Dynasties, revolutions and a changing stateOur World

China

Explore selected milestones from Shang evidence and imperial institutions to revolution, the PRC and modern economic change.

Subject guide · scope, chapters & sources ↗

A selective road through historical polities and the modern People’s Republic, not a claim that China’s territory, peoples or government stayed unchanged. Ancient chronology is approximate; wars and destructive campaigns are included alongside cultural and economic milestones. Contemporary context is explicitly dated June 2025.

c. 1600–1046 BCEYellow River region

Shang leaves an archaeological record

Bronze-age evidence anchors an early dynasty in the Yellow River region.

A decorated bronze vessel with a projecting animal-shaped lid. — Unidentified Shang-period maker; image The Metropolitan Museum of Art · CC0

221 BCE–220 CEEast Asia

Qin and Han build imperial institutions

Conquest and administration create new forms of large-scale rule.

618–1279 CEChang’an and Kaifeng

Tang and Song reshape cities and culture

Imperial capitals support trade, painting and scholarship in distinct eras.

A small painted clay figure of a woman seated on a horse. — Unidentified Tang-period maker; image The Metropolitan Museum of Art · CC0

1368–1912China’s imperial centres

Ming and Qing rule successive empires

The final two imperial dynasties leave distinct political and artistic legacies.

A hanging scroll with ink-painted mountains and trees beneath an inscription. — Wang Shimin (1592–1680); image The Metropolitan Museum of Art · CC0

1839–1842China and United Kingdom

Tea trade is entangled with war

British opium trading and Chinese resistance lead to the First Opium War.

1911–1912China

Revolution ends dynastic rule

An uprising and abdication produce a republic, but not immediate stability.

7 July 1937Beijing and China

Full-scale war with Japan begins

The Marco Polo Bridge clash escalates an already long-running conflict.

1 October 1949Mainland China and Taiwan context

The People’s Republic is established

Civil war produces a new government on the mainland.

1958–1976China

Mass campaigns bring catastrophe and upheaval

The Great Leap Forward and Cultural Revolution profoundly disrupt lives.

1978China

Reform and opening take shape

Gradual experimentation changes the economy and its international connections.

A pond and pavilion in Shenzhen with modern buildings beyond. — Mx. Granger · CC0

11 December 2001China and the world

China joins the World Trade Organization

Membership places trade within a new multilateral framework.

13 June 2025China

Growth faces new structural challenges

A dated assessment highlights consumption, debt and an ageing population.