Volume 1. Geography and its influence on the Chinese -- The beginnings of Chinese civilization (to 221 B.C.) -- The formation of the empire -- the Ch'in and Han dynasties (221 B.C. -- A.D. 220) -- A striking change : divisions, foreign invasions, and cultural innovations from the close of the Han to the beginning of the Sui dynasty (A.D. 220-589) -- Reunion and renewed advance. The Sui (A.D. 589-618) and T'ang (A.D. 618-907) dynasties -- Political weakness but cultural brilliance. The five dynasties and the ten kingdoms (A.D. 907-960) The Sung dynasty (A.D. 960-1279) -- China under the rule of the Mongols (A.D. 1279-1368) -- The Ch'ing (Manchu) dynasty. Its heyday and the beginning of its decline (A.D. 1644-1838) -- The transformation wrought by the impact of the occident : I. The empire is shaken by wars with western European powers and the resulting treaties and by internal rebellions (A.D. 1839-1860) -- The transformation wrought by the impact of the occident : II. Partial recovery from the shocks of the preceding two decades : the restoration of internal order but the slow permeation of the empire by occidental trade and ideas and the failure to accommodate the old to the new (A.D. 1861-1893) -- The transformation wrought by the impact of the occident : III. The crumbling of the structure of the old culture and the foreshadowing of the new (A.D. 1894-1945) -- The transformation wrought by the impact of the occident : IV. The Communists capture the mainland and undertake the thorough remaking of China (A.D. 1945- ) --