Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty

Victor Cunrui Xiong is Professor of History at Western Michigan University and the author of Sui-Tang Chang'an: A Study in the Urban History of Late Medieval China.

"Historians who cannot read Chinese will benefit from the book's abundant data, and Xiong nicely explains the 'first contact' between the incipient Japanese state and the much older Chinese empire." — Religious Studies Review"This is a detailed study of a vital, yet (in English) virtually unknown, period of medieval Chinese history. Traditional Chinese historians usually castigate Emperor Yang, and the author has successfully cut through this invective to reveal much about the man, his policies, and his achievements. The result is a work that will change the way both Chinese and Western historians regard the Sui dynasty and its importance to overall Chinese history." — Charles Hartman, author of Han Yü and the T'ang Search for Unity"This book marks a new phase in the study of this pivotal period in Chinese history, and what Xiong says here must be addressed by anyone who studies the Sui dynasty." — Albert E. Dien, editor of State and Society in Early Medieval China

• Weights and MeasuresDynastic Powers of the Han-Tang PeriodAcknowledgments Part I. From Prince to Sovereign Introduction 1. The Making of a Crown Prince 2. Yangdi and His Reign 3. The Collapse of the Sui Part II. Yangdi and His Empire 4. Luoyang and the Grand Canal 5. The Palace Network 6. The Bureaucracy 7. The Educational, Ritual and Legal Institutions 8. Religions 9. Economic Order 10. Foreign Policy 11. Epilogue Appendix 1Appendix 2Chronology of Sui Yangdi (569–618) NotesBibliographyIndex