Do you know the ten forgotten dynasties in Chinese history?

Mondo History Updated on 2024-02-01

The development of ancient Chinese history can be summarized as the rise and fall of dynasties such as the Xia, Shang and Zhou dynasties, the Qin and Han dynasties, the Sixteen Kingdoms of the North and South, and the Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties. However, in addition to the dynasties that were not included because of their lesser influence, there were ten regimes that were excluded because they were not officially recognized. These regimes included the Chinese Empire, the Yan regime, the Han and Song regimes, and the Northern Qi regime.

First of all, the Chinese Empire was one of the closest regimes to us, and the farce began on December 12, 1915 and ended on March 23, 1916. Yuan Shikai had ambitions and tried to restore the throne in an attempt to establish a new dynasty. However, this move provoked a backlash from the people of the whole country, and eventually he had to renounce it after only 83 days as emperor. Chinese history does not recognize the existence of this dynasty, and this is rightfully true.

Even the matter of Yuan Shikai becoming emperor has become a laughing stock among the people. Secondly, the Yan regime was established by An Lushan during the reign of Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty after the outbreak of the Anshi Rebellion. The reason why this regime is not recognized is simply that it relies entirely on rebellion and has no real support. Due to the impact of the Anshi Rebellion, the inhabitants of the Central Plains had a difficult life, and later dynasties also had a strong antipathy towards foreign races.

Feudal society did not approve of these rebels, and historians were mostly reluctant to mention this history. Due to the lack of positive energy of this regime and its failure to have a substantial impact on the development of the Central Plains Dynasty, it was naturally not recognized. The Han and Song regimes were a regime described in the History of the Ming Dynasty. After Zhu Yuanzhang defeated Chen Youliang and Zhang Shicheng, he faced an embarrassing problem, that is, Han Lin'er, the king of Xiaoming, was still alive.

Although the rebels originally supported Han Lin'er as emperor, this emperor had little real influence. Zhu Yuanzhang felt that he was not willing to give up all the results to Han Lin'er, so he ordered Liao Yongzhong to drown Han Lin'er in the river under the pretext of welcoming Han Lin'er to Chuzhou. Thus, after the Yuan Dynasty, the Ming Dynasty became the only legitimate regime without any dispute. As for the Han and Song regimes mentioned by the rebels, they are really not well known.

Finally, the "Northern Qi" regime was not the Northern Qi regime during the Northern and Southern Dynasties, but a puppet regime established on the original territory of the Northern Song Dynasty after the Jin Dynasty destroyed the Northern Song Dynasty, somewhat similar to the puppet Manchurian regime in the thirties and forties of the last century. The reason why the Northern Qi regime was abolished by the Jin State was mainly due to the establishment of the Southern Song regime, which they did not see as a threat. There is a saying in history that "after the third generation of the Tang Dynasty, the heroine is King Wu", which hints at the rise of the Wu Zhou regime.

Although Li Shimin took precautionary measures, Wu Zetian still became the "heroine of the martial king". The evaluation of the Wu Zhou regime is mixed, mainly because in the feudal era, Wu Zetian was cognitively limited as a female ruler and was seen as "absurd". However, compared to other unrecognized regimes, Wu Zetian should be regarded as a relatively good emperor.

Yuan Shu is mentioned in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, and he couldn't wait to establish himself as emperor after obtaining the jade seal of the country. However, his throne did not last long and was soon overthrown by a coalition of princes. Nowadays, however, when people talk about this history again, Yuan Shu is rarely mentioned. Among the princes who conquered the world, almost none of them were able to establish and create a real political power, except for the three kingdoms of Wei, Shu, and Wu.

The regimes of the two dynasties, the New Dynasty and the Xuanhan Dynasty, are put together because there is almost no gap in their existence. However, neither dynasty lasted long before it was overthrown by others. First of all, although Wang Mang, the founder of the new dynasty, ruled for about 14 years, he basically suppressed the rebellion except for the first few years of its establishment.

One of the reasons why later generations did not recognize this dynasty was because Wang Mang was not the legitimate emperor, but usurped the great cause of the state in a "despicable" way. Secondly, Wang Mang's change of order also made the people very repulsed. As for the Xuanhan Dynasty, the main reason was that its existence was too short. Before Emperor Liu Xuan's position was secured, he was defeated by Liu Xiu's army, which led to the Western Han Dynasty eventually becoming the Eastern Han Dynasty. For most people, the Xuanhan Dynasty is almost unknown.

Finally, the Han Dynasty and the Yu Dynasty were two dynasties from the Antiquity period. Later feudal dynasties could not even determine whether these two dynasties really existed. Taking the Han Dynasty as an example, Emperor Han Xun is said to have ascended the throne by killing Hou Yi, but there are different opinions on whether Hou Yi really existed. As for the Yu Dynasty......The situation in ancient times was broadly similar, and in general, people knew very little about it and were therefore reluctant to admit the existence of these conditions.

As for the exact truth, we can only expect later archaeological researchers to reveal it.

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