Not all emperors retired of their own volition; some were forced to abdicate. Emperor Gaozu, who founded the Tang dynasty in AD618, was one such unwilling retiree. In AD626, Gaozu's second son ...

Emperor Gaozu of Han ordered its construction ... Sadly, the Weiyang Palace Complex was razed in the early 7th century by marauders en route to the Tang capital of Chang’an. Located in Xi’an, Shaanxi ...

Qianling, the tomb of the third Tang emperor, Li Zhi, and Empress Wu Zetian, is located on Liangshan Mountain, 6 kilometers north of Qianxian County seat and 80 kilometers from Xi'an. Here also ...

He was an early hero of the Han dynasty (206BC-220AD) and a key figure in bringing Emperor Gaozu of Han to power—albeit at the cost of his own gruesome demise. Today, you’ll find sites linked ...

Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty sent an envoy to the Western Region to learn how to make sugar. After the envoy returned home, he used sugar cane from Yangzhou to make sugar. Its color and ...

The first answer is simple: hereditary rule. For most of this period, emperors were not chosen on the basis of their ability or honesty, but simply because they were born in the right family.

Only one woman has ever sat on China’s throne as Emperor in her own right. That woman was Wu Zetian (624-705) of the Tang dynasty. And to get there, she left behind a trail of bodies that even ...

History records that Liu was given his own territory (Han), but later overthrew Xiang Yu, claiming the title Emperor Gaozu of Han. His dynasty ruled for four centuries, expanding its territory ...

The terra-cotta army, as it is known, is part of an elaborate mausoleum created to accompany the first emperor of China into the afterlife, according to archaeologists. Ying Zheng took the throne ...

The saga of the Wu-Tang Clan’s secret album seems to have finally reached its conclusion: the group has reportedly sold Once Upon A Time In Shaolin to 32-year-old centi-millionaire ...

Tiberius had waited a long time to be emperor and had made many sacrifices. In 11 BC, Augustus had forced him to divorce his much-loved wife and marry Julia, the emperor’s daughter. The two did ...

The emperor is the largest living penguin species standing around 115cm tall. Once they have found a partner they usually mate for life and work together to keep their young fed and safe. They might ...