China: The Early Empires

Rhapsody of the Two Capitals : A Comparison The Han dynasty is divided in history as the Western Han and the Eastern Han , according to each of its capitals . Western Han saw its capital in Luoyang , while the Eastern Han in Changan

Western Han started with Liu Bang 's defeat of Xiang Yu , resulting in his becoming the next Emperor of China after Qin Shi Huang Di . His dynasty was an era of many changes , many of them conscious efforts to remove the traces of tyranny brought about by the Qin Emperor . He moved the

br capital to Luoyang , brought feudalism back to Chinese society and formed a truce with China 's northern enemies . Later his descendant Emperor Wu 's reign would be known as the era of greatness , giving birth to great generals and men of letters

However , this great era was to be shattered when , after the death of Emperor Wu , the throne seemed to be passed on to men of little abilities , making it easier for men of great ambitions , like Wang Mang to take over the throne

Wang Mang was a nephew of an empress , and is known in Chinese history as the great usurper . His reign was marked by outdated ideas and laws . It didn 't take long for a revolution to erupt under his rule and for him to be overthrown as well

After the Wang Mang was overthrown , it wasn 't until Liu Xiu was enthroned , that the process of restoring peace started . Liu Xiu bestowed with dynastic title Guang Wu , after moving the capital to Changan , started with his campaign to restore internal peace to the empire immediately . However , with regards to the external peace , he believed this was a task his descendants could handle . He gave more importance to restoring art and culture to his empire

Guang Wu 's reorganization of the Han dynasty , however , gave the eunuchs more and more power , causing the dynasty , finally to fall , in 220 AD

They say that history is the better judge . The two Hans both had their ups and downs . However , in view of this , one can clearly see that the Eastern Han dynasty was better than the Western Han . The location of the capitals only plays second fiddle in judging the merits of each dynasty . What is being judged in this matter is the effect that these locations had on the people who lived during these eras

The Western Han was a very excessive era . With its capital Luoyang bed by mountains and valleys with the Han Valley and Two Yao in the east and Baoye Valley and Longshou Mountain in the west , the city itself was a secured , self sufficient city . They had fertile lands at the base of the mountains watered by the Zheng and Bo Rivers , where the Han people grew their food . With these basic necessities readily available the people could enjoy their riches

The city in itself was a bustling metropolis . There were nine markets places located within the...