This course will explore two thousand years of Asian participation in an international system, in Asia and with the rest of the world. Whether ruled by Chinese, Turks, Mongols or Manchus, China has been the political and cultural center of East Asia. Understanding the role of this superpower is critical to Asian and world history. The course will focus on themes such as the cosmopolitan experience, the early development and application of ‘modern’ ideas such as bureaucracy, market economy, and paper currency, and the centrality of religious ideology as a tool in statecraft. No prior knowledge of Asian history is required. This course will be offered in 2022-23, and in alternating years thereafter.