What is Imperial China?
'''Imperial China''' is a period of [[History of China|Chinese history]]. It lasted over 2,000 years. It began with [[Qin Shi Huang]]'s uniting of China under the [[Qin dynasty]] in 221 BC. It ended with the overthrow of the [[Qing dynasty]] in 1911. Throughout this period, many features of Chinese civilization spread throughout all of [[China]]. These included [[Confucianism]], standardized testing, standardized weights and counting systems, trade routes, and [[Chinese characters]]. China became known worldwide for all these features. Throughout this period, China had been ruled by many different dynasties, or ruling family lines. They included the Qin, [[Han dynasty|Han]], [[Sui Dynasty|Sui]], [[Tang Dynasty|Tang]], [[Song Dynasty|Song]], [[Yuan dynasty|Yuan/Mongol]], [[Ming dynasty|Ming]], and [[Qing dynasty|Qing/Manchu]] dynasties. There were also several periods where China had been ruled by several different kingdoms. Throughout most of Imperial China, China had been ruled by emperors and empresses who were Han Chinese. However, there were some dynasties where the ruling class was made of Chinese [[Minority group|minority groups]], such as the Yuan and Qing dynasties. They were ruled by the [[Mongols]] and [[Manchu|Manchus]] in that same order. [[Category:History of China]]