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| Han Dynasty |
| Qin - Han - Tang |
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The Han dynasty (206 BCE - 220 CE) was abundant
in cultural relics and over 10,000 tombs were constructed for the leaders
and officials who served during the regime. The Han dynasty emerged after a five-year civil war had broken out. The leaders of the former feudal states rose against the emperor Qin, and the empire was overturned. This instigated the closing of the Qin dynasty and the uprising of the Han. The initial (referred to as the "former" or "western") Han emperor, Gaodi (206 BCE - 195 CE) first worked to re-establish the unity of the empire after the war. He accomplished this by replacing all of the disparate provinces and kingdoms with his own, his brother's, or his son's. The Han ruling brought a better perspective towards the government in general. |
Qin's "strong-hand" legalism was replaced with Han Confucianism.
Han Confucianism was based on the belief that good government was dependant
upon consent of the people, and not by force. The country prospered and
Confucianism was the core of the educational system. Confucius scholars
were soon recruited and trained for government services.
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Figures like this Court Official would have been very highly trained in Confucianist principles. The ceramic statuette of a court officialo from a Tang tomb of the 7th or 8th century shows one of these proud and cultured bureaucrats, self-possessed and confident of his power. However, one could also fall from grace, and some poems of the period describe the anguish of banishment from the seat of power while others describe the joys of the simple life away from the cares that power entailed. page1 [ Back to top ] |
There were many military victories
during the Han reign. The empire expanded westward as far as the Tarim Basin
(today referred to as the Xinjiang-Uyghur autonomous region). This expansion
helped to secure all caravan traffic along the famed "Silk Route". The silk route (or silk road) was a trading route that travelers used in
order to sell and trade goods from their respective countries. |
At its most prolific, the road connected the Mediterranean Sea shore
through central Asia and along the Yellow River. There was also a
part of the route that breaks off at the beginning of central Asia
(before the mountainous regions) and travels along the Arabian Sea.
The silk route received its name from its initial use to export silk
to the Roman Empire. China was considered "The Country of Silk"during
the Han dynasty by many countries. As traffic increased along the silk
route during the Han dynasty, the Han capital was flooded with westerners. |
 This Han dynasty bronze mirror was one type of
trade good Emperor Wu Di sent on trading expeditions westward.page2 [ Back to top ] |
| The long wars that were fought during the Han dynasty began to weaken central control, and economic problems followed soon after. There was a rise of powerful families that tried to take over the ruling dynasty. After 200 years of rule, the Han dynasty had a brief interruption from 9 CE to 24 CE when the Wang Mang family sought control. Wang Mang was granted leadership because of his promises to control the rich class and redistribute wealth throughout the country. He also promised to ban the sale of slaves. During his short succession, Wang Mang was unable to carry out any of these promises, and he was soon slain by a common soldier. Rule was then restored to the Han dynasty. |
Due to the fall of Wang Mang, there was a harsh, two-year civil war in which
competing rebel groups (stirred up by Wang Mang) battled for supremacy.
During this time, the capital at Chang'an and many of the Western (or Former)
Han imperial tombs were robbed and severely damaged. The capital was moved
eastward to Luoyang under then ruling of Guang Wudi. He strengthened the
imperial authority by reconsolidating leadership roles through positive
reform. This period of the Han dynasty is referred to as the Eastern, or
Later, Han because of this move, and this rule lasted for another 200 years.
page3 [ Back to top ] |
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Around this time (c.109 CE), the first form of paper had been developed
out of hemp leaves, tree bark, and linen. This was believed to be
the single most important invention during the Han dynasty. Scholarship
and writing skills have always been held in utmost regard in China.
The addition of paper added to the Chinese pride in these skills.
By the 3rd century CE, paper was in general use and made
bamboo and silk slips obselete. Other major inventions in this era include
the seismograph and compass. go to www.cgan.com to see images of paper and writing utencsils. And www.geocities.com to see the process of how paper was made. |
The increasing warlords seeking power, a strand of poorly supported child-emperors,
and a plague of natural disasters leading to a national poverty led to the
final collapse of the Han dynasty in 220 CE.
page4 [ Back to top ] |
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