The Chinese philosophy of government that traditionally stands in opposition to the ideas of Confucius was known as ; it calls for strict laws and strict enforcement.

Sima Tan (d. 110 B. C. E.) and his son, (d. 85 B. C. E.), both earned the title of Grand Historian to the Han Emperor Wudi; the son is best know for his great work, Shi Qi which recounts the history of China from mythological times.

was the founder of the first Chinese empire; he not only started construction of the Great Wall, but he also developed techniques for administering an empire.

The legendary founder of Daoism and author of its key text, the Dao De Jing, is .

The of Confucius have been a part of the education of every Chinese school student for centuries, at least until the Communist revolution of 1949.

A major economic achievement of the Sui dynasty was the completion of the which linked the Yangzi and Yellow River systems and provided transportation for the agricultural of the wealth of the south to the north.

The An Lushan revolt came just four years after the Battle of the River which ended China's push west and led to China's withdrawal from their "outer China" possessions.

Vietnamese resistance to Chinese intrusion was met by a revolt led by the sisters in 39 C. E.

The Tang capital of Chang'an was grid-planned as a massive rectangle over five miles square; the newly centralized Japanese state built Nara in imitation of Chang'an.

Bloody struggles for control of the court in Japan brought Nakatomi No Kamatari to power in 645. He took the surname and under this name his family dominated the politics of Japan for centuries.