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Ancient China
I. Achievements of the Ancient Chinese
A. Great Wall of China-largest masonary
construction in the world.
1. Defensive wall stretching 1400 miles,
protecting China from enemies to the
north.
2. Helped to keep the vast land of China
unified. Great Wall to the north; desert
to the west; Himalayas Mts. to the southwest;
ocean to the east.
Ancient Chinese Achievements
B. Paper
J. Umbrella
C.
D.
E.
F.
G.
H.
I.
K. Paper money
L. Playing cards
M. Use of petroleum and nat.
gas as fuel
N. Acupuncture
O. The hoe-for farming
P. Martial arts
Gunpowder
The wheelbarrow
The crossbow
Masts and Sailing
Kites
Parachutes
Matches
Q. compass
R. Silk Road-used to trade silks, rugs, bronze and other
aspects of Chinese culture to the rest of the civilized
world west of China.
The Great Dynasties of Ancient China
The Shang
A. First great dynasty in China was the Shang
dynasty (1800 B.C. to 1123 B.C.)
1. Began along the Huang He river valley
2. During Shang rule-Chinese writing
developed
a. scribes wrote on narrow strips of
bamboo or wood and had to write
vertically rather than horizontally-Chinese
today write and read vertically left to right.
The Shang
3. Early Chinese civilizations were polytheistic.
a. Rulers claimed to have a mandate from heaven.
b. During the Shang dynasty human sacrifice was carried
out to show devotion and respect to the gods. The
Shang also believed they received wisdom for the gods
in return for offering sacrifices.
c. Thousands of ancient skeletal remains have been found
piled on top of each other near the palaces where the
Shang dynasty ruled- show signs of being sacrificed.
The Shang
4. Archaeologists believe the Shang practiced slavery.
5. Made exquisite bronze jugs, urns, and bowls
6. Shang me of wisdom used oracle bones and oracle shells to
learn about future battles, leaders, and possible disasters.
a. Tortoise shells and bones would be heated over a hot
fire until cracked. The cracks would then be
interpreted.
7. Developed silk- a process using silkworm cocoons from
mulberry trees. Divulging the secrets of silk making led to
execution.
The Shang
8. Most people living under Shang rule were very poor peasants.
a. They farmed wheat, millet, and rice.
b. Peasants were heavily taxed and always owned rent to
their landlord- it was not uncommon that a father
would sell their children into slavery to pay the rent.
9. Because of poor leadership, the Shang dynasty collapsed in
1123 B.C.
The Chou Dynasty
1. The Chou dynasty ruled China from 1123 B.C. to 256 B.C.
2. The Chou dynasty ruled China during a time period called the
Era of Warring States.
a. Much of their rule was marked by constant fighting
between the different states of the land of China.
3. Responding to the chaos and disorder of the time, three
important thinkers established philosophies by which Chinese
people could live a better life in a more harmonious China.
The Philosophers
A. Confucius- Confucianism
The Philosophers
Lao-Tzu-Taosim (Daoism)
The Philosophers
Han-Fei Tzu-Legalism
Ch’in Dynasty
1. Ruled land of China 221 B.C. to 206 B.C.
2. Forced China to unify-it is estimated that they executed 2/3
of their opponents.
a. Suppressed the power of warlords and centralized gov’t
b. Ch’in dynasty built Great Wall of China to help keep out
invading enemies from the north.
1. Built by 200,000 convicts and 100,000 soldiers
2. Thousands of laborers died and were buried as
fill in the Great Wall.
3. Laborers were forced to work and would have to
Ch’in Dynasty
4. We believe many workers were put to death
during construction so they would not reveal the
secrets of construction.
c. Unified written language
d. Built 5000 miles of roads
e. Passports were needed to travel
f. Standardized the currency
g. Buried alive 460 of the most distinguished scholars viewed as a
threat to dynasty
1. organized mass book burnings-many of the writings about
Confucius were destroyed
a. Any writing supporting the state warlords were destroyed
Ch’in Dynasty
H. Built a great military
a. Many peasants joined the military under the Ch’in
dynasty because it offered them the opportunity to
improve their station in life.
b. Some historians believe that the amount of heads cut
off in battle directly increased a soldiers’ chances of
moving up the military ranks.
1. One story has it that in one battle 450,000 of the
enemy was captured and all 450,000 of these
captives were beheaded.
“First Emperor”-Shi Huangdi
I. The leader of the Ch’in dynasty was Shi Huangdi
A. He was called “First Emperor”
B. Took all the land from the warlords-became first
emperor of china (China may be named after this
dynasty)
1. All brass spears, arrows, and chariots of warlords
turned in
C. Shi Huangdi died in 210 B.C., after ruling for 11 years.
Terra Cotta Warriors
1. As soon as he became emperor, he already had 700,000
convicts working on a mausoleum (mausoleum found 1974).
a. Automatic crossbows were set up for robbers
b. Those who had worked on the mausoleum, Shi’s
concubines, and his many prized material possessions
were sealed in the tomb.
c. 7000 life size clay statues (each with a unique face) of
his army were buried in battle formation, along with
clay horses and chariots.
1. Legend has it that if a soldier was asked to pose
with the statue and refused they would suffer
death.
Han Dynasty
1. Ruled China for over 400 years- (140 B.C. to around 220 A.D.)
A. Han leaders used diplomacy as their guiding principle
for ruling the states of China-relied less on warfare.
B. Trade occurred with Europe and the Middle Eastby way of the Silk Road
C. Time of great wealth and population explosion in
China
D. The arts and scholarship flourished.
Han Dynasty
1. They adopted Confucianism-which strongly influences
China today
2. The religion Buddhism spread from India into China
during this time
3. Daoism also thrived during the Han dynasty.