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Hsia
c. 2200-1766BC
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Most historians believed the Hsia to be a mythical
dynasty, but recent archaeological findings have verified their
existence.
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Shang
1766- c.1040BC
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Excavations have confirmed descriptions in ancient
Chinese literature of a highly developed culture. The Shang Dynasty was
distinguished by an aristocratic government, great artistry in bronze, a
writing system still in use today, an agricultural economy, and armies
of thousands whose commanders rode in chariots.
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Chou
c.1040BC- 256BC
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The semi-nomadic Chou people from northwestern China
overthrew the Shang king. The Chou court developed a feudal society in
China.
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Ch’in
221BC-206BC
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The Legalists strengthened state power and control over
the people. Weights and measures, and the Chinese writing system were
unified. Chinese defenses were strengthened by creating the Great Wall.
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Han
206BC-AD220
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The Han Dynasty is often compared to the Roman Empire.
It is considered the "Golden Age of Chinese History." Today
the Chinese word for Chinese person means "a man of Han."
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Sui
589-618
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The Sui, Tang and Song Dynasties were quite
similar. The short-lived Sui dynasty reunified China after four hundred
years of fragmentation. |
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Tang
618-907
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Li Yuan was a Sui general who founded the
Tang Dynasty, the largest, wealthiest, and most populous in the world at
that time. The Tang based their laws on Confucian thought. The
Tang dynasty is romanticized in popular Chinese entertainment, sort of
like Camelot. |
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Song
960-1279
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The Song Dynasty reunited China 50 years after the end
of the Tang Dynasty and continued the flowering of Chinese
culture. They created a system of agriculture that assured that all got
fed. This system endured into the XXth century.
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Yuan (Mongol)
1279-1368
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Kublai Khan established the Yuan Dynasty after his
Mongol tribes defeated China. The Yuan encouraged Europeans to travel
overland to China; Marco Polo was the most famous of the early Europeans
to make the journey.
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Ming
1368-1644
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Founded by a Buddhist monk who led a peasant army to
victory over the Mongols.
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Qing (Manchu)
1644-1911
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Founded by conquerors from Manchuria in 1644, the Qing
was the last imperial dynasty of China. When it was overthrown in 1911,
China became a republic.
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