The Establishment of the Han Empire and Imperial China

(Hardback)

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Description

Excerpts from Confucius on government, recently found in laws written on bamboo strips, and contemporary historical accounts lend depth and immediacy to the work. Brief biographies of key rulers, rebels, and philosophers give readers a look at events through the eyes of participants. An annotated bibliography, index, chronology, glossary, and 26 illustrations and maps round out the book. Part of the Greenwood Guides to Historic Events of the Ancient World series Narrative chapters are accompanied by biographical sketches and primary documents

Reviews

China's Han Dynasty created a prosperous empire from 206 BCE to CE 221, promoting a less harsh society than that of their Quin predecessors and developing technological advancements from the water mill to stoneware and paper. From elements of social change in Han times to kingdom problems and issues, its role in world society and politics, and its importance in establishing centralized control in Asia, ^IThe Establishment of the Han Empire and Imperial China^R is essential reading for any college-level scholar who would understand the importance of this developmental period. * MBR Bookwatch *
The establishment of the Han Empire, solidifying the Qin unification of the warring states, is of paramount importance in the history of China, and arguably, in world history. This excellent introduction to that dynastic period devotes separate chapters to the political, institutional, technological, and social ramifications of the era.The writing is engaging and not pedantic. This volume, very much focused on the Western or Former Han (the Xin and later Han are dealt with in two sentences only), is a promising eastward expansion of this series on the ancient world. * School Library Journal *

Author Bio

GRANT HARDY is Associate Professor of History at the University of North Carolina, Asheville. ANNE KINNEY is Professor of Chinese, and Director of the East Asia Center at the University of Virginia.