Unified Silla
Unified Silla | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Anapji pavilion Anapji pavilion | ||||||||
Korean name | ||||||||
|
Unified Silla (668–935) refers to the unification of the Three Kingdoms of southern Korea, Baekche, Koguryo, and Silla. The fall of Baekche to Silla in 668 marks the recognized beginning the the Unified Silla dynasty. Balhae (698-926) ruled the northern region of Korea, from just south of Pyongyang. The Unified Silla dynasty and Balhae both fell to Goryeo by 935, creating a unification of the northern and southern halfs of Korea.[1] Due to the north-south split during this period of Korean history, some historians have preferred to call the time of the Unified Silla dynasty the period of the North-South States (nambukguk sidae = 남북국 시대 = 南北國時代) .
Unification
History of Korea |
---|
Jeulmun Period
|
- Main article: Silla
During the wars near the end of the Three Kingdoms Period , Tang Dynasty China established strong administrative cities in the defeated Goguryeo dynasty as well as in Baekje. Silla launched a campaign against Tang China in 671.[2] Tang countered with an unsuccessful invasion of Silla in 674, defeated by General Kim Yu-shin's forces. Tang forces withdrew to the north, leaving Silla to rule most the southern peninsula by 676.
Culture
Korean arts and Buddhism flourished during the Unified Silla dynasty. The royal throne sponsored the construction and support of Buddhist temple compounds like Bulguksa, Seokguram Grotto, Hwangnyongsa and Bunhwangsa temples. Bulguksa and Seokguram present an exceptional example of Unified Silla Buddhist architecture and scupture, receiving the designation of World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
- Buddhism: Unified Silla and Tang maintained close ties. This was evidenced by the continual importation of Chinese culture. Many Korean monks went to China to learn about Buddhism. The monk Hyech'o went to India to study Buddhism and wrote of accounts. [1]. Different new sects of Buddhism were introduced by these traveling monks who had studied abroad such as Son and Pure Land Buddhism [2].
- Confucianism: A national confucian college was established in 682 and around 750 it was renamed the National Confucian University [3]. The university was restricted to the elite aristocracy.
- Woodblock printing: Woodblock printing was used to disseminate Buddhist sutras and Confucian works. During a refurbishment of the Pagoda That Casts No Shadows, an ancient print of a Buddhist sutra was discovered. The print is dated to 751 C.E. and is the oldest discovered printed material in the world. [4].
Politics
Silla began to experience political troubles in 780 when kings began to be assassinated by rebel leaders. This severely weakened Silla and soon thereafter, descendants of the former Baekje established Later Baekje. In the north, rebels revived Goguryeo, beginning the Later Three Kingdoms period.[2]
In 660, King Munmu the Great ordered his armies to attack Baekje. General Kim Yu-shin, aided by Tang forces, defeated General Gyebaek and conquered Baekje. In 661, Goguryeo repelled his attack. King Munmu stands as the first ruler to look upon the southern Korean Peninsula as a single political entity after the fall of Gojoseon. As such, the post-668 Silla kingdom is often referred to as Unified Silla. Unified Silla lasted for 267 years until, under King Gyeongsun, it fell to Goryeo in 935.
Economy
Since Silla unified Korea, they can earned more territory and controled more people. So, Silla is need to change their economy policy. At first, Silla decreased agriculture output tax to 1/10 before unified and assigned tributary payment per town with their special products.
Unified Silla inquiried all town's real estate size and the number of people and horse,Cow and special products per every year and wrote it to documents called Minjeongmunseo(민정문서, The documents for the realities of the people´s life) per three years. It was done by 촌주(leader of town). [3]
See also
- Three Kingdoms of Korea
- List of Korea-related topics
- History of Korea
Reference
- ↑ http://www.rootsinfo.co.kr/history/king08.html Wang Geon changed the name of dynasty to Goryeo
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 http://www.asianinfo.org/asianinfo/korea/history.htm#The%20Ko%20Choson
- ↑ Korean history for highschool p.141, issued by National History Compilation Committee of the Republic of Korea, The
Credits
New World Encyclopedia writers and editors rewrote and completed the Wikipedia article in accordance with New World Encyclopedia standards. This article abides by terms of the Creative Commons CC-by-sa 3.0 License (CC-by-sa), which may be used and disseminated with proper attribution. Credit is due under the terms of this license that can reference both the New World Encyclopedia contributors and the selfless volunteer contributors of the Wikimedia Foundation. To cite this article click here for a list of acceptable citing formats.The history of earlier contributions by wikipedians is accessible to researchers here:
The history of this article since it was imported to New World Encyclopedia:
Note: Some restrictions may apply to use of individual images which are separately licensed.