Dynasty Years Eastern Han Dynasty dōng hàn 25 220 195 Three Kingdoms sān guó 220 265 45 Jin Dynasty xī jìn / dōng jìn 265 420 155 Southern and Northern Dynasties nán běi cháo 420 589 169 Sui Dynasty suí 581-618 37 Tang Dynasty táng 618 907 289 Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms wǔ dài shí guó 907 960 53 Northern Song Dynasty běi sòng 960 1127 167 Southern Song Dynasty nán sòng 1127 1279 152 Liao Dynasty liáo 916 1125 209 Jin Dynasty jīn 1115 1234 119 Yuan Dynasty yuán 1271 1368 97 Ming Dynasty míng 1368 1644 276 Shun Dynasty shùn 1644 <1 Qing Dynasty qīng 1644 1912 268
The Han Dynasty followed the Qin Dynasty and preceded the Three Kingdoms in China. The Han Dynasty was ruled by the family known as the Liu clan who had peasant origins. The reign of the Han Dynasty, lasting over 401 years, is commonly considered within China to be one of the greatest periods in the history of China. To this day, the ethnic majority of China still refer to themselves as the "Han people".
During the Han Dynasty, China officially became a Confucian state and prospered domestically: agriculture, handicrafts and commerce flourished, and the population reached over 56 million people. During the Han Dynasty paper was invented. The idea of Acupuncture, Feng Shua (the method of piercing the body with needles in certain pressure points to relieve stress), and even the world's first instrument used to track earthquakes was invented during this time. Meanwhile, the empire extended its political, cultural influence, and territory over much of Korea, Mongolia, Vietnam, and Central Asia before it finally collapsed under a combination of domestic and external pressures.
The Han Dynasty was notable also for its military prowess. The empire expanded westward to the Tarim Basin with military expeditions as far west as beyond the Caspian Sea, making possible a relatively safe and secure caravan and mercantile traffic across Central Asia. The paths of caravan traffic came to be known as the "Silk Road" because the route was used to export Chinese silk. Chinese armies also invaded and annexed parts of northern Korea (as well as establishing colonies and trading posts that eventually integrated with the locals) and northern Vietnam toward the end of the 2nd century BC.
To ensure peace with non-chinese powers, the Han court developed a mutually beneficial "tributary system". Non-Chinese states were allowed to remain autonomous in exchange for symbolic acceptance of Han overlordship. Tributary ties were confirmed and strengthened through intermarriages at the ruling level and periodic exchanges of gifts and goods.
The Three Kingdoms period is a period in the history of China following immediately the loss of de facto power of the Han Dynasty emperors. The three kingdoms were Wèi, Shǔ, and Wú. The earlier part of the period, from 190 to 220, was marked by chaotic infighting between warlords in various parts of China. The middle part of the period, from 220 and 263, was marked by a more militarily stable arrangement between three rival states, Cao Wei, Shu Han, and Eastern Wu. The later part of this period was marked by the collapse of the tripartite situation: first the destruction of Shu by Wei (263), then the overthrow of Wei by the Jin Dynasty (265), and the destruction of Wu by Jin (280).
Although relatively short, this historical period has been greatly romanticized in the cultures of China, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam. It has been celebrated and popularized in operas, folk stories, novels and in more recent times, films, television serials, and video games. The Three Kingdoms period is one of the bloodiest in Chinese history and a large percentage of the population was wiped out during the constant wars waged during this period. Technology advances significantly during this period. Zhuge Liang invented the wooden wheelbarrow. A brilliant mechanical engineer known as Ma Jun, in the Kingdom of Wei invented a hydraulic-powered, mechanical puppet theatre designed for Emperor Ming of Wei (Cao Rui), square-pallet chain pumps for irrigation of gardens in Luoyang, and the ingenious design of the South Pointing Chariot, a non-magnetic directional compass operated by differential gears.
The first of the two periods, the Western Jìn Dynasty (ch: 265 316), was founded by Emperor Wu, better known as Sima Yan. Although providing a brief period of unity after conquering the state of Eastern Wu in 280, the Jìn could not contain the invasion and uprising of nomadic peoples after the devastating War of the Eight Princes. The capital was Luoyang until 311 when Emperor Huai was captured by the forces of Han Zhao. Successive reign of Emperor Min lasted four years in Chang'an until its conquest by Han Zhao in 316. Meanwhile remnants of the Jìn court fled from the north to the south and reestablished the Jìn court at Jiankang, near modern-day Nanjing, under Prince of Longya.
Prominent local families supported the proclamation of Prince of Langye as Emperor Yuan of the Eastern Jìn Dynasty (ch: 317 420) when the news of the fall of Chang'an reached the south. Militaristic authorities and crises plagued the Eastern Jìn court throughout its 104 years of existence. It survived the rebellions of Wang Dun and Su Jun. The last emperor and brother of Emperor An, Emperor Gong, was installed in 419. Abdication of Emperor Gong in 420 in favor of Liu Yu, then Emperor Wu, ushered in the Liu Song Dynasty and the Southern Dynasties.
The Southern and Northern Dynasties followed the Jin Dynasty and preceded Sui Dynasty in China. It was an age of civil war and political disunity. However it was also a time of flourishing in the arts and culture, advancement in technology, and the spread of foreign Mahayana Buddhism and native Daoism. Distinctive Chinese Buddhism was also matured during this time and shaped by the northern and southern dynasties alike.
The Sui Dynasty followed the Southern and Northern Dynasties and preceded the Tang Dynasty in China. It ended nearly four centuries of division between rival regimes. The Sui Dynasty, founded by Emperor Wen, or Yang Jian, held its capital at Chang'an (present-day Xi'an. It was marked by the reunification of Southern and Northern China and the construction of the Grand Canal, though it was a relatively short Chinese dynasty. It saw various reforms by Emperors Wen and Yang: the land equalization system, initiated to reduce the rich-poor social gap, resulted in enhanced agricultural productivity; governmental power was centralized and the Three Departments and Six Ministries system officially instituted; coinage was standardized and re-unified; defense was improved, and the Great Wall was expanded.
Buddhism was also spread and encouraged throughout the empire, uniting the varied people and cultures of China. This dynasty has often been compared to the earlier Qin Dynasty in tenure and the ruthlessness of its accomplishments. The Sui dynasty's early demise was attributed to the government's tyrannical demands on the people, who bore the crushing burden of taxes and compulsory labor. These resources were overstrained in the completion of the Grand Canal--a monumental engineering feat and in the undertaking of other construction projects, including the reconstruction of the Great Wall. Weakened by costly and disastrous military campaigns against Goguryeo which ended with defeat of Sui in the early seventh century, the dynasty disintegrated through a combination of popular revolts, disloyalty, and assassination.
The Tang Dynasty (June 18, 618 June 4, 907) was an imperial dynasty of China preceded by the Sui Dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period. It was founded by the Li family, who seized power during the decline and collapse of the Sui Empire. The dynasty was interrupted briefly by the Second Zhou Dynasty (October 16, 690 March 3, 705) when Empress Wu Zetian seized the throne, becoming the first and only Chinese empress regnant, ruling in her own right. The Tang Dynasty, with its capital at Chang'an (present-day Xi'an), is regarded by historians as a high point in Chinese civilization, equal to or surpassing that of the earlier Han Dynasty, as well as a golden age of cosmopolitan culture.
Its territory, acquired through the military campaigns of its early rulers, was greater than that of the Han period, and rivaled that of the later Yuan Dynasty and Qing Dynasty. The enormous Grand Canal of China, built during the previous Sui Dynasty, facilitated the rise of new urban settlements along its route as well as increased trade between mainland Chinese markets. The canal is to this day the longest in the world. Population was about 50-80 million people.
With its large population base, the dynasty was able to raise professional and conscripted armies of hundreds of thousands of troops to contend with nomadic powers in dominating Inner Asia and the lucrative trade routes along the Silk Road. Various kingdoms and states paid tribute to the Tang court, while the Tang also conquered or subdued several regions which it indirectly controlled through a protectorate system. In Chinese history, the Tang Dynasty was largely a period of progress and stability.
Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms (907-960) was an era of political upheaval in China, beginning in the Tang Dynasty and ending in the Song Dynasty. During this period, five dynasties quickly succeeded one another in the north, and more than 12 independent states were established, mainly in the south. However, only ten are traditionally listed, hence the era's name, "Ten Kingdoms. The Five Dynasties: Later Liang Dynasty (June 5, 907-923) Later Tang Dynasty (923-936) Later Jin Dynasty (936-947) Later Han Dynasty (947-982) Later Zhou Dynasty (951-960)
The Ten Kingdoms: Wu Wuyue Min Chu Southern Han Former Shu Later Shu Jingnan Southern Tang Northern Han
The Song Dynasty was a ruling dynasty in China between 960 1279 CE; it succeeded the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period, and was followed by the Yuan Dynasty. It was the first government in world history to issue banknotes or paper money, and the first Chinese polity to establish a permanent standing navy. The Song Dynasty is divided into two distinct periods: the Northern Song and Southern Song. During the Northern Song (960 1127), the Song capital was in the northern city of Bianjing (now Kaifeng) and the dynasty controlled most of inner China.
The Southern Song (1127 1279) refers to the period after the Song lost control of northern China to the Jin Dynasty. During this time, the Song court retreated south of the Yangtze River and established their capital at Lin'an (now Hangzhou). The Southern Song Dynasty considerably bolstered naval strength to defend its waters and land borders and to conduct maritime missions abroad. To repel the Jin (and then the Mongols), the Song developed revolutionary new military technology augmented by the use of gunpowder.
In 1234, the Jin Dynasty was conquered by the Mongols, who subsequently took control of northern China and maintained uneasy relations with the Southern Song. Möngke Khan, the fourth Great Khan of the Mongol Empire, died in 1259 while besieging a city in Chongqing. His younger brother Kublai Khan was proclaimed to the new Great Khan of the Mongols and by 1271 as the Emperor of China. After two decades of sporadic warfare, Kublai Khan's armies conquered the Song Dynasty in 1279. China was once again unified, under the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368).
The Liao Dynasty was an empire in East Asia that ruled over the regions of Manchuria, Mongolia, and parts of northern China proper. It was founded by the Yelu clan of the Khitan people in the same year as Tang Dynasty collapsed (907), even though its first ruler, Yelü Abaoji, did not declare an era name until 916. Although it was originally known as the Empire of the Khitan, the Emperor Yelü Ruan officially adopted the name "Liao" (formally "Great Liao") in 947. The name "Liao" was dropped in 983, but readopted in 1066. The Liao Empire was destroyed by the Jurchen of the Jin Dynasty in 1125. However, remnants of its people led by Yelü Dashi established Xi (Western) Liao Dynasty 1125-1220, which survived until the arrival of Genghis Khan's unified Mongolian army.
The Jin Dynasty was founded in what would become northern Manchuria by the Jurchen tribal chieftan Wányán Āgǔdǎ in 1115. In 1125, it successfully annihilated the Liao Dynasty which had held sway over northern China, including Manchuria and part of the Mongol region for several centuries. Also at this time, the Jin made overtures to the Korean kingdom of Goryeo, which Emperor Yejong refused. On January 9, 1127, Jin forces ransacked Kaifeng, capital of the Northern Song Dynasty, capturing both Emperor Qinzong, and his father, Emperor Huizong, who had abdicated in panic in the face of Jin forces. Following the fall of Kaifeng, Song forces continued to fight for over a decade with Jin forces, eventually signing the Treaty of Shaoxing in 1141, calling for the cessation of all Song land north of the Huai River to the Jin.
The new Jin empire adopted many of the Chinese weapons, including various machines for siege warfare and artillery. The Jin use of cannons, grenades, and even rockets to defend besieged Kaifeng against the Mongols in 1233 is considered the first ever battle in human history in which gunpowder was used effectively, even though it failed to prevent the eventual Jin defeat. The Jin Empire was not particularly good at naval warfare. Both in 1129-30 and in 1161 Jin forces were defeated by the Southern Song navies when trying to cross the Yangtze River into the core Southern Song territory, even though for the latter campaign the Jin had equipped a large navy of their own, using Chinese ship builders and even Chinese captains who had defected from the Southern Song.
The Yuan Dynasty or Great Yuan Empire was a ruling dynasty founded by the Mongol leader Kublai Khan, who ruled most of present-day China, all of modern Mongolia and its surrounding areas, lasting officially from 1271 to 1368. In Chinese history, the Yuan Dynasty followed the Song Dynasty and preceded the Ming Dynasty. Although the dynasty was established by Kublai Khan, he had his grandfather Genghis Khan placed on the official record as the founder of the dynasty or Taizu.
The rulers of the Yuan Dynasty became Emperor of China by 1279, though Kublai Khan had also claimed the title of Great Khan. The Yuan is sometimes referred to as the Empire of the Great Khan, considered one of Mongol Empire's four descendant empires after its split. Neverthless, the Mongol Emperors of the Yuan held the title of Great Khan of all Mongol Khanates.
The Ming Dynasty was the ruling dynasty of China from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan Dynasty. The Ming was the last dynasty in China ruled by ethnic Hans (the main Chinese ethnic group). Although the Ming capital Beijing fell in 1644 to a rebellion led by Li Zicheng, which was itself soon replaced by the Manchu-led Qing Dynasty, regimes loyal to the Ming throne (collectively called the Southern Ming) survived until 1662. Ming rule saw the construction of a vast navy and a standing army of one million troops. Although private maritime trade and official tribute missions from China had taken place in previous dynasties, the tributary fleet under the Muslim eunuch admiral Zheng He in the 15th century far surpassed all others in size.
There were enormous construction projects, including the restoration of the Grand Canal and the Great Wall and the establishment of the Forbidden City in Beijing during the first quarter of the 15th century. Estimates for the late-ming population vary from 160 to 200 million. Emperor Hongwu (1368 1398) attempted to create a society of selfsufficient rural communities in a rigid, immobile system that would have no need to engage with the commercial life and trade of urban centers. His rebuilding of China's agricultural base and strengthening of communication routes through the militarized courier system had the unintended effect of creating a vast agricultural surplus that could be sold at burgeoning markets located along courier routes.
Rural culture and commerce became influenced by urban trends. The upper echelons of society embodied in the scholarly gentry class were also affected by this new consumption-based culture. In a departure from tradition, merchant families began to produce examination candidates to become scholar-officials and adopted cultural traits and practices typical of the gentry. Parallel to this trend involving social class and commercial consumption were changes in social and political philosophy, bureaucracy and governmental institutions, and even arts and literature.
By the 16th century the Ming economy was stimulated by maritime trade with the Portuguese, Spanish, and Dutch. China became involved in a new global trade of goods, plants, animals, and food crops known as the Columbian Exchange. Trade with European powers and the Japanese brought in massive amounts of silver, which then replaced copper and paper banknotes as the common medium of exchange in China. During the last decades of the Ming the flow of silver into China was greatly diminished, thereby undermining state revenues and indeed the entire Ming economy. This damage to the economy was compounded by the effects on agriculture of the incipient Little Ice Age, natural calamities, crop failure, and sudden epidemics. The ensuing breakdown of authority and people's livelihoods allowed rebel leaders such as Li Zicheng to challenge Ming authority.
The Shun Dynasty was an imperial dynasty created in the brief lapse from Ming to Qing rule in China. The dynasty was founded in Xi'an on 8 February 1644, the first day of the lunar year, by Li Zicheng, the leader of a large peasant rebellion. Li, however, only went by the title of Prince, not emperor. The capture of Beijing by the Shun forces in April 1644 marked the end of the Ming dynasty, but Li Zicheng failed to solidify his mandate: in late May 1644, he was defeated at the Battle of Shanhai Pass by the joint forces of Ming general Wu Sangui and Manchu prince Dorgon. When he fled back to Beijing in early June, Li finally proclaimed himself emperor of China and left the capital in a hurry. The Shun dynasty ended with Li's death in 1646.
The Quin Dynasty was founded not by the Han Chinese who form the majority of the Chinese population, but the Manchus, who are today an ethnic minority within China. The Manchus are descended from Jurchens a Tungusic people who lived around the region now comprising the Russian province of Primorsky Krai and the Chinese provinces of Heilongjiang and Jilin.