Transcript The Qin Dynasty

Main Idea:
Qin Shihuangdi used harsh methods
to unify and defend China.
• The local states of China fought one
another during the “Period of the
Warring States.”
• The ruler of the state of Qin took
over the neighboring states.
• He declared himself Qin Shihuangdi
and became China’s first Emperor.
Qin was a strong
ruler who based his
ideas on Legalism.
Qin ruled with complete
authority. For example:
1. He had everyone who
opposed him punished
or killed.
2. Books opposing him
were publicly burned.
 Qin made the central
government stronger than
ever by appointing all government
officials.
 He appointed censors
to make sure officials
did their jobs.
 Ways in which Qin unified China:
1. Created one type of currency, or type of money.
2. Built roads and a huge canal that connected
central China to southern China.
3. Divided the land into 36 districts, each
with it’s own governor and representative.
4. Made laws and taxes uniform throughout
the country.
5. Standardized weights and measurements.
6. Built the Great Wall.
The Great Wall
 Nomads called the Xiongnu from
northern China often attacked Chinese
farms and villages.
 They were masters of fighting on
horseback.
 Several Chinese rulers built walls to
keep the Xiongnu out.
 Qin forced farmers to work on
strengthening and connecting the
walls.
 The Great Wall was built of sand,
stone, and piled rubble that sometimes
contained dead bodies.
• B.C. 214 -- Continual invasions and wars
with the barbarians to the north drove
the emperor to order the construction of
the Great Wall to protect China.
• Qin Shi Huangdi used 300,000 laborers
to connect a number of the existing
defensive walls into a Great Wall
fortified by a system of watchtowers.
http://www.classzone.com/cz/books/ms_wh_s
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 Aristocrats were angry because Qin
reduced their power.
 Scholars hated him for burning their
books.
 Farmers hated him for forcing them
to build the Great Wall.
 Many Chinese hated him because of
his cruelty and his lavish spending
on his tomb containing a replica of
his army.
Rebellion
• Qin Shihuangdi became fearful of
attempts on his life and began
searching for a magic potion to
give him immortality.
• Drinking the potions from bronze
vessels may have driven him
insane and made him even more
cruel.
• Four years after
Qin’s death the
people overthrew
his dynasty and a
new dynasty
arose.
• He was buried in a
tomb with 6000
terracotta
soldiers.
http://www.mc.maricopa.edu/dept/d10/asb/anthro200
3/legacy/qin/slide1.html
http://china.mrdonn.org/terracotta.html
The Han Dynasty
Main Idea:
Developments during the Han
dynasty improved life for all
Chinese.
 In 202 B.C. Liu
Bang founded the
Han dynasty.
•
Liu Bang was once a
peasant, became a
military leader and
defeated his rivals.
•
He declared himself
Han Gaozu-”Exalted
Emperor of Han.”
• The Han reached its peak under the
leadership of Han Wudi.
• He ruled from 141 B.C. to 87 B.C.
 Wudi wanted talented
people to fill government
positions.
 Job seekers had to take
long, difficult tests.
Only 1 in 5 passed.
 Students had to study
law, history, and
Confucius teachings.
 These became known as
civil service exams.
 The average farmer
owned only about one
acre of land.
 They could not raise
enough for their
families.
 Many sold their land to
aristocrats and became
tenant farmers.
• Tenant farmers work
on land that is owned
by someone else and
pay rent in crops.
 China’s empire
grew in size as
well as in
population.
 Han armies added
land to the south
and pushed
borders westward.

Wudi’s armies
drove the nomads
back to the north.
• Millers used newly
invented waterwheels to
grind more grain
• Miners used new iron
drill bits to mine more
salt.
• Ironworkers invented
steel.
• Paper was used by
government
officials to record
information.
 Doctors used herbs
to cure illnesses.
 They eased pain by
sticking thin needles
into the patients’
skin.
 This treatment is
known as
acupuncture.
 The Chinese also
invented the rudder,
a new way to move
the sails of ships,
which increased
their speed.
 Merchants could now
travel to southeast
Asia and into the
Indian Ocean.
 Silk was the most
valuable trade
product.
 Most of it reached
southwest Asia by
way of a 4,000 mile
trade route known
as the Silk Road
 Zhang Qian was sent to
explore areas west of
China.
 He told of a mighty
empire in the west of
large cities with people
“who cut their hair
short, wore
embroidered clothes,
and rode in rich
chariots.” The empire
he spoke was Rome.
 His stories sparked
interest in the West
and trade on the Silk
Road increased.
 Merchants used camels
to carry goods to
central Asia.
 The Silk Road was
dangerous and
expensive.
 Merchants had to pay
taxes to many kingdoms
they passed through.
For this reason, they
carried only high-priced
goods such as silk,
spices, tea, and
porcelain.
• In A.D. 220, China plunged into civil war.
• Northern nomads also invaded the country.
• The collapse of the government and the
beginning of civil war frightened many of the
Chinese.
• Merchants and teachers
from India brought
Buddhism to China.
• After the fall of the Han
dynasty many Chinese
began to adopt Buddhism.
• The Han emperors after
Wudi were weak and
foolish. The central
government lost power.
Dishonest officials and
greedy aristocrats caused
unrest among the
farmers.
• Buddhism helped them
deal with stress and fear
of civil war which broke
out.