EVENTS
Enter the processes that changed the course.
Explore the context, course, and consequences of historical events.
Uniform Wheel Tracks and a Common Written Script
The policy of uniform wheel tracks was a cultural, religious, and scholarly event of the Qin. Qin standardized the written script as small seal script and regulated the wheel tracks used on roads, strengthening the implementation of government orders and cultural identity.
See the event narrativeChen Sheng and Wu Guang Uprising
The Dazexiang Uprising, also known as the Chen Sheng and Wu Guang uprising, was the first recorded large-scale uprising of commoners in Chinese history. In the autumn of 209 BCE, the first year of Qin Er Shi, Chen Sheng, Wu Guang, and more than nine hundred conscripted garrison troops were ordered to Yuyang on the northern frontier. On the way, heavy rain stopped them at Dazexiang in Qi County (southeast of present-d
ChinaChu–Han Contention
The Chu–Han Contention, also called the Chu–Han War and by several other names in Chinese, was a large-scale war from 206 BCE to January 202 BCE between the two major groups led by Xiang Yu, Hegemon-King of Western Chu, and Liu Bang, King of Han, for political supremacy. The conflict took its name from the titles of the two sides: Xiang Yu called himself Hegemon-King of Western Chu, while Liu Bang had been enfeoffed
ChinaYellow Turban Rebellion
The Yellow Turban Rebellion, also called the Yellow Turban Uprising or Yellow Turban revolt, was a large-scale peasant rebellion led by Zhang Jue, leader of the Way of Great Peace, in the late Eastern Han. It broke out in 184, the first year of the Zhongping era under Emperor Ling of Han, and took its name from the yellow headscarves worn by the rebels. The uprising lasted about nine months. Although it was suppresse
ChinaBattle of Red Cliffs
The Battle of Red Cliffs was a decisive battle in 208, the thirteenth year of the Jian'an era in the late Eastern Han, in which the allied forces of Sun Quan and Liu Bei defeated Cao Cao's army near Red Cliffs on the Yangtze River (northwest of present-day Chibi, Hubei). It is one of the best-known Chinese battles in which a smaller and weaker force defeated a larger one, and one of the most famous of the “three grea
ChinaKaiyuan-era prosperity
The Kaiyuan era of prosperity, also known as the Kaiyuan-era prosperity, refers to the prosperous phase of the Tang Dynasty during the early reign of Emperor Xuanzong, Li Longji, in the Kaiyuan era (713–741). After taking the throne, Emperor Xuanzong employed capable Grand Councilors such as Yao Chong and Song Jing, reformed official administration, adjusted military and economic institutions, and promoted culture an
ChinaJingkang Incident
The Jingkang Incident, also known as the Jingkang Disaster, Jingkang Humiliation, Jingkang Calamity, or Jingkang Upheaval, refers to the Jin dynasty’s two invasions of the Northern Song from the seventh year of the Xuanhe era to the second year of the Jingkang era (the third to fifth years of the Jin Tianhui era, 1125–1127). Jin forces eventually captured the Northern Song capital of Dongjing, present-day Kaifeng in
ChinaKublai Khan's Proclamation of the Dynastic Name "Great Yuan"
Kublai Khan (23 September 1215–18 February 1294), a member of the Borjigin imperial lineage, was a grandson of Genghis Khan, the fourth son of Tolui, and a younger brother of Möngke. He founded the Yuan Dynasty, proclaimed the dynastic name “Great Yuan” in 1271, conquered the Southern Song in 1279, and unified China. During his reign he adopted Chinese administrative practices, strengthened central authority, and bui
See the event narrativeJingnan Campaign
The Jingnan Campaign arose after Jianwen Emperor Zhu Yunwen took the throne and pursued a forceful reduction of the imperial princes, intensifying tensions with princes who controlled large armies. Prince of Yan Zhu Di rose under the slogan of “clearing the emperor’s side and pacifying the national crisis.” After nearly four years of war, he entered Nanjing in 1402, the fourth year of the Jianwen era. The Jianwen Emp
ChinaDestruction of Opium at Humen
Lin Zexu publicly destroyed confiscated opium at Humen near Guangzhou, an important act of resistance to foreign aggression in modern Chinese history.
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