In Chinese history, the degree of cultural autocracy in each dynasty varied, but in general, the rulers had relatively tight control over the academic and cultural fields. The development of cultural autocracy in ancient China can be divided into four stages: The first stage is the pre-Qin and Han Dynasties, when cultural autocracy first emerged. Before the Spring and Autumn Period, "learning was in the government", and culture and academics were in the hands of the rulers and nobles. After hundreds of schools of thought contended during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, Qin Shihuang's "burning books and trapping Confucians" and Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty's "deposing hundreds of schools of thought and respecting Confucianism alone" ended the only period of active intellectual and cultural activity in Chinese history, which had a far-reaching impact. The second stage is the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties periods. During this period, literature, history, metaphysics, and Buddhism developed vigorously, but there were also many disasters such as remonstrance, history, poetry, and rejection of Buddhism. This was the development stage of cultural autocracy. The third stage was the Sui, Tang and Song Dynasties, which was the flourishing period of cultural autocracy. In addition to incidents such as slander, poetry, and bans on learning and writing, the imperial court implemented the practice of selecting officials through the examination system, and the rulers used the imperial examination as a means to strengthen their control over intellectuals. The two Song Dynasties set off fierce and frequent party disputes over the reform and the peace and war issues with the Jin Dynasty. In addition, during this period, the imperial court promoted the compilation of large volumes of books, which also played a significant role in the monarch's implementation of cultural autocracy. The fourth stage was the Ming and Qing dynasties, which was the peak stage of cultural autocracy. The imperial court brutally persecuted intellectuals to a degree far exceeding that of any previous dynasty. The Literary Prison was the climax and typical example of cultural autocracy in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. From the above summary, we can see that ancient Chinese cultural autocracy was long-lasting and harsh, and played an important role in strengthening the monarchy’s autocratic rule.

Authoritarian means 1: ideological suppression. Authoritarian means 2: officialdom monopoly. Authoritarian means 3: academic monopoly. Authoritarian means 4: speech taboos. Authoritarian means 5: religious control.

Reference: http://www.thjy.org/ chuyilishi/Article/632819917899062500.aspx