From Fu Hsi and Shen Nung
to the Yellow Emperor,
these are called the three rulers.
who lived in the early ages.
Tang and Yu-Yu
are called the two emperors.
They abdicated, one after the other,
and their was called the Golden Age.
The Hsia dynasty has Yu
and the Shang dynasty has T'ang.
The Chou dynasty had Wen and Wu;
these are called the Three Kings.
Under the Hsia dynasty the throne was transmitted from father to son,
making a family possession of the empire.
After four hundred years,
the imperial sacrifice passed from the house of Hsia.
T'ang the completer destroyed the Hsia Dynasty,
and the Dynastic title became Shang.
The line lasted for six hundred years,
ending with Chou Hsin.
King Wu of the Chou Dynasty
finally slew Chou Hsin.
His own line lasted for eight hundred years;
the longest dynasty of all.
When the Chous made tracks eastwards,
the feudal bond was slackened;
the arbitrament of spear and shields prevailed;
and peripatetic politicians were held in high esteem.
This period began with the Spring and Autum Epoch
and ended with that of the Warring States.
Next, the Five Chieftains domineered,
and Seven Martial States came to the front.
Then the House of Chin, descended from the Ying clan,
finally united all the states under one sway.
The thrown was transmitted to Erh Shih,
upon which followed the struggle between the Ch'u and the Han states.
Then Kao Tsu arose,
and the House of Han was established.
When we come to the reign of Hsiao P'ing,
Wang Mang usurped the throne.
Then Kuang Wu arose,
and founded the Eastern Han Dynasty.
It lasted four hundred years,
and ended with the Emperor Hsien.
Wei, Shu and Wu,
fought for the sovereignty of the Hans.
They were called the Three Kingdoms,
and existed until the two Chin Dynasties.
Then followed the Sung and the Ch'i dynasties,
and after them the Liang and Ch'en dynasties
These are the Southern dynasties,
with their capital at Nanking.
The northern dynasties are the Wei dynasty and the Yuan family
which split into Eastern and Western Wei.
The Chou dynasty and the Yuwen family,
with the Ch'i dynasty of the Kao family.
At length, under the Sui dynasty,
the empire was united under one ruler.
The throne was not transmitted twice,
succession to power being last
The first emperor of the T'ang dynasty
raised volunteer troops.
He put an end to the disorder of the House of Sui,
and established the foundation of his line.
Twenty times the thrown was transmitted,
in a period of 300 years.
The Liang State destroyed it,
and the dynastic title was changed.
The Liang, the T'ang, the Chin
the Han and the Chou
are called the five dynasties,
and there was a reason for the establishment of each.
Then the fire-led house of Sung arose,
and received the resignation of the house of Chou.
Eighteen times the throne was transmitted,
and then the north and the south were reunited.
The Seventeen Dynastic Histories,
are all embraced in the above.
They contain examples of good and bad government,
whence may be learnt the principles of prosperity and decay.
Ye who read history
must study the Annals,
whereby you will understand ancient and modern events,
as though having seen them with your own eyes.
Recite them with the mouth,
and ponder over them in your hearts.
Do this in the morning;
do this in the evening.
