In 207 BC, the army led by Liu Bang conquered the troops of the Qin Dynasty at Julu (currently Hebei Province) and in 206 BC he seized Xianyang (the capital city of the Qin Dynasty), thus ending the rule of Qin.
After four years of war between Liu Bang and Xiang Yu (Chu-Han War), Liu Bang defeated his rival and established the Han Dynasty establishing Chang´an (the present Xian) as its capital city in 202 BC.
Liu Bang kept most of the laws and regulations by the Qin and made many of his friends nobility and gave them fiefs. However, the land was still divided up into commanderies and prefectures. Even the fiefs given out were treated like commanderies. Han power was based on direct control of people by the state.
The Han Dynasty was a period of peace and prosperity. It was a world power at that time with interests in literature, arts, culture and technology with the Han Dynasty achieving numerous unparalleled and praiseworthy successes. Some of the achievements at that time still influence the lives of the Chinese people today.
Like the Qin before them, the main goal of the Han was the unification of China. This goal led to the eventual breakup of the fiefs and the downfall of the imperial nobility. This process was finally complete during Wu Ti´s reign (141-87 B.C.) His reign was a period of great military expansion. He expanded the borders into Vietnam and Korea and pushed the Hsiung nu south of the Gobi. Wu Ti transplanted an estimated 2 million people to the northwestern region in order to colonize these areas.
map of Han Dynasty
