Final answer:
The Tang Dynasty oversaw a prosperous golden age for China, marked by cultural, economic, and military achievements, but faced internal and external challenges leading to its collapse in 906 CE.
Step-by-step explanation:
The statement that accurately describes the Tang Dynasty is B. It oversaw a prosperous golden age for China. The Tang Dynasty (618-907 CE) was a period of exceptional cultural, economical, and territorial growth for China. Under the Tang, arts such as calligraphy and landscape painting developed significantly, and literature thrived with poets like Li Bai and Du Fu. Technological advancements in areas such as paper-making and woodblock printing were widespread, and the economy prospered with robust trade along the Silk Roads and well-established markets.
Militarily, the Tang launched campaigns into Central Asia, though they faced challenges such as the An Lushan rebellion, which weakened the empire. Despite initial military expansion, the empire struggled with internal rebellions and external defeats, like the one at the Battle of Talas River against the Arab and Turkic forces of the Abbasid Caliphate. Eventually, the Tang ceded much authority to provincial warlords and collapsed in 906, followed by a period of disunity before the rise of the Song Dynasty.
The Tang Dynasty created a cosmopolitan society with renewed contacts with other cultures, significant religious developments, especially in Buddhism, and an establishment of a government official examination system that had lasting impacts on Chinese society.