China

14 civilisations, 12 wars

Civilisations whose heartland lies in today's China, and wars fought on its land or by its peoples.

Timeline

Oldest first

Civilisation
Erlitou culture
Civilisation
Shang dynasty
Civilisation
Western Zhou
Civilisation
Spring and Autumn period
Civilisation
Warring States period
At the same time here: Qin's wars of unification
War
Qin's wars of unification
The state of Qin
Qin dynasty
against
The six other Warring States, each fighting Qin on its own
Han, Zhao, and its successor state of Dai, Yan, Wei, Chu, and Qi
Qin ruled the lands of all seven states; Ying Zheng took the title Shi Huangdi, First Emperor, and divided the empire into 36 commanderies.
At the same time here: Warring States period and Qin dynasty
Civilisation
Qin dynasty
At the same time here: Qin's wars of unification
Civilisation
Han dynasty
At the same time here: Han–Xiongnu wars
War
Han–Xiongnu wars
The Han dynasty and its allies
Han dynasty, Southern Xiongnu (allied with the Han from 50 CE), Xin dynasty of Wang Mang (9–23 CE, between the Western and Eastern Han), which massed troops on the frontier against the Xiongnu, Wusun (attacked the Xiongnu from the west alongside the Han offensive of 71 BCE), Wuhuan (scouts for the Han against the Xiongnu after 119 BCE; settled inside the frontier as Han auxiliaries from 49 CE), Xianbei (attacked the northern Xiongnu for the Han from about 49 CE and killed the chanyu Youliu in 87 CE), and Qiang horsemen in Dou Xian's army of 89 CE
against
The Xiongnu and their allies
Xiongnu confederation (from 48 CE, the northern Xiongnu), Wuhuan and Xianbei, Xiongnu subjects who at times raided Han lands with them, until both changed sides by about 49 CE, and Western Qiang, who attacked Han towns in 112 BCE in league with the Xiongnu
The northern Xiongnu state was broken and its remnants moved west; the southern Xiongnu lived under Han rule inside the frontier, and the Han held the Hexi Corridor and, for long periods, the Tarim Basin.
At the same time here: Han dynasty
Civilisation
Three Kingdoms
Civilisation
Sui dynasty
Civilisation
Tang dynasty
Civilisation
Song dynasty
At the same time here: Mongol conquest of the Song dynasty
War
Mongol conquest of the Song dynasty
The Mongol Empire and, from 1271, the Yuan dynasty
Mongol Empire, Yuan dynasty, Northern Chinese "Han Army" troops and Song commanders and soldiers who changed sides, Troops of the Dali Kingdom (Yunnan), led by its Duan royal family under Mongol command after the Mongols took Dali in 1253, and Ilkhanate (sent the engineers who built counterweight trebuchets) (supporting)
against
The Southern Song dynasty
Song dynasty
The Song dynasty ended in 1279 and the Yuan dynasty of Kublai Khan ruled all of China.
At the same time here: Song dynasty and Yuan dynasty
Civilisation
Yuan dynasty
At the same time here: Mongol conquest of the Song dynasty
Civilisation
Ming dynasty
Civilisation
Qing dynasty
At the same time here: First Opium War, Second Opium War, and French conquest of Vietnam
War
First Opium War
British Empire
United Kingdom (Royal Navy and British Army) and East India Company forces, with Indian troops
against
Qing China
Qing dynasty
In the Treaty of Nanking (29 August 1842) the Qing ceded Hong Kong Island to Britain, opened five ports to British trade and agreed to pay 21 million silver dollars.
At the same time here: Qing dynasty
War
Second Opium War
Britain and France
United Kingdom (Royal Navy and British Army), Indian regiments under British command, Second French Empire, and United States (supporting)
against
Qing China
Qing dynasty
In the Convention of Peking (October 1860) the Qing confirmed the Treaties of Tianjin, opened Tianjin to trade, ceded southern Kowloon to Britain and raised the indemnity to 8 million taels each for Britain and France.
At the same time here: Qing dynasty and French conquest of Vietnam
War
French conquest of Vietnam
France, with Spain (1858–1862) and local auxiliaries
France, Spain, with troops from the Spanish Philippines (1858–1862), and Vietnamese auxiliaries in French service, among them Cochinchinese riflemen
against
Đại Nam (Nguyễn dynasty), the Black Flag Army and Qing China
Đại Nam under the Nguyễn dynasty, Black Flag Army of Liu Yongfu, and Qing dynasty
By 1885 France ruled all of Vietnam: Cochinchina as a colony, Annam and Tonkin as protectorates; in the Treaty of Tientsin the Qing recognised the French protectorate.
At the same time here: Qing dynasty and Second Opium War
War
Second Sino-Japanese War
China: the Nationalist government, Communist-led forces and their allies
Republic of China (Nationalist government), Communist-led Eighth Route Army and New Fourth Army, Soviet Volunteer Group (1937–1941), and United States
against
Empire of Japan and its client governments
Empire of Japan, Manchukuo, Wang Jingwei regime (Nanjing, 1940–1945), and Mengjiang
Japan surrendered to the Allies in August 1945, and its forces in China surrendered at Nanjing on 9 September 1945; Manchukuo and the Wang Jingwei government ended with them.
At the same time here: World War II
War
World War II
Allies
Soviet Union (from 1941), United States, United Kingdom, Republic of China (Nationalist government), France, and Second Polish Republic
against
Axis
Nazi Germany, Empire of Japan, and Kingdom of Italy (until 1943)
The Allies won: Germany surrendered unconditionally on 8 May 1945 and Japan on 2 September 1945.
At the same time here: Second Sino-Japanese War
War
First Indochina War
French Union: France and the Associated States of Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia
France, State of Vietnam, Kingdom of Laos, Kingdom of Cambodia, and United States (supporting)
against
Viet Minh (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and allies
Democratic Republic of Vietnam (Viet Minh), Pathet Lao, Khmer Issarak (United Issarak Front), China (supporting), and Soviet Union (supporting)
France agreed at Geneva to armistices that left the Democratic Republic of Vietnam in the north and the State of Vietnam in the south, divided at the 17th parallel; the last French troops left the south in April 1956.
At the same time here: Korean War
War
Korean War
North Korea, the Chinese People's Volunteer Army and the Soviet Union
North Korea, Chinese People's Volunteer Army, and Soviet Union
against
South Korea and the United Nations Command
South Korea, United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Netherlands, Canada, France, New Zealand, Philippines, Türkiye, Thailand, South Africa, Greece, Belgium, Luxembourg, Ethiopia, and Colombia
An armistice, not a peace treaty, ended the fighting on 27 July 1953, with the front line close to the 38th parallel; Korea stayed divided.
At the same time here: First Indochina War
War
Vietnam War
North Vietnam, the Viet Cong and their allies
Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam), National Liberation Front (Viet Cong) and, from 1969, the Provisional Revolutionary Government, Pathet Lao, Khmer Rouge and, from 1970, the GRUNK, China, Soviet Union, and North Korea
against
South Vietnam, the United States and their allies
Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam), Kingdom of Laos (from 1959), Khmer Republic (1970–1975), United States, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand, Thailand, and Philippines
The Republic of Vietnam surrendered on 30 April 1975; North and South were formally united as the Socialist Republic of Vietnam on 2 July 1976.
War
Soviet–Afghan War
Soviet Union and the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan
Soviet Union and Democratic Republic of Afghanistan (PDPA government)
against
Afghan mujahideen and their backers
Afghan mujahideen, Pakistan (supporting), United States (supporting), Saudi Arabia (supporting), China (supporting), United Kingdom (supporting), Iran (supporting), and Egypt (supporting)
The Soviet Union withdrew all its troops by 15 February 1989 without defeating the mujahideen; the war between the Afghan government and the mujahideen went on.