The Xia Dynasty

The Zhou Dynasty

About 1994 BCE - 1766 BCE The Xia dynasty has been called the first dynasty. The Xia dynasty was said to have ended only when a Xia ruler mistreated his people and was overthrown by his people. However, there isn't any archaeological record to prove this story; the Shang dynasty is the first dynasty to be documented with reliable historical evidence.

1122 BCE - 256 BCE The Chinese civilization expanded during the time of the Zhou dynasty. The massive size that the dynasty covered was too much for the Zhou leaders to handle due to the poor means of communication. Because of this, the leaders decided to appoint people to oversee each of the territories. The territories started off as walled off cities. The leaders of each of the territories were the lords, each receiving the title through inheritance. Next in the hierarchy were the fighting men, followed by the peasants and the domestic slaves. Soon, these territories became more independent, eventually breaking away from the main Zhou dynasty leaders. The Zhou society was based on agricultural production. The religious practice of the Zhou Empire reflected their hierarchical way of life. The Zhou kings believed that they were given a mandate from heaven to rule. The kings prayed and sacrificed to Shang Ti, the Lord on High, now called T'ien (Heaven), and to their ancestors. The lords of the territories prayed to the local nature gods and to the gods of agriculture in addition to their ancestors. If any sacrifices or prayers were missed, great ill was predicted to fall on the territory or kingdom of the neglectful leader.

The Shang Dynasty

1766 BCE - 1027 BCE The Shang dynasty ruled parts of northern and central China. Its capital city was located at Anyang near the border of Henan from about 1384 BCE. This dynasty was based on agriculture; millet, wheat, and barley were the primary crops grown. In addition to the crops, silkworms, pigs, dogs, sheep, and oxen were raised. Aside from their agricultural prowess, the Shang dynasty was also advanced in metallurgy. Bronze ships, weapons, and tools were found from that era.The Shang dyansty was an aristocrastic society, with a king ruling over the military nobility. Underneath the aristocratic class was the priest class.The religion in the time of the Shang dynasty was based on ancestor worship and a worship of many gods; the main god was known as Shang Ti, the Lord on High.

Eastern Zhou

In 770 BCE, the Zhou kings lost control of the territories they had delegated to their lords. These territories, along with non-Chinese forces, rebelled and defeated the original Zhou capital. The Zhou then formed a new capital farther East. From this new capital, the Zhou forfeited their political and military control over their territories. The territories now were larger and more powerful than the original Zhou kingdom.

The Golden Age of Chinese Philosophy 403 BCE - 221 BCE Due to the instability of China, an intellectual movement swept through China that shaped China's state and culture. The most influential of the philosophers was Confucious. Confucius was the representation of the emerging class of administrators and advisors that were needed to aid rulers deal with the ever-present need of diplomacy with other states and internal administration. Confucius wanted a return to the Zhou style of governing. He believed that the rulers of that period had tried to develope a society based on the example of great personal virtue. By this, Confucius then took to the task of creating a class based on virtue that would take over the high positions of government and lead the people by their example. In addition to Confucianism, another school of philosophy was Taoism. The principles of Taosim are explained in the Tao-te-Ching or "Classic of the Way and Its Virtue." This text is said to have been created by Lao-tzu and in the works of Chuang-tzu. The Taoist philosophy was based on simplicity. The belief is that the government should be hands off, and let the people deal with the problems of nature and the people should return to primitive agricultural communities. Legalism was the third school of philosophy. The philosophers felt that, during their time of great disorder and chaos, something needed to be done. The legalist philosophers believed that every aspect of life should be ruled by a set of strict and impersonal laws. To have this system work, the legalists needed to have a powerful and wealthy state where the ruler had ultimate authority. The wealth and military strength is what gave the state and ruler power.

The Early Han Dynasty

206 BCE - 9 AD From the turbulent Ch'in dynasty a rebel leader, Liu Pang, arose to seize control of the former Ch'in empire. He proclaimed himself emperor in 206 BCE. He established the Han dynasty which would become the most durable dynasty of the imperial age.

The Xin Dynasty

9 AD - 23 AD During the revolt, a courtier, Wang Ming, deposed and infant emperor and established the short Xin dynasty. Slavery was abolished in this time and the peasants' lives were improved. State monopolies on salt, iron, and coinage were strengthened and new monopolies were created. Wang Ming tried to do too much and this lead to his downfall. He tried to pass legislation on land but it was repealed. A large rebellion, led by a group known as the Red Eyebrows, succeeded in killing Wang Ming and restoring the Han dynasty.

The Later Han Dynasty The Qin Dynasty

25 AD - 220 AD The weakness of the administration plagued the Later, or Eastern Han dynasty, from the beginning. As it was under the Earlier Han dynasty, the centeral government was weakened by infant emperors' mothers being appointed to leadership roles. With the help of the court eunuchs, the later emperors were able to get rid of this problem, but at the price of giving the eunuchs power equal to the mothers. This new power of the eunuchs did not sit well with officials, so the government was again divided by factionalism. Between 168 and 170 warfare exploded between the eunuchs and bureaucrats. The new eunuch power threatened the bureaucrat's position, something that the eunuchs thought the bureaucrats should not have had in the first place. By 184, two great rebellions broke out, led by Taoist religious groups. It wasn't until 215 that the great Han general, Ts'ao Ts'ao, was able to calm the rebellious attitude.

221 BCE - 206 BCE The Qin Dynasty was the dynasty that redefined China. The emperor of this time succeeded in making China one nation once more. Upon conquering all the warring states, the emperor pronounced himself as the first emperor of China or, Shih Huang Ti. The unified China was larger than it ever was. This was the first time outside forces acknowledged the existance of another race of people, and aptly named the nation China after the then current dynasty, the Qin. There are a lot of accomplishments of this dynasty but the most well known is the Great Wall of China.

Three Kingdoms

The Northen Sung Dynasty

The end of the Han dynasty was marked by the separation of the large families of that dynasty. The families took advantage of the weakened state of the government and started to establish their own private armies. Many dynasties were established during this time.

Wei Dynasty (220 AD - 265 AD) Shu Dynasty (221 AD - 263 AD) Wu Dynasty (222 AD - 280 AD)

These three kingdoms constantly fought one another during this time. But, in 265 Yen Ssu-ma, a general in the Wei dynasty overthrew the throne and created the Western Tsin or Chin dynasty (265 AD - 317 AD) in Northern China. Yen had reunited North and South China, but it fell apart when he died.

969 AD - 1126 AD To avoid the problems the Tang government faced, the Northern Sung made the military subordinate to the civil government. Every aspect of government and society was dominated by the civil government. The civil service test was expanded so that the government would have a constant flow of young talent. The Sung re-organized the imperial government, centralizing the control of the dynasty at the capital. The local government was left pretty much the same. Education flourished and the economy also continued to expand. The literature that was being created in the late Tang dynasty continued to flourish as well. However, even with such improvements, there was one major flaw, a weak military.

The Yuan Dynasty

Sui Dynasty
1279 AD - 1368 AD Kublai moved the Mongol capital from Karakorum to somewhere near Beijing. The mongol empire was vast. It stretched from eastern Europe to Korea and from northern Siberia to the northern rim of India. Instead of being tribal lords, the mongols ruled as if they were chinese. That is why they adopted the the dynasty name, Yuan. During this time, the traffic from West to East were greatly increased. Many missionaries and merchants influenced the Chinese. The most notable foreigner that visited during this time was Marco Polo. There was resentment towards the mongols by the Chinese. They accepted them as rulers but resented the fact that they held back able Chinese due to the Confucianism tests. Eventually, the mongol control of China was started to deteriorate. Uprisings sprung up in every province of China and, in the 1360s, Chu Yuan-chang was successful in exerting control throughout the Yellow River Valley. In 1371, Chu was successful in pushing the mongols back into Mongolia.

589 AD - 618 AD Under the Sui Dynasty (589 AD - 618 AD), China was reunited. Yang Chien, the first Sui emperor, was a military servant who usurped the throne of the non-Chinese Northern Chou in 581. In the next eight years, Yang Chien successfully reconquered the Chinese territory. The Sui dynasty re-established the centralized administrative system of the Han and reinstated the competitive tests that were once taken to measure a bureaucrat's competency.

The Tang Dynasty

618 AD - 907 AD The Tang dynasty was a dynasty that was characterized by such strength and brilliance that it is unprecidented by any other. The civil service examination was so refined, that the test's basic form was used in the 20th century. The role of the the imperial and local government was amplified so that it centralized administration and enacted an elaborate code of administrative and penal laws.

The Ming Dynasty

1368 AD - 1644 AD The Ming Dynasty was founded by Chu Yuan-chang, the rebel leader that was successful in removing the mongols from the throne. Chinese control was re-asserted in China and eastern Asia. Literature became more important, schools were created, and the justice system was reformed. The Great Wall and the Grand Canal were also improved. The dynasty was divided into 15 provinces and three commisioners were assigned to each province: one for finances, one for military, and one for judicial matters. The financial commisioner was over-ruled by a governor in the later years of the dynasty.

The Manchu or Qing Dynasty

1644 AD - 1912 AD Under Manchu rule, China reached the highest point in its 2000-year history and collapsed from internal pressure along with pressures exerted by the West. As with previous invaders of China, the Manchus started to absorb the Chinese culture. The government was based on that of the Ming and was more centralized. The central administration was regulated by a new institution called the Grand Council. This council regulated the military and political affairs guided by the emperor. The chief bureaus in the capital had both a Chinese and a Manchu leader. The traditional bureaucracy and civil service examination was generally the same as with previous Chinese dynasties.