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- In total Ancient China had 83 dynasties and 559 emperors.

- The last emperor to rule was Puyi, of the Qing Dynasty, from 1908 to 1912

- The longest to rule was the Zhou dynasty and shortest Qin Dynasty.

-The Yuan Dynasty had the most land at a time, over 12 million square kilometers. The Sing Dynasty could have had the least territory.

- The most powerful dynasties were Han and Tang. The Han Dynasty was most impactful on chinese society, even to today. The Tang Dynasty influenced other countries with their culture, politics, and economics.

- China's only female emperor was Wu Zetian, lived from 624 to 705 CE, and ruled from 690 to the day she died. Called the "Holy and Divine Emperor", she expanded China's boarders. She also lowered taxes, had public works built and improved farming techniques.

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Ancient China: History, Dynasties & Inventions

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- Ancient China was ruled by emperors, from dynasties. China was under dynastic rule for around 4 millennia's. The length of each dynasty varied, some last only 15 years, another lasted 800 years.

- A single dynasty could rule all of China, but it often was ruled by multiple dynasties. Each dynasty had their own region and it was rarely cohesive.

- Shang dynasty was the first recorded dynasty, whom ruled around 1650 BCE.

- The last dynasty China had was the Qing Dynasty, which ruled from 1644 to 1912 CE

- China's government was based on a system of legalism, in which it was illegal to criticise or be noncompliant.

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- Ancient China's economics were derived from agriculture and trade.

- China’s trade with the West let goods and ideas be exchanged. Such goods included:

1. Wools

2. Golds

3. Silver

4. Christianity

5. Buddhism

all arriving to china.

Going West was:

1. Silk

2. Cuisine

- The main way for trading was through the Silk Road, a 4,000 mile route from China to the Mediterranean Sea. It became hazardous and was less used as Arabia grew in power and Roman territory in Asia was lost.

- The Mongols established of the route again around 1300 and 1400 CE.

- The Ming Dynasty expanded trade by exporting to india, East Africa, and Persian Gulf, from 1405 to 1433. (Before the Europeans)

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- Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism were the three main religions/philosophies of Ancient China. Although they have some differences, there are many similarities between all three that allowed for them to influence Ancient Chinese society alongside each other.

- Confucianism acted as a way of life in Chinese culture. Confucius, a philosopher and the founder of Confucianism, lived from 551 to 479 BCE. Confucius's teachings provided guidance in all aspects of life, most of which focused on humanism and treating others with kindness and respect.

- Taoism developed after Confucianism in Ancient China. The basis of Taoism is living in harmony with the Tao and the balancing of forces, yin and yang.

- Buddhism was founded by Siddhartha Gautama (Buddha) in Ancient India. Buddhists believe in reincarnation, reaching nirvana, and the attainment of deep knowledge. Buddhism spread from India to China because of Taoism, as many of their practices were similar. As Buddhism became more popular, it meshed with Confucianism and Taoism to become a foundation of Ancient Chinese society.

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Refined writing system from the Shang Dynasty

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- Ancient China is home to many significant achievements in various fields that have shaped history, Chinese civilization, and the world. Each dynasty established its own contributions throughout Ancient Chinese history, countless of which we use to this day.

- The Shang Dynasty: From 1600 to 1050 BCE, people from the Shang Dynasty are noted for their invention of writing, stratified government, and improvements in bronze technology, artwork, math, and astronomy.

- The Zhou Dynasty: The Zhou Dynasty is credited for its many advancements in agriculture, education, music, military organization, and literature. This time period, 1046 to 256 BCE, is also known for the beginnings of Confucianism and Taoism.

- The Qin Dynasty: In 221 to 206 BC, the Qin Dynasty was in rule and unified China. The creation of the Great Wall, the Terracotta Army, and a standardized system of writing were also during this time period.

- The Han Dynasty: The Han Dynasty (206 BCE to 220 CE) is often regarded as the "Golden Era" of Chinese culture, with its lasting impacts on government, law, philosophy, and art. One of the most famous achievements of the Han Dynasty is the Silk Road, which allowed the spread of ideas and goods. Some of the most remarkable advancements from this period include the invention of paper, seismographs, and the use of sundials and water clocks to tell time.

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What makes the Great Wall of China so extraordinary - Megan Campisi and Pen-Pen Chen

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- Ancient Chinese Society was mainly influenced by Confucius. His teachings stabilized Ancient China and taught that everyone had a place in society.

- Ancient China had four main social classes, government officials, farmers, artisans and merchants developed from Confucius beliefs. This was determined by tracing common ancestor through male lineage. Government Officials were upper class because of wealth and knowledge. Merchants were at the bottom because it was looked upon as career fueled by greed and selfishness.
- Ancient China put a strong emphasis on scholars as they were the most important. This resulted in numerous philosophers coming from China.

- For the majority of the Ancient Chinese Society life was lived rurally and with a large family. It was also very patriarchal putting elder men at the forefront and woman seen as less important. A woman's status completely relied of men, whether it was who she married or who she gave birth to. Woman were unable to own land and given away with property which weakened their original family.

- A common social practice between the wealthy was Foot binding. Foot binding is the process of creating a deformity in young girls feet by binding in their toes. This was a sign of social status but was also deemed as attractive and made them more likely to be married.

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Terra cotta soldiers near The Mausoleum of Qin Shihuang

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Artistic
- Ancient Chinese art reflected the way they carried themselves. Through art, Ancient China was expressed with elegance, grace, and superiority.

- Paintings were mainly of landscapes and Portraits with heavy symbolisms. Since most artists were scholars or monks, their art was made to represent proper behavior and lifestyles. In portraits most figures were painted with a blank expression and picture doing righteous and ideal activities. With landscapes, wildlife represented different importance in Chinese culture. For example the type of flower could represent each season and fish showed abundance and fertility.

Architectural
- Ancient Chinese architecture made few changes over time. Cities were planned similarly to modernized versions, with large avenues and smaller streets intersecting. With its open floor plans, raised platforms, pillars, and bronze work, this influenced neighboring countries to adopt their architectural style.

- The mausoleum of Qin Shihuang was built over 40 years as a the tomb for the first emperor of the Qin dynasty. This massive building stretches' roughly 2,263ft by 820 ft. It is surrounded by almost 200 life-sized terracotta warriors to show Qin's Importance of unifying Ancient China.

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Map Highlighting the Huang He and Yangtze River

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- Ancient China's geographic location was helpful and harmful to their society.
- The Huang He river and the Yangtze was essential to Ancient China. Both Rivers connected by The great canal and are the longest rivers in China. These rivers supplied the  Chinese with fertile soil for agriculture and drinking water. They were the reason life was able to develop in this region.
- Ancient China was surrounded by natural barriers which isolated them. The Himalayas were hard to cross and few survived the journey so it protected them invaders. Part of Ancient China was also land locked in the east because of the Yellow Sea and the East China Sea. However, China's northern border made it them easy target for it attack hence the construction of the Great Wall.
- Ancient China's geography was one of the reasons they were so economically strong. Their river systems helped them trade amongst themselves but sea routes and the silk road opened China to world.