Friday, February 15, 2008

Top 10 Accomplishments of the Thai Chakri Kings

1.Changing form Absolute Monarchy to Constitutional Monarchy (Rama VII [Prajadhipok Phra Pok Klao Chaoyuhua])
This provided more equality, since it gave people more voice. People now had more say in how they felt about how they were governed, and they could change it if they disliked it. Democracy was introduced, while the ancient tradtion of Monarchy was still kept. The king is still a figurehead and can still earn respect and admiration from the people. This is the most important because this ultimately determined how the country is shaped today by the people who governing because of this political change.

2.Abolishment of Slavery (Rama V [King Chulalongkorn Phra Chulachomklao- Piya Maharaj])
The most important thing is that this provided equality and everybody became equal in society. Everyone was a citizen that was part of the population. People became more independent and had to depend on themselves. People were able to pursue what they want, and not live their lives according to who they were born to. This allows the varuety of jobs and people that we have today.

3.Moving the Capital from Thonburi to Krungthep (Rama I [King Buddha Yot Fa Chulalok])
This was important because it changed the possbilities for the future. By moving to Krungthep, it was better for trade and it was easier to defend from any outside threat

4. Ceding Land to France and Britain (Rama V [King Chulalongkorn Phra Chulachomklao- Piya Maharaj])
It allowed the country to be independent and avoid becoming a coloony. It allowed the country to develop.

5. Primary Education made Compulsory (Rama VI [King Vajiravudh- Phra Mongkut Klao Chaoyuhua])
This was important becasue everyone would be educated to some level and it allowed the country to modernize. People were no longer judged by family background.

6. First University in Thailand (Rama VI Rama VI [King Vajiravudh- Phra Mongkut Klao Chaoyuhua])
This raised the standard of education and the education in Thailand was no less than other countries. People could pursue more education.

7. Sign Treaties with Western Countries (Rama IV [King Mongkut- Phra Chom Klao])
This created better relationships with the West, and it made Thailand a more familar country to the west. This helped Thailand to negotiate itself out of coloniztion.

8. Developing a Fatherly Style of Leading (Rama IV [King Mongkut- Phra Chom Klao])
It made the Kings more close to the people and people admired the kings more and allowed the continuation of the monarchy.

9.Wild Tiger Corps (Rama VI [King Vajiravudh- Phra Mongkut Klao Chaoyuhua])
It taught discipline and supported the army. This created more unity.

10.Changing the Flag (Rama VI [King Vajiravudh- Phra Mongkut Klao Chaoyuhua])
This made the Thai flag more recognizable to others. It encouraged nationalism, as the flag represented, King, Buddhism, adn constitution.

Posted by Camp, Gain, Victoria

Wednesday, January 9, 2008

The Tang Dynasty

The Tang Dynasty ruled China from 618 A.D. to 907 A.D. It as known as the high point in Imoerial China's civilization. It was interrupted by the Zhou dynasty in 690 A.D. Wu Zetian used a series of puppet emperors to allow herself to make herself emperor and changed the Tang Dynasty into the Zhou Dynasty.(Source 3) Her son rebelled against her and re-established the Tang Dynasty in 705 A.D. (Source 2)



This map shows the territory of the Tang Dynasty's empire in 700 CE. This was the largest the Dynasty's empire had been. (Source 10 [map])

Reason for Takeover
The preceding Sui Dynasty had many peasant rebellions during the end of its reign which made the dynasty very unstable. Li Yuan was appointed as appeasing commissioner, and used his position to stage a rebellion himself. He deposed the Sui Emperor and appointed Sui Gongdi as Emperor. Gongdi was later killed, and Li Yuan became emperor, taking the name Gaozu of Tang and establishing the Tang Dynasty.(Source 2)


Leaders of the Civilization
Gaozu of Tang (Li Yuan)
He is the founder of the Tang Dynasty and ruled from 618 A.D. to 626 A.D. He had previously overthrown the Sui Dynasty and made himself emperor. He was encouraged by his second son to start the rebellion. (Source 13)(Source 22 [picture])


Taizong of Tang (Li Shimin)
Taizong ruled from 626 A.D. to 649 A.D. He encouraged his father to start the rebellion against the Sui dynasty, and can be considered as a co-founder of the Tang Dynasty. (Source 12) He unified China by subduing the nomadic tribes and creating peace; this allowed him to create trade routes that went all the way to Rome and Syria. (Source 4) His efforts resulted in China becoming the world leader in politics, economy, and culture. (Source 11)(Source 23 [picture])





Wu Zetian (Empress Dowager Wu)
Wu Zetian ruled from 610 A.D. to 705 A.D. She used her position to put herself to power and become emperor, disestablishing the Tang Dynasty and proclaiming the Zhou Dynasty. She was the wife of the Third Emperor of the Tang Dynasty and the mother of the Fourth and Fifth Emperor of the Tang dynasty. She had installed them both as puppet emperors. She is the only Female Emperor in Chinese history. She was later overthrown by her own son, who re-established the Tang Dynasty. (Source 2)(Source 25 [picture])



Xuanzong of Tang (Li Longji)

Xuanzong ruled from 712 A.D. to 756 A.D. He had the longest reign in the Tang dynasty and brought unparalleled prosperity to China. This was considered the second flourishing age in China. (Source 5) His later reign was affected by his infatuation with one of his consorts, Yan Guifei, and was later forced to abdicate the throne to his son, the seventh emperor of the tang dynasty. (Source 16)(Source 24 [picture])



Wuzong of Tang (Li Yan)
He ruled from 840 A.D. to 846 A.D. He prosecuted Buddhism and Buddhists to solve the country’s financial crisis. In 845, he started to persecute Buddhists, as many Confucian Tang officials told the emperor that Buddhism was disrupting China. More than 4600 monasteries and 40,000 temples and shrines were destroyed. (Source 1) This was one of the four Buddhist Persecutions in China. (Source 7)

Other Leaders at that Time

Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allah (Mohammed, Muhammed)
He was the founder of Islam. Living from 570 A.D. to632 A.D., he is regarded by Muslims to be the last prophet and messenger of God. He lived in the cities of Mecca and Medina, which are located in present day Saudi Arabia. (Source 9) His death occured during the Tang Dynasty, and during the Tang Dynasty, trade was starting to happen with the Middle East since the nomads were subdued. (Source 20)
This is a picture of Muhammad's name in traditional Thuluth calligraphy. (Source 26 [picture])



Accomplishments
Technology
They made advances in astronomy, medicine, mathematics, and architecture. Many of this was brought by Buddhist monks. The Tang dynasty started to make books more accessible to the public, using the woodblock printing system. (Source 17) This is a picture of the Diamond Sutra, which is the world's first widely printed book. It was printed with the woodblock printing system. (Source 27[picture])

Economy
The Tang Dynasty created an accurate census of the empire’s population. This allowed them to make taxation more effective. They made grain and cloth taxes very low, and these things were used by most people. This made people less likely to avoid taxation. The government was able to have accurate estimates, and they were able to plan out investments. The Silk Road, the most important Eurasian Trade route at the time, was reopened during the Tang Dynasty, which allowed the capital to receive many goods from the West. (Source 7)

Social Changes
In the early years of the dynasty before Buddhist prosecution, the government had advisors from Confucian, Buddhist, and Taoist backgrounds. Their ideas helped to make good decisions about daily life and to meet the expectations of citizens of every religion. Women that had elite statuses had more rights and social status. The Tang dynasty used a central government to rule China, as it had unified China. They turned away from the ideology of feudalism. (Source 7)(Source 28 [picture])

Government Changes
The government of the Tang dynasty was incredibly effective and was mimicked by Korean and Japanese cities. They used a central bureaucracy, and did not give princes semi-independent kingdoms. This ensured maximum control. (Source 19) The Tang Dynasty used a new law codex called the Tanglu Shuyi. This codex gave punishments for crimes based on the severity of the crime and the criminal’s relation to the victim. This is the first complete Chinese codex that still exists today. (Source 8)

Current Religion
The religion in the Tang dynasty was variable. There was Confucianism, Buddhism, Taoism, and some Christianity, although Confucianism was introduced as the state religion. The many religions came to be because of the dynasty’s contact with India and the Middle East. (Source 20) Buddhism declined along with the central government. In 845, Emperor Wuzong of Tang destroyed 4,600 Buddhist Monasteries and 40,000 Buddhist Temples and Shrines. After this, Buddhism never became the dominant religion in Chinese Culture. (Source 7)(Source 29 [picture])

Literature
The Tang dynasty was the golden age of Chinese literature, primarily poetry. Anyone who was educated took poetry as a pastime hobby. There were poems written by Commoners, monks, prostitutes, and even Emperors. (Source 21) There are about 480,900 poems that survived top modern times. These were written by about 2,200 Tang authors. (Source 7) This picture is calligraphy written by Emperor Taizong of Tang himself. (Source 30 [picture])

Reasons for Fall
There were many Peasant rebellions. The Huang Chao rebellions saw the sacking of two large cities, Luoyang and the capital, Chang’an. They took decades to suppress this rebellion, but the government never recovered for it. Zhu Wen surrendered to Tang forces and due to the unstable military situation, gained rapid promotions. As military governor, he deposed Ai of Tang, the last Tang Emperor, and established the Liang Dynasty. It marked the end of the Tang Dynasty’s 274 years in power. (Source 11)

Bibliography
Note: The number of each source corresponds with the numbers used in the internal citations.

1. "The Tang Dynasty." ThinkQuest. Oracle Education Foundation. 08 Jan 2008 http://library.thinkquest.org/12255/library/dynasty/tang.html.
2. Theobald, Ulrich. "Chinese History - Tang Dynasty 唐 (618-907) event history." CHINAKNOWLEDGE - a universal guide for China studies . 2000. ChinaKnowledge. 08 Jan 2008 http://www.chinaknowledge.de/History/Tang/tang-event.html.
3. "Tang Dynasty." Timeline Index. 08 Jan 2008 http://www.timelineindex.com/content/view/1688.
4. "Tang Dynasty (619-906)." Timeline of Art History. 2000. The Metropolitan Musuem of Art. 08 Jan 2008 http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/tang/hd_tang.htm.
5. "Tang Dynasty." 25 May 1997. 08 Jan 2008 http://www.geocities.com/CollegePark/Union/7050/tang.html.
6. "632." Wikipedia. 2007. Wikipedia. 08 Jan 2008 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/632.
7. "Tang Dynasty." Wikipedia. 2007. Wikipedia. 08 Jan 2008 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tang_Dynasty.
8. "Tang Dynasty." 08 Jan 2008 http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/prehistory/china/classical_imperial_china/tang.html.
9. "Muhammad, Religious Figure ." Answers.com. 2007. Answers corporation. 10 Jan 2008 http://www.answers.com/topic/muhammad.
10. Wikimedia. 10 Jan 2008 http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/1/1c/Tang_Dynasty_circa_700_CE.png. (image)
11. "Tang Dynasty." ChinaCulture.org. 2003. Chinadaily.com.cn. 08 Jan 2008 http://www.chinaculture.org/gb/en_aboutchina/2003-09/24/content_22799.htm.
12. "Tang Taizong, Emperor of China." Timeline Index. 10 Jan 2008 http://www.timelineindex.com/content/view/1706.
13. "Tang Gaozu, Founder Tang Dynasty." Timeline Index. 10 Jan 2008 http://www.timelineindex.com/content/view/1689.
14. "The Imperial Era: II." 12 Jan 2008 http://www-chaos.umd.edu/history/imperial2.html.
15. "Emperor Table of the Tang Dynasty." TravelChinaGuide.com. 2007. TravelChinaGuide.com. 10 Jan 2008 http://www.travelchinaguide.com/intro/history/tang/tang-dynasty-emperors.htm.
16. "Emperor Xuanzong of Tang." Wikipedia. 2007. wikipedia. 10 Jan 2008 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emperor_Xuanzong_of_Tang.
17. Theobald, Ulrich. "Chinese History - Tang 唐 (618-907), Five Dynasties 五代 (907-960), Ten States 十國 (902-979) science, technology and inventions." CHINAKNOWLEDGE - a universal guide for China studies . 2000. ChinaKnowledge. 12 Jan 2008 http://www.chinaknowledge.de/History/Tang/tang-tech.html.
18. Theobald, Ulrich. "Chinese History - Tang Dynasty 唐 (618-907) economy." CHINAKNOWLEDGE - a universal guide for China studies . 2000. ChinaKnowledge. 12 Jan 2008 http://www.chinaknowledge.de/History/Tang/tang-econ.html.
19. Theobald, Ulrich. "Chinese History - Sui Dynasty 隋 (581-618), Tang Dynasty 唐 (618-907)government and administration." CHINAKNOWLEDGE - a universal guide for China studies . 2000. ChinaKnowledge. 12 Jan 2008 http://www.chinaknowledge.de/History/Tang/tang-admin.html.
20. Theobald, Ulrich. "Chinese History - Tang 唐 (618-907), Five Dynasties 五代 (907-960), Ten States 十國 (902-979) religion and customs." CHINAKNOWLEDGE - a universal guide for China studies . 2000. ChinaKnowledge. 12 Jan 2008 http://www.chinaknowledge.de/History/Tang/tang-religion.html.
21. Theobald, Ulrich. "Chinese History - Tang Dynasty 唐 (618-907)literature, thought and philosophy." CHINAKNOWLEDGE - a universal guide for China studies . 2000. ChinaKnowledge. 12 Jan 2008 http://www.chinaknowledge.de/History/Tang/tang-literature.html.
22. Wikimedia. 12 Jan 2008 http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/44/TangGaozu.jpg. (image)
23. Wikimedia. 12 Jan 2008 http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b6/TangTaizong.jpg. (image)
24. Wikimedia. 12 Jan 2008 http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1e/Tang_XianZong.jpg. (image)
25. Wikimedia. 12 Jan 2008 http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/ba/WuZetian.jpg. (image)
26. "Image: Aziz efendi-muhammad alayhi s-salam.jpg." Wikipedia. 2007. Wikipedia. 12 Jan 2008 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Aziz_efendi-muhammad_alayhi_s-salam.jpg. (image)
27. Wikimedia. 12 Jan 2008 http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5f/Jingangjing.gif. (image)
28. Wikimedia. 12 Jan 2008 http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/81/Chou_Fang_004.jpg. (image)
29. Wikimedia. 12 Jan 2008 http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7c/TangBodhisattva.JPG. (image)
30. Wikimedia. 12 Jan 2008 http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/90/Li_Shiming_Fountain_Memory.jpg. (image)

Sunday, December 2, 2007

Typhoon Maemi (Pogi)

Typhoon Maemi or Typhoon Pogi was a Category 5 Super Typhoon that struck the Japanese Island of Miyakojima, Okinawa, and the Gyeongsang Province of South Korea. The Typhoon originated from a tropical depression that formed near Guam September the 5th 2003. A tropical depression has no eye and is the least intense kind of a tropical storm. The storm moved north-west, and when it gained its cyclonic shape and its wind speed started to range over 39 mph, it was noticed as a tropical storm. When it reached this status, it was named Maemi, which means cicada in Korean. The storm intensified quickly after this. On September the 9th, the Typhoon’s wind speeds reached 145 mph, which classified it as a category 4 Typhoon. Typhoon Maemi then became a category 5 Typhoon with 175 mph winds. It was a category 5 Typhoon when it struck the island of Miyakojima. As Typhoon Maemi approached the Korean Peninsula, it weakened into a category 4 typhoon. When Typhoon Maemi struck the Korean Peninsula, it had already weakened into a category 2 Typhoon. After passing over the Korean Peninsula, it started to weaken and it finally disappeared.









Information and Image Source: "Typhoon Maemi." Wikipedia. 31 Oct 2007. Wikipedia. 29 Nov 2007 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Typhoon_Maemi.






The effects of Typhoon Maemi were severe. In Miyakojima, 700 people were injured. The storm had destroyed the electricity in the island, and 22,000 people had no electricity. An airport tower was also damaged, which disrupted air traffic. The effects in South Korea were also severe, despite the fact that the Typhoon was category 2 when it struck the Korean Peninsula. There were a total of about 110 deaths. Most of the deaths were caused by electrocution, drowning, and landslides that were caused by the Typhoon. The Typhoon sunk or damaged nearly 300 ships, as well as destroying 12,000 acres of farmland, which ruined South Korea’s rice harvest. There were 1.4 million households that had no power. Some industrial and nuclear power plants were forced to close. Many industries suffered greatly, as this typhoon struck one of Korea’s largest port cities. Hyundai Heavy industries co was affected, and they are the largest shipbuilder in the world. Ultimately, the typhoon damaged many ports and harbors which disrupted trade to and from South Korea. In total, the industrial losses were $577 million plus $43 million agricultural loss.





Information Sources
1. "Typhoon Maemi ravages South Korea, at least 110 dead." China Daily. 14 Sep 2003. China Daily. 1 Dec 2007 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/en/doc/2003-09/14/content_263982.htm.

2. "S Korea typhoon toll rises." BBC News. 14 Sep 2003. BBC. 30 Nov 2007 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/3107058.stm.

Image Source: "Typhoon Maemi ravages South Korea, at least 110 dead." China Daily. 14 Sep 2003. China Daily. 1 Dec 2007 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/en/doc/2003-09/14/content_263982.htm.



Both countries that were affected by Typhoon Maemi were ranked by CIA to be one of the 35 countries with an advanced economy. Both these countries were efficient in responding to the Typhoon. In South Korea, people 1.4 million households spent one day without electricity, but electricity was restored the next day. In an LEDC, it might have taken weeks or even months to rebuild and restart the electrical system. The damage in Miyakojima was not severe, and electricity was restored within days. However, the storm damaged agricultural farmland, which took away around one year’s worth of harvest that could be sold for money. This did not result in a rapid increase of price for items such as rice. The economy quickly recovered the damage was not long term. The MEDC’s South Korea and Japan recovered quickly from this natural disaster.





Information Sources


1. "Developed Country." Wikipedia. 29 Nov 2007. Wikipedia. 1 Dec 2007 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MEDC#CIA_advanced_economy_list.

2."S Korea typhoon toll rises." BBC News. 14 Sep 2003. BBC. 30 Nov 2007 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/3107058.stm.


Bibliography
"Typhoon Maemi." Wikipedia. 31 Oct 2007. Wikipedia. 29 Nov 2007 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Typhoon_Maemi.

"Typhoon Maemi ravages South Korea, at least 110 dead." China Daily. 14 Sep 2003. China Daily. 1 Dec 2007 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/en/doc/2003-09/14/content_263982.htm.

"S Korea typhoon toll rises." BBC News. 14 Sep 2003. BBC. 30 Nov 2007 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/3107058.stm.

"Developed Country." Wikipedia. 29 Nov 2007. Wikipedia. 1 Dec 2007 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MEDC#CIA_advanced_economy_list.



Thursday, November 29, 2007

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