19. The Tang Dynasty
The Tang Dynasty was the Chinese empire that is predominately regarded as the golden age of China’s cosmopolitanism and existed from 618-907. At one point in the Dynasty’s rule the capital Chang’an, which is presently Xi’an, was the most populated city in the world. The Dynasty itself has an interesting history because at one point the Empress Wu Zetian briefly interrupted it, when she took over the thrown. She became the only female Chinese Empress and her reign lasted 15 years until 705.
It’s estimated that during the 9th century the population of the Tang Dynasty was up to 80 million people. Of course, an empire that big is extremely hard to control but it was surprisingly stable for the first half and created the perfect environment for the refinement of Chinese culture and art—especially poetry. The immense Dynasty had huge armies, which helped them defend routes on the Silk Road and maintained their vast rule. The multi-religious Dynasty consisted of Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism, Folk religion, Nestorianism, Manichaeism, and Zoroastrianism. In 907 the Empire fell after numerous blows to their military strength and when Zhu Wen took over thrown.