Explaining Imperial China

Listen to this episode from History 102 with WhatifAltHist's Rudyard Lynch and Austin Padgett on Spotify. In this episode of History 102, 'WhatIfAltHist' creator Rudyard Lynch and co-host Austin Padgett analyze 2,000 years of Imperial China's civilizational patterns, examining how Confucian bureaucracy, geographic divisions, and cyclical dynastic struggles shaped one of history's most enduring empires. -- SPONSOR: ZCASH | SHOPIFY | NETSUITE | ORACLE The right technology reshapes politics and culture toward freedom and prosperity. Zcash—the "machinery of freedom"—delivers unstoppable private money through encryption. When your wealth is unseen, it's unseizable. Download Zashi wallet and follow @genzcash to learn more: ⁠https://x.com/genzcash⁠ Shopify is the world's leading e-commerce platform, offering a market-leading checkout system Shoppay and exclusive AI apps. Nobody does selling better than Shopify. Get a $1 per month trial at ⁠⁠https://shopify.com/momentofzen⁠⁠. More than 42,000 businesses have already upgraded to NetSuite by Oracle, the #1 cloud financial system bringing accounting, financial management, inventory, HR, into ONE proven platform. If you're looking for an ERP platform, get a one-of-a-kind flexible financing program on NetSuite: ⁠⁠https://netsuite.com/102⁠⁠ - Download your free CFO's guide to AI and machine learning. Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI): Oracle's next-generation cloud platform delivers blazing-fast AI and ML performance with 50% less for compute and 80% less for outbound networking compared to other cloud providers. OCI powers industry leaders like Vodafone and Thomson Reuters with secure infrastructure and application development capabilities. New U.S. customers can get their cloud bill cut in half by switching to OCI before March 31, 2024 at ⁠⁠https://oracle.com/cognitive⁠⁠. -- FOLLOW ON X: @whatifalthist (Rudyard) @LudwigNverMises (Austin) @TurpentineMedia -- TIMESTAMPS: (00:00) Introduction (01:45) Imperial China Overview & Macro History (07:00) China's Fall of Rome Period (12:01) Geographic Regions of China (17:24) Sponsors: ZCash | Shopify (23:00) Qin Dynasty Unification (46:20) Qin Dynasty Fall & Han Dynasty Rise (54:00) Han Dynasty Economics & Expansion (1:25:00) Three Ruling Classes: Bureaucracy, Eunuchs, Nobility (1:36:33) Sponsors: Netsuite | Oracle (1:39:00) War of Three Kingdoms & Dark Ages (1:47:00) Tang Dynasty Golden Age (1:55:00) Neo-Confucian Renaissance & Song Dynasty (1:58:00) Mongol Conquest (2:00:00) Ming Dynasty Isolationism (2:08:00) Manchu Conquest & Qing Dynasty (2:12:04) Modern China's Challenges (2:19:24) Wrap Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices