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The Family: The Basis of Chinese Civilization

Season 1 Episode 1 | 3m 11s

At the town of Wuxi in the lower Yangtze valley, Michael Wood joins the Qin family as they celebrate the annual festival for the ancestors, a ritual that goes back thousands of years. Banned under the communists such rituals are coming back everywhere in today’s China, as once more the family regains its central place in Chinese culture.

Extras
Michael Wood tells the dramatic tale of China's last empire, the Qing.
Qiu Jin was the tragic star of the failed revolution of 1907, against the Qing Dynasty.
Michael Wood describes the first meeting of the Chinese Communist Party in Shanghai 1921.
The great Taiping Rebellion, the fall of the Empire and the rise of Mao.
Under the Qing Dynasty Muslim culture had a new vitality – including all women’s mosques.
Michael Wood visits the last surviving communist outpost in today's China.
Professor Zheng Yangwen tells Michael about the impact of the opium trade in China.
Michael Wood watches an opera in the snow, to celebrate Grandma’s 90th birthday!
Survey the three great revolutions that gave birth to today's China.
Discover the splendors of China’s last empire, the Qing.
Latest Episodes
Michael Wood tells the dramatic tale of China's last empire, the Qing.
The great Taiping Rebellion, the fall of the Empire and the rise of Mao.
Michael Wood tells the tale of China's Renaissance.
The time of the Great Wall , the Forbidden City and treasure ships sent on ocean voyages.
Michael Wood conjures up China's first great international age, the Tang Dynasty.
Michael Wood returns to the beginnings of Chinese history to find clues to today's China.