History Tunnel

Han Dynasty

"Hi! My name is Liu Bang. I will tell you the story of how I founded the most powerful dynasty in the history of China".

Like all Chinese people, I couldn't tolerate the First Emperor's tyranny any longer. He had ruled for only 14 years but caused considerable suffering. In 206 B.C., I directed my troops to overthrow the First Emperor's regime and founded the Han Dynasty. Twenty-five emperors followed me, and kept the Han dynasty alive for 426 years (206 B.C. -AD 220). During our regime, China became one of the most developed countries in the world. Our imprint on Chinese history and life endures forever. In modern times the majority of Chinese people are called "Han Ren" ( Han People) and the mandarin language is called " Han Yu" ( Han Language).

Our Han emperors denounced Qin Dynasty's tyranny and made great efforts on economic development of our country. I can proudly list our glorious contributions to the world:

Papermaking: Cai Lun created paper out of plant fiber ( the same technique used today).

Zhang Heng invented the first earthquake indicator.

Hua Tuo was the first doctor to use general anesthesia to conduct operation.

Silk Route was developed. This was a trade route from Chang'an (now Xi'an, northwest China), through Mountain Tian (Xin Jiang province), all the way to western and central Asia, Europe and Africa. Through the Silk Route, Chinese silk products were shipped to these countries and products from these countries came to China.

Buddhism was first introduced to China from India.

There are many more exciting stories about the Han dynasty; you may want to read the story of a Han princess.