During the Song Dynasty, China changed dramatically in terms of economics and technology. Some of China's most famous inventions were either invented or improved during this time - gunpowder, the compass, and the printing press. It was a pity that the Song industrial revolution was interrupted when the dynasty ended, because with the progress it was making, China could have had an industrial revolution more than half a millennium before Britain did.
Script: The Song Dynasty was a time of greatness. There were great inventions, great changes, and great prosperity. So great, in fact, was Chinese civilization at the time that even Marco Polo was in awe when he visited. China developed many technological innovations and these advances allowed its population to increase by a factor of 10 in less than 300 years, surpassing even Europe in size that time.
There was great advancement in scientific knowledge in the Song. The Chinese figured out how to use a compass in the year 1119, and the use of the compass led to better navigation of the seas. This was necessary because a lot of China’s commerce depended on ships, and the need for ships also pushed progress in shipbuilding. Song Dynasty China was a leader in ship building, and inventions like water-tight bulkheads that improved buoyancy of ships, making them safer and also protecting cargo from getting wet and damaged. A new type of sail was invented that allowed ships to travel no matter what direction the wind was blowing, meaning that ships could sail at virtually anytime instead of having to wait for favorable winds. These improvements in navigation and shipbuilding facilitated trade and lent its hand to the economical boom of the Song Dynasty by making trade easier and faster.
Agriculture too made progress. Improved methods of water control and irrigation were used and a new type of rice introduced from Vietnam dramatically increased rice yields. This type of rice ripened earlier and was more drought resistant than any previous form of rice; rice farming proliferated. With the extra rice, farmers could now sell their surplus crops on the market, creating a more agricultural and commercial economy and richer farmers. This rise in rice production caused the population to grow and allowed for the urbanization of China, now that less people could grow more crops. The Yangtze River region, where the climate was warm and humid – best for growing rice – became an economic center of China, since its agriculture was essentially dependent on that area.
As trade and the economy boomed in China, the economic system adapted. Merchants became commercialized and were organized into guilds, that is, an association of merchants. These guilds each had guild heads, and because there were so many merchants, the government would deal with these guild heads when they needed supplies or when they had to handle taxes. Partnerships and joint-stock companies became widespread as trade increased and business became more complicated. All sorts of transportation were used in the Song Dynasty for trade, including camels for trade with countries further west and across the Middle East. China’s waterway system had to be expanded to handle the amount of trade going on. Rivers were already used as much as they could, but canals, too, had to be dug, and a Grand Canal was dug to link the north to the Yangtze River.
So much transportation made it difficult for merchants to carry gold, a very heavy material, with them all the time. Thus, China became the first nation to use paper money. What began as receipts being traded among merchants in the Tang Dynasty became a government-run system in the Song Dynasty.
With the economy growing, China went through a semi-industrial revolution. It’s wasn’t an industrial revolution like the one Britain experienced about 6 centuries later, because it wasn’t given enough time to develop. During this time, though, the iron and steel industry grew greatly. These metals were used for weaponry in the army, for nails and tools for building, and Buddhist statues. To supply this industry, the use of coal also grew.
Other key inventions during the Song Dynasty included the printing press and gunpowder, two things that greatly affect our modern day world. The printing press, though invented in the 9th century, was a key part of the Song Dynasty. With the start of Confucian exams, literature and knowledge became even more highly valued than before. The need for knowledge to pass these exams was reflected in a burst of book production. Here, the printing press served as both a cause and an effect; desire for knowledge increased production, but increased production also led to widespread knowledge. Gunpowder was also important because not only did they use it for fireworks, but for weapons and rockets, too. By the end of the Song Dynasty, the Chinese invented multiple-stage rockets, which were crucial steps to the process of getting men into space.
The Song Dynasty is a source of many great innovations. Without the Song, we might not have paper money, knowledge of sea navigation, printing, or even space ships.
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