The Han dynasty ruled China from 206 BCE to 220 CE, with a brief interruption by the Xin dynasty of Wang Mang. It was founded by Liu Bang, a commoner who came out of the civil wars that followed the collapse of the Qin dynasty. Under rulers such as Emperor Wu, the empire expanded into Central Asia and Korea and Vietnam, and the Silk Road trade routes linked China to the Roman world. Confucianism became the basis of state ideology and administration, and the examination of officials developed. The period saw innovations such as paper, the seismoscope and advances in medicine, and the historian Sima Qian wrote the Records of the Grand Historian. The majority ethnic group in China still calls itself the Han people.
Before and after
- 209 BCEBattle of Canusium
- 208 BCEBattle of Baecula
- 207 BCEBattle of the Metaurus
- 206 BCEOrigins of Italica
- from 206 BCE to 220 CEHan dynasty
- 203 BCEPo Valley Raid
- 203 BCEScipio defeats Hannibal at Zama
- from 202 BCE to 46 BCEKingdom of Numidia
- 3rd century BCEConstruction of Ajanta Caves
More in Civilizations & archaeology
- c. 1,200 BCEIron Age
- c. 700s BCEConstruction of Great Wall of China
- 200 BCEOrigins of Nazca Lines
- 19 BCEConstruction of Western Wall
- 81 CEConstruction of Colosseum
- from 476 CE to 1492Middle Ages
The era
This moment belongs to the Ancient civilizations (3,200 BCE to 500 CE), writing, cities and empires. You can also browse everything in the 3rd century BCE.