Han Dynasty

206 BCE - 220 AD

The Han (Han) dynasty was a stable period of Ancient Chinese history. 

During the Han Dynasty, Emperor Wu sent an emissary named Zhang Qian to the West to find allies to fight against an enemy. When the Qian returned, he told the emperor stories of superior horses in the West. The Han Emperor opened up a trade route between China and the west in order to trade silk for these horses, which he bred for his cavalry and used to defeat his enemies. This trading route became known as the Silk Road.

Paper and porcelain were invented during the Han Dynasty and introduced to the West along the Silk Road.

The first Chinese dictionary was put together, including characters from the Zhou and Shang Dynasties, and the historian Sima Qian wrote a history of China. Confucian texts that had been hidden during the Qin Dynasty were rounded up. Confucian ideas were developed and Confucianism became the official imperial philosophy.

The Han Dynasty fell in 220 CE, followed by the Six Dynasties Period, a time of instability and warfare, which lasted until 581 CE.

Ally

A nation or group that cooperates with another; friends

Stable

Able to proceed in a regular way without unexpected changes; undisturbed

Superior

Better than the standard; supreme