Dynastic history of China — a timeline

The dynastic timeline

Xia (~2070 BCE – ~1600 BCE) Semi-mythological; the first dynasty in traditional history. Erlitou archaeological culture is associated with it.

Shang (~1600 BCE – 1046 BCE) Bronze Age. Oracle-bone divination is the earliest Chinese writing.

Zhou (1046 BCE – 256 BCE) Western Zhou (1046–771) — feudal kingdom. Eastern Zhou (770–256) — fragmenting; the Spring and Autumn period (770–476) and Warring States period (475–221). Confucius (551–479 BCE), Laozi (traditionally 6th c. BCE), Sun Tzu, Mencius lived during this era.

Qin (221 BCE – 206 BCE) Qin Shi Huang unified China; standardised script, currency, weights. Began the Great Wall as a connected system. The Terracotta Army was buried for him in 210 BCE.

Han (206 BCE – 220 CE) The first long-stable empire. Buddhism arrived from India. The Silk Road opened. Han ethnic identity dates from this period.

Three Kingdoms (220–280 CE) Wei, Shu, Wu. Romanticised in the Ming-era novel *Romance of the Three Kingdoms*.

Jin (265–420 CE) and Northern and Southern Dynasties (420–589) Fragmented. Buddhism flourished. Yungang Grottoes carved.

Sui (581–618) Brief reunification. Grand Canal completed.

Tang (618–907) Golden age. Capital Chang'an (modern Xi'an) was the largest and most cosmopolitan city in the world. Poetry of Li Bai and Du Fu. Buddhism reached its height. Mogao Caves expanded.

Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms (907–960) Brief fragmentation.

Song (960–1279) Northern Song (960–1127) capital Kaifeng. Southern Song (1127–1279) capital Hangzhou. Movable type, gunpowder, paper money. Cultural and economic apex.

Yuan (1271–1368) Mongol dynasty. Capital Khanbaliq (Beijing). Marco Polo visited. Grand Canal extended.

Ming (1368–1644) Capital briefly Nanjing, then Beijing (from 1420). Forbidden City, Ming Wall. Treasure voyages of Zheng He. Closed-door policy in the late period.

Qing (1644–1912) Manchu dynasty. Final emperor Puyi abdicated 1912. Major figures: Kangxi, Yongzheng, Qianlong (the High Qing 1684–1795). Opium Wars (1839–60). Treaty ports established. Boxer Rebellion (1899–1901). Last Qing reform attempt failed; the dynasty collapsed.

Republic of China (1912–1949) Sun Yat-sen, Chiang Kai-shek. Civil war and Japanese invasion (1937–45). The Republic government retreated to Taiwan in 1949.

People's Republic of China (1949–present) Founded 1 October 1949 by Mao Zedong. Major periods: Mao era (1949–76), Reform and Opening (1978 onward, under Deng Xiaoping), the Xi Jinping era from 2012.

Where to see this history

• Beijing: Forbidden City (Ming, Qing), Tiananmen, National Museum.
• Xi'an: Terracotta Army (Qin), Tang remains.
• Luoyang: Tang capital remains, Longmen Grottoes.
• Nanjing: Ming founder's tomb, Republic of China presidential palace.
• Beijing/Shanghai/Wuhan: museums hold the integrated narrative.