Library

This book begins by describing the growth and decline of the political power of civil and military officials from the late Tang Dynasty to the mid-Northern Song Dynasty, and analyzes the factors that led to the transformation of cultural identity between the two sides from vagueness to serious opposition. The struggle for power is the main cause of tension between civil and military officials. In order to win the attention of the monarch, scribes described warriors as greedy and ignorant, and emphasized the importance of being educated and moral. As the power of civil servants gradually expanded from the Later Zhou Dynasty to the Northern Song Dynasty, scribes' discrimination against military officers became increasingly deepened, and through institutional norms, they prevented the change of status between civil and military officers. The opposition between civil servants and military officers thus became an unsolvable political problem in the Song Dynasty.

Since the surrender of the Renzong Dynasty, the Northern Song Dynasty government has carried out various military and political reforms with the goal of "strengthening the army" in response to threats from the west and the north. Relevant military policies not only formed long-lasting systems such as martial arts, martial arts, and armor protection, but also changed the foreign policy with "harmony" as the core. Starting from the Shenzong Dynasty, border expansion operations were actively carried out, changing the border defense situation that was previously controlled by the enemy. However, foreign wars consumed a large amount of materials and manpower, but achieved very limited results. This triggered fierce disputes about peace and war within the ruling class and became an unsolvable political problem. Therefore, the military and political reforms committed by the Song government had a far-reaching impact and are an issue that must be paid attention to in understanding the historical development of the second half of the Northern Song Dynasty.