Han dynasty

The Han dynasty (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD) was an imperial dynasty of China started by Liu Bang. It came after the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–206 BC) and a time without a clear ruler, called the interregnum or the Chu–Han Contention (206–202 BC). The Three Kingdoms period (220–280 AD) followed it. For a short time, the Xin dynasty (9–23 AD) took over. It was started by the regent Wang Mang after he seized power. Because of this break, historians split the dynasty into two parts: the Western Han (202 BC – 9 AD) and the Eastern Han (25–220 AD). Many people see the Han dynasty as a golden age in Chinese history. It had a lasting effect on Chinese identity in later times. The largest ethnic group in modern China calls itself the "Han people". The spoken Chinese language is called the "Han language," and the written Chinese writing system is called "Han characters."

The Han emperor was at the top of Han society and culture. He led the Han government, but he shared power with the nobility and the ministers he appointed. Most of these ministers came from the educated gentry class. The empire was split into commanderies, which the central government ran directly, and semi-autonomous kingdoms. These kingdoms slowly lost their independence, especially after the Rebellion of the Seven States. Starting with the reign of Emperor Wu (r. 141–87 BC), the court officially supported Confucianism in schools and court politics. It mixed this with the ideas of cosmology from Dong Zhongshu. The Han dynasty had periods of economic prosperity and grew its money economy, which had first started during the Zhou dynasty (c. 1050–256 BC). The coins made by the central government in 119 BC stayed the standard in China until the Tang dynasty (618–907 AD).

The Han period saw many advances in science and technology. People invented papermaking and rudders for steering ships. They also used negative numbers in mathematics and made raised-relief maps. Inventors built hydraulic-powered armillary spheres for astronomy. They also made seismometers that could show the direction of distant earthquakes, using inverted pendulums. The Han also had many conflicts with the Xiongnu, a nomadic group of tribes based in the eastern Eurasian steppe. The Xiongnu defeated the Han in 200 BC. The Han then tried to keep peace with them through marriage alliances and gifts of tribute. Even so, the Xiongnu kept raiding China's northern borders.

Han policy changed in 133 BC, when Emperor Wu began a series of military campaigns to push back the Xiongnu. Han forces took control of the Hexi Corridor and the Inner Asian territory of the Tarim Basin, cutting them off from the Xiongnu. This helped set up the Silk Road trade route. The Xiongnu were eventually defeated and had to accept a status as Han vassals. Later, the nomadic Xianbei confederation spread across the lands north of the Han borders. Emperor Wu also had successful conquests in the south. He took over Nanyue in 111 BC and Dian in 109 BC. He also expanded Han territory into the northern Korean Peninsula. There, Han forces conquered Gojoseon and set up the Xuantu and Lelang commanderies in 108 BC.

After 92 AD, palace eunuchs became more involved in court politics. They took part in harmful power struggles between the consort clans of the empresses and empresses dowager. The emperor's power was also seriously challenged by large Taoist religious groups. These groups led the Yellow Turban Rebellion and the Five Pecks of Rice Rebellion. After the death of Emperor Ling (r. 168–189 AD), military officers killed many of the palace eunuchs. This allowed members of the aristocracy and military governors to become warlords and divide the empire. The Han dynasty ended in 220 AD, when Cao Pi, king of Wei, took the throne from Emperor Xian.

Etymology

According to the Shiji, after the Qin dynasty fell, the powerful leader Xiang Yu made Liu Bang prince of the small region of Hanzhong. The region got its name from the Han River, in what is now southwest Shaanxi.

After Liu Bang won the Chu–Han Contention, he started a new dynasty, which was named after the Hanzhong region. The Chinese character Han (漢) was also an old name for the Milky Way, which people called the "Sky River."

History

Main article: History of the Han dynasty

Further information: Timeline of the Han dynasty

In 202 BC, Liu Bang defeated his rival Xiang Yu and became emperor. This started the Han dynasty. The Han came after the Qin dynasty. The Qin had united China, but it became unstable after the death of its first emperor, Qin Shi Huang. The Han made Chang'an their capital. Emperor Wu sent large armies against the Xiongnu. To pay for these campaigns, his government took control of several private industries. The diplomat Zhang Qian traveled far and helped start the Silk Road trade network. In 9 AD, Wang Mang took power and founded the Xin dynasty, which briefly ended the Han. Floods and rebel groups, such as the Red Eyebrows, made his rule weaker. In 25 AD, Liu Xiu became Emperor Guangwu of Han. He brought the Han back and moved the capital to Luoyang.

The Eastern Han lasted from 25 to 220 AD. Over time, eunuchs gained influence at the royal court. Power struggles and rebellions, including the Yellow Turban Rebellion, weakened the empire. Powerful generals, such as Dong Zhuo and Cao Cao, gained control. In 220 AD, Cao Pi forced Emperor Xian of Han to give up the throne. This formally ended the Han dynasty and began the period of the Three Kingdoms.

Culture and society

Main article: Society and culture of the Han dynasty

See also: Chinese nobility, Marquis Baocheng, and Four occupations

See also: Women in Han China

Further information: Chinese philosophy and Chinese literature

Further information: Hanfu

Further information: Chinese mythology, Chinese theology, and Chinese folk religion

In Han society, the emperor was at the top of the social order. He was often a child, so a regent ruled in his place. The regent was usually the empress dowager or one of her male relatives. Just below the emperor were the kings of the Liu family. Everyone else belonged to one of twenty ranks, except for slaves. The ranks included nobles and commoners. Higher ranks brought bigger pensions and more legal privileges. The highest rank was full marquess, and it also came with a fiefdom. Scholar-bureaucrats ranked just below nobles. In the Eastern Han, educated people in local areas began to see themselves as part of a nationwide gentry class. Small farmers who owned their land ranked just below scholars and officials. Tenants, wage workers, and slavery in China were of lower status. Families were patrilineal, and many marriages were arranged by families. Each son received an equal share of the family property, because there was no primogeniture. Women could earn money, and the most common work for them was weaving clothes.

Emperor Wu gave Confucianism special support and set up the Imperial University in 124 BC. Han Confucianism under his rule was shaped by Dong Zhongshu. Scholars wrote important texts. The Book of Han followed the model of the Shiji. Some laws were based on earlier Legalism ideas. Punishments included fines, hard labour, and death. Common crops included wheat, barley, and rice. People believed in spirits and ancestors, and the emperor acted as the highest priest. Taoist groups sought immortality. Buddhism first entered China through the Silk Road during the Eastern Han.

Government and politics

Main article: Government of the Han dynasty

See also: List of emperors of the Han dynasty and Translation of Han dynasty titles

Main article: Kings of the Han dynasty

Main article: Military of the Han dynasty

See also: List of provinces and commanderies of the Han dynasty

In the Han government, the emperor was the highest judge, the maker of laws, and the leader of the army. He alone chose the officials for the top jobs. In theory, his power had no limits, but his ministers often gave him advice, and he often listened. Below the emperor was his cabinet, called the Three Councillors of State. This group included the Chancellor or Minister over the Masses, the Imperial Counsellor, and the Grand Commandant. The Chancellor mainly planned the government budget. Below them were the Nine Ministers, each in charge of a special ministry. The Minister of the Household protected the emperor when he traveled by chariot. The Minister Herald welcomed foreign ambassadors at the court. The Minister of Finance was the treasurer for the government offices and the army.

The empire was divided into provinces, commanderies, and counties. Each county had several districts made up of hamlets. A county head was called a magistrate. The magistrate kept order, recorded people for taxes, and called ordinary people to do corvée work, which was unpaid labor for the government. Some kingdoms were ruled by the emperor's male relatives as fiefdoms that had a lot of self-rule. In 145 BC, after several revolts by kings, Emperor Jing of Han took away their right to appoint officials with salaries higher than 400 bushels. Before his reign, the Han emperors often had trouble with vassal kings who switched sides to the Xiongnu when they felt threatened. Later, the Han made a treaty with the Xiongnu, sealed by a marriage alliance (heqin). Male commoners had to serve in the army when called. The army was divided into cavalry, navy, and infantry. Later, a volunteer army was preferred, along with a standing army. Units were arranged as divisions, regiments, companies, and platoons.

Economy

Main article: Economy of the Han dynasty

The Han dynasty first used the ban liang coins from the Qin. Early on, Emperor Gaozu closed the government mint and let private people make coins. In 186 BC, his widow, Grand Empress Dowager Lü Zhi, ended private coin-making. In 182 BC, she issued much lighter bronze coins, which caused widespread inflation. Prices did not settle until 175 BC, when Emperor Wen allowed private makers to make coins of an exact weight. In 120 BC, Emperor Wu replaced the ban liangs with the wuzhu coin. It stayed China's standard coin until the Tang dynasty. In 113 BC, the central government took over coin-making from local areas. The Superintendent of Waterways and Parks oversaw it.

Farmers paid a land tax using part of their crop yield. The poll tax and property taxes were paid in coins. The poll tax helped create a money economy. Successful merchants used their money to buy land, even though laws tried to limit them. During the later Eastern Han, many small farmers fell into debt and became tenants. To help them keep their own farms, the government set up agricultural colonies. In 117 BC, the government also took control of the salt and iron industries. In 98 BC, it took control of the Liquor trade, but this was undone in 81 BC.

Science and technology

Main article: Science and technology of the Han dynasty

The Han dynasty was a special time for early Chinese science and technology. Its progress can be compared to the Song dynasty (960–1279). Writing materials changed during this time. Cai Lun created the standard way of making paper in 105. Han craftspeople used iron to make tools. The three-legged iron seed drill helped farmers plant crops in neat rows. Timber was the main building material, so most Han wooden buildings have decayed. Some brick and rammed-earth ruins still stand. Engineers also built bridges and dug mines. Han inventors made many machines, including the rotary fan and early tools for measuring. Zhang Heng built an armillary sphere and a device that detected earthquakes. The Han also made progress in mathematics, including the first known use of negative numbers, and in astronomy.