I saw Ayakashi's great post about the Tang Dynasty and think that the Chinese faction wouldn't be complete without Song Dynasty for part II of Millennium A.D. Here's my proposal:
Song Dynasty (960 - 1279AD)
Brief history
After a period of upheaval and unrest that was the turbulent Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms, the Song Dynasty rose up and reunite the Chinese people once again (to certain extent). A period of relative peace soon followed, and Chinese cultural, economic and scientific advancements were at all time heights during the Song Dynasty. Nevertheless, the Chinese