Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 5.djvu/659

defeated by Tsaou Tsaou, another aspirant to imperial honours, whose son, Tsaou Pei, on the death of Heen-te (220 A.D.), proclaimed himself emperor, adopting the title of Wei as the appellation of his dynasty. But at the same time there were two other Richmonds in the field, Lew Pei and Sun Keuen, and the strength of these three adventurers were so nearly equal that they agreed to divide the empire between them. Tsaou Pei, under the title of Wăn-te, ruled over the kingdom of Wei (220), which occupied the whole of the central and northern portion of China. Lew Pei established the Shuh Han dynasty in the modern province of Sze-chuen (221), and called himself Chaou-lëĕ-te; and to Sun Keuen Khan fell the southern provinces of the empire, from the Yang-tsze Keang south-wards, including the modern Tonquin, which he formed into the kingdom of Woo with Nan-king for his capital, and adopted for himself the imperial style of Ta-te (222 A.D.)

But China during the period of the “Three Kingdoms” was a house divided against itself. Rivalries, the seeds of which had been sown at the time of the partition of territory, broke out more fiercely as soon as the courts were established. Lew Pei, as a descendant of the house of Han, looked upon himself as the rightful sovereign of the whole empire, and he despatched an army under the command of the celebrated general Choo-ko Leang to support his claims. This army was met by an opposing force under the Wei commander Sze-ma E, of whom Chinese historians say that “he led armies like a god,” and who, by adopting a Fabian policy, completely discomfited his adversary. But the close of this campaign brought no peace to the country. Wars became chronic, and by degrees the reins of power slipped out of the hands of emperors into those of their generals. Foremost among these were the members of the Sze-ma family of Wei. Sze-ma E left a son, Sze-ma Chaou, scarcely less distinguished than he was himself, and when Sze-ma Chaou was gathered to his fathers his honours descended to Sze-ma Yen, who, finding the county ripe for a change, deposed the ruling sovereign of Wei, and proclaimed himself emperor of China (265 A.D.) His dynasty he styled the Western Tsin dynasty, and he adopted for himself the title of Woo-te. The most noticeable event in this reign was the advent of the ambassadors of the Emperor Theodosius in 284. For some years the neighbouring states appear to have transferred their allegiance from the House of Wei to that of Tsin. But the condition of China at this time was such that no government could stand unless administered by an able and powerful chief. Woo-te's successors failing to fulfil these conditions, the country soon fell again into disorder. The Heung-noo, encouraged by the decadence of the Chinese power, renewed incursions into the empire at the beginning of the 4th century, and in the confusion which followed on these attacks from without as well as those that were distracting the country from within, an adventurer named Lew Yuen established himself (in 311) as emperor, first at Ping-yang in Shan-se and afterwards in Lo-yang and Chang-gan. The history of this period is very chaotic. Numerous states sprung up into existence, some founded by the Heung-noo, and others by the Seen-pe tribe, a Tungusic clan inhabiting a territory to the north of China, and who afterwards established the Leaou dynasty in China. The hand of every man was against his neighbour. Nothing was lasting; and in 419 the Eastern Tsin dynasty, which had dragged on a chequered existence for nearly a century, came to an end, and with it disappeared for close on two hundred years all semblance of united authority. The country became divided into two parts, the north and the south. In the north four families reigned successively, two of which were of Seen-pe origin, viz., the Wei and the How Chow, the other two, the Pih Tse and the How Leang, being Chinese. In the south five different houses supplied rulers, who were all of Chinese descent.

This period of disorder was brought to a close by the establishment of the Suy dynasty (590). Among the officials of the ephemeral dynasty of Chow was one Yang Keen, who on his daughter becoming empress (578) was created duke of Suy. Meanwhile, he waited for an opportunity to overturn the reigning house, and, as has so often happened in the history of China, he had not long to wait. The last of the house of Chin was as weak and profligate as any of his predecessors. Him Yang Keen deposed and immediately ascended the throne (590). The country, weary of contention, was only too glad to acknowledge his undivided authority; and during the sixteen years of his reign the internal affairs of China were comparatively peaceably and prosperously administered. The emperor instituted a new and improved code of laws, and showed his respect for literature by adding 5000 volumes to the 10,000 which composed the imperial library. Abroad, his policy was equally successful. He defeated the Tatars and chastised the Coreans, who were disposed to throw aside his authority. The only scene of disorder was in his own household. His sons were unruly and violent, and after his death, in 604, his second son forced the heir to the throne to strangle himself, and then instantly assumed the imperial yellow. At first this usurper, Yang-te, gave himself up to every species of debauchery, but wearying of sensual lusts, he was seized with a desire for conquest. He sent expeditions against the Tatars, and regained some of the influence which had formerly belonged to China in Central Asia. He himself headed an expedition against the Ouigours at the same time that one of his generals annexed the Lew Kew Island to the imperial crown. During his reign the volumes in the imperial library were increased to 54,000, and he spent vast sums in erecting a magnificent palace at Lo-yang, and in constructing unprofitable canals. These and other extravagances laid so heavy a burden on the country that discontent began again to prevail, and on the emperor's return from a successful expedition against the Coreans, he found the empire divided into rebellious factions. In the turmoil which followed General Le Yuen rose to the surface, and on the death of the emperor by assassination this man set Kung-te, the rightful heir, on the throne (617) until such time as he should have matured his schemes. In the following year a dose of poison vacated the throne, and Le Yuen forthwith assumed the imperial sceptre, and proclaimed himself as Tai-tsung the first emperor of the Tang dynasty. At this time the Turks were at the height of their power in Asia, and Tai-tsung was glad to purchase their alliance with money as the Emperor Justinian had been in 558. But divisions weakened the power of this mighty horde, and Tai-tsung, taking advantage of the opportunity, regained much of the position in Central Asia which had formerly been held by China. In 640, Hamil, Turfan, and the rest of the Ouigour territory were again included within the Chinese frontier, and four military governorships were appointed in Central Asia, viz., at Kuché, Khoten, Kharastan, and Kashgar. At the same time the frontier was extended as far as Eastern Persia and the Caspian Sea. So great was now the fame of China, that ambassadors from Nepaul, Magadha, Persia, and Rome (643) came to pay their court to the Great Khan. Before this time, in 635, a Nestorian priest, O-lo-peen by name, arrived from Rome, who so ingratiated himself with the emperor that he built for him a church, and appointed twenty priests to perform the services. Subsequently, on the death of Tai-tsung (649), we find the strange phenomenon of the imperial power seized upon by