Gaozu: Did you mean...?

Emperor Gaozu (also Kao-tsu, formerly Li Yuan, r. 618-626 CE) was a Sui military commander who led a rebellion against his former masters, seized control of the state, and founded the Tang Dynasty (618-906 CE). Overshadowed in the ancient...

A portrait of Chinese emperor Gaozu, founder of the Tang Dynasty, r. 618-626 CE.

A portrait of Liu Bang who became the Chinese emperor Gao of the Han (Gaozu). Victor in the famous battle of Gaixia in 202 BCE, he founded the Han dynasty which would rule China from 202 BCE to 220 CE.

Taizong (birth name, Li-Shimin, l. 598-649 CE, r. 626-649 CE) was the second emperor of the Tang Dynasty and is considered one of the greatest rulers in Chinese history for his reforms of the government and the laws, his religious tolerance...

The Tang Dynasty (618-907 CE) was one of the greatest in Imperial Chinese history. It was a golden age of reform and cultural advancement which lay the foundation for policies which are still observed in China today. The second emperor, Taizong...

The Han Dynasty (202 BCE - 220 CE) was the second dynasty of Imperial China (the era of centralized, dynastic government, 221 BCE - 1912 CE) which established the paradigm for all succeeding dynasties up through 1912 CE. It succeeded the...

Ancient China produced what has become the oldest extant culture in the world. The name 'China' comes from the Sanskrit Cina (derived from the name of the Chinese Qin Dynasty, pronounced 'Chin') which was translated as 'Cin' by the Persians...

The Battle of Gaixia (202 BCE, also known as Kai-Hsia) was the decisive engagement of the Chu-Han Contention (206-202 BCE) at which Liu Bang (l. c. 256-195 BCE), from the State of Han, defeated Xiang Yu (l. 232-202 BCE) of the State of Chu...

Chang'an, located near modern Xian in Shaanxi Province, was the capital of several dynasties of ancient China from the Zhou to the Tang and eventually became one of the world's great metropolises. With regular tree-lined avenues, high walls...

In antiquity, certain military commanders were so formidable on the battlefield that they were responsible for the rise and fall of civilizations. Epaminondas saw off mighty Sparta and almost single-handedly gave Greek Thebes its one and...