The China History Podcast

The Southern & Northern Dynasties were a collection of dynasties that lasted 170 years and preceded the time of unification under the Sui Dynasty. North of the Yangzi River you had the Northern Wei, t...

24 Nov 201034min

This week we are back with more Chinese history. We will look at a very confusing but exciting time when there was mostly a period of disunity and China was broken up into contending kingdoms. However...

16 Nov 201032min

In this final installment of the Han Dynasty overview, we look at the reign of Wang Mang during the short-lived Xin Dynasty and the Eastern (or Later) Han Dynasty that followed. The Eastern Han was a ...

30 Okt 201031min

Today we present the second part of the Western Han Dynasty overview where we will look at the great Han emperors Wendi, Jingdi and perhaps the greatest of them all, Han Wudi. It was a golden age in C...

21 Okt 201030min

In this week's episode we look at only the first few decades of the Western Han Dynasty. The Western Han lasted from 202BC to 8AD. We'll focus in on the fall of the Qin and the rise of Liu Bang who we...

13 Okt 201022min

In this episode we look at the second phase of the Zhou Dynasty. This period was known as the Eastern Zhou. The Eastern Zhou was broken down between the Spring & Autumn Period and the Warring States P...

29 Sep 201029min

Today we take a 走马看花 look at the 790 year Zhou Dynasty, the longest dynasty in Chinese history. In this episode we will particularly focus on the Western Zhou Period which lasted for 275 years. Next w...

23 Sep 201019min

This time in our briefest of dynasty overviews, we examine the Shang Dynasty 1600 to 1046 BC. Chinese characters make their appearance for the first time. Artisans cast the most beautiful bronzes. Bec...

15 Sep 201035min