The Han dynasty ruled imperial China from 202 BC to 220 AD, founded by Liu Bang, posthumously honored as Emperor Gaozu, after he defeated his rival Xiang Yu at the Battle of Gaixia. The dynasty is divided into the Western Han period, based at the capital Chang'an, and the Eastern Han period, based at Luoyang, separated by a brief interruption from the short-lived Xin dynasty from 9 to 23 AD. At its peak the Han controlled roughly 6.5 million square kilometers, and China's first nationwide census in 2 AD recorded a population of about 57.7 million people across more than 12 million households. Han rulers established the Silk Road trade network, made Confucianism the state ideology under Emperor Wu, and oversaw innovations including papermaking and hydraulic-powered armillary spheres. The dynasty ended in 220 AD when Cao Pi, king of Wei, forced the abdication of the last Han emperor, Xian, opening the Three Kingdoms period among the rival successor states of Cao Wei, Shu Han and Eastern Wu.
Facts
Government TypeMonarchy (imperial dynasty; the emperor shared power with the nobility and appointed ministers drawn from the scholarly gentry class) 1 End YearThe source itself splits the span as 202 BC - 9 AD, 25-220 AD, naming the Xin dynasty interregnum (9-25 AD, Wang Mang's usurpation) in between; 220 AD is recorded here as the dynasty's final end year. Government type (class) Classification
Status (Extant or Former) FAQs
Why is the Han dynasty split into Western and Eastern periods?
The short-lived Xin dynasty of Wang Mang (9 to 23 AD) interrupted Han rule.
The Han dynasty is divided in two because it was briefly interrupted by the Xin dynasty, which lasted from 9 to 23 AD and was established by the usurping regent Wang Mang. The Western Han period runs from 202 BC to 9 AD and the Eastern Han period from 25 to 220 AD.
Connections
Associated With
In Era
Source Wikipedia: Han dynasty
In the Other Atlases
Government Type
Also in Society and Culture Atlas: the government type of this subject.
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Sources
1. Wikipedia: Han dynasty
WikipediaIntroduction, infobox
The Han dynasty (202 BC - 9 AD, 25-220 AD) was an imperial dynasty of China
Society and government section
The Han emperor was at the pinnacle of Han society and culture. He presided over the Han government but shared power with both the nobility and the appointed ministers, who came largely from the scholarly gentry class.
Han dynasty: Status
The dynasty ended in 220 AD when Cao Pi, king of Wei, forced the abdication of the last Han emperor, Xian, opening the Three Kingdoms period among the rival successor states of Cao Wei, Shu Han and Eastern Wu.
In Era: Classical Antiquity, lead paragraph and infobox, existence dates
The Han dynasty (202 BC - 9 AD, 25-220 AD) was an imperial dynasty of China established by Liu Bang, and preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221-206 BC) and the interregnum known as the Chu-Han Contention (206-202 BC).
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