The First Five-Year Plan (1953–57) emphasized rapid industrial development, partly at the expense of other sectors of the economy. The bulk of the state’s investment was channeled into the industrial sector, while agriculture, which occupied more than four-fifths of the economically active population, was forced to rely on its own meagre capital resources for a substantial part …

Kublai Khan was one of China’s greatest emperors. He achieved the unification of that country by annihilating the national Song empire (1279). Contrary to former custom, he treated the deposed imperial family well and forbade his generals from resorting to indiscriminate slaughter. After 1279 no new territories were added to the Mongol-Chinese empire, and a pair of attempts to expand …

Dec 08, 2022 · China, Chinese (Pinyin) Zhonghua or (Wade-Giles romanization) Chung-hua, also spelled (Pinyin) Zhongguo or (Wade-Giles romanization) Chung-kuo, officially People’s Republic of China or Chinese (Pinyin) Zhonghua Renmin Gongheguo or (Wade-Giles romanization) Chung-hua Jen-min Kung-ho-kuo, country of East Asia.It is the largest of all Asian countries and has …

In video games, Elden Ring wins Game of the Year at The Game Awards. American basketball player Brittney Griner and Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout (pictured) are freed via a prisoner exchange.; In Germany, 25 members of a far-right group are arrested in connection with a coup d'état plot.; Albert Rösti and Élisabeth Baume-Schneider are elected to the Federal Council, …

The economy of the Song dynasty (960–1279) in China was the wealthiest economy in the world during its time. The dynasty moved away from the top-down command economy of the Tang dynasty (618-907) and made extensive use of market mechanisms as national income grew to be around three times that of 12th century Europe. The dynasty was beset by invasions …

This is a timeline of the Song dynasty (960–1279). The Song dynasty was founded by Zhao Kuangyin, posthumously known as Emperor Taizu of Song, who ended the period of division known as the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. The Song dynasty is commonly separated into two historical periods, the Northern Song (960–1127) and the Southern Song …

The earliest known written records of the history of China date from as early as 1250 BC, from the Shang dynasty (c. 1600–1046 BC), during the reign of king Wu Ding, referred to in the records as the twenty-first King of Shang. Ancient historical texts such as the Book of Documents (early chapters, 11th century BC), the Bamboo Annals (c. 296 BC) and the Records of the …

Koryŏ dynasty, in Korean history, dynasty that ruled the Korean peninsula as the Koryŏ kingdom from 935 to 1392 ce. During this period the country began to form its own cultural tradition distinct from the rest of East Asia. It is from the name Koryŏ that the Western name Korea is derived. The dynasty that ruled Koryŏ was formed by Gen. Wang Kŏn, who in 918 …

Manchuria, also called the Northeast, Chinese (Pinyin) Dongbei or (Wade-Giles romanization) Tung-pei, formerly Guandong or Guanwei, historical region of northeastern China. Strictly speaking, it consists of the modern provinces (sheng) of Liaoning (south), Jilin (central), and Heilongjiang (north). Often, however, the northeastern portion of the Inner Mongolia …

History Daoism in the Qin and Han periods (221 bce –220 ce) of the Chinese empire Esoteric traditions of eastern China. The textual remains of Daoism during the Warring States period were all presumably produced in connection with official patronage; similarly, developments in Daoist thought and practice during the early imperial age principally have to be studied from the …

The scholarly amateurs looked upon such people with some contempt, and the art of the literati became a separate tradition that was increasingly refined and rarefied to the point that, from the Song dynasty (960–1279) onward, an assumed awkwardness in technique was admired as a mark of the amateur and gentleman.

The Shang dynasty (c. 1600–1046 bce). In the Shang dynasty and particularly at Anyang, the craft of jade carving made a notable advance. Ceremonial weapons and fittings for bronze weapons were carved from jade; ritual jades included the bi, cong, and symbols of rank.Plaques and dress ornaments were carved from thin slabs of jade, but there are also small figurines, …

The Shang dynasty (c. 1600–1046 bce). The Shang dynasty saw several important advances in pottery technology, including the development of a hard-bodied, high-fire stoneware and pottery glazes.A small quantity of stoneware is covered with a thin, hard, yellowish green glaze applied in liquid form to the vessel. Shang potters also developed a fine soft-bodied white ware, …

Shijing, (Chinese: “Classic of Poetry”) Wade-Giles romanization Shih-ching, the first anthology of Chinese poetry. It was compiled by the ancient sage Confucius (551–479 bc) and cited by him as a model of literary expression, for, despite its numerous themes, the subject matter was always “expressive of pleasure without being licentious, and of grief without being hurtfully excessive ...