Northern Song (960–1127) facts for kids
The Northern Song (Chinese: 北宋; 960 – 1127) was a Chinese dynasty. It was the first part of the Song dynasty. It ended when its capital city, Kaifeng, was captured by enemies from the north. Later, a temporary capital was set up in Shangqiu, Henan.
The Song dynasty includes both the Northern Song and the Southern Song. It's called "Northern" because its main area was in northern China. Emperor Taizu of Song started the dynasty. He took over the throne from the Later Zhou dynasty in 960. In 1127, Kaifeng fell to the Jin dynasty. The ruling Emperor Qinzong and his family were captured. This event is known as the Jingkang Incident. The Northern Song dynasty ended the next year. It was ruled by nine emperors and lasted for 167 years.
The Northern Song's land reached the southeastern coast. Its northern border was with the Liao dynasty. This border included the Hai River, Ba Zhou city, and Yanmen Pass in Shanxi. To the northwest, it reached Hengshan Mountain in Shaanxi, eastern Gansu province, and the Huangshui River in Qinghai. In the west, it shared borders with Tibet and the Dali Kingdom along the Min Mountains and Dadu River (Sichuan). It also bordered Vietnam near Guangxi province.
Even with all this land, the Northern Song was the smallest united empire in the Central Plains. Records show its population grew a lot. It went from 32.5 million people in 980 CE to over 100 million in 1110 CE.
Contents
History
How the Northern Song Began
The first emperor of Song was Zhao Kuang Yin. He was a skilled soldier. He worked as a Lifeguard for the emperor's palace in the Later Zhou dynasty. Zhao became an important military leader because of his great success in battles.
After Emperor Shizong died, the young Gongdi emperor took the throne. Zhao then took power through an event called the Chenqiao Mutiny. This is how he started the Song dynasty. The dynasty's special color was red, linked to the element of Fire.
Emperor Taizu created a strong central government. This helped stop powerful local officials from taking too much control. This had been a problem since the mid-Tang Dynasty. This system helped the country stay stable and grow. However, it also led to too many government jobs and low efficiency. This caused financial problems later on.
In the military, the Northern Song increased its troops. They also weakened the power of generals. They did this by splitting their power among different people. They also changed generals' posts often. This stopped any one general from becoming too powerful. But, constantly changing generals made the soldiers less effective. The Northern Song army often lost battles against groups like the Liao and Western Xia. This made the country's borders weak and unsafe.
In 960, during the spring festival, Zhao's supporters spread a false rumor. They said the Liao state was going to attack. The prime minister ordered Zhao to go to the border to defend. On the third day of the first lunar month, Zhao reached Chenqiao. That night, his supporters put an imperial yellow robe on him. This was a sign that he was accepted as emperor. The Later Zhou officials had no choice but to accept it. The Gongdi emperor was forced to leave the throne. Zhao then became Emperor Taizu of the Song dynasty.
In 961 and 969, Emperor Taizu held banquets. He warned his generals not to rebel against the Song, just as he had done against the Later Zhou. He took away their power. He gave them unimportant jobs. He also put civil officials in charge of troops. This helped centralize military power. This stopped local military leaders from rebelling. But it also meant local areas had fewer resources. This led to defeats in battles against northern tribes.
The Northern Song dynasty had a main policy: "emphasis on scholars and less on the military." This meant they valued educated people more than soldiers. This policy had good and bad points. The good part was that it brought stability to the country. There were fewer problems like corrupt officials or local leaders seizing land. Even if some Song emperors weren't great leaders, the country stayed strong and peaceful. The bad part was that the Northern Song army often lost battles. For 300 years, the Song Dynasty's history was full of military defeats.
Another big task for Emperor Taizu was to unite China. He decided to conquer the south first, then the north. He used clever plans to defeat smaller kingdoms like Nanping and Wuping. He also defeated Shu, Nanhan, and Nantang. Taizu wanted to unite the country so much. He even saved money and silk in a warehouse. He hoped to use it later to buy back the sixteen states of Yanyun from the Liao. In 976, Taizu went north again. But he died suddenly on October 19. His brother, Zhao Guangyi, immediately became emperor. Some people believed Guangyi had murdered his brother to take the throne. The plan to unite the north and south was paused as Zhao Guangyi became Emperor Taizong.
After Emperor Taizong became stable, he continued the unification. In 978, Chen Hongjin and Qian Hongling surrendered. In 979, the Northern Han kingdom was destroyed. In 979, Taizong ignored his ministers and started a northern attack from Taiyuan. At first, he took back Yizhou and Zhuozhou. Taizong became too confident and ordered an attack on Yanjing. This led to a huge defeat at the Sorghum River. After this loss, the Song Dynasty's military strategy became defensive. In 986, Taizong went north again and lost another battle. The famous general Yang Ye was killed. Later, rebellions broke out in Sichuan. This made Taizong focus more on internal problems than external ones.
Emperor Taizong was a refined man who loved poetry and literature. His government supported cultural activities. They also greatly valued education for the people. Taizong also loved calligraphy. He could write in six different styles. The characters on the Song currency were even his own work.
Emperor Taizu had a grown-up son. So, his brother becoming emperor was very suspicious. People claimed Zhao Guangyi murdered Zhao Kuangyin. To make his rule seem right, Zhao Guangyi showed his mother's will. It was called the "Will of the Golden Cabinet." This will said that after Zhao Kuangyin died, the throne would go to Guangyi. Then it would go to Guangmei, and then to Dezhao, Zhao Kuangyin's eldest son. This will was hidden in a golden cabinet. But Emperor Taizong punished his father's sons, Dezhao and Defang, with death. He also sent Tingmei away. Two years later, Tingmei died in exile. Taizong's eldest son, Yuan Zuo, was also removed from his prince title. Another son, Yuan Xi, died for unknown reasons. Finally, Prince Yuan Kan was chosen as the heir. In 997, after Taizong died, some people tried to make Yuanzuo emperor. But Prime Minister Lu Duan handled it well. He helped Zhao Heng become emperor. This marked the beginning of the Northern Song's golden age.
Wars Against Liao and Xia
After Taizong's death, Zhao Heng became Emperor Zhenzong. He followed Taizong's peaceful policies. Since the northern attack of Yongxi, the Liao often raided the Song borders. By 1008, these attacks became a big invasion. Prime Minister Kou Zhun led the defense. Emperor Zhenzong went to the battlefield himself. This greatly boosted the Song army's morale.
The Song and Liao armies faced each other at Tanzhou. By chance, a Liao general was shot down by a Song crossbow. This greatly weakened the Liao army's morale. They lost hope of winning. The Liao then wanted to make peace with the Northern Song. After talks, the two countries agreed to a peace treaty. The Song would pay the Liao 200,000 rolls of silk and 100,000 ounces of silver every year. This treaty is known as "The Treaty of Chanyuan."
After this, Kou Zhun lost favor with Emperor Zhenzong and was dismissed. Wang Chinro, a minister who was good at pleasing the emperor, knew Zhenzong wanted peace. He suggested Zhenzong perform the Feng Shan ceremony. He also worked with another prime minister, Wang Dan, to create fake "lucky signs" across the country. As a result, Zhenzong performed Feng Shan three times in 1012. Wang Chiru became Zhenzong's most trusted minister.
Emperor Zhenzong and Queen Liu had no children. One day, Zhenzong visited Li, a maid of Concubine Liu. She gave birth to a son (Zhao Shouyi) in 1010. This son later became Emperor Renzong. Liu and another concubine, Yang, raised the child. In 1019, Zhenzong officially named Zhao as his heir and renamed him Zhao Zhen. On February 20, 1022, Zhenzong died. Crown Prince Zhao Zhen became emperor. Queen Liu became the Queen Dowager and ruled until Renzong grew up. This began sixteen years of Empress Liu controlling the government.
At the start of Emperor Renzong's rule, he couldn't do much because Empress Liu was in charge. Although his official queen was from the Cao family, he really liked Concubine Zhang. But Zhang came from a humble background, so she could never be queen. Zhang died in 1045. Renzong treated her funeral as if she were the queen. He even gave her the title Queen Wencheng. This was very unusual, having a living queen and a dead queen with the same title.
The country was quite strong under Emperor Renzong. The economy was good, marking the peak of the Northern Song Dynasty. However, there were two big problems. The imperial court was growing too large. Also, the number of soldiers was increasing. Both caused financial issues. At the same time, the Song often had to pay tributes to northern tribes. This drained the country's wealth.
In 1038, the leader Li Yuanhao declared himself emperor and established Xixia. This led to several years of war between Song and Xixia. The Song army lost many times. Renzong appointed talented ministers like Fan Zhongyan, Lu Yijian, Fu Bi, Bao Zheng, and Han Qi. They put in place the Qingli New Code. This reform achieved good results. The dynasty entered its most prosperous period. But some conservative figures accused the reformist officials of working together unfairly. Since Renzong disliked favoritism, these reformist officials were sent to work in the provinces. This ended the short-lived Qingli New Code. On the border, Renzong appointed General Di Qing. He first put down a rebellion in the south, then stopped Xixia's attacks.
After Renzong died, Emperor Yingzong, Zhao Shu, became emperor. He was the grandson of Zhao Yuanfen, Zhenzong's brother. He became crown prince in 1062. Emperor Yingzong was often sick. Queen Cao handled all state affairs at first. Yingzong only started ruling himself in May 1064. Half a month later, a dispute started and lasted for 18 months. Prime Minister Han Qi began a discussion about how to refer to Yingzong's biological father. The government split into two groups. One group thought Yingzong's father, Monarch Pu, should be called "Huang Bo" (royal uncle). The other thought he should be called "Huang Kao" (royal father). In the end, the empress dowager decided on "Huang Kao," and the argument stopped. Overall, Yingzong was a good ruler. He kept talented ministers and found new ones. Yingzong also focused on compiling books. The famous "Zizhi Tongjian" history book was started by him.
New Policies
After Yingzong died, his eldest son Emperor Shenzong became emperor. When he started ruling, he saw many problems. These problems came from old rules of the Song Dynasty. People's lives were getting worse. Also, the Liao and Xixia were ready to attack the weakened Song. Shenzong decided to make big changes. He allowed Wang Anshi, a famous reformist minister, to carry out political reforms. He made Wang Anshi a top politician.
Wang Anshi's new laws included many things. For example, there was collective responsibility, the Green Sprouts program (loans for farmers), and exemption from military services (people could pay instead of serving). There was also a trade management system, the Baojia system (organizing families for defense), and a new tax system.
However, a group of conservative officials, led by Sima Guang, strongly opposed these new laws. Also, natural disasters kept happening in the country. This made Shenzong less sure about the reforms. In 1074, a drought hit North China. An official named Zheng Xia showed Shenzong a picture of suffering farmers. This shocked Shenzong. The next day, he ordered a stop to all 18 reform laws. Although these policies were soon brought back, Shenzong began to distrust Wang Anshi. In April 1074, Wang Anshi was dismissed for the first time. He was sent to Zhijiang Ningfu. Later, another reformist official, Lu Huiqing, acted carelessly. This led to Wang Anshi being brought back to the capital. But he was still frustrated by the conservative party. In June 1076, Wang Anshi's eldest son died. Wang Anshi used this chance to retire. So, Shenzong dismissed Wang Anshi again in October. After that, Wang Anshi did not get involved in government affairs.
People had different opinions about the Xining New Policies. But it was clear that Wang Anshi's goals were not fully met. The new laws did greatly increase the country's income and farmed land. But they also made life harder for ordinary people. The military reforms were only a temporary fix. They didn't really make the army stronger. Wang Anshi was also impatient. He put the reforms into action too quickly. He didn't allow enough time for society to benefit from them. Also, over time, the laws changed from their original purpose. Some measures that were supposed to help people started to bother them instead. Poor implementation of the new laws also caused them to lose support. Some reformers, like Lu Huiqing and Cai Jing, were seen as bad characters.
After Wang Anshi was dismissed, Shenzong continued reforms. These were called "Yuanfeng Reforms." They were not as strong as the Xining Reform. As the national military grew, Shenzong focused on the northern tribes. He wanted to destroy Xixia. In 1072, Shenzong started a westward march into Xixia. He won big victories, which made him more confident. In 1081, a coup happened within Xixia. Shenzong used this chance to attack Xixia again. But this attack failed badly. Shenzong couldn't handle it and became sick in bed. In 1085, Shenzong named his sixth son Zhao Mai as his heir. Although the new laws were briefly stopped by his mother, Empress Dowager Gao, they were soon brought back. They continued to be used even into the Southern Song Dynasty.
After Shenzong died, Empress Dowager Gao controlled the government. She strictly controlled Zhao Xu, who had just become Emperor Zhezong. The Empress Dowager supported the conservative leader, Sima Guang. She lessened Zhezong's power. This started a big fight between the conservatives and the reformists. It was later known as the Yuanyou Conflicts. After Zhezong took back control, he removed the conservative party. He supported the reformist party and continued the reforms.
Song Jiang, Fang La Civil Commotion
Emperor Zhezong had no children. So, after he died, his brother Zhao Ji became Emperor Huizong. Huizong was only interested in having fun. He didn't care about governing. At first, the Empress Dowager helped rule. She tried to bring peace between the conservative and reformist parties. But this failed completely when she died. Huizong loved calligraphy, painting, and horse riding since he was a child.
Scholars said he ordered huge building projects. For example, he built Wansui Mountain in Kaifeng, which was renamed Genyue. Genyue covered a large area. It had many beautiful places like Hisbiscus Pond and Gentle Creek. It also housed pavilions, exotic birds, and animals. Huizong also set up the Yingfeng Bureau in Suzhou. This bureau was used to find strange gems, stones, and minerals in the southeast. This caused a lot of unrest among the people.
In 1119, Song Jiang gathered 36 people. They started disturbances in Shandong and Hebei. He was later made an official to restore peace. In 1120, Manichaeism leader Fang La led people to start a disturbance in Qixian Village. They later captured Hangzhou. They set up a government across four provinces, six states, and 52 counties. These included Zhejiang, Anhui, and Jiangxi. But the Song General Han Shizhong stopped them the next year.
Politics
Centralized Government
.jpg)
The Song Dynasty strongly promoted a centralized government. This policy was called "strong trunk weak branches." It meant the central government was strong, and local governments were weak. Local officials were all sent by the central government. Their jobs often changed. All local money went directly to the central government. There were no local savings. This made it very hard to help local people during disasters.
This centralization gathered military and financial power in the capital. But it made the surrounding regions poorer. Because most regions were weak financially, when the Jin army attacked from the south, the whole country fell apart quickly once the capital, Bianjing (Kaifeng), was captured. There was no chance to fight back. In the Tang Dynasty's Anshi Rebellion, even though two capitals were invaded, local areas had enough money and weapons. So, they could still resist. In the Song Dynasty, all wealth was in the capital. So, once the capital was invaded, the whole country collapsed.
Imperial Examinations
The examination system in the Song Dynasty was similar to the Tang Dynasty's. But its influence was different. In the Tang Dynasty, many candidates came from powerful families. They were well-educated and knew a lot about politics. They had more chances to gain influence. In the late Tang Dynasty, it became easier for poor people to take the exams. These people studied hard to improve their lives. But the country didn't have a formal education system. So, many politicians became less knowledgeable.
From the Song Dynasty, most powerful family traditions disappeared. More rural schoolboys, poor scholars, and candidates from far away were chosen for government jobs. They often didn't know much about politics because they couldn't afford private tutors. So, their political skills were often questioned.
Also, Tang Dynasty exams had a system for self-nomination. Candidates could send their poems and achievements to respected ministers before the exam. These ministers' opinions could make candidates famous before the exam. This helped them get good positions. Exam results were based on the opinions of government superiors, not just exam performance. An examiner even joked that he didn't understand the exam's purpose, as a candidate's popularity decided their ranking. This was seen as normal, not cheating. The original goal was to find talented people. But some people took advantage of this system. So, the government made the system stricter to prevent cheating. However, as it became stricter, the original goal was lost. The focus became preventing fraud, not finding the best talent.
The Song Dynasty's examination system was much stricter. They covered candidates' names when marking papers to make results fairer. But this also meant examiners couldn't find their favorite students' papers. So, some talented candidates might not be admitted. The exam could only find talent, not create it. The Han Dynasty had schools like Taixue, and the Tang Dynasty had powerful families that trained scholars. Song people wanted a formal education system, but it was hard to set up.
The Song also wanted to change the exam topics. They wanted to test "Jingyi" (classics) instead of poems and odes. Poetry was too common, and it wasn't a good way to find brilliant government officials. But this change caused more harm than good. Testing classics didn't work as well as poetry. Wang Jinggong, a famous scholar, regretted that the original goal of using scriptures to find talented candidates was lost.
Also, unfair admissions and bribing officials became big problems in the Song Dynasty. People with such backgrounds were looked down upon. But there weren't many truly talented individuals to choose from. The Song Dynasty also had too many officials. This put a huge strain on the economy.
Military
The Song Army had two main groups: the forbidden army and the Xiang army. After the Tang Dynasty, during the Five Dynasties period, local leaders were very proud and often fought. Almost everyone was a soldier, and there weren't many scholars. The army, which was once good, later became full of old and weak soldiers. They couldn't fight well. So, they were used for hard labor, almost like slaves. Every soldier had to be branded on the face to stop them from running away. They were called "Pei troops." For example, characters like Song Jiang and Wu Song from the "Water Margin" had tattoos on their faces and were sent to military camps for hard work. People criticized the government for treating soldiers so badly. This continued into the Song Dynasty. The Song didn't fully change this system, which limited their army's fighting ability.
The Han Dynasty army was very active. But the Tang Dynasty army became less effective. The Song Dynasty's military recruitment system was just a revised version of the Han Dynasty's. These soldiers weren't really needed for battles. They were mostly used for odd jobs in local areas, doing whatever local governments ordered. It would have made sense to reduce the army and dismiss old soldiers after the Song Dynasty was founded. But the Song Dynasty only did the first part. This is also why the Song Dynasty didn't fully unite the whole country. Their enemy, the Liao, had existed for over 50 years before the Song Dynasty.
The sixteen states of Yanyun were given to the Liao people. Liaoning, which included parts of Shanxi and Hebei, was all controlled by Liao. The northern defenses were gone. The Song Dynasty built its capital in Kaifeng. This was a flat area near the Yellow River. East of Taihang Mountain was a big plain. Cavalry soldiers could reach the Yellow River in a few days from the north. Across the Yellow River, they would be at Kaifeng's gate. There were no strong national defenses when the Song Dynasty started. If they had built their capital in Luoyang, enemies would still have to cross Jingsuo Mountain. This would give the Song a better chance to defend. If the Liao attacked from western Shanxi, Yanmen Pass had natural defenses. But the Liao could easily cross the Yellow River. So, the capital should have been in Luoyang. Building the capital in Chang'an, like in the Han and Tang Dynasties, would have been even better.
Emperor Taizu didn't build the capital in Luoyang or Chang'an. He insisted on Kaifeng because of difficulties. The early defense line was broken, and they lost the Yan Yun states. So, he had to raise more troops. These soldiers needed to be fed. All the food had to come from the Yangtze River basin.
The Central Plains area was ruined from the late Tang Dynasty to the Five Dynasties. So, the economy relied completely on the South. There was a canal from Yangzhou to the north. This was the Tongji canal from Emperor Yang of Sui Dynasty. It went from Kaifeng to the north of Yangzhou. If rice needed to be transported further to Luoyang from Kaifeng, it was impossible because the Bian Canal was broken. Land transport was difficult and wasted many people and resources. The Song Dynasty started in a chaotic and ruined society from the Five Dynasties. They had no resources to transport grain to Luoyang again. Chang'an was also desolate. To save shipping costs, Emperor Taizu moved the capital to Kaifeng. He also said that when the country was peaceful, they would move west.
At that time, there were two military strategies. The first was to attack the northern bank of the Yellow River first, defeating the Northern Han and Liao. This was a risky strategy. If the Song lost, they would be completely destroyed. The other strategy was to conquer the Yangtze River Basin first, uniting the south, before moving north. This was a safer strategy. Emperor Taizu chose the second strategy. He unified the south first, leaving the harder tasks for later generations. After he became emperor, he led his army against Liao twice and lost both times. The first time, he fought at the Sorghum River and was defeated. He was injured by an arrow and later died from the injury. At the time, this had to be kept secret because it was a disgrace.
Since the Song Dynasty was not strong after its founding, they couldn't reduce troops or dismiss old soldiers. At the same time, they didn't dare to fight against Liao because Song couldn't afford to lose. If they lost, they would have to retreat to the Yellow River, which would shake the country's foundations. So, the Song Dynasty had to raise and feed its soldiers, even though they knew they couldn't be used in battle. Strangely, after raising the army, the government didn't pay much attention to them. Instead, they promoted scholars. The government supported scholarly rule. They valued scholars more than the military. While they still wanted troops to defend against foreign tribes, they wanted to slowly reduce the power of military generals. This was to avoid the mistakes of the late Tang and Five Dynasties.
Since troops were not dismissed, the state had more and more soldiers to feed. In the "Water Margin," Lin Chong was the head of 830,000 forbidden army. In reality, Taizu had only 200,000 troops when he founded the country. Taizong had 660,000, and Renzong had 1.25 million. So, when Wang Anshi reformed policies, he started by dismissing troops. He tried to bring back the ancient militia system instead of mercenary troops. However, the militia system was implemented too quickly. So, another system was tried in the Yellow River Basin. This system, Baojia, trained farmers to be soldiers. The hope was that they could form an emergency force during attacks. This would lower the cost of raising soldiers.
The Song Dynasty's military approach was mostly defensive. They didn't dare to attack first. But matching a defensive approach with a military recruitment program was a mistake. People feared arrogant generals the most since the late Tang and Five Dynasties. But generals were still arrogant in the Song dynasty. The country had to please them and give them rewards. Otherwise, they might rebel. While the government reluctantly did this, they increased the influence of scholars and ministers. This was to reduce the status of military generals. The generals had little to do. Every winter, they would receive fuel. After raising soldiers, the government raised scholars. They gradually increased the number of ministers and also had to reward them. The situation got out of hand. It led to too many soldiers and too many ministers. This put a huge burden on the nation's economy. This weakness made the Song poor. In turn, it weakened the country's power until the situation could not be reversed. Having too many soldiers was a major reason for the downfall of the Song Dynasty.
Not having enough resources for national defense was also a big problem for the Song Dynasty. Horses were only raised in two places in the country: the northeast and the northwest. The first area was in the wild north, around Reza. The second was in the Ganlianghe area. Horses needed to be raised in cold, high-altitude places. They couldn't be kept scattered. They needed large mountains and valleys with young grass, sweet springs, and open fields. They needed to be in groups for cavalry to chase enemies over long distances. However, these two horse-raising areas were captured by foreign tribes early in the Song Dynasty. One was taken by Liao, and the other by Xixia. Also, good iron ores needed for horse gear were found outside Song territory in the northeast. This also became a weakness for the Song Dynasty. It was hard to raise horses in warm and humid areas, as they would easily get sick and die. So, the lack of horses was another major obstacle for the Song Dynasty's national defense.
After the peace treaty between Song and Liao, the Song Dynasty's national defense became difficult. The two countries never formally fought wars or set up border defenses. People were only encouraged to plant rice fields, dig more canals, and plant more poplars beside the canals. In case of war, these could block the enemy and act as a defense against the Liao cavalry.
Economy
Agriculture
In 1012, during Emperor Zhenzong's reign, a new type of rice called Zhancheng rice was introduced. This rice was widely promoted. About 30,000 units of Zhancheng rice were brought from Fujian and given to areas like Jianghuai and Liangzhe. This was the first large-scale introduction of a new rice crop in Chinese history.
During Emperor Shenzong's Xining period, there were big projects to clear rivers, remove silt, and improve farmland. Over 10,000 water systems were built across the country. This led to more than 36 million mu (a unit of land) of irrigated fields. In the lower Yangtze River area, rice and wheat were planted twice a year. This increased farm output. Farm tools also improved greatly. A tool for lifting sprouts was invented. People also found that powdered minerals like lime, sulfur, and stalactite could be used as fertilizers. Rapeseed became the main crop for oil in the Jiangnan region. Tea trees were widely planted throughout the South. Sichuan, Guangxi, Liangzhe, and Fujian became popular areas for growing sugarcane. Qin Guan's "Silkworm Book" was the earliest writing about silkworm farming in China.
During the Northern Song Dynasty's best period, linen production was twice that of the Tang Dynasty. The amount of cotton products in all textiles increased. The regions of Zhejiang and Sichuan became important centers for silk and weaving. Porcelain kilns were built all over the country. Ding kilns were in Dingzhou (now Hebei). Ru kilns were in Ruzhou (now Henan Linru). Jun Porcelain was made in Yingchang Prefecture Yangzhai (now Henan Yuzhou). Jingdezhen kilns were in Raozhou (now Jiangxi Boyang). All had their own special features.
With the growth of the wood-block printing industry, the demand for paper increased a lot. This led to fast growth in the private paper industry. It greatly improved paper-making skills in the Song Dynasty. In the Northern Song Dynasty, a lot of coal was mined. It was used for making metals and as fuel for people. Oil was used for both military purposes and medicine.
