Following the Tang Dynasty came a period of almost continual
warfare known as the Five Dynasties and Ten States. In 960, Zhao
Kuangyin, a general of the State of Later Zhou, established the
Song Dynasty (960-1279), historically known as the Northern Song
Dynasty. When the Song Dynasty moved its capital to the south,
historically called the Southern Song Dynasty, it brought advanced
economy and culture to the south, giving a great impetus to
economic development there. China in the Song Dynasty was a world
leader in astronomy, science and technology and printing
technology. Bi Sheng invented movable type printing, a major
revolution in the history of printing.?
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In 1206, Genghis Khan established the Mongolian Khanate. In
1271, Kublai, a grandson of Genghis Khan, conquered the Central
Plains, founded the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368), and made Dadu
(today's Beijing) the capital. Kublai ended the centuries-long
situation in which many independent regimes existed alongside each
other, by forming one united state that brought Xinjiang, Tibet and
Yunnan under its sway. During the Song-Yuan period, the "four great
inventions" in science and technology of the Chinese people in
ancient times - papermaking, printing, the compass and gunpowder -
were further developed and introduced to foreign countries, making
great contributions to world civilization.?
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In 1368, Zhu Yuanzhang established the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644)
in Nanjing, reigning as Emperor Taizu. When his son and successor
Zhu Di (r. 1360-1424) ascended the throne in 1402, he built and
expanded the palaces, temples, city walls and moats in Beijing on a
large scale. In 1421, he officially moved the capital to Beijing.
During his reign, he dispatched a eunuch named Zheng He to lead a
fleet of many ships to make six far-ranging voyages. In 1431, Zhu
Di's grandson, Emperor Xuanzong dispatched Zheng He to make the
seventh voyage. Passing the Southeast Asian countries, the Indian
Ocean, Persian Gulf and Maldives Islands, Zheng He explored as far
as Somalia and Kenya on the eastern coast of Africa. These were the
largest-scale and longest voyages in the world before the age of
Columbus.
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The Manchus of northeast China established the Qing Dynasty
(1644-1911) in 1644. The best known of the Qing Dynasty emperors,
Kangxi (r. 1661-1722) restored the central empire's rule over
Taiwan, and resisted invasions by tsarist Russia. To reinforce the
administration of Tibet, he also formulated the rules and
regulations on the confirmation of the Tibetan local leaders by the
Central Government. He effectively administered more than 11
million sq km of Chinese territory.?
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Dynasty
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Date
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Xia
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2070-1600 BC
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Shang
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1600-1046 BC
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Western Zhou
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1046-771 BC
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Eastern Zhou
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Spring and Autumn Period
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770-476 BC
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Warring States Period
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475-221 BC
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Qin
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221-206 BC
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Western Han
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206 BC-AD 25
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Eastern Han
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25-220
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Three Kingdoms (Wei, Shu and Wu)
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220-280
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Western Jin
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265-317
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Eastern Jin
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317-420
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Southern and Northern Dynasties
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420-589
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Sui
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581-618
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Tang
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618-907
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Five Dynasties
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907-960
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Northern Song
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960-1127
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Southern Song
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1127-1279
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Yuan
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1271-1368
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Ming
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1368-1644
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Qing
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1644-1911
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