Imperial China, 900–1800

This is about as good a book as I have ever read. It certainly helped that I was already familiar with the outline(s) of China's history and I actually jumped into this after finishing Gernet's 1-volume history. But there is so much here that even someone starting with a lot more knowledge than me would find it a lot to keep track of. Therefore, any newcomer could find themselves feeling at sea in all this. But that is part of the glory of China. Spatially and temporally there is so much of it.I love the cultural sensitivity with which Mote tries to reach into the inner guts of the Khitan, Jurchen and Mongol northern neighbors and conquerors.I actually hesitated buying this book because a review criticized its lack of footnotes. Oops on that. How about pages 979-1056. And they were interesting. And the books they referenced in the bibliography are an adventure in themselves, many of which I've already purchased and many more of which are on my Wish List(s).It's a great read. Every sentence holds up. It may be hard but it's rewarding. I took it very slowly. Sometimes I could only handle a few pages a day. But I'm sure I've never had a BETTER time reading a work of non-fiction. So ... maybe you would enjoy it.

Professor Mote’s book is almost 1,000 pages long and covers 900 years of Chinese History, so it is not a casual read. But, if you are interested in this period of history or if you just like well written, in depth, no nonsense history, Professor Mote’s book is really terrific. He has a complete mastery of the subject matter and his writing is clean and concise. He covers political, economic, and social history, but he focuses the most attention on the lives of the emperors, because that’s what the sources allow. That type of narrative, "great man," history is no longer as popular as it used to be, a trend with which I agree. But one thing you learn from this book is that China’s emperors led pretty colorful lives. Despite the length of the book, it is never dull. For the serious history fan, it doesn’t get any better than this book.

For those unfamiliar, FW Mote was a long-time professor at Princeton and a leading scholar on imperial Chinese history. His focus is the Yuan and Ming periods, but his work on the other aspects of imperial Chinese history is just as informative and well-researched. This work begins with the end of the Tang Dynasty in approx. 907 CE and ends near the end of the Qing Dynasty, China's final imperial dynasty, which ultimately fell in 1911.This work encompasses much more than political history. Any hack can go online and write about each emperor. What Mote does that is invaluable is cover the sociology, culture, politics, and people of every time period with enough background that you know exactly what he is talking about. His coverage of the Khitans is fantastic, and he covers enough of the rest of the steppe peoples that you can fully grasp what is happening in the time period that the Liao began.A serious achievement that is useful for both the beginner and the learned historian.

A very detailed account of China’s dynasties from the end of the Song through 1800. China’s last dynasty ended only a century later so I’m surprised the book didn’t continue another century to cover the fall of the Qing dynasty. But the author does a terrific job of explaining how the different dynasties were created and the characteristics of each dynasty. The book is written for serious students of Chinese history. The casual reader might find it dry. But t I recommend it for anyone looking for an in depth account of China from the Song through the Qing dynasty.

Take the time to get into this book and you'll find it hugely enjoyable (like drifting down the Amazon from its headwaters while an expert guide explains each feature and tribe). It covers the last thousand years of China’s history at the cracking pace of one page per year. Each year packed with rebellions, poisonings, torturing, poetry, war, philosophical argument and, throughout it all, brilliant, dedicated officials desperately trying to keep the country together while manic emperors and scheming eunuchs vie to tear it apart. Best of all, when you finally close the book – and much to your surprise – you will understand modern China.

I wanted a work that yielded a long scholarly look into how the country came to be as it is, culturally, economically, socially, and as a presence in it's geographical neighborhood. It does that superbly.

There seems to be a lot of books out there now about China's imperial period. This one is a good mix of hard facts and interpretation. I would not call Mote's style light and breezy but the book is certainly accessible to amateur historians. Mote obviously cares about his subject and cares about his readers. That is not a common combination in professional academics.The text is 970 dense pages not including the front and back matter. I found myself losing track of time as I let the narrative flow over me.Yes, I recommend this book.

Excellently organized. For such a huge span of Chinese history, Mote chose to start each chapter with the most influential person of that particular period, before delving into the underlying socio/political/economic/military/etc. forces at play, making the book a very engaging read. It's actually a hard text to put down as each section flows wonderfully and logically in to the next. Highly recommend as an initial point of contact to Imperial Chinese history.

A bit boring to read, too text book like.

Livre en très bon état et conforme à mes attentes.