Preface
Who are the biggest contributors to Chinese civilization?
In the glorious history of China's more than 2,000 years of feudal dynasties, hundreds of emperors and monarchs ruled this ancient country. Among them, which unruly heroes have changed the trajectory of the destiny of the Chinese nation? Who has created an immortal way of governing the world with extraordinary ability to govern the world?
This article selects ten great emperors who have made outstanding contributions to Chinese civilization from the long history and ranks them according to their influence for readers to evaluate as appropriate. Among these ten emperors, the first one can be said to have laid the cornerstone of the identity of the Chinese nation, and his merits are immeasurable; The tenth-ranked one has also had a profound impact on the evolution of China's social structure because of his reform policies.
So, don't sell it anymore, let's take a look at who these ten brave and wise emperors are!
Emperor Xiaowen of the Northern Wei Dynasty: The pioneer of ethnic integration
In the middle of the fifth century, the Xianbei people, who rose strongly in the northern grasslands, occupied the northern hinterland and established the Northern Wei regime. As the eighth monarch of the Northern Wei Dynasty, Emperor Xiaowen implemented a policy of sinicization during his reign and tried his best to integrate the two major ethnic groups of Han and Xian. He issued an edict to change the Tuoba surname of the Xianbei aristocracy to the Han surname "Yuan", forced the nobles to Xi learn Chinese and Han etiquette, and vigorously promoted the language and clothing of the Han nationality throughout the country. In 446, Emperor Xiaowen moved the capital of the Northern Wei Dynasty to Luoyang in the Central Plains, a move that further accelerated the assimilation of the Xianbei to the Han Chinese. It can be said that these reform measures of Emperor Xiaowen have had a far-reaching impact on the formation and development of the Chinese nation.
Emperor Wen of the Han Dynasty: The founder of the rule of Wenjing
In the early years of the Western Han Dynasty, the Han Dynasty, which was unprecedentedly powerful, gradually declined after the decay of several generations of emperors. After Emperor Liu Heng of the Han Dynasty succeeded to the throne, he vigorously advocated frugality, lightly dispensed with small endowments, and paid attention to water conservancy construction, restoring and developing agricultural production. Under his 23 years of mighty rule, the country's social economy regained its vitality, laying the foundation for the heyday of the Western Han Dynasty in the future, so it is known as the "rule of Wenjing" in history. It can be said that this former inconspicuous acting king, with extraordinary foresight and talent, reversed the decline of the Western Han Dynasty.
Tang Xuanzong: The "Ming Jun" who flourished for a while
In 718, Li Longji ascended the throne for Tang Xuanzong. This wise and martial monarch hired virtuous ministers to assist him and adopted a series of measures to govern the country. He adjusted the tax system to reduce the burden on the people, advocated agriculture to increase prosperity, and strictly enforced the law and discipline to maintain people's livelihood and stability. Under his founding rule, the Tang Dynasty was prosperous and prosperous, and was known as the "Kaiyuan Dynasty". However, in his later years, this Ming monarch favored his concubine Yang Guifei and An Lushan and other traitors, which led to the fall of imperial power, and finally caused the "Anshi Rebellion" that shook the foundation of the Tang Dynasty.
Emperor Kangxi: The creator of many difficult achievements in the Qing Dynasty
The Kangxi Emperor Aixinjueluo Xuanye succeeded to the throne in 1661 and began his glorious reign of sixty-one years. This wise and martial monarch faced a grim situation such as the division of the three feudatories in the early Qing Dynasty. During his reign, Emperor Kangxi successively defeated Shen Weijing, Wu Sangui and other rebels, quelled the rebellion of the three feudatories, and successfully maintained the unity of the Qing Dynasty; He also personally conquered Galdan seven times, repelled the combined forces of Russia and Dzungaria, and consolidated the northern territory of the country. It can be said that it was with the unremitting efforts of Emperor Kangxi that the Qing Dynasty was able to get out of the crisis and usher in its heyday.
Genghis Khan: The founding father of the Mongol Empire
In 1206, Temujin unified the Mongolian steppes and established a unified Mongol Empire, proclaiming himself ruler Genghis Khan. The greatest conqueror of all time waged constant wars, defeating enemy states such as the Western Xia and the Jin Dynasty. By 1227, the Mongol Empire had extended from Eastern Europe to Central Asia. As the largest empire in the world at that time, the rise of Mongolia had a profound impact on China and the world at that time. In particular, the destruction of the Jin and the opening of the Silk Road by the Han Dynasty laid the foundation for the later Yuan Dynasty to rule the Central Plains.
Ming Taizu: A well-deserved national hero
In 1368, Zhu Yuanzhang established the Ming Dynasty in Nanjing, ending a century of Mongol rule in China. This leader of the peasant rebel army from a poor background, his family was poor when he was a child, he was once a monk and a beggar, and later joined the army, and finally defeated the powerful Mongols with superhuman determination and political skills, and established the Ming Dynasty of the Han people. During his reign, Zhu Yuanzhang attached great importance to the development of agriculture and handicraft production, implemented the Tuntian policy, and compiled a legal code to improve his rule, which accumulated human, financial and material resources for the "Yongle Shengzhi" in the middle of the Ming Dynasty. It can be said that without Ming Taizu, it is likely that there would be no national independence and prosperity of the Han nationality.
Emperor Wen of Sui: A wise monarch who broke through divisions
In 581, Yang Jian founded the Sui Dynasty on the basis of centuries of division and chaos. This brilliant monarch carried out a series of political and economic reforms, strengthened imperial power, weakened the power of the clan, unified weights and measures, rectified taxation, and restored unity. During the more than ten years of his rule, the Sui Dynasty's national power and territory were unprecedentedly strong. Although his son Emperor Yang of Sui's later desolation caused the fall of the Sui Dynasty, Yang Jian's merits far outweighed his faults, and he was still a well-deserved generation of masters. It was on the basis of his foundation that this glorious and magnificent edifice of the Tang Dynasty was built.
Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty: A man of great talent and strategy who was extremely powerful for a while
Liu Che, the seventh emperor of the Western Han Dynasty, was an extremely prominent monarch in Chinese history, and during his 54-year reign, he adopted a series of political, economic, and military reform measures to make the country unprecedentedly strong. He vigorously developed agricultural production, reduced the burden of taxes, encouraged cultivation of wasteland, and made the people rich; He also launched many foreign wars and greatly expanded the territory of the Western Han Dynasty. Under his promotion, the Western Han Dynasty became one of the world powers at that time, and was hailed as the first "prosperous era" in Chinese history.
Tang Taizong: A wise monarch who created the rule of Zhenguan
In 626, Li Shimin, the king of Qin, staged a coup d'état in Xuanwumen and ascended to the throne, namely Taizong of Tang. As the de facto founding monarch of the Tang Dynasty, he adopted a series of reform measures to weaken the power of the clan, clean and honest government, and advocate diligent government and love for the people, making the Tang Dynasty one of the most powerful empires in the world at that time.
Under his 23-year reign of Zhenguan, the country was unprecedentedly powerful and the territory was vast, and it was recognized as a heyday in Chinese history. It can be said that it was Tang Taizong's wise decision-making and wise governance that laid the foundation of the Tang Dynasty and created this unprecedented era of unification!
Qin Shi Huang: The great achievements of the first ancestor of China
Qin Shi Huang was the first emperor in Chinese history to accomplish the great cause of unification, ending more than 500 years of division and establishing a unified centralized state. During his short but glorious reign, Qin Shi Huang promoted the unification of writing, currency, and weights and measures, built the Great Wall to prevent the northern barbarians, and built galloping roads to facilitate transportation; He also harshly suppressed opposition forces and consolidated centralized power.
It can be said that it was these great achievements pioneered by Qin Shi Huang that realized China's first great unification, made the concept of "China" deeply rooted in the hearts of the people, and laid the cornerstone of the Chinese national identity. So he deservedly became the greatest emperor in Chinese history.
epilogue
To sum up, each of these ten great emperors in history has made his own unique and far-reaching contributions to the development of Chinese civilization. In particular, Qin Shi Huang's unification of the world laid the foundation of the Chinese nation, and his achievements are incomparable.
Of course, there are many outstanding emperors in history who have been left on the list, and they have all influenced the course of Chinese history in their own ways. It can be said that without their exemplary wisdom and wisdom, the trajectory of Chinese civilization might have been completely different.