

China was occasionally dominated by steppe peoples, most of whom were eventually assimilated into the Han Chinese culture and population. China's last dynasty was the Qing (1644–1912), which was replaced by the Republic of China in 1912, and in the mainland by the People's Republic of China in 1949, resulting in two de facto states claiming to be the legitimate government of all China.Ĭhinese history has alternated between periods of political unity and peace, and periods of war and failed statehood – the most recent being the Chinese Civil War (1927–1949). Young men, well-versed in calligraphy, history, literature, and philosophy, were carefully selected through difficult government examinations. In the 21 centuries from 206 BC until AD 1912, routine administrative tasks were handled by a special elite of scholar-officials. Successive dynasties developed bureaucratic systems that enabled the emperor to control vast territories directly. However, the oppressive government fell soon after his death, and was supplanted by the longer-lived Han dynasty (206 BC – 220 AD). In 221 BC, Qin Shi Huang conquered the various warring states and created for himself the title of Huangdi or "emperor" of the Qin, marking the beginning of imperial China. Much of traditional Chinese culture, literature and philosophy first developed during those troubled times. These states became independent and warred with one another in the following Warring States period. The central Zhou government began to weaken due to external and internal pressures in the 8th century BC, and the country eventually splintered into smaller states during the Spring and Autumn period. The Zhou dynasty (1046–256 BC) supplanted the Shang, and introduced the concept of the Mandate of Heaven to justify their rule.

With thousands of years of continuous history, China is one of the world's oldest civilizations, and is regarded as one of the cradles of civilization. These Yellow River and Yangtze civilizationsarose millennia before the Shang. However, Neolithic civilizations originated at various cultural centers along both the Yellow River and Yangtze River. 2070–1600 BC) before the Shang, but no writing is known from the period, and Shang writings do not indicate the existence of the Xia. The Shang ruled in the Yellow Rivervalley, which is commonly held to be the cradle of Chinese civilization. 100 BC) and the Bamboo Annals (296 BC) describe a Xia dynasty (c. 1600–1046 BC), during the king Wu Ding's reign, who was mentioned as the twenty-first Shang king by the same.Ancient historical texts such as the Records of the Grand Historian (c. Anderson (The Loud House Rail traffic bully), Becky (The Casagrandes), The Casagrandes & The Really Loud House scammers/hexagonists except lovable and likeable ones, Chandler McCann (my best friend), Doug & Michelle (The Loud House Music ruiner duo), Dr.The earliest known written records of the history of China date from as early as 1250 BC, from the Shang dynasty (c.
