Northern Wei Dynasty: Did you mean...?

The Third Dynasty of Egypt (c. 2670-2613 BCE) begins with king Djoser, famous for his Step Pyramid at Saqqara. Although there are some sources which claim a king named Sanakht (also known as Nebra) founded the Third Dynasty, these claims...

The Yuan Dynasty was established by the Mongols and ruled China from 1271 to 1368. Their first emperor was Kublai Khan (r. 1260-1294) who finally defeated the Song Dynasty which had reigned in China since 960. Stability and peace within China...

The Ptolemaic dynasty was a Macedonian royal family that ruled Ptolemaic Egypt from 323 to 30 BCE. It was founded by Ptolemy I, a general and successor of Alexander the Great. They built Alexandria, including the Lighthouse of Alexandria...

The Shishunaga Dynasty (also Sishunaga/Shaishunaga Dynasty) ruled the Magadha Kingdom in ancient India from c. 413 BCE to c. 345 BCE (in some sources from 421 BCE). It is said to be the third imperial dynasty of Magadha after the Brihadratha...

Xuanzong (birth name, Li Longji, l. 685-762 CE, r. 712-756 CE) was the 7th emperor of the Tang Dynasty of China, whose domestic and foreign policies established the Tang Dynasty as the Golden Age in Chinese history. Many of the most important...

The Jurchen Jin dynasty (meaning “Golden”) ruled parts of China, Mongolia, and northern Korea from 1115 to 1234 CE. The Jurchen originated from Manchuria, but in conquering the neighbouring Liao empire of the Khitan and parts of Song China...

An 8th century CE portrait of the 3rd-2nd century BCE Confucian scholar Fu Sheng by the famed Tang dynasty portrait painter and poet Wang Wei (699-759 CE). (Osaka City Museum of Fine Arts, Japan)

The Arsacid (Arshakuni) dynasty of Armenia ruled that kingdom from 12 CE to 428 CE. A branch of the Arsacid dynasty of Parthia, the Armenian princes also played out a prolonged balancing act by remaining friendly to the other great power...

A portrait of Chinese Emperor Wen of Wei (507-551 CE). 7th century CE Scroll of Thirteen Emperors. (Boston Museum of Fine Arts, USA)

The Second Dynasty of Egypt (c. 2890 - c. 2670 BCE) rose from the turmoil which ended the first and was marked by uprisings (or, at least, internal difficulties) throughout. The precise cause of this civil unrest is unclear as sources for...