The Silk Road is a general term given to a variety of trade routes in China that were established at around 200B.C to link ancient civilizations with Europe, Asia and North Africa. Noteworthy, the four main ecological zones in China are deserts, forests, mountain ranges and grasslands, where silk routes were formed. In particular, the mountain ranges dominate about two thirds of China’s landscape such as the Himalayas. Moreover, such precarious deserts to the north and west regions segregated early China from Western Civilizations. Despite the treacherous terrain, the northern China plains facilitated rice farming in paddies, which essentially sustains a higher population.
Early civilizations in China remained unaware of the existence of European civilizations prior the construction of the Silk Road. In this way, geographical isolation segregated early china from the rest of the world. On the contrary, cattle and sheep herders dominated the north western grasslands, as well as the south eastern coasts where they would carry out fishing. It is worth noting that geographic resources and nomadic experiences played a pivotal role in advancements such as porcelain, gun powder, silk and paper in ancient China. In addition, the civilization’s local riches include molybdenum, coal, tin, gold, zinc, graphite, phosphate, lead, copper, iron ore, vanadium, manganese and rare earths. Noteworthy, their exploitation has positioned China in first place for mineral production thus giving the civilization regional predominance.
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Despite being officially regarded as an atheist nation today, China is a multi-religious civilization with Buddhism, Taoism, Protestantism, Catholicism and Islam comprising the main facets formally recognized by the government. Notably, there are no boundaries between the religious systems hence they have enhanced the creation of an egalitarian society that is open to outsiders. However, a relatively high percentage of the population practices Chinese cosmological religion, whose main tenets are based on the lunar calendar’s rituals and festivities that exclude institutional teaching. Ideally, Buddhism and Confucian beliefs impacted Art through scroll paintings, Buddha statues and calligraphy. In particular, Confucianism and Taoism evolved from religions that were practiced in China for thousands of years prior that hence the people easily absorbed them.
Key historical developments in China include the invention of papermaking, printing, gunpowder and the compass that can be associated with the Tang dynasty. In addition, key exchanges took place between the West and the Qing dynasty especially on technological innovations, Noteworthy, in the 19th and 20th Centuries, the introduction of Western technologies to China greatly enhanced modernization. The Qing Empire was the ultimate imperial dynasty, which greatly facilitated the expansion of civilization by conquering the rest of the country after being allowed in through The Great Wall. Nonetheless, expansion by the Qing dynasty was enhanced through their dual nature as bureaucratic imperialists and as leaders of a large confederacy in the north. On the other hand, the dynasty’s rule ended in 1911 after being blamed for allowing China to undergo mortification by the West. The current form of government is the People’s Republic of China and some of the pressing issues include foreign policy, social stability, economic performance and leadership cohesion.
Encounters with the West before the 19th Century can be attributed to the Qing dynasty through unequal treaties with the military. In addition, the Ming dynasty upheld technological, economic and military benefits from encounters with the West. It is worth noting that the encounters were successful until the humiliation period in the Qing dynasty. In addition, the encounters changed over time due to a foreign relations hitch but numerous trading enclaves were established since China’s economy was doing relatively well. In essence, China maintains global superiority as the world’s largest economy thus ending Western domination.
