How was the Han Dynasty a centralized government?

Yes and No. When Liu Bang became Emperor Gaozu of Han, he gave lands to generals who helped him get the throne, such as Han Xin and Peng Yue. This creates states within Han dynasty. However, the emperor became apprehensive of these generals. read more

The Han dynasty (202 BC – 220 AD) of ancient China was the second imperial dynasty of China, following the Qin dynasty (221–206 BC). It was divided into the periods of Former Han (202 BC – 9 AD) and Later Han (25–220 AD), briefly interrupted by the Xin dynasty (9–23 AD) of Wang Mang. read more

The Han dynasty’s imperial government system was patterned after its predecessor, the Qin dynasty. A central control was established, meaning that the emperors had full control over all of China. In theory, the powers of the emperor were absolute and unlimited. read more

However, in times of Emperor Jing, these states were stronger, so they rebelled against the central Han government under the leadership of the principality of Wu. Emperor Jing and his general Zhou Yafu put an end to the rebellion. He then brought all of the rebelled lands under the central government. read more