Ming China Essay

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Ming China/Dynasty The Ming Dynasty was the last native Chinese dynasty. It was the ruling dynasty of China from 1368 to 1644.(Wikipedia 1) The Ming was described as being “one of the greatest eras of orderly government and social stability in human history”.(Wikipedia 1) It was also the last dynasty to be ruled by ethnic Han Chinese. The Ming began with the overthrow of the hated Mongols, who ruled China for one hundred years. (Adler 352) The Ming Dynasty was founded by Zhu Yuanzhang. Zhu was a young poor man when he joined the Red Turban rebellion in the lower Yangtse region.(china tour 1) Zhu, who later took the imperial title Hongwu ruled from 1368-1398.(Adler 352) In 1356 Zhu led his army into the city of Jiquing, which is currently Nanjing in Jiangsu Province. He changed the city name to Yingtian and established his own military base there. In 1363 Zhu Yuanzhang eliminated his arch rival and leader of the rebel Han faction Chen Youliang in the Battle of Lake Poyang. The Battle of Lake Poyang was one of the largest naval battles in history. It was known for its ambitious use of fire ships. (Wikipedia 5) Zhu’s force consisted of over 200,000 Ming sailors and they were able to defeat the Han rebel force, which consisted of over 650,000 sailors. The victory destroyed the last opposing rebel faction, leaving Zhu Yuanzhang in control of the Yangtze River Valley and spreading his power in the south. (Wikipedia 6 ) Zhu Yuanzhang seemed to be very suspicious of “the educated courtiers around him and exerted and extremely authoritarian regime, which was known as “the tyrant of Nanjing”. (China tour 3) This harsh government style was because of the influence of governmental institutions of a previous Mongol period that was marked by a strong centralization. Zhu was full of mistrust, but still took over the responsibility of the imperial administration by

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