<P> The city of Beijing has a long and rich history that dates back over 3,000 years . Prior to the unification of China by the First Emperor in 221 BC , Beijing had been for centuries the capital of the ancient states of Ji and Yan . During the first millennia of imperial rule , Beijing was a provincial city in northern China . Its stature grew in the 10th to the 13th centuries when the nomadic Khitan and forest - dwelling Jurchen peoples from beyond the Great Wall expanded southward and made the city a capital of their dynasties , the Liao and Jin . When Kublai Khan made Dadu the capital of the Mongol - led Yuan dynasty ( 1279 -- 1368 ) , all of China was ruled from Beijing for the first time . From 1279 onward , with the exception of two interludes from 1368 to 1420 and 1928 to 1949 , Beijing would remain as China 's capital , serving as the seat of power for the Ming dynasty ( 1421 -- 1644 ) , the Manchu - led Qing dynasty ( 1644 -- 1912 ) , the early Republic of China ( 1912 -- 1928 ) and now the People 's Republic of China ( 1949 -- present ) . </P>
<P> The city of Beijing has a long and rich history that dates back over 3,000 years . Prior to the unification of China by the First Emperor in 221 BC , Beijing had been for centuries the capital of the ancient states of Ji and Yan . During the first millennia of imperial rule , Beijing was a provincial city in northern China . Its stature grew in the 10th to the 13th centuries when the nomadic Khitan and forest - dwelling Jurchen peoples from beyond the Great Wall expanded southward and made the city a capital of their dynasties , the Liao and Jin . When Kublai Khan made Dadu the capital of the Mongol - led Yuan dynasty ( 1279 -- 1368 ) , all of China was ruled from Beijing for the first time . From 1279 onward , with the exception of two interludes from 1368 to 1420 and 1928 to 1949 , Beijing would remain as China 's capital , serving as the seat of power for the Ming dynasty ( 1421 -- 1644 ) , the Manchu - led Qing dynasty ( 1644 -- 1912 ) , the early Republic of China ( 1912 -- 1928 ) and now the People 's Republic of China ( 1949 -- present ) . </P>
when was beijing made the capital of china
when was beijing made the capital of china
1279
1279