Confucianism, the State and the Civil Service Exams

Confucianism became state orthodoxy under the Han dynasty, when Emperor Wu (r. 141–87 BCE) favored Confucian scholars and founded an imperial academy in 124 BCE. Over centuries, government service came to depend on mastering Confucian classics. The imperial examination system, expanded under the Sui and Tang and fully developed in the Song, selected officials through demanding tests, creating a scholar-official class. In theory, any man could rise through merit; in practice, wealthy families had more time and money for study, and women were excluded.

Under the Song, Zhu Xi (1130–1200) created Neo-Confucianism, combining Confucian ethics with metaphysical ideas partly in response to Buddhism, and his commentaries became the official exam curriculum from 1313. Confucian ideas also spread to Korea, Vietnam and Japan, shaping governments and family law. The examinations were abolished in 1905, but the link between education, merit and public service remains influential.