Emperor of China Emperor's brothers and uncles served in court by law, and held equal status with other court officials (子). The Emperor was always elevated above all others despite any chronological or generational superiority. Emperor of China The Emperor or Huangdi () was the secular imperial title of the Chinese sovereign reigning between the founding of the Qin dynasty that unified China in 221 BC and the abdication of Puyi in 1912 AD following the Xinhai Revolution and the establishment of the Republic of China, although it was later restored twice in two failed revolutions in 1916 and 1917. The holy title
Emperor of China made by the official dynastic histories; the compilation of a history of the preceding dynasty was considered one of the hallmarks of legitimacy, along with symbols such as the Nine Ding or the Heirloom Seal of the Realm. As with the First Emperor, it was very common also to retroactively grant posthumous titles to the ancestors of the victors; even in Chinese historiography, however, such grants were not considered to elevate emperors prior to the successful declaration of a new dynasty. The Yuan and Qing dynasties were founded by successful invaders; as part of their rule over China, however, they