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00421_Field_HAN DYNASTY.txt
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HAN DYNASTY: One of the most important
dynasties in Chinese history, the Han dynasty
(202 B.C.-220 A.D.) made an impact that is
still felt in CHINA today; ethnic Chinese refer
to themselves as the Han people in reverence
to the dynasty. The Han dynasty ruled CHINA
for over four hundred years, except for a
brief period between 9 and 23 A.D. when
Wang Mang usurped the throne and
established the Hsin Dynasty. In contrast with
the Han, this short-lived dynasty ruled over
what is considered to be one of CHINA's
blackest periods. The period of the Han
dynasty is, therefore divided by historians
into two distinct periods: the Early Han,
covering the period before Wang Mang, and
the Later Han, which ruled from after Wang
Mang until 220 A.D. The Han dynasty rose as
a result of popular discontent with the Ch'in
dynasty and its policies. The dynasty's
founder, Liu Pang, was originally a farmer,
who took part in the insurrection against
Ch'in. He then established a centralized
government in Ch'ang-an and adopted the
royal name Han Kuo-tse. He was a competent
monarch who followed the advice of one of
his officials: "An empire can be conquered
from the back of a horse, but it cannot be
ruled from the back of a horse." Han Kuo-tse
established many precedents in Chinese
history. He was the first emperor to give the
initiative in making policy to his advisers and
he himself would make no decisions without
first consulting these advisers. Another Han
emperor, Wu (reigned 141-87 B.C.), is often
considered to be the greatest emperor in
Chinese history. He centralized all
government powers in Ch'ang-an, established
the bureaucracy, promoted literacy, expanded
CHINA's borders into Central and Southeast
Asia, promoted diplomatic and trade ties with
the West, modernized CHINA's penal code, and
enacted economic reforms regulating the
influence of the middle class. After his death,
few Han emperors were able to match his
achievements and commitment, and the
dynasty fell into decay, culminating in the
usurpation of the throne by Wang Mang in 9
A.D. Wang Mang nationalized land and
reenacted many of the Ch'in dynasty policies
abolished by the early Han emperors.
Nevertheless, it seemed that even nature
opposed him. In 11 A.D. the Yellow river
changed course, killing millions and sparking
rebellions in northern CHINA. In 23 A.D. Wang
Mang was deposed and two years later Liu
Hsiu, a member of the Han dynastic family,
entered Ch'ang-an and reinstated the Han
dynasty. Liu Hsiu and his descendants were
able to restore much of the imperial glory of
the Early Han dynasty. However, about one
hundred years after Liu Hsiu's death, the
court eunuchs began amassing power and
privileges. In 190 Szechuan seceded and
contact with Central Asia was lost. By 220
CHINA had split into three kingdoms: Wu, Wei,
and Shuhan. In the four hundred years of
Han rule, Chinese culture flourished. Most
scholars believe that the five Chinese
classics - the Book of History ("Shu Ching"), the
Spring and Autumn Annals ("Ch'un Ch'iu"), the
Book of Songs ("Shih Ching"), the Book of Rites
("Li Chi"), and the Book of Changes ("I Ching") -
were written during this period. CONFUCIANISM
was established as the state religion, and
BUDDHISM was first introduced from INDIA.
(See also China article).