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Zhang Qian's journey is what caused the silk road. His traveling proved that you could safely journey to the West and return. Therefore, the people of Asia begin to form alliances while trading goods with each other.
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Quickly after Rome was an official empire, silk arrived there. The Romans loved silk because they thought of it as a luxury and wealthy thing even though they didn't have much interaction with China until the second century. They were still able to get silk through the silk road though!
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Religious spread on the silk road became popular around this time. Many religions were shared along the silk road, like Zoroastrianism, Buddhism, Christianity, Shamanism, Judaism, Manichaesm, Taoism, Confucianism and Islam. Eurasia influenced each other's beliefs and thoughts about religion.
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Trade along the silk road expands into the northern and southern areas including places like Russia, India, and Africa.
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Han Dynasty rises after defeating the Qin. The Han decide that the silk road needs to expand more.
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The source of silk, silkworm farms, was mainly in China but was somehow exposed to other parts of the world. Myths say a Chinese princess smuggled silkworms to many places which caused the expansion of silkworm farms across Europe and Central Asia.
The spread of silkworm farms make it possible for other countries to make silk by themselves. -
The Tang Dynasty arrives in China. China continues to follow Buddhism but also is introduced to Christianity.
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The black death plague devastated Europe. It killed 50 million people including 60% of Europe's population. People believe that the disease spread to Asia due to the silk road trading.
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The Ming Dynasty banned trading silk outside Chinese borders, therefore the silk road is no longer a road for trading silk which is already enlightened by Europe and Central Asia.
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The silk road finally ends when the Ottoman Empire boycotted trade with China and closed them. The silk road was a very helpful and resourceful trade route that also formed many alliances. It lasted for a long period of time before it finally concluded.
