The first century of the Unified Shilla period was a time of development and relative stability and prosperity despite the periodic conflicts between royal authority and the nobility. Though it had just come out of an age of intense competition and it fought with its powerful former ally for control over the region, the Shilla kingdom entered a golden age shortly after the storm had passed.
With peace came extravagance. The early times of the Unified Shilla period saw many great constructions and artistic projects such as the Bulguksa and the Seokguram Grotto commissioned by King Gyeongdeok 경덕왕. Among the grandest projects of the Unified Shilla period was Hwangnyongsa, which was recorded to have been one of the largest Buddhist temples in East Asia. This temple featured an enormous nine-story wooden pagoda. The temple complex and pagoda were destroyed during the Mongol invasions during the Goryeo Period, but the foundation stones in existence and historical records confirm its mammoth proportions and reaffirm the wealth and technological capabilities of the Shilla kingdom.
Along with newly-acquired territory, the Shilla monarchy also incorporated the nobility and peoples of Goguryeo and Baekje into the kingdom. Specialists were invited to serve the greater interests of the government. In 722 CE, peasants were alotted land to cultivate in exchange for an annual tax. The Shilla capital at Gyeongju flourished and the upper classes enjoyed a lavish lifestyle as the city became one of the great metropolises of East Asia. The population at the capital soared beyond two-hundred thousand and its metropolitan area may have had as many as a million inhabitants; in its heyday, the Gyeongju was far greater in size and population and splendor during the Unified Shilla period than it is in its present state today.
Buddhism spread further through the masses as prominent monks such as Wonhyo increased their efforts to spread their religion as well as set up new Buddhist schools of thought.
Sources:
www.asianinfo.org/asianinfo/korea/history/unified_shilla.htm
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