Ancient china dynasties timeline

It’s hard to say how old Chinese culture actually is, but it’s one of the oldest that still has a presence in the modern world. Legends claim that the earliest rulers in China were the Xia Dynasty, from to B.C., with Yu as the first emperor, but there is little proof that the dynasty actually existed.

Below is a timeline of one of the great cradles of civilization.

Shang Dynasty, Confucius 

•  B.C.: Shang Dynasty - The earliest ruling dynasty of China to be established in recorded history, the Shang was headed by a tribal chief named Tan.

The Shang era is marked by intellectual advances in astronomy and math.

• – B.C.: Confucius - The teacher, politician and philosopher was raised in poverty by his mother.

He entered politics in B.C. as a town governor after gaining attention as a teacher, but in B.C. lived in exile to escape political enemies.

Returning to China around B.C., Confucius devoted most of his time to teaching disciples his ideas