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_survey/resources/html/animations/greatwall_anim/wh14_greatwall.html

http://www.classzone.com/cz/books/ms_wh_aemt/get_chapter_group.htm?cin=14&rg=animations&at=animated_history&npos=3&spos=14&var=animated_historyv

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/anthro2003/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.