The History of China

So what does it all mean? Before stepping boldly into the Sui Dynasty, we take this episode to pan out to low-Earth orbit and watch the macro-developments of the past 300-plus years of Disunity, revie...

29 Sep 201531min

Northern Zhou seems to have plotted a course for ultimate victory in the contest between the Northern and Southern Dynasties, having already annexed Northern Qi and turned its sights on Chen to the so...

23 Sep 201537min

In the Northeast of China, Northern Qi just can’t catch a break. First it was Emperor Wenxuan’s murderous paranoia, and now it will be subjected to Wucheng’s indolent hedonism, “immoral games,” and ge...

15 Sep 201541min

Today’s episode takes us through the turmoil within northern China and beyond over the 550s. We begin looking outside of China proper as the rulers of the Rouran Steppe Confederacy are overthrown and ...

7 Sep 201538min

In the post-557 world, the three new major powers of China must confront the wide ranges of changes and struggles they must each face now that the political order of the entire empire has been turned ...

31 Aug 201536min

This short episode covers the life of one of the great mathematicians, astronomers, and engineers of ancient China: Zu Chongzhi. In his life from 429-500 CE, he will re-create an ancient precursor to ...

11 Aug 201513min

“There are decades where nothing happens, and there are weeks when decades take place.”It’s an out and out brawl as everything comes to a head at once in the 550s, all across China. In the south, the ...

24 Juli 201547min

The end of Emperor Wu’s 5-decade-long rule over the Liang Empire is jam-packed with action. Following the split between Eastern and Western Wei in the North, it seems like there’s might be peace and q...

17 Juli 201541min