This narrative history of China begins with the earliest times and traces the evolution of Chinese society and civilization through the successive dynasties to the period of decay and exploitation by the West in the 19th century. Particular attention is given to events since 1900: the civil wars of the twenties and thirties, the emergence of the People's Republic of China in 1949, the rule of Mao, the bitter years of the Cultural Revolution, its troubled aftermath, and the brief uprising of 1989.
