Ep. 24 | The Sui Dynasty
The demise of the Southern & Northern Dynasties brought us a China unified under the Sui emperors Wen and Yang.
Ep. 23 | The Southern and Northern Kingdoms
The Southern & Northern Dynasties were a collection of dynasties that lasted 170 years and preceded the time of unification under the Sui Dynasty.
Ep. 22 | The Three Kingdoms and the Jin Dynasty
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.
Ep. 20 | The Han Dynasty (Part 3)
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.
Ep. 19 | The Han Dynasty (Part 2)
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.
Ep. 18 | The Han Dynasty (Part 1)
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.
Ep. 17 | The Eastern Zhou Dynasty
In this episode, we look at the second phase of the Zhou Dynasty. This period was known as the Eastern Zhou.
Ep. 16 | The Western Zhou Dynasty
Today we take a 走马看花 look at the 790 year Zhou Dynasty, the longest dynasty in Chinese history.
Ep. 15 | The Shang Dynasty
This week in part two of our dynasty overview, we examine the Shang Dynasty from 1600 BC to 1046 BC.
Ep. 14 | The Xia Dynasty
In this episode, we commence our Chinese imperial dynasty overview. It begins today with the Xia Dynasty 夏朝代.
Ep. 13 | Li Ka-shing
Li Ka-shing is a Hong Kong billionaire tycoon who has played a great role in not only Hong Kong’s prosperity but in China’s as well. He is respected not only for his achievements in business and industry but also for his rise from humble beginnings in Chaozhou, China.
Ep. 11 | Kang Sheng
Kang Sheng 康生 was a sinister character from modern Chinese history who was both Chairman Mao’s close confidant and creator of China’s Secret Police.
Ep. 7 | Wu Zetian
This week we look at the Tang dynasty Empress Wu Zetian, the only woman from Chinese history to rule China as an emperor in her own name.
Ep. 6 | The Opium War
In this week’s episode, we give an overview of the First Opium War, one of the most humiliating events in Modern Chinese history.
Ep. 4 | The Great Leap Forward
The Great Leap Forward ( 大跃进) from 1958-1960 caused death and suffering to dozens of millions of people. It sounded like a workable idea but it didn’t turn out like Chairman Mao hoped.
Ep. 3 | The Four Great Inventions
Today we look at the Four Great Inventions, the 四大发明, that Lord Francis Bacon hailed as having done more than anything else to transform completely the modern world and mark it off from antiquity and the Middle Ages.
Ep. 1 | Introductory Episode
A warm welcome to everyone across the world and thank you for listening to the introductory episode of the China History Podcast. Each week we will bring you a different topic taken from the annals of 5,000 years of Chinese history.