Ancient ChinaMhmm

Geography of China A mix of climates, environments,

and geographic features The Huang He (further north)

The Yellow River – nutrients The Chang Jiang (further south)

Isolation The Himalaya The jungles of SE Asia The Gobi Desert

The Shang Dynasty

Well, the Xia Dynasty (mystery) But the Shang – 1766 B.C.

Huang He

Ruled by a court – a gathering of wealthy nobles These men were assigned parts of the kingdom to

rule

Beliefs

Ancestor worship Dinner example

Oracle bones Questions inscribed on bone, heated and cracked,

oracles would interpret the cracks as messages

Shang Foundations

Agricultural systems Political systems Writing system (pictographs) Advanced metallurgy

The Zhou Dynasty The Mandate of Heaven and Dynastic Cycle

Justification for rule

Two Phases Taking control in 1100 BC, the

early Zhou period was relatively peaceful

Capital at Xi’an – center of cultural development

Development of iron and chopsticks

Agricultural developments = population increase

Infrastructure expanded greatly

After about 300 years, amidst conflict, the capital was moved to Luoyang

The Decline of the Zhou

The Aristocracy vs. The State Instability

The concept of Central Power Centralization vs. Decentralization

SHANG DYNAST

Y

ZHOU DYNAS

TY

I am here because of

the Mandate of

Heaven

Not true

The Zhou State

The Zhou Dynastic Dominion

The Zhou Aristocratic Dominion

The Zhou Aristocratic Dominion

The Zhou Aristocratic Dominion

The Zhou Aristocratic Dominion

Centralization

The Zhou State The Zhou

Aristocratic Dominion

The Zhou Aristocratic Dominion

The Zhou Aristocratic Dominion

The Zhou Aristocratic Dominion

The Zhou Dynastic Dominion

Loyal to the Emperor

Decentralization

The Warring States Period

Decentralization leads to things like this because of a complete

lack of Central Power

403 BC – 221 BC

A collection of small states run by powerful nobles compete for power and wealth in China

Nominally, the Zhou were still in control of all the states but because of decentralization, they held no real power over their nobles

Philosophies of China

Confucianism and Daoism

Conflict and Chaos in society led to some serious questions

People began to wonder: What is the nature of society? What are the roles of people within it?

Many philosophies were created to answer these questions

Confucianism

Confucius born c.550 BC Believed in humane acts between humans through

love and respect – tradition should establish these ways of living

The lack of this moral tradition created the violent chaos

Restoring it would restore order to China

Confucianism and Governance

Rulers should rule with fairness In turn, the ruled should be loyal and respectful

Education is key to the success of kingdoms The educated should then give back through civic duty

Daoism

Confucianism focused on improving society through effort

Daoism focuses rather on removal from society and yielding to the laws of nature

Dao = the way A force of nature

By finding your place in nature you reach fulfillment Yin and yang – the balancing forces

Classwork

In a one page response: Compare and contrast the histories of the Shang and

Zhou Dynasties (so about half a page) Compare and contrast Confucianism and Daoism (then

finish out that page)

China Reunited

Catching Up

Qin Dynasty (221 B.C. – 210 B.C.) Qin Shihuangdi

Han Dynasty (202 B.C. – 220 A.D.) Liu Pang (Peasant)

Dynastic Struggles After the collapse of the Han Dynasty, civil

war ravaged China for the next 300 years Dynasties fighting each other for power

Sui Dynasty Brought the chaos to an end in 581 A.D. and

established the new dynastic power It would not last long (collapsed in 618

A.D.), but succeeded in bringing some form of stability to China

The Tang Dynasty

Established after the collapse of the Sui Dynasty

618 – 907 A.D. Reforms after the chaos created stability,

structure, and prosperity Expanded empire west along Silk Road

Civil Service Exam Merit System

Downfall Weakened state, rebellions, and outside invaders

(from the North)

The Song Dynasty

Established (960 – 1279 A.D.) Ruled during a period of economic

prosperity Constant military pressure

Loss of Tibet Northern invasions

The Song moved the capital south to Hangzhou

The Aristocracy vs. The PeopleThe Issue of Land Distribution

The Aristocracy The People

The Issue of Land (Sui – Song)

During the periods of war, aristocrats seized large tracts of land

The people thus lost land = Making more people peasants or serfs (people literally bound to the land)

During the Song Dynasty however, the state worked to weaken the aristocracy’s hold on land

This led to an increase in the number of private land holders = Making less people peasants and/or serfs

More private land means more private money, which leads to more private investment

More investment means more specialization, which leads to greater technology

The Rise of a New Social Class

The landed-gentry As private ownership of land

and wealth increased, a new class formed the basis of economic and political elite

Similar to the “middle class” of United States today

Chinese Technologies

Steel (Tang) Blast Furnace

Coal Quench-hardened steel

Cotton

Gunpowder (Tang) Originally used for fireworks and communications

Some military use, not on par with what Europe would do with it

Printing and paper

Long Distance Trade The Silk Road Declined between the 300s and 500s

Collapse of Han Dynasty and Roman Empire Rose around the 700s

The unification of Southwest Asia under the Arabs

The Rise of the Tang Dynasty in East Asia