HISTORY

The history of the Chinese civilization , which abounds in dramatic turnarounds, is considered to begin with the unification of two ancient cultures Yang-shao culture (8-4 millennia BC) and Lung-shan culture (4-2 millennia BC) of east central Shantung. In the times of Shang dynasty (17-11 centuries BC) there already existed early forms of literacy and bronze casting technique. The Shang epoch gave way to the succeeding Chou dynasty (11-3 centuries BC). The foundation of social and political formation, as well as moral values system began to take shape, which predetermined the image of the Chinese empire and that of the Chinese culture. The Chou state step by step broke into several independent kingdoms, which fought fiercely with one another. And this in turn lead to the glorification of the strongest and most powerful the Ch'in dynasty creating the Empire (221-206 BC), which united the whole of ancient China under its rule. Ch'in Shih huang-ti ("First Sovereign Emperor of Ch'in") - the first emperor of the Ch'in dynasty (221-206 BC) unified the public and political life of the empire and initiated the construction of a grandiose wall running along the Northern frontiers of the country, so that the fortresses erected for defense against barbarian invasions from the north were linked to form the Great Wall. The Ch'in epoch was succeeded by the Han dynasty. During its reign (206 BC -220 Anno Domini) the stable foundations of emperor's reigning, that stayed unshakable till the 20th century , as well as the leading role of culture in the consolidation of China took shape.

In the 1st - 2nd centuries BC the Silk Road (also called Silk Route, ancient trade route that, linking China with the West, carried goods and ideas between the two great civilizations of Rome and China) started functioning. Peoples' armed insurrections, feudal wars, as well as the attacks by the nomads on the Northern China put an end to the epoch of early empires. The period of centralized empires revived with the coming to power of the Sui dynasty in 581-618 AD, which in the year of 628 AD was succeeded by T'ang dynasty - its reign was characterized by the "Golden age" of painting, music and poetry that flourished in abundance, a period of the development of sciences and economic growth. In the epoch of late empires China was under the Mongolian (Yuan dynasty) and Manchurian (Ch'in dynasty) rule. The territory of China was invaded by the Western colonial powers. Pinyin Puyi, also called Henry P'u-i, reign title (Wade-Giles romanization) Hsüan-t'ung last emperor of the Ch'ing (Manchu) dynasty in China succeeded to the Manchu throne at the age of three, when his uncle, the Kuang-hsü emperor, died on Nov. 14, 1908. He reigned under a regency for three years, and then on Feb. 12, 1912, in response to the Republican Revolution of the previous year, he was forced to abdicate, ending the 267-year Manchu rule of China and the 2,000-year-old Imperial system. The Ch'in dynasty was dethroned by Sun Yat-Sen (born Nov. 12, 1866, Hsiang-shan, Kwangtung Province, China and died March 12, 1925, a Peking leader of the Chinese Kuomintang (Nationalist Party), known as the father of modern China. Influential in overthrowing the Manchu dynasty (1911), he served as the first provisional president of the Republic of China (1911-12) and later as de facto ruler (1923-25), and his proponents of a nationalistic character. In 1921 The Communist Party of China was established, which gained a victory over the nationalists, defeating them in 1949. It was then that the Peoples' Republic of China was declared, monopolizing the power to the present day.

The Emperors' Palace in Mukden. China.   Shen-yang, Central Liaoning sheng (province), China. An Overview.   The beginning of the 20th century.		The portrait of Tz'u-hsi , the Chinese empress.    China . Beijing.    End of the 19th century.		The Throne in the the Hall of Supreme Harmony,    one of the largest wooden buildings in China. China. Beijing. A. Diness.    The beginning of the 20th century.
View of the Emperor's palace from the top of a hill. China. Beijing. Alimov I., 2007		Manchu officers. Kashgar. The Manchu, late 19th c. Orden F.		Notable Manchu with sons. Kashgar. The Manchu, late 19th c. Orden F.
Chinese officer. Kashgar. The Chinese, late 19th c. Orden F.		Chinese functionaries. Kashgar. The Chinese, late 19th c. Orden F.		Chinese soldiers. Kashgar. The Chinese, late 19th c. Orden F.
Portrait of Chinese official. Kashgar. The Chinese, late 19th c.		Kuldja general with wife. China. Kuldja (Yining). The Chinese. 1930-1934.