Did you know that a heavy rain was responsible for the demise of a Dynasty, during which the Great Wall was built?Did you know that Italian merchant and explorer Marco Polo finished his master piece about China in prison?And an Emperor proclaimed African giraffes as magical Chinese unicorns Qilin.Follow the podcast, ‘Stuff you missed in Chinese history,’ to learn more fun facts during the past few thousand years in this country. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Latest episodes
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9 min
How China formed: an ancient civilization that keeps on learning
There are 1.4 billion Chinese people, so you may already know somebody from China and have some ideas about the country. What comes to mind when you do think of China? Do you see h…
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10 min
British envoy failed to trade with the Qing Emperor
Have you ever heard of George Macartney? He was the 1st Earl Macartney in Britain, a statesman, a colonial administrator, and a diplomat. However, among the Chinese, he is often re…
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10 min
Qing Empire: the most successful conquering dynasty
Emperors during the Qing Dynasty used the title of "Bogd khaan" when dealing with the Mongols. "Bogd" means "sage" in Mongolian. While in Tibet, they turned out to be patrons of Ti…
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9 min
Ming treasure voyages: what the Yongle Emperor desired?
The Yongle Emperor of the Ming Dynasty sent out his treasure fleet seven times to visit Southeast Asia, the Indian subcontinent, Western Asia, and East Africa. Each expedition was…
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9 min
Ethnic discrimination: Why Mongol Yuan’s reign was so short
The short-lived Yuan Dynasty had a history of just under 100 years. What mistakes did the Mongol administrators make? Our first guess is their tyranny, but what did that involve? H…
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8 min
The Travels of Marco Polo: China in European's imagination
Did you know the book "The Travels of Marco Polo" was written in prison? And that both the book and its author shared a funny nickname? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for m…
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11 min
Maritime Silk Road: continuous prosperity of Quanzhou
You must have heard of the Silk Road, but do you also know about its nautical counterpart? Called the Maritime Silk Road, let’s find out how it developed and where is its starting…
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8 min
One country, two systems: how nomads ruled China
Long ago in China, the nomads in the north and the farmers of the Central Plains were mostly in a state of conflict. After the Chanyuan Treaty was signed though, the regions enjoye…
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10 min
Chanyuan Treaty: too high a price for peace?
Which dynasty in Chinese history was the wealthiest? You might think that it was either the Han or Tang but, believe it or not, it was the Song Dynasty. Hosted on Acast. See acast.…
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9 min
An Lushan Rebellion: Hu people rejected the Tang Dynasty
Today we are talking about the An Lushan Rebellion, which marked the turning point of the Tang Dynasty from prosperity to decline. It was instigated by An Lushan, a member of the H…
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9 min
Tang Dynasty: how to govern people equally
If you suddenly traveled back in time to ancient China, could you make a distinction between the "Hu people" of that era? If you arrived during the Western Han Dynasty, they were X…
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9 min
Emperor Yang of Sui Dynasty and his world expo
Oh my! Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty personally led the army to conduct a western expedition, accompanied by family, ministers and even his concubines. However, they encountered…
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9 min
Ethnicities integrated into one another: Han and the Hu
The term "Hu" was used by Han Chinese to describe anyone who was not of ethnic Han Chinese descent. While there are many cases of the “Hanization” of the Hu people in history, ther…
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9 min
Eliminating the Xiongnu: good or bad for the Han Dynasty?
We know that China’s Han Dynasty consisted of the Western Han and the Eastern Han. The military and economic strength of the Western Han were stronger than those of the Eastern Han…
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8 min
Princesses married for peace: miserable lives or diplomatic envoys?
You may have heard the story of Wang Zhaojun. As one of the Four Beauties of Ancient China, she was the most famous princess of the Han Empire. She was sent to marry a Xiongnu rule…
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7 min
Zhang Qian -- founder of the Silk Road
Diplomat Zhang Qian of the Han Dynasty never expected that his failed diplomatic mission would open the most important trade route in the world, the Silk Road. Hosted on Acast. See…
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8 min
Destruction of Qin: lose hearts, lose power
Did you know that the Qin Dynasty only lasted for 15 years and that heavy rain helped wash it out completely? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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8 min
Qin Dynasty: victory of reform and pragmatism
You may already know that Shang Yang was the first person in Chinese history to successfully carry out a reform, the result of which strengthened and unified the Qin Dynasty. Howev…
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8 min
Wearing nomadic clothing and shooting arrows from horse
How did wearing nomadic clothing, riding horses and shooting arrows from horseback elevate King Wuling of Zhao into one of the greatest people in Chinese history? Hosted on Acast.…
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7 min
A book shows how ancient Chinese imagined unknown world
Human-faced beasts, nine-headed snakes, three-legged birds, people with wings, and monsters with no heads but, two nipples as eyes. These are all stories from a mysterious ancient…