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Home » Browse » The Cambridge History of China Vol. 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 B.C.–A.D. 220
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The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 B.C.–A.D. 220

Series The Cambridge History of China, Volume 1

Edited by Denis Twitchett and John K. Fairbank

Publication Date 1987

Hardback ISBN-13 9780521243278

Digital Object Identifier (DOI) 10.1017/CHOL9780521243278

Overview

This volume begins the historical coverage of The Cambridge History of China with the establishment of the Ch'in empire in 221 BC and ends with the abdication of the last Han emperor in AD 220. Spanning four centuries, this period witnessed major evolutionary changes in almost every aspect of China's development, being particularly notable for the emergence and growth of a centralized administration and imperial government. Owing to their pioneer achievements and the heritage that they left for later empires, these dynasties have rightly been regarded as a formative influence throughout Chinese history. Important archaeological discoveries of recent years have made a new approach possible for many aspects of the period. Leading historians from Asia, Europe, and America have contributed chapters that convey a realistic impression of significant political, economic, intellectual, religious, and social developments, and of the contacts that the Chinese made with other peoples at this time. Like the other volumes in the series, volume 1 summarizes the information given in primary sources in the light of the most recent critical scholarship. As the book is intended for the general reader as well as the specialist, technical details are given in both Chinese terms and English equivalents. References lead to primary sources and their translations and to secondary writings in European languages as well as Chinese and Japanese.

For more details of the print book, and how to buy it online, please see The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 B.C.–A.D. 220 in the Cambridge University Press online catalogue.

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Table of Contents

The Cambridge History of China Vol. 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 B.C.–A.D. 220

Frontmatter

Introduction by Michael Loewe

The state and empire of Ch'in by Derk Bodde

The Former Han dynasty by Michael Loewe

Wang Mang, the restoration of the Han dynasty, and Later Han by Hans Bielenstein

The conduct of government and the issues at stake A.D. 57–167 by Michael Loewe

The fall of Han by B. J. Mansvelt Beck

Han foreign relations by yü Ying-Shih

The structure and practice of government by Michael Loewe

The institutions of Later Han by Hans Bielenstein

Ch'in and Han law by A. F. P. Hulsewé

The economic and social history of Former Han by Nishijima Sadao

The economic and social history of Later Han by Patricia Ebrey

The religious and intellectual background by Michael Loewe

The concept of sovereignty by Michael Loewe

The development of the Confucian schools by Robert P. Kramers

Confucian, Legalist, and Taoist thought in Later Han by Ch'en Ch'I-Yün

Philosophy and religion from Han to Sui by Paul Demiéville

Postscript to Chapter 16 by Timothy Barrett

Bibliography

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