A Brief Chinese History
From the Tang Dynasty to the Qing Dynasty

The Tang Dynasty
(618-907 A.D.)
 The second golden Era
 Capital city: Chang’an
(a center for international trade)
Founder: Li Yuan

 Reflection of mirror correct your dressing;
 Reflection of history tell you boom-and-bust;
 Reflection of criticism correct your mistake.
The golden era during the reigns of Tai Zong

The first female monarch in Chinese history
624-705
The An Lushan Rebellion

Religions
Islam from Arabia,
Nestorian Christian sect of Syria,
Zoroastrianism from Persia

Tang Poetry (Men of letters)
Li Bai, Du Fu, Bai Juyi, Liu Yuxi, Han Yu, Liu Zongyuan
Calligraphers
Yan Zhenqing, Liu Gongquan

Five Dynasties &Ten States (907-960)
Five Dynasties in the north: (907-960)
Later Liang, Later Tang,
Later Jin, Later Han, and Later Zhou succeeded each other
Ten States in the south (902-979)

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Liao (907-1125)
Western Xia (1032-1227)
Jin (1115-1234) Manchus (Nvzhen)
Northern Song (960-1127)
Song
Dynasty
Southern Song (1127-1279)

Northern Song
 Founder: Zhao Kuangyin
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The movable printing----
Bi Sheng
Gunpowder used in war
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The compass employed in navigation
Song Ci (Su shi) the highest glory of literature

The Southern Song
 Capital city: Hangzhou
(a highly developed commercial, political
& cultural center)
 Neo-Confucianism (Zhu Xi)
 Li Qingzhao, Xin Qiji, Lu You
 the first blue and white porcelain

Genghis Khan united the Mongol tribes(1206 -1215)
Founder : Kublai Khan (1271)
The reign title changed into Yuan (Beijing)

The Yuan Dynasty ( 1271-1368)
Marco Polo
The first records of travel by
Westerners to China
The first foreigner to give a detailed account of the country
China under the Mongols with unrivaled splendor and power

The Ming Dynasty ( 1368-1644)
Founder: Zhu Yuanzhang
Capital City: Nan Jing

Emperor Yongle Zhu Di
Capital: Beijing the Forbidden City
( 明成祖 )
Yongle Encyclopedia

Zheng He (Africa, the Red Sea, Mecca)

 Journey to the West --- Wu Cheng’en
 The Romance of the Three Kingdoms
---Lou Guanzhong
 Outlaws of the Marsh
----Shi Nai’an



The eunuchs dominated the politics
The eunuchs’ interference in state affairs led to the corruption, chaos and destruction of the country.
1643 Li Zicheng founded new government and overthrew the Ming Dynasty.

The Qing Dynasty (1644-1911)
 1616 Nurhachi united Manchu tribes and re-established the Jin
Kingdom
 1636 the Jin Kingdom changed into Qing
 Emperor Shun Zhi (Beijing in
1644)
 The last feudal dynasty
 The consolidation and strengthening of central power.

The prosperous period during the reigns of the three emperors (1663-1796)
During the 18th century, China was the largest, richest and most influential country in the world.

Achievements in
Literature (Novels)
The Dream of Red
Mansions
Caoxueqin
The Scholars
Wu Jingzi
Strange Tales from a
Scholar’s Studio
Pu Songling

A Series of Events
 1840 the first Opium War (Semi-colonial &semi-feudal)
1851-1864 the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom
1856-1860 the second Opium War
1883-1885 The Sino-French War
1894-1895 The Sino-Japanese War
1898 Wu Hsu Reform (the Hundred-day Reform)
1899-1900 the Boxer Uprising
 1900 the invasion of eight imperalist countries
1911 the 1911 Revolution
(Provisional Government in Nanjing)