Qin and Han Dynasty

The Qin and Han Dynasties

Chapter 10, Lesson 3

The Qin Emperor

●

Was a state during the period of the Warring States

●

Sent a large cavalry force to defeat the Zhou dynasty

●

Qin ruler declared himself Qin Shihuangdi
○Means “The First Qin Emperor”

Changing China

●Wanted to strengthen and unify China

●Ruled with absolute control

●Swift and harsh punishments or executions

●Writings that displeased Qin were burned

●Appointed censors to make sure government workers did their work

●Created a currency for all of China to use

●Created a more simple writing system for China

• All of this to enforce his ideas of Legalism

Open Ended

What was established in the Qin Dynasty that was universal across all of China?

Building Projects in China

●Built his own tomb

○So large that it housed an army of life-sized clay soldiers and horses

●Ordered farmers to build palaces, roads, dams, and a huge canal

●Canal connected the Chang Jiang in central China to the modern day city
of Guangzhou

●Great Wall of China

Open Ended

Who built palaces, roads, dams, and a huge canal

Great Wall of China

●Wanted to keep the empire safe from invasion

●Many nomads lived in the Gobi in the north

○Known as the Xiongnu

○Skilled warriors

○Frequently attacked Chinese settlements

●Walls in the north had already existed

●Qin planned to have these separate pieces connected

Multiple Choice

The Great Wall of China protected China from invaders from which direction?

• North

• South

• East

• West

Han Dynasty

●

Qin dynasty ended after Qin’s death

●

Aristocrats and farmers revolted due to harsh rule

●

Fighting erupted for 8 years

●

Liu Bang founded the Han Dynasty

○This dynasty would last for 400 years

Han Wudi

●Han Wudi was the first strong emperor of the Han Dynasty

●Recruited dedicated and talented people for civil service based on
competitive tests

○Officials recommended candidates

○Candidates took long, difficult tests

○Tests were graded and the emperor would review

○Highests scores got the jobs

○This system helped improved the government but tended to favor the rich

Open Ended

How did Han Wudi select his gov

Han Empire Expands

●Population rose to about 60 million

●Farmers would be split up amongst sons but over time the plots of land would
become too small to support families

○Many had to sell their land and work as tenant farmers

●Wealthy landowners eventually owned most of the land

●Armies conquered land to the north

○Including Korea

●Armies also conquered areas of Northern India and defeated the Xiongnu to
the North

Inventions and Advancements

●Cast-iron plow

●Iron tools

●Waterwheels to grind grain

●Iron drill bits to mine more salt

●Wheelbarrow

●Paper

●Rudder

○Could sail against the wind for the first time

○Could ship goods far away

●Herbs to treat illness

●Acupuncture

○Relieved pain

Multiple Choice

Which of the following is not an invention from China?

• Iron Tools

• Paper

• Acupuncture

• Algebra

Silk Road

●Han Wudi sent a general out west to find allies

●Instead of allies he found a kingdom with great horses

●Han Wudi wanted horses for his soldiers so he traded with them silk, spices,
and other luxury goods

●This trade route later called the Silk Road due to silk being the most famous
export

●Stretched from China to Mediterranean

●Main trade link between Asia and Europe, especially with Rome

Buddhism Reaches China

●Buddhism spread on the Silk Road from India to China

●Few followers at first but the fall of the Han dynasty and violence led to its
spread

●Han Dynasty collapsed due to weak rulers and civil war

●By 400 B.C.E. Buddhism became one of China’s major religions

Multiple Choice

Which of the following was not traded on the Silk Road?

• Silk

• Buddhism

• Corn

• Spices