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John K. Reischaurer's Chin Tradition And Transformation

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From the book China: Tradition and Transformation, edited by John K. Fairbanks and Edwin O. Reischaurer, the editor 's perspective on how the Ming Foreign Relationship helped the Chinese discover where the Ming dynasty stood in the world and how these expeditions affected the Ming dynasty financially. To my understanding, the establishment of the tribute system, the Ming maritime expeditions and the Ming anti-commercialism affected the Chinese budget and how the editors perceived, where the Ming dynasty stood. The tribute system was a system established by Hung-Wu, during the Ming era. The main purpose of the tribute system was to re-establish it foreign relationship with neighboring countries and for the rulers of each country to build an interstate relationship. Interstate relationships were described by the editors as the trading of emissaries and behavior of strategic relations, repatriation and removal of persons, regulations of Sino-foreign trade and Chinese effort to intimidate foreign tribes and rulers. Basically the tribute system, was a system of mutually beneficial payment amongst the …show more content…

The editors believe because of, the commander of the Ming maritime expeditions, Cheng Ho was an organizer, a commander, a diplomat and an able courtier, he was all these things, but a businessman or how the editors would title it as a trader, he could not properly establish a good tribute system amongst the other countries. Most of the government revenue came from land taxes and not enough from trades or from the ports. Due to not having enough funding, China had to step away from commercialism. The editors believe because of this act, Ming China was humbled as they observed all these non-Chinese people groups touched base on their coast. This force Ming China to return back to customary ways. At this moment, they realized they were not the richest or the most powerful country on

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