The Rise of Imperial China

 The Zhou Dynasty lasted for at least eight

centuries, from approximately 1027 to 256 B.C. For
the first 300 years of their long reign, the Zhou
kings controlled a large empire, including both
eastern and western lands. Local rulers reported to
the king, who had the ultimate power. By the latter
years of the Zhou Dynasty, the lords of dependent
territories began to think of themselves as
independent kings. Their almost constant conflict,
which is known as “the warring states period,” led to
the decline of the Zhou Dynasty.
 The Rise of Qin Dynasty

 In the third century B.C., the Qin

Dynasty replaced the Zhou Dynasty. It
emerged from the western state of Qin.
The ruler who founded the Qin Dynasty
employed Legalist ideas to subdue the
warring states and unify his country.
 Qin [Ch’in] Dynasty, 221-206
B.C.E.

 Qin Shihuangdi (r. 221-210 BCE) founds

new dynasty as “First Emperor”
 Dynasty ends in 207, but sets dramatic
precedent
 Basis of rule: centralized bureaucracy
 Massive public works begun
 Precursor to Great Wall
 Qin Policies

 Centralized Government
 Abolishes old “feudal states” and divides China
into 36 military districts, each ruled by
appointed officials.
 Use of inspectors (spies) to keep local officials
in check.
 Shi Huangdi forces all “noble families” to live in
the capital in Xianyang.
 Nobles land was divided up amongst the
peasants who had to pay very high taxes.
 Qin Policies

 Shi Huangdi adopts Legalism as his

primary ruling philosophy.
 Constructed The Great Wall to protect
China from nomadic raids of people who
live to the North.
 Also builds numerous roads and canals to
help improve transportation.
 Qin Policies
 Standardized:
 Laws
 Currencies
 Weights and measures
 Script
 Previously: single language written in distinct
scripts
 Building of roads, bridges
 Government Monopolies: mining, wine
making, and salt distribution.
 Private commerce heavily taxed.
 Hierarchical “social
structures”

 The Emperor
 Landlords (ruled over the 36 military
districts)
 Merchants
 Peasants
 “Labor Systems” were used to for food
production, public works projects, and to
reward the elites.

 Forced labor used for most

projects such as the Great
Wall and “Terra Cotta”
soldiers. Peasants were
required to serve months at
a time.
 While peasants did receive
land from the new emperor,
they were taxed heavily.
 Patriarchal Rule

 Family roles similar to those found in

other early civilizations.
 Emphasis on unity and the power of the
husband and father.
 Women had clearly defined roles.
Generally were subordinate.
 Women could and did exercise influence
behind the scenes.
REASONS FOR THE DECLINE OF
THE QIN

1) Attacks on intellectuals.
2) Heavy tax burden placed on the
peasants to fund military conquests and
public projects.
3) Brutal rule
EXAMPLES: 476 scholars buried alive,
book burnings….
Shi Huangdi’s Terra Cotta Army
The Great Wall with Towers
The Eastern terminus of the Great Wall,
Shanhai Pass
 The fall of Qin

 The Qin Dynasty lasted only a short time.

Though fully as cruel as his father, Shi
Huangdi’s son proved less able. Peasants
rebelled just three years after the second Qin
emperor took office. One of their leaders, a
peasant from the land of Han, marched his
troops into the capital city. By 202 B.C., the
harsh Qin Dynasty gave way to the Han
Dynasty, one of the longest in Chinese history.
 The Rise of a New Dynasty

 Liu Bang, a peasant fighting in a rebel army,

became emperor due to the Chinese belief in
the mandate of heaven.
 He was the first emperor of the Han dynasty.
 Well liked by both warriors and peasants, Liu
Bang released the country from strict Legalistic
practices and focused on people’s immediate
needs.
 Liu Bang lowered taxes, gave large plots of land
to supporters, and set up a government that
expanded on the ideas of the Qin.
 Han Dynasty, 206 B.C.E.-220 C.E.

 The Han dynasty created a new form of

government that valued family, art, and
learning.
 Han dynasty government was largely
based on the ideas of Confucius.
 Han China supported and strengthened
family life.
 The Han made many achievements in art,
literature, and learning.
 Confucianism and the Han
Government

 Han government officials were expected to

practice Confucianism.
 Studying Confucianism could get a person a good
job in China.
 Han officials believed that if the family was
strong and people obeyed the father, then they
would also obey the emperor.
 The Han rewarded strong family ties and
respect for elders.
 Han Dynasty, 206 B.C.E.-220 C.E.

 “People of the Han”  original Chinese

 Paper invented [105 B.C.E.]

 Silk Road trade develops; improves life for many

 Buddhism introduced into China
 Expanded into Central Asia
 Wudi’s New Government

 In 140 BC, Emperor Wudi took the

throne and shifted the country’s focus
back to a strong central government.
 Confucianism became the official
government philosophy.
 Wudi built a university that taught
Confucian ideals, and awarded his
officials with higher rank if they were
familiar with Confucian principles.
 Four Social Classes
under the Confucian System

 Upper Class: The Emperor, his court,

and his scholars
 Second Class: The peasants, who made
life work on a daily basis
 Third Class: The artisans, who produced
items for daily life and some luxury
goods
 Fourth Class: The merchants, who
bought and sold what others made
 Family Life
Social Classes and Men Women
Wealth • Men were the • Women were
• Social rank did not head of the taught to obey
reflect prosperity. household. their husbands.
• Hard work and • Rulers had to obey • Girls were not
heavy labor did their elders too; it valued as highly as
not reflect was a crime to boys.
prosperity. disobey. • Women could
• A strong family • Some men gained influence their
was stressed so jobs based on the sons’ families.
that people would respect they
obey the emperor. showed to elders.
 Han Achievements
The Han created realistic scenes from everyday
life, advanced figure painting, and depictions of
Art
religious figures and Confucian scholars.

Fu style: combination of prose and poetry

Literature Shi style: short lines of verse that could be sung

The Han Chinese made paper by grinding plant

Invention of fibers into a paste and then setting the paste
Paper out to dry in sheets. Later they rolled the dried
pulp into scrolls.
 Han Achievements
A device for telling time, the sundial uses the
Sundial position of the shadows cast by the sun to
tell the time of day.

This device measures the strength of an

Seismograph earthquake. Chinese scientists believed that
the movement of the earth was a sign of evil
times.

Acupuncture is the practice of inserting

needles into the skin to cure disease or
Acupuncture
relieve pain. This practice is still widely used
today.
 Chang’an
The Han Capital
Trade Routes of the Ancient World
The Three
Kingdoms

 220A.D. – 265A.D.
 Disunity and civil war
 Kingdoms grew out of the 3
chief economic areas
 Buddhism began to spread
 Tea Discovered
 Porcelain developed
 Ts’ao Ts’ao made great impact
 Used other cultures
“barbarians” in army
 Assimilation among people
Jin (Chin)
Dynasty

 265A.D. – 420A.D.
 Eastern and Western
 Ssu-ma Yen started Dynasty
 Was an assimilated barbarian
 Reunified China again
 Never a stable empire
 Declared armies disbanded and
all arms returned
 Some sold theirs instead to
neighboring countries
 Jin defeated by Huns
 Disunity continued
Dynasties of
North and
South
 420A.D. – 588A.D.
 Another lengthy period of
disunity
 N. Dynasties = N. Wei, E. Wei,
West Wei, N. Qi, N. Zhou,
 S. Dynasties = Song, Qi, Liang, Chen
 Buddhism flourished (in N.
especially)
 Tenets appealed to country people
 Offered hope in Buddhism’s
reincarnation to a better life if one
lived their current life well.
 Meant nobles who oppressed them
would come back to a harder life
 Sui Dynasty, 581-618 C.E

 Yang Jian unified China and created the

Sui dynasty.
 Conquered the south and unified China
 Known for harsh rule: forced peasants
who owed taxes to fight in the army.
 Created a centralized and unified state
and laid the foundation for the golden
age that followed.
 Sui Dynasty, 581-618 C.E.

 “Land Equalization” System  land

redistribution.
 Unified coinage
 Repaired and lengthened the Great Wall
 Grand Canal constructed which connected
the Yellow river in the north and the
Yangzi river in the south.
 Established an army of professional
soldiers.
The Grand Canal
The Grand Canal Today
 Tang Dynasty, 618-907 C.E.

 Ruled for nearly 300 years

 China grew to include much of eastern
and central Asia.
 Seen as a Second Golden Age of China
 Included the only woman to rule China—
Empress Wu
 Rebuilt bureaucracy and created the
civil service exams where ability
determines position not rank
 Tang Dynasty, 618-907 C.E.

 Imperial examination system perfected.

 Liberal attitude towards all religions.
 Spread of Buddhism in China
 China’s capital and largest city of the
Tang dynasty was Chang’an.
 People from China, Korea, Persia, Arabia,
and Europe lived in Chang’an.
 Chang’an was known as a religious and
philosophical center.
Tang Government Organization
 Tang Dynasty, 618-907 C.E.

 Under the Tang, trade  New technologies:

centered around land  Printing moveable print
routes.
 Porcelain
 Reestablished the safety
 Gunpowder
of the Silk Road.
 Mechanical clocks
 Exports included tea,
rice, spices, jade, and  More cosmopolitan
most importantly, silk. culture.
 Imports included foods,  Tea comes into China
plants, wool, glass, and
precious metals.
from Southeast Asia
 The Grand Canal carried
trade goods and moved
crops into the cities.
 Empress Wu Zetian, 624-705
 The only female Empress in China’s
history who ruled alone.
 After her husband died she decided her sons
were not capable of ruling
 She ruled with an iron fist: if anyone
threatened her, they risked being killed
 She chose advisors based on ability not rank
 She ordered the construction of new irrigation
systems.
 Buddhism was the favored state
religion.
 Financed the building of many
Buddhist temples.
 BUT… She appointed cruel and sadistic
ministers to seek out her enemies.
 Foot-Binding in Tang China

 Broken toes by 3 years of age.

 Size 5 ½ shoe
on the right
Foot-Binding in Tang China

Mothers bound their daughters’ feet.

 Foot-Binding in Tang China

 For upper-class girls,

it became a new
custom.
The Results of Foot-Binding
Song [Sung] Dynasty, 960-1279 C.E.

 After a period of disorder following the fall of

the Tang dynasty, China was reunified by the
Song dynasty.
 Witnessed a period of great achievements
 Creation of an urban, merchant, middle class.
 Increased emphasis on education & cheaper
availability of printed books.
 The development of a magnetic compass makes
China a great sea power!
Song [Sung] Dynasty, 960-1279 C.E

 Cities continued to grow under the Song.

 The Song capital, Kaifeng, had about a million
people.
 Under the Song, sea trade became important.
 Porcelain became an important trade good.
 The Song strengthened the system of
meritocracy-jobs based on ability.
 They instituted a stricter civil service exams.
 Arts and inventions.

 Art  Inventions
 Artists of Song  The Song dynasties
dynasties made produced some of the
exquisite objects in most remarkable—and
clay. important—inventions in
 Song artists made human history.
porcelain items covered  Porcelain
in a pale green glaze  Paper money
called celadon.
Rice Cultivation Began Under the Song
Imperial China’s Impact on History

 Removed religion from morality.

 Beginnings of political philosophy
through which a ruler must prove
he/she is legitimate.
 Mandate of Heaven
 Secular law.
 Valued history  The Dynastic Cycle