the Han Dynasty impacted China so much that the Chinese people today still call themselves hot Chinese history is one of the more complex stories filled with discoveries and competing dynasties that came and went each Dynasty and people group impacted modern Chinese culture creating a rich and varied society that continues to Fascinate people today one of the most impactful dynasties was the Han Dynasty which ruled from 202 BCE to 220 CE it was one of the longest dynasties in Chinese history the Qin dynasty ruled beforehand and it was so oppressive that the peasantry rose in a Revolt led by Leo bong who won the war and became the next emperor Leo bong changed his name to gausu because it was a peasant Emperor gazu's goal was to stabilize the government and care for the people this time was known for its peace and allowed for so many inventions and scientific discoveries that it is also called the Golden Age of ancient China the Han Dynasty is remembered today for its impact on Chinese culture much of Chinese culture and Society originated from the Han Dynasty making this one of the great periods of Chinese history how did the Han Dynasty impact Chinese politics one crucial political change during the Han Dynasty was the establishment of the Civil Service before the Han Dynasty people in the government did not always have the qualifications or skills they needed leading to corruption and an inefficient government when Emperor gazu first started his rule he selected educated qualified men to support his government positions were salary and promotions were based on Merit not bribes or family influence although they would later add tests for bureaucratic positions the Chinese used the same governmental system until 1912. almost 2 000 years however he did not immediately change the government structure the Qin Dynasty before had used a decentralized government they split the country into regions and had an appointed leader over each area it was theoretically efficient but vulnerable to corruption which the Han Dynasty quickly discovered Emperor Jing who ruled from 157 to 141 BCE centralized the government despite rebellions and strengthened the bureaucracy later the Han government also set up an imperial Academy which began in 124 BCE and trained students in Taoist and Confucian literature because of the strict social hierarchy in China not everyone could go to school still those who did receive an education could join the government allowing the government to educate the next generation of politicians for service during the Han Dynasty they also changed the philosophy of the Chinese government to Confucianism which encouraged virtue moderation and family loyalty before the Qin dynasty had adopted legalism as their main philosophical Outlook Chinese legalism believes leaders can get results by imposing harsh laws and penalties people theoretically would follow the rules to avoid punishment but it did not always work well for the Qing government especially when they expected people to get a result they had no control over shifting to Confucianism allowed people to focus on inner morality instead which proved a gentler way to lead Confucianism has become a substantial part of Chinese culture today and what's instrumental in the Han Dynasty's longevity even though the Hans did make significant political changes they still had many difficulties such as the sin Dynasty some historians even call the sin Dynasty and interregnum in the Han Dynasty wangmong overthrew the throne in 9 CE and declared himself Emperor however the people did not appreciate his reforms and he soon drained the Imperial account Wong attempted to implement Confucian ideals but was not a gifted leader and refused to delegate trying to run a whole nation alone is highly ambitious and he let things slide like the government payroll The Peasants eventually revolted under the rising taxes and Corruption turning the government back over to Emperor Guang woo Who modern historians remember as one of the good Emperors of the Han Dynasty United all of China again but he had to fight several other Regional leaders and Pretenders to the throne and he took him until his death until he was finally done he disliked fighting though so he often used tactics like diplomacy in the promise of political titles to convince local leaders to agree to his rule not everyone could be one with diplomacy which is how Emperor Guang woo found himself fighting the qiang dynasty a powerful branch he finally defeated them in 36 CE bringing peace once more to China however even the Huns could not last forever and by 130 CE the Han government was beset by corruption the generals and Palace eunuchs had more power than the Emperors at this point the Emperors were more interested in living comfortably than running the country the lack of strong central leadership allowed corruption Rising taxes and even famine to flourish in China like in the Qin dynasty the people eventually revolted the yellow turbine Rebellion lasted from 184 to 205 CE the yellow turbines began as a religious offshoot of taoism by zhangju but even initially he had a political agenda he told his followers that the Han Dynasty was ending and encouraged them to revolt the violence spread across the country soon different factions appeared intent on bringing down the Hans or on strengthening their own claims to power because the generals had an exorbitant amount of power they successfully put down the Rebellion region by region still zhangju was right about one thing the Han Dynasty was almost over one of those generals decided to take China for himself United most of northern China under it in March South he had an impressive Army but failed to survey the terrain beforehand the area was covered in canals and extremely muddy and Chow Chow was unprepared he eventually had to retreat and the other generals defeated him at the Battle of Red Cliffs in 208 CE from there the country was divided into three kingdoms finally ending the Han Dynasty even though the Han Dynasty did have its share of chaos and Corruption it also left positive political impacts on China they changed the basic structure of the government and set up the Civil Service to support the government although it would still need work in future Generations today China is not using the exact same government the Han Dynasty used but the political changes made still shaped the nation as it developed for hundreds of years one of the most significant political changes though was adopting Confucianism this philosophy is still a critical part of China today showing that the Han Dynasty's influence is still alive and well today what were the economic changes during the Han Dynasty the Han Dynasty was a time of peace and prosperity part of that Prosperity came during Emperor Wu's reign Emperor woo the great ruled from 141 to 87 BCE a 54-year stretch he is best known for his social reforms which included making everyone equal under the law and opening up opportunities for the lower class Lou had other accomplishments though and one of the significant economic changes during the Han Dynasty was the Silk Road which started in 130 BCE the Silk Road was a trade route from China to Europe of course the Silk Road was not the first trade route running east to west others such as the Persian Royal Road preceded it by several hundred years the Han Dynasty started this trade route to get better horses for their cavalry the Hans used the Cavalry more often than earlier dynasties and utilized a wider variety of crossbows Emperor Wu used Western horses to successfully defeat a regional leader and began to speculate on what else trading with the West could bring to China at the height of the Silk Road the Chinese traded items like Silk tea spices porcelain and precious stones in return the Europeans sold horses textiles glassware and other manufactured items silk was a popular item on the trade route especially with the Roman Empire by the time Emperor Augustus took the throne in Rome silk was the most popular item in the west it even sparked social criticism and silk clothing was a debated Topic at the time despite that other things like paper gunpowder and spices made significant historical impacts on the west as the centuries progressed the two groups also exchanged ideas and inventions as the merchants traveled they picked up art philosophy language and science spreading these ideas across the continents this cross-cultural exchange changed how both sides looked at the world the Silk Road also eventually LED Europeans to explore discover new lands and colonize in their quest for spices and wealth when it closed in 1453 CE with the fall of Constantinople the Europeans took to the Sea and discovered the new world Emperor Wu might not have intended to change the trajectory of world history when he started his economic Venture but the Silk Road started by the Han Dynasty was the foundation of our modern global economy today what were the major inventions during the Han Dynasty the Han Dynasty was a time of great discovery and invention partially because the Emperors encouraged new developments and partly because this time had enough stability to give people space to create some of their Creations like the wheelbarrow the hot air balloon and the magnetic compass seem commonplace to us today we can thank the Hans for coming up with them they also made the first Stern post Rudder on boats in the first blast furnace although both would improve under other inventors and dynasties their most important invention was paper in 105 CE ilun perfected paper made from tree bark hemp and fabric racks and went on to revolutionize how people wrote and communicated with each other he was the director of the Imperial workshops in Liu young in his invention impacted government record keeping art like calligraphy and painting and even military strategies paper is now part of our daily life it is difficult to imagine living in a world without it today of course the Han Dynasty also had great academic Minds their mathematicians created something similar to gaussian elimination which allows one to eliminate multiple variables in linear algebraic equations it predates math in Europe showing that the Chinese were well advanced historians believe the Chinese were writing long before the Hans the Qin dynasty had shut down cultural expressions and even burned books to silence dissent they were unsuccessful and the Han Dynasty became relatively literate they wrote down histories and cultural elements taking care to document their society well simichian the first Chinese historian wrote during the Han Dynasty his book can be translated as records of the grand historian or as historical records it covers all preceding dynasties chronologically ending with the Hans creative writing at this time usually came as poetry but during the Han Dynasty a new genre began called Foo full combined prose and poetry to create long entertaining works that soon became the standard for Chinese creative writing in astronomy the Han Dynasty had Zhang Heng who studied the earth and the Stars he was the first to draw the stars in the celestial hemisphere accurately he also amazed his contemporaries by arguing that the moon did not Shine by its own light but reflected the Sun at night closer to home Zhang also created the first seismometer to measure the magnitude of earthquakes all of these contributions shape the direction of China as it continued to develop eventually changing the development of the world today's world would not be the same without China's long and complex history the Han Dynasty laid the foundation for modern Chinese culture in their over 400 years the Huns oversaw new philosophies trade networks and inventions that revolutionized the world and continue to impact us today how would you like to get a deeper understanding of History impress your friends and predict the future more accurately based on past events if this sounds like something you might be into then check out the brand new captivating history booklet by clicking the first link in the description to learn more about the Han Dynasty check out our book history of China a captivating guide to Chinese history including events such as the first emperor of China the Mongol conquests of Genghis Khan the Opium Wars and the cultural revolution it's available as an ebook paperback and audiobook if you enjoyed the video please hit the like button and subscribe for more videos like this