CHINA OVERVIEW:

A BRIEF HISTORY OF CHINA

Geography of China

I. Geography of China

A. Larger than the United States

B. Climate varies

1. North

a. Temperate and cold

2. South

a. Subtropical

b. Erosion

c. Floods and droughts

Geography of China

B. Important rivers

1. The Huang He River (Yellow River) flows in northern

China for more than 2,900 miles.

a. The Huang He River has become known as the Yellow River because of

the fine, fertile, yellow soil, called loess (LOH ehs), that the wind and

river flood waters deposit across the plains.

2. Yangtze River– Flows for 3,400 miles in Central China.

Yellow RiverYangtze River

Geography of China

D. Enclosed by high mountains, hot deserts, wide oceans

1. China is protected in the southwest by the Himalaya Mountains.

2. China is protected by the Gobi Desert and the Mongolian Plateau in the north.

3. Jungle regions were prominent in the South.

China was so isolated that the Chinese thought of themselves as the center of the

universe. They had little concern for what existed outside of their borders.

Himalaya Mountains Gobi Desert Mongolian Plateau

Ancient History

II. Ancient History

A. By 4000 BCE

1. Village settlements along the Huang He River

2. Farming, stone tools, weapons (bow and arrow), animal domestication,

pottery

B. Circa 1500 BCE

1. Picture writing (oldest writing in existence)

a. Now circa 40,000 characters

What Are Dynasties?

III. What Are Dynasties?

A. Dynasty a series of rulers from the same family

B. Historically, royal rule was descended from father to son

C. Mandate of Heaven

1. Belief that the emperor was chosen by heaven to rule.

2. If a ruler lost the Mandate of Heaven, it was not considered a crime to

rebel against him.

Xia (a.k.a Hsia) Dynasty (CIRCA 2070-CIRCA 1600 BCE)

IV. Xia (a.k.a. Hsia) Dynasty

A. China’s first dynasty

B. Founded by Yu

C. Built roads and irrigation projects

Shang Dynasty (CA. 1600-1046 BCE)

V. Shang Dynasty

A. Writing began

B. Developed bronze, glazed pottery, and silk industries

C. The Shang dynasty lasted approximately 600 years.

D. Many historians believe the great gap between the rich and the poor caused

the Shang dynasty to weaken.

Beautiful jade and

ivory carvings and

ornaments made by

the Shang have

been found.

Zhou Dynasty (1045-256 BCE)

VI. Zhou (a.k.a. Chou) Dynasty

A. China's longest-ruling dynasty.

B. Expanded trade with other parts of the world.

C. Introduced the use of metal coins.

D. Cities grew larger, and roads and canals were built.

E. Traded with people in western Asia

1. Introduced to new foods, animals, and traditions.

Qin Dynasty (221-206 BCE)

VII. Qin (a.k.a. Chin) Dynasty

A. Military dictatorship centralized China

B. Emperor Shih Huang Ti

C. Destroyed nobles’ feudal power

D. System of taxation

E. Established weights and measures

F. Great Wall (1500 miles)

1. The Wall was built to help protect China from invasion from the north.

First Emperor Qin was only

emperor for 15 years. But in

that time, he made great

changes. It was under his rule

that China became one

country.

One of the things Emperor Qin wanted to

accomplish was to strengthen China's

protection from the Mongol tribe to the north.

China's natural barriers in the east, south, and

west, protected her from invasion. But China

was vulnerable to the north.

The Great Wall of China stretches from Korea in the West to the Gobi Desert in the East. (Nearly 4, 500 miles long)Can the Great Wall of China be seen from Outer Space?

Qin put many people to work building the

wall including criminals, scholars, captured

enemies and anyone he felt like assigning to

the wall construction. Even though Qin put

over 3,000 people to work building the wall,

it took a little longer than he had originally

thought it would to build. It took over 1700

years! Emperor after emperor followed

Qin's lead and forced people to build the

wall. By the time the wall was done, it was

3700 miles long.

Han Dynasty (206-220 CE)

VIII. Han Dynasty

A. Conquerors

B. Empire- Central Asia to China Sea, Indochina to Korea

C. Trade

1. Chinese fruits, silks, and spices sold in Rome (1st century)

D. Buddhism came from India

E. Civil service system

F. First paper made

Tang Dynasty (618-906 CE)

IX. Tang Dynasty

A. 400 years of warfare between Han and

Tang dynasties

B. Tang reunited China

C. T’ai Tsung

1. Emperor in 627 CE

2. Education and government reforms

a. Extended China’s boundaries

b. Alliances and peace treaties with neighbors

c. Industry and trade

d. Jade porcelain, and silks to Arabia, India, Japan, and Persia.

Song Dynasty (960-1279)

X. Song (a.k.a. Sung) Dynasty

A. 960-1279 CE

B. Disorder between Tang and Sung dynasties

C. Culture superior to that of medieval Europe

D. Powerful only in southern China

Mongol Rule (1259-1368)

XI. Mongol rule (1259-1368)

A. Central Asian nomads

B. Genghis Khan

1. Conquered Asia, including China

C. Kublai Khan

1. Grandson of Genghis Khan

2. Visited by Marco Polo (Venetian)

a. Ruled for circa 100 years

D. Capital- Peking (modern-day Beijing)

E. Trade with Europe begun

Strange Fact:

After capturing a town, Genghis Khan

would order the inhabitants to gather

outside the town’s walls, and then his

men would proceed to slaughter them.

Each man was ordered to kill at least

fifty people, and they had to bring back a

sack full of ears to their officers to prove

it. At Nichapur in 1221, they killed

1,748,000 people in just one hour-which is

more than all the people the Nazis

murdered at Auschwitz.

Ming Dynasty (1368-1644)

XII. Ming Dynasty

A. Overthrew Mongols

B. Chinese natives

C. Beautified Peking (Beijing)

D. Encouraged trade with Europe

E. Gave Europeans:

1. Gunpowder

2. Jade

3. Porcelain

4. Silk

5. Tea

The Silk RoadXIII. Silk Road

A. Trade routes across Asia to the Mediterranean (access to Europe) in the west.

1. The route stretched 4,000 miles from China to Southwest Asia.

B. Chinese silks were sold in the marketplaces of the ancient Roman Empire.

1. Silk is a cloth made from proteins from silkworms

C. Cultural diffusion

1. Spread of cultural beliefs and social activities from one group to another.

a. Mixing of world cultures through different ethnicities, religions and

nationalities.

The Silk Road

Philosophy and ReligionXIV. Philosophy and Religion

A. Daoism

1. It is based on study of the Dao, literally translated, "the Way."

a. Taught people to be humble and worship nature.

b. Lao-Tse did not believe in the worship of gods.

2. Daoism profoundly influenced the later development of Buddhism.

B. Confucianism

1. Extreme worship of one's ancestors

2. Established codes for ethical conduct, virtuous governing, and proper

social relationships.

a. “Golden Rule,” what you do not like when done to yourself, do not

do unto others.

3. Emphasized education, honor, loyalty, and duty.

Confucius

New Philosophies from Ancient China

C. Legalism (Based on the writing of Hanfeizi)

1. Believed that man would look out for himself first and was therefore

basically evil.

2. Advocated that strong leaders are needed to make a nation easier to control.

a. Creation of a general atmosphere of fear and the law must be strictly

enforced.

1a. Legalism advocated techniques such as maintaining an active secret

police.

2a. Encouraged neighbors to inform on each other.

b. Many of the same tactics that the Legalists approved of were later

employed by Lao-Tse, Hitler, Stalin, and Mao.

Hanfeizi

Family Life in Ancient ChinaXV. Family

A. The Chinese placed great importance on the family.

1. The eldest male was the head of the family, and his children and

grandchildren lived together in one house.

2. Wives and children were trained to obey parents and grandparents

without question.

In China's far province of Guizhou, the Miao people are very superstitious, with strong beliefs in spirits and demons.

For marriage approval, a chicken is killed in front of the parties concerned. After the chicken is cooked whole, the size

of both its eyes were examined. If both eyes are identical, it symbolizes a blissful union. But if they are of different size,

it is considered a bad omen, and the wedding plans canceled. The weight of the chicken is also of importance. Either

party that breaks an engagement after the formal announcement must pay the other party an amount of silver

equivalent to the weight of the chicken.

XVI. Ancestor Worship:

A. Very important part of Ancient Chinese society.

1. When someone died, the ancient Chinese believed their spirit lived on

in the afterworld.

B. They believed their ancestors had magical powers that could punish

them or could help them make wise decisions.

C. To keep their ancestors happy, they brought gifts of food and wine to

special places or temples.

D. They held many celebrations to honor their ancestors.

Ancestor Worship

Ancestor Worship: Oracle Bones

XVII. Oracle Bones

A. Used to communicate with their ancestors.

1. These were bones of oxen that kings carved with questions asking

for guidance.

B. The kings gave the bones to oracles, special priests that received

guidance from the gods.

C. Oracles applied heat to the bones, causing them to crack.

1. The oracles then interpreted the cracks to answer the questions.

What questions would you like to ask an oracle bone?

Class Societies in Ancient China

XVIII. Social Classes [Top to Bottom]

A. Feudal System

1. Rulers set up a society with three classes: aristocrats, commoners,

and slaves.

2. People were either extremely rich or extremely poor.

3. There was no middle class. B. Emperor

C. Governors and Kings

1. Enforced the central government's rules.

D. Nobles and lords served the kings.

E. Warlords

F. Soldiers

Class Societies in Ancient ChinaG. Peasants (Farmers)

1. Most people were farmers (peasants).

a. Their life was very hard.

b. They did not own the land.

1a. Farmed the land that of the aristocrats.

1b. Had to give the nobleman part of the food they grew.

c. Small farmers couldn’t support themselves and had to borrow money.

1a. Became indebted to rich, aristocratic landowners.

1aa. Rich grew richer and poor grew poorer

Arts, Technology, and Science

I. Art:A. Beautiful murals were painted on the walls of palaces.

B. Craftsmen made jade jewelry and carvings, and gold ornaments.

C. Glazed pottery was brightly painted with mountains, trees, clouds, dragons, tigers,

and bears.

II. Technology:A. Iron was used for making plows and other cast iron objects.

B. During Han times, these ancient people invented paper.

C. Invented the compass, wheelbarrow, and ship’s rudder (used for steering).

D. Introduced silk thread for clothing, which is made from silkworms.

III. Science:A. Their medicine was advanced.

1. They invented acupuncture.

B. They also invented an instrument that told them when an earthquake was

happening, somewhere in the Empire, so they could send troops and food to help.