology and sea trade were mature, compared with the Tang Dynasty, folk commerce was further developed, take the Southern Song Dynasty Li Xinchuan "Miscellaneous Records of the Dynasty and the Wild Since Jianyan" record:
"At the beginning of the chaos of the national dynasty, the world earned more than 16 million yuan, and Emperor Taizong thought it was extremely prosperous, twice as much as the Tang Dynasty. At the end of the Celestial Jubilee, the income increased to more than 26.5 million taels. Jiayou, it increased to more than 36.8 million taels. Subsequently, the month increased in age and breadth, to XiFengjian, Hemiao service and tax and other money, and even more than 60 million yuan. At the beginning of the Yuan Dynasty, in addition to its harshness, the annual income was still more than 48 million. ”
——It can be seen that during the Northern Song Dynasty, the peak of household revenue was more than 60 million yuan in the Xining-Yuanfeng years, and the government reduced taxes at the beginning of the Yuan Dynasty, and the revenue was reduced to more than 48 million yuan.
Later, in the Southern Song Dynasty, according to the "Miscellaneous Records of the Dynasty and the Wild Since Jianyan":
"At the beginning of the crossing of the river, the southeast earned less than ten million yuan; at the end of the arrest of ChunXi, it increased by more than 65.3 million. The number of revenues in the southeast is now two million taels, and this ancestor is giving it also; its more than 6.6 million taels are in the economic system, and Lü Yuanzhi (Lü Yihao) is restored when he is in the household department; more than 7.8 million taels are in charge of the general system, which Meng Fuwen (Meng Yu) created when he was in power; more than 4 million yuan of monthly pile money, Zhu Zangyi (Zhu Shengfei) took it when he was in power. Since the economic system, the money is increased also. Combining tea, salt, wine calculation, pit metallurgy, goods, books and purchases, more than 44.9 million taels. ”
Therefore, because the two Song Dynasties were more open in commerce, coupled with land and tax reforms, it is indisputable that after the Tang Dynasty, the economy surpassed the Tang Dynasty.
At the same time, during the two Song Dynasties, the urbanization rate was surprisingly high.
Urbanization rate
Since the late Tang Dynasty, the development of commerce has promoted the acceleration of the urbanization process. In the Southern Song Dynasty, the territory was almost halved, and multi-front combat, military expenditure was greater than that of the Northern Song Dynasty, so to the Southern Song Dynasty commerce further matured, the economy of the north and south began to change the situation, further promoted the development of urbanization, according to many scholars according to the "History of the Song" and other authoritative historical materials: the urbanization rate of the two Song Dynasties has exceeded 30%, this record was broken until the new China, even if the Ming Dynasty in its heyday, the urbanization rate was only about 8%!
It is also because of the acceleration of urbanization that many hand workers have been born. The curfew night market is also more open than the Han Tang Dynasty!
Therefore, the urbanization rate of the two Song Dynasties exceeded that of the Sheng Tang Dynasty!
In terms of culture, the two dynasties have their own advantages!
Cultural aspects
Although Tang dynasty poetry, Song song poetry, and literary works on both themes are widely circulated today, Tang Dynasty costumes are more gorgeous than Song Dynasty costumes, and Tang costumes were also popular throughout East Asia at that time! The Japanese sent Tang envoys to the Eastern Tang Dynasty!
So in terms of culture, the Song Dynasty is slightly inferior to the Tang Dynasty!
And the technology of the two dynasties, the Song Dynasty is more than the Tang Dynasty!
technology
During the Song Dynasty, there were countless inventions and improvements in science and technology, and to this day we are familiar with movable type printing is one of the famous representatives, so in terms of science and technology, because of the good scientific and technological environment in the Song Dynasty, and the large number of generalists at that time, plus the time is later than the Tang Dynasty, so in terms of science and technology, the Song Dynasty surpassed the Tang Dynasty.
Look at foreign exchanges.
Foreign exchanges
I also mentioned earlier the dispatch of Tang envoys, they came to the Tang Dynasty from afar, many senior monks of the Tang Dynasty also traveled east to Japan, the most famous such as Jian Zhen Dongdu, Tang Taizong was also a Heavenly Khan, coupled with the Xuanzong period of dafeng fan town, often clashed with the great food (present-day Arabia), not to mention that Japan to the Tang Dynasty also called China "Tang Kingdom"; and the Song Dynasty has been shrinking in the country, because for some reasons although there are also many contacts with the Liaojin Western Xia, but not frequent enough, so in terms of foreign exchanges, the Tang Dynasty far surpassed the Song Dynasty.
In terms of national strength, of course, without going into too much detail, the impression of a strong man and a prosperous Tang Dynasty cannot be erased for thousands of years!
And the rule of the world.
Rule the world
On the surface, the Tang Dynasty had the rule of Zhenguan, the rule of Yonghui, the legacy of Zhenguan, the prosperity of Kaiyuan, the rise of Yuan and Zhongxing, the destruction of Buddhas in Huichang, the rule of Dazhong, and so on, but in fact, in addition to Zhenguan Kaiyuan, other things are not only not obvious, but more importantly, the tang dynasty has been in chaos in history, and then it has survived in name only. And in the three hundred years of the Song Dynasty, there were few generations, the most famous of which were the reigns of Emperor Renzong shengzhi and Qianchun! But compared to the Tang Dynasty, it is still slightly inferior!
Finally, there is the impression of posterity.
Impressions of later generations
Most people in the Tang Dynasty liked it, because the strong Han Dynasty flourished in tang, and in all respects it was the peak of ancient China. But the Song Dynasty is not to be spared, there are programs that have done surveys, and at the moment people most want to cross to which dynasty, the Song Dynasty has always been at the top of the list. Mainly because the imperial examination system was more mature than that of the Tang Dynasty during the Song Dynasty, so that "the dynasty is Tian Shelang, and the Tianzi Hall of The Heavenly Son" was widely spread in the Song Dynasty.
During the Sui and Tang dynasties, although there were already prototypes of the imperial examination, in fact, there were still many constraints for ordinary people, coupled with the origin of family learning, the high-ranking officials in the dprk were still mostly monopolized by the scholars, the most famous of which was the Boling Cui clan (present-day Anping County, Shen County, Raoyang, Anguo, Hebei), the Qinghe Cui clan (present-day Qinghe County, Hebei), the Fanyang Lu clan (present-day Baoding City and Beijing City), the Longxi Li clan (present-day southeastern Gansu Province), the Zhao County Li clan (present-day Zhao County, Hebei), the Xingyang Zheng clan (present-day Henan Province), The five surnames and seven wangs headed by the Taiyuan Wang clan, the Qinghe Cui clan one door nine phases, the Lanling Xiao clan humanistic jade, so that the famous party dispute of the late Tang Dynasty was also a dispute between the shishu. Among them, the Li Party is headed by Li Deyu, most of whom are from large families and prominent families; the Niu Party is headed by Li Zongmin and Niu Monks and Children, most of whom are of the Shu clan. Therefore, it can be said that the Niu-Li Party Struggle is the ultimate showdown between the Shu clan and the door valve.
Therefore, compared with the Song Dynasty and the Tang Dynasty, the social class circulation channels are more mature!
Not only that, but the reason why I like the Song Dynasty is that the relatively free speech environment at that time, most of the people began to discuss the government, but the imperial court rarely punished, very open!
So back to the essence, the impression of future generations, although the Tang Dynasty laid the status of the strong Han Dynasty and the Tang Dynasty, and made many people yearn for it (including the author), but personally, I prefer the Song Dynasty.