Southern and Northern Dynasties
- This article is about the Southern and Northern Dynasties in China. For the same-name period in other countries, see Nanboku-cho for Japan and Southern and Northern Dynasties of Vietnam.
| Southern and Northern Dynasties (420-589) | ||||||||||||
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The Southern and Northern Dynasties (Chinese: 南北朝; pinyin: nánběicháo; 420-589) followed the Sixteen Kingdoms and preceded Sui Dynasty in China and was an age of civil war and disunity.
During this period the process of sinicization accelerated among the non-Chinese arrivals in the north and among the aboriginal tribesmen in the south. Many northern Chinese also immigrated to the south. This process was also accompanied by the increasing popularity of Buddhism (introduced into China in the first century A.D.) in both north and south China.
The south and north developed into a relatively stable equilibrium, due to geographical differences. The flat steppes of the north gave a significant edge to cavalry, while the riverlands of the south gave a significant edge to naval warfare. A strong navy on the Yangtze River could protect the south from the north, since cavalry was almost useless in the riverlands. Likewise, logistical difficulties for the horse-poor south made it difficult to maintain a successful northern campaign. Depending on the relative strengths of the states, the Huai River area and the Sichuan basin were the primary areas of significant territorial changes. This barrier was only overcome by the first Emperor of the Sui Dynasty, who built a large invading navy in the Sichuan basin.
Despite (or perhaps because of) the political disunity of the times, there were notable technological advances. The invention of gunpowder (at that time for use only in fireworks) and the wheelbarrow is believed to date from the sixth or seventh century. Advances in medicine, astronomy, and cartography are also noted by historians.
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