Ten Great Chinese Rulers Trivia Quiz

Answer: Yong Le (Zhu Di)

Zhu Di (1360-1424) was the fourth son of Emperor Hongwu. It was the tradition to pass the throne to the eldest son of the family. After the death of his eldest brother named Zhu Biao, his father passed the throne to his eldest grandson named Zhu Yunwen. Zhu Di usurped the throne from his young nephew and established the capital in Beijing and constructed the Forbidden City during his time. During his reign, Admiral Zheng He led seven great voyages from 1405 to 1433 to South China Sea, Indian Ocean, Red Sea, Arabian Sea and along the east coast of Africa.

Answer: Kangxi (Aisin Goro Xuanye)

Named Aisin Goro Xuanye (1654-1720), he was a brilliant and wise ruler who took over the throne at the age of seven and reigned for sixty-one years, possibly the longest reigning ruler in Chinese history. He extended the empire north of the Amur River (Heilongjiang) and parts of Outer Mongolia and established control over Tibet. He opened four ports to encourage foreign trades and encouraged western education.

Answer: Taizong (Li Shimin)

Li Shimin (589-649) was the second son of the Li family who took over throne from his father, Li Yuan. He was an able administrator and his effort laid a strong foundation to make this dynasty one of the most brilliant era in the Chinese history. He was not afraid to listen to criticism from his officials to improve his ways of government. The Tang Dynasty lasted for 289 years from 618 to 907 AD.

Answer: Hongwu (Zhu Yuanzhang)

Zhu Yuanzhang (1328-1398) came from a peasant family and even became a monk at one stage to escape from hunger. It was remarkable 16-year journey for a man who rose from poverty to become emperor. At the age of 24, he was forced to flee from the Buddhist temple which was burned down by the Mongolians, and he joined the Red Turban army to serve under Guo Zixing.

When Guo died, he took over the leadership and became the leader. His troops crossed the Changjiang (Yangzte River) to take over Nanjing and later Beijing completing his conquest of China, chasing the Mongols back to Outer Mongolia (present-day Mongolia).

He ruled with an iron fist, but brought peace, stability and prosperity to the country.

Answer: Gao Zu (Liu Bang)

Liu Bang (256-195 BC) was the first ruler in the Chinese history to be born as a commoner and became the emperor when his father was still alive. He was a low ranking officer in Pei County, Jiangsu Province, who did not show much ambition in the beginning.

After some of the prisoners he escorted to hard labour escaped, fearing the death penalty he was forced to rebel against the Qin Dynasty. With the help of Xiao He, Zhang Liang and General Han Xin, he defeated his powerful rival Xiang Yu of the state of Chu to unify the country under one rule.

The Han dynasty, the second imperial dynasty after Qin lasted more than 400 years from 202 BC to 220 AD.

Answer: Qin Shihuang (Ying Zhen)

Ying Zhen (259-210 BC) rose to the throne at the age of thirteen. His state became powerful due to Legalist policies. King Zhaoxiang, his great-grandfather reigned for 58 years and laid a strong foundation for the unification of all the states in the region.

His harsh rule caused the downfall of Qin dynasty which lasted for only 15 years. Some of his great achievements were the standardization of the Chinese writing, the first meritocratic administration system in China, the Ban Liang coin (round coin with square hole in the middle) which made it easier to buy and sell and standard weight system.

Answer: Taizu (Zhao Kuangyin)

Zhao Kuangyin (927-976) was the second son of a military officer, Zhao Hongyin. The palace guards of Later Zhou, last of the Five Dynasties, did not want a boy emperor and requested him to take over the throne. He ended the frequent military coups which plagued China for more than 50 years after the fall of the Tang Dynasty and established the "civilian" empire.

His empire lasted over 300 years from 960 to 1279 AD. During his 16 year reign, he laid the foundations for a remarkable political institution allowing freedom of discussion, bureaucratic innovation and internal reform which led to peace and stability.

The Song Dynasty was an era of scientific discoveries, achievements in philosophy, art and literature.

Answer: Qianlong (Aisin Goro Hongli)

Aisin Goro Hongli (1711-1799) became the emperor at the age of 24 and reigned for sixty years as a respect for his grandfather, Emperor Kangxi, as he did not want his reign to be longer than that of his grandfather. He abdicated the throne in favour of his son, Jiaqing but still retained ultimate power. During his reign, he expanded his empire to Xinjiang and Tibet, enlarging the empire by 1.6 million sq. km (600,000 sq. mi). However after his death, the Qing Empire started to decline due to excessive corruption among its officials.

Answer: Kublai Khan (Borjgin Kublai)

Borjgin Kublai (1215-1294) founded the Yuan dynasty in 1271 after conquering the last of the Song Dynasty. During his reign, China was known to the western world as the richest and most powerful nation in the world. He finished the conquest of South China left unfinished by his grandfather and created the largest Empire (up to that date) in history stretching from the Caspian Sea east to the Pacific Ocean.

He moved the capital from Karakuram to Dadu (present-day Beijing). His achievements were improvements in infrastructure, religious tolerance and use of paper money to expand trade with the West.

He was not afraid to use talented Han Chinese to serve as senior government officials which also caused resentment among some of the Mongolian nobles. Marco Polo, the famous Venetian trader and traveler stayed in China for 17 years during his rule.

Answer: Han Wudi (Liu Che)

Liu Che (156-87 BC) rose to the throne at the age of 15 and reigned for 56 years from 141 BC until his death, a record broken by Kangxi more than 1,800 years later. He was a brilliant and able ruler who had successful war campaigns against the Xiongnu (nomad people) which his predecessors were not capable of. Sima Qian, one of China's greatest historian, served under him. In 139 BC, he sent Zhang Qian who started the Silk Road to Central Asia, Persia and later to eastern Europe. During his reign, he extended the power to Central Asia, Korea and Vietnam.