When did Taoism first start to gain widespread acceptance in China?

Answer 1

Some forms of Taoism may be traced to prehistoric folk religions in China that later coalesced into a Taoist tradition.[69][70] Lao-Tzu is traditionally regarded as the founder of Taoism and is closely associated in this context with "original", or "primordial", Taoism.[43] Lao-Tzu received imperial recognition as a divinity in the mid-2nd century BCE.[71] Taoism gained official status in China during the Tang Dynasty, whose emperors claimed Lao-Tzu as their relative.[72] Several Song emperors, most notably Huizong, were active in promoting Taoism, collecting Taoist texts and publishing editions of the Daozang.[73] Aspects of Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism were consciously synthesized in the Neo-Confucian school, which eventually became Imperial orthodoxy for state bureaucratic purposes.[74] The Qing Dynasty, however, much favored Confucian classics and rejected Taoist works. During the 18th century, the imperial library was constituted, but excluded virtually all Taoist books.[75] By the beginning of the 20th century, Taoism had fallen so much from favor, that only one complete copy of the Daozang still remained, at the White Cloud Monastery in Beijing.[76] Taoism is one of five religions recognised by the People's Republic of China and regulates its activities through a state bureaucracy (the China Taoist Association).[77]

From Wikipedia-en