The Tang Dynasty

• Emperor
• Aristocracy
• Most bureaucrats were hired because a relative had a high position
• They had a personal recommendation from a friend with a high position
• They married into an imperial family
• Civil Service Exam
• During the second half of the dynasty they tried to improve the bureaucracy by incorporating a civil service exam to fill government positions
• However, the exam favored members of the aristocracy because only wealthy people could afford to go to university and prepare for exams
• Peasant rebellians brought down the Tang Dynasty