Middle Ages
Tang Dynasty (618–907): China's Golden Age of Empire and Culture
The Tang built one of the largest and most cosmopolitan empires of the medieval world, then declined after the An Lushan Rebellion and fell in 907.
Region
Asia
Middle Ages
Tang Code (624): The Legal Code That Shaped East Asian Law
The Tang Code became the standard of Chinese criminal law for centuries and the model for legal codes in Japan, Korea and Vietnam.
Middle Ages
Xuanwu Gate Incident (626): Li Shimin Seizes the Tang Throne
Li Shimin killed the crown prince and another brother, was named heir within days and took the throne as Emperor Taizong two months later.
Middle Ages
Xuanzang's Journey to India (629–645): The Pilgrim Monk
Xuanzang returned with 657 Buddhist texts, translated a large share of them into Chinese and wrote a detailed record of the lands he crossed.
Middle Ages
Japanese Missions to Tang China (630–894): The Kentōshi
The missions transferred Tang law, Buddhism, learning and art to Japan until they were abandoned in 894.
Middle Ages
Daming Palace: The Grand Tang Palace in Chang'an (634)
The palace served as the political heart of the Tang empire from 663 until its destruction in the dynasty's final wars; its site is now an archaeological park.
Middle Ages
Princess Wencheng's Marriage to Songtsen Gampo of Tibet (641)
The marriage sealed peace between Tang China and the Tibetan Empire for a time; later Tibetan tradition credited Wencheng with helping bring Buddhism and Chinese crafts to Tibet.
Middle Ages
Taika Reform (645): Japan Remakes Itself on the Chinese Model
The Soga clan's dominance ended, and the court began a long programme of reforms that produced Japan's ritsuryō state of law codes by 701.
Middle Ages
Giant Wild Goose Pagoda in Xi'an: Xuanzang's Tower (652)
A brick pagoda was raised at the Da Ci'en Temple to protect Xuanzang's Indian scriptures; rebuilt and enlarged under Wu Zetian, it survives as the best-known landmark of Tang Chang'an.
Middle Ages
Battle of Baekgang (663): Tang and Silla Defeat Japan
Decisive Tang-Silla victory; the Baekje restoration collapsed and Yamato Japan withdrew from the Korean peninsula.
Middle Ages
Silla Unification of Korea (668): The Three Kingdoms End
Silla absorbed Baekje and southern Goguryeo, expelled the Tang by 676 and ruled the peninsula south of the Taedong River until 935.
Middle Ages
Fengxian Temple at Longmen Grottoes: Tang Colossal Buddha (672)
A colossal open-air group of nine figures centred on the Vairocana Buddha was completed in 675, the high point of Tang sculpture at Longmen.