Why did the Silk Road prosper during the Han and Tang Dynasties?

From Chang 'an, the capital of China during the Han and Tang Dynasties (now northwest of Xi City, Shaanxi Province) to the east coast of the Mediterranean, the Silk Road ran across Wan Li, connecting many ethnic groups and regions. During the Han and Tang Dynasties, the feudal dynasty took various measures to ensure the safety of the Silk Road.

The economic development along the Silk Road is not only an important support for the prosperity of the Silk Road trade, but more importantly, it is related to the supply of local military and political personnel and the social stability along the Silk Road.

During the Han and Tang dynasties, the economic development of important areas along the Silk Road was constantly strengthened. For example, when the Silk Road was opened in the early Western Han Dynasty, Hexi area was still an agricultural backward area with "different customs, vast land and sparse population". However, through the implementation of measures such as immigration, reclamation, road construction and construction of water conservancy facilities, by the early years of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Hexi was already a place of "strengthening the army, strengthening the warehouse and enriching the people". After the further development of Sui and Tang Dynasties, by Tianbao period, Hexi's grain output had accounted for 32.6% of the whole country and became a developed agricultural economic zone.

During the Han and Tang Dynasties, most foreign businessmen in China gathered in Chang 'an and Luoyang, and the corresponding service facilities were gradually established. In the Western Han Dynasty, foreign envoys and businessmen arrived in Chang 'an, where Dahongxiu was responsible for the reception. The government also set up a foreigner hotel-Fu in Qiu Street of Chang 'an.

After the Northern Wei Dynasty unified northern China, the Silk Road was unblocked again, and a large number of foreign businessmen and envoys poured in. The government of the Northern Wei Dynasty set up four pavilions-Jinling Pavilion, Yanran Pavilion, Fusang Pavilion and Kongxiang Pavilion in Yudao East between Yihe River and Luohe River outside Luoyang, the capital city, and the Kongxiang Pavilion was specially used to receive foreign businessmen and envoys. Foreign businessmen who come to Luoyang "enjoy the customs of China, so there are countless old friends". Therefore, the Northern Wei Dynasty established a "Li Si" for foreign residents in the west of Imperial Road. Among them, "Muyili" is specially provided for expatriates from the West.

In addition, in the Han and Tang dynasties, in order to attract foreign businessmen to trade in China, on the one hand, foreign businessmen in China were given super-national treatment, on the other hand, their legitimate rights and interests in China were protected by administrative and legal means.

At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty and for a long time afterwards, the Central Plains was constantly in war, and Hexi became a place where Chinese and foreign businessmen and commodities gathered. Dunhuang, in particular, is located in the throat of the Silk Road, and the trade between China and foreign countries is particularly prosperous. However, the local strongmen bullied and betrayed Hu Shangqiang, which caused great dissatisfaction with Hu Shangqiang. "The western regions make contributions every day, but enriching the people is often cut off, which is not only related to trade moving to Taiwan and cheating, but also unclear and often resentful."

After Cao Wei took control of Hexi, in order to maintain the healthy development of the Silk Road trade, Cang Ci, the governor of Dunhuang, took a series of measures to crack down on powerful families and protect Chinese and foreign businessmen. "If you want to profit from it, you will be sealed; If you want to return the county, the official will be flat, and you will manage the affairs of the government and the city and let the officials and the people escort, so that the people can be called virtuous. " The implementation of these measures has created a fair and orderly trade environment between China and foreign countries, protected the rights and interests of foreign businessmen, and restored the prosperity of the Silk Road trade in the past.

The preferential and protective policies for foreign businessmen in China in the Tang Dynasty were more institutionalized and legalized. The government explicitly requires local officials to "keep asking questions" and "accept goodwill and make them happy". In the 14th year of Tang Daizong Dali (AD 779), many Central Asian Hu merchants lived in Chang 'an. "At first, there were thousands of Uighurs staying in Beijing, and the number of people living together doubled. The county magistrate gives them money every day, breeds assets, opens a home, and the shops and shops belong to them. "

At the same time, the Tang Dynasty respected the customs and religious beliefs of foreign businessmen. In the Travels of Suleiman written by Arabs, it is recorded: "China Commercial Port is a gathering place for Arab businessmen, called Khan House, where there is a Muslim priest and a church ... As Muslim businessmen from all over the world gather in Guangfu, Emperor China appointed a Muslim judge to govern Muslims according to Islamic customs. The judge will pray with the Hui people for a few days every week and read the commandments of sages. At the end of the speech, we should pray for the Muslim Sultan. Judges are honest and fair in hearing cases, and everything can be done in accordance with the teachings of the Koran and Muslim habits. Therefore, Iraqi businessmen who come here are chanting. " This reflects the consistency of the trade policies of the Silk Road on land and at sea in the Tang Dynasty.

The Tang government also protected the legitimate rights and interests of foreign businessmen in China through administrative orders and regulations. For example, in 834 AD, Tang Wenzong issued an imperial edict that "except for ship's feet (ship tax), closed markets (government purchase) and tribute (tribute), traffic is allowed, and no rate tax can be increased", which clearly stipulated that it is forbidden to levy taxes on foreign businessmen. According to the laws of the Tang Dynasty, the legacy of foreign businessmen who died in China was properly kept by the local government until their relatives claimed it. After a certain time, the unclaimed party will confiscate it.

With the development of trade along the Silk Road, China's advanced science and technology, such as iron smelting and casting, sericulture and reeling, and the four great inventions, were gradually exported to Central Asia, West Asia, South Asia and Europe along the Silk Road, which effectively promoted the development of productivity and the progress of human civilization in these countries. At the same time, foreign and regional animal and plant varieties and some handicraft technologies were introduced into China, enriching the agricultural and handicraft production system in China. More importantly, the economic ties between regions and ethnic groups along the Silk Road are getting closer and closer, and people-to-people exchanges are deepening.