Ancient china

Ancient
China
The Imperial
Age
By Katrina Ward
s0207400
Year 7 – Contacts and conflicts
within and/or with
societies, resulting in
developments such as the
expansion of trade, and the
spread of philosophies and
beliefs (ACDSEH043) Image retrieved from: http://history.cultural-china.com/en/183H3930H10682.html

Warring States
(475-221 B.C.)
China did not exist thousands of years ago. The Chinese called themselves the ‘black-haired
people’ and thought of their land as ‘All-Under-Heaven’. They didn’t know what lay past the sea to
the east, the desert in the north, the jungles in the south or the mountains to the west. All-Under-
Heaven was the whole world to these people.
This world was divided into seven states, each with
it’s own ruler. The warring states were called: Qin,
Han, Zhao, Chu, Wei, Yan and Qi. The leaders of these
states had been fighting each other for centuries.
The conflict between the organised armies of the
states was violent. The troops were led by brilliant
leaders who would stop at nothing to win. More
than 1.5 million soldiers were killed during the last
one hundred and thirty years of that period.
How do we know about the ancient past?
In 221 B.C. the, King Zheng of Qin and his armies had conquered all of the states. The King Zheng
was now ruler of All-Under-Heaven
(Lloyd, 2010)
Image retrieved from:
http://sitemaker.umich.edu/mladjov/maps&
(scroll down to ‘Maps of China and East Asia to learn more)

The Qin Dynasty
(221-206 B.C.)
The First Emperor – King Zheng
King Zheng established the new Qin dynasty and changed his name. He dubbed himself Qin Shi
Huang Di (pronounced “sher-hwahng-der”), the “The First Emperor”
After the surrender of the last warring state Qin Shi Huang Di built a grand new capital in
Xianyang and made the former rulers of each conquered state move there so that he could keep
an eye on them. He did not hand out land to his sons and army leaders. He gave money and
presents instead. Qin Shi Huang Di brought peace to the states and would rule alone.
How would life under the one ruler be better for the people?
Image retrieved from: http://www.china-
mike.com/chinese-history-timeline/part-3-
qin-dynasty/

The Qin Dynasty - continued
(221-206 B.C.)
The states had dissimilar writing, different weights and measurement, different coins, farming
tools, ways of using bronze, burying the dead and various size carts and wheels
Imagine the problems facing China’s first emperor as he sought to unite the states and provide a
sense of nationhood.
How would the first emperor deal with these differences?
Weights and measures, currency and the written language were all standardized, setting the stage
for lasting economic structure. The imperial system lasted without basic changes until 1911 A.D.
(Veeck, Pannell, Smith & Huang, 2007).
Images retrieved from: http://www.china-tour.cn/Chinese-Arts/Ancient-Chinese-Coins.htm
http://www.anythinganywhere.com/commerce/coins/coinpic
s/chin-qing.htm

The Qin Dynasty – continued
(221-206 B.C.)
Qin Shi Huang Di established many of the structures that allowed China to become a great
empire. Among the many accomplishments of the emperor, huge construction projects were
completed, including a road system, an early version of the Great Wall and the expansion and
extension of the national canal network (Veeck, Pannell, Smith & Huang, 2007).
How did these accomplishments result in the development of trade?
http://www.thegreatwall.com.cn/en/goc/greatwallhistory-
qinshihuanggreatwall.htm
Ruins of Qin Shi Huang Great Wall at Inner
Mongolia.
Image retrieved from: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-
__Vzf5Rjc&feature=related
Great Wall

The Qin Dynasty – continued
(221-206 B.C.)
The first emperor died in 210 B.C. and was buried
in an underground palace beneath Mount Li
surrounded by his army. One of the most impressive
artefacts from the Qin period is the Terracotta Army
guarding Qin Shi Huang's tomb in Xi'An.
For what purpose did the emperor create
the Terracotta Army and was this
purpose served?
Second Emperor – Qin Er Shi
The second son of the first emperor, Er Shi ruled from 210 B.C. until his death in 206 B.C.
Third Emperor – Grandson of Qin Shi Huang Di
After reigning for only 46 days the first Chinese imperial dynasty was put to a definitive end by
rebels. (Hollihan-Elliot, 2006) Liu Bang, leader of the rebels, became emperor of the new dynasty.
Image retrieved from: http://history.cultural-
china.com/en/53History190.html

The Han Dynasty
(207 B.C. – A.D. 220)
First Emperor – Liu Bang
Liu Bang was the leader of the rebellion against the Qin. He was a peasant but was a skilled
soldier; he could not read or write but was good listener. The new emperors rule was less harsh;
he rejected excessive punishment in favour of Confucianism
Why was Confucius an important person in Chinese history?
Although there was some time of rebellion during the reign of weak emperors, the Han dynasty
lasted 400 years. The rebellion divided the dynasty into the ‘Earlier Han’ (206 B.C. –9 A.D.) and the
‘Later Han’ (25-220 A.D.).
During the Han Dynasty, agriculture developed rapidly and ox ploughs and iron tools were widely
used. Trade with the outside world began during the Han dynasty. The trade between China, the
rest of Asia and Europe became known as the Silk Road. Industries based on early Chinese
discoveries and inventions had a chance to develop. They included working metals like
copper, bronze and iron, mining salt, making silk, pottery , lacquer ware and paper
(Reynoldson, 1994).
Image retrieved from: http://www.kidspast.com/world-
history/0132-qin-dynasty-ends.php

The Sui Dynasty
(589-618 A.D. )
First Emperor – Yang Jian
Yang Jian was born to the noble class and was the Prime Minister of the last emperor. He
proclaimed himself Emperor Wen Di , meaning cultured emperor. After more than 350 years,
China was once again reunited under one ruler (Veeck, Pannell, Smith & Huang, 2007). Wen Di
encouraged Buddhism in China.
Tell something you know about Buddhism and how it became
part of the Chinese beliefs.

The Sui Dynasty – continued
(589-618 A.D. )
Second Emperor –Yang Di
Wen Di’s son, Yang, was ambitious. He set out to conquer the area known as Korea and forced
hundreds and thousands to work on building new palaces for himself . He also decided to build a
canal to join the Yangtze and Yellow Rivers. The canal improved the growing of rice crops, so
much so that new types of rice were being grown.
Rice was needed to feed the people and farmers still paid their taxes to the emperor in grain.
Yang Di’s taxes arrived on large barges, via the canal. The rice and other grains were stored in
huge granaries known as the ‘ever ready granary system’.
(Reynoldson, 1994)
Why might canals be important to the development of a civilization?
In 617 A.D. the Chinese people rebelled and the emperor was overthrown; a new dynasty was
established (Shuter, 2007).
http://www.china.org.cn/top10/2011-
09/02/content_23343011_4.htm

The Tang Dynasty
(618-907 A.D. )
First Emperor – Li Yuan
Li Yuan took the name Gaozu, meaning High Founder. He restored
many policies of the original Sui Emperor Wen Di, reversing several
changes implemented by Emperor Wang. He also relaxed the harsh
laws of the region and worked to promote trade. After a short
reign the emperor abdicated the throne in favour of his second son
Li Shimin.
Second Emperor – Li Shimin
Li Shimin, who was dubbed emperor Taizong, ruled between 626-649 A.D. He did not spend a lot
of money and was straight forward. The people liked him and were pleased that they were united
under a strong dynasty again. The Tang Dynasty had a successful government system with an
emphasis on education. The Tang rulers felt that a well-educated public was not a threat to
authority, but rather, the basis for a stable, prosperous society.
List the government systems that were re-established during the reign of Li Yuan.
Li Yuan

The Tang Dynasty - continued
(618-907 A.D.)
Female Emperor – Wu Zhao
The third emperor Gao Zong Fell in love with one of the second emperor’s concubines. Her name
was Wu Zhao. He abandoned his wife and made Wu Zhao the empress. She immediately had the
wife and one of the emperor’s favourite concubines murdered. She had complete control of the
emperor by the time he died in 683 A.D.
Two weak emperors reigned for a few years, but in 690 A.D. the second one was thrown out by Wu
Zhao and she declared herself empress, making her the only female ruler in Chinese history. During
her reign she changed the examination system for selecting local government representatives, so
that people from poor backgrounds would have a chance to become officials (Reynoldson, 1994).
Trade flourished in the Tang dynasty, it became the gateway to the West. Trains of hundreds of
camels carrying porcelains and silks, followed the Silk Road. The merchants took Chinese ideas and
brought back foreign ideas, religions, food and goods. ‘Flying Currency’ was introduced towards
the end of the dynasty along with foot binding.
Describe what is meant by ‘Flying Currency’ which began around 800 A.D.
Image retrieved
from:
http://www.wome
ninworldhistory.c
om/heroine6.html

The Song Dynasty
(960-1279 A.D.)
First Emperor – Zhao Quangy
Zhao Quangy was proclaimed emperor by his soldiers. He feared that other army generals would try
to become emperor and attempted to avoid this by giving them large pensions and he detained
them in the city where he could keep and eye on them. The emperor became worried about the
economy of his empire and asked for suggestions. The emperor was so impressed with a list of ideas
sent in by Wang Anshi he made him chief minister (Reynoldson, 1994). Wang Ansh’s new laws were
implemented and he became one of the greatest officials of the
Song Dynasty. Before the ministers resignation in 1076 A.D. he
encouraged the development of gunpowder weapons and set
up an arsenal to make the weapons.
Before weapons, how was gunpowder used?
Eighth Emperor – Sung Hui Tsung
Sung Hui Tsung was a great patron of the arts, a famous painter and excellent calligrapher and
because of this poetry, painting and education for nobles flourished. Unfortunately he was not a
strong ruler. In 1127 A.D. a tribe called the Jin captured the emperor and his family ; they were never
seen again. One prince named Gaozong, the ninth son of the emperor escaped imprisonment and
settled in Hangzhou which became the capital of the Southern Song.
Many outstanding scientific discoveries were made during the Song period and although the Song
had lost half of China the richness of the Chinese civilization continued in the Southern Song for the
next 100 years.
Recipe for
Gunpowder
Retrieved from:
http://kaleidoscope.cultural-
china.com/en/136K1K4.html

The Mongol Yuan Dynasty
(1279-1368 A.D.)
First Emperor – Kublai Khan
Kublai Khan was the grandson of the great warrior Genghis Khan who led the Mongols
during the invasion of northern China in 1215 A.D. When Kublai Khan took over the Song
in southern China he named his dynasty Yuan because it means beginning (Deedrick,
2001). Although the Mongols continued to fight they eventually settled down to
become Chinese and run China the way the Chinese had, allowing the Chinese people
to rule in lower positions (Reynoldson, 1994).
The Ming Dynasty
(1368-1644 A.D.)
First Emperor – Ahu Yuanzhang
The monk Ahu Yuanzhang led the army that chased the Mongols back to their land in the north. He
named the dynasty Ming, meaning bright and shining.
The Ming dynasty is known for it’s beautiful pottery and the construction of the Forbidden City
where the emperors lived during the next two dynasties.
The Ming government was over thrown by a series of peasant rebellions. Eventually the Manchus of
the Mongolian grasslands defeated the peasant armies and established their own dynasty.
(Deedrick, 2001)
Retrieved from:
http://depts.washington.edu/chin
aciv/painting/tptgyula.htm

The Qing Dynasty
(1644-1911 A.D.)
Last of the Chinese Dynasties
After the Manchu rulers seized control of China in 1644, they moved quickly to assert authority over
the dominant Han Chinese population and established a dress code. Regulations codified dress for
the imperial family, the Qing court and court officials, distinguishing the ruling elite and government
from the general population. Women dressed according to the rank of their husbands.
There were many achievements in the Qing dynasty but the most well known accomplishments
during the was the tremendous growth of literature and the arts.
The Last Emperor – Pu Yi
Pu Yi was born in 1906 when the Qing dynasty was coming to its end. Emperor Guangxu’s wife, Ci
Xi, imprisoned him and made herself the head of state. Guangxu died in November 1908 A.D. and Ci
Xi, known as the Empress Dowager, chose two-year-old Pu Yi as the new emperor of China. She
knew he was too young to rule, which meant that she would have more power. But the empress
died just a few months later. When Pu Yi was five years old, China became a republic (a country
with an elected government rather than one ruled by a king or queen), but the new government
allowed him to carry on living in the Forbidden City (Tao, 2003).
Discuss the legacies of ancient Chinese societies?
Images Retrieved from:
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/482238/Puyi

References
Deedrick, T. (1994). Ancient civilizations: China. Austin, New York: Raintree Steck-Vaughn Publishers.
Hollihan-Elliot, S. (2006). Ancient history of china. Philadelphia: Mason Crest Publishers
Lloyd, A. (2010). Wicked warriors and evil emperors. London, England: Penguin Books Ltd.
Reynoldson, F. (1994). Imperial china. Oxford: Heinemann Publishers Ltd.
Shuter, J. (2007). Ancient China: Time travel guides. London: Harcourt Education Ltd.
Tao, W. (2003). Exploring History: China. London: Belitha Press
Veeck, G., Pannell, C. W., Smith, C. J., & Huang, Y. (2007). China’s geography: Globalization and the
dynamics of political, economic, and social change. USA: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, INC.
Year 7 - Historical Knowledge and Understanding
Contacts and conflicts within and/or with societies, resulting in developments such as the expansion of
trade, and the spread of philosophies and beliefs (ACDSEH043)

The following websites were used in the creation of this Web Story:
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http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/482238/Puyi

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