Classical China

CLASSICAL ERA IN THE EAST

KEY TERMS (HW)

• Aryans

• Hinduism

• Reincarnation

• Caste System

• Buddha

• Emperor Asoka

• Mauryan Empire

• Gupta Empire

• Zhou Dynasty

• Mandates of Heaven

• Confucius

• Qin Dynasty

• Shih Huang-ti

• Great Wall of China

• Han Dynasty

MANDATE OF HEAVEN

DYNASTIES OF CHINA

Zhou Dynasty (1027 B.C.- 221 B.C.)

• Conquered Shang Dynasty

• Rulers were Mandate of Heaven (chosen to rule by heaven)

• Selfish rulers would be overthrown by disasters and riots

• Land given to nobles in exchange for military service

• Civil unrest ensued once nobles gained too much power

• Out of the unrest came Confucius and Lao Tzu

CONFUCIANISM

• Built a philosophy based on the order of the universe ( our role in society)

• Follow traditional ways (obedience and social order)

• Each person should live up to his or her name and fulfill their social obligations

• Family is very important and children should show their parents total devotion called filial piety

• Confucianism stressed the importance of family and order

• No matter who was in charge Confucianism continued because of its social benefits.

CONFUCIANISM CONTINUED

DAOISM

• Based on the teachings of Lao Tzu

• Nature has a way in which it moves (the Dao)

• Accept the way of nature and don’t try to resist it

• Acceptance is a major part of the Dao for harmony

• Achieve enlightenment by “non- striving,” enjoying nature, and using contemplation to abandon earthly concerns

QIN DYNASTY (221 B.C.- 206 B.C.) (CHIN)

• Shin Huang-ti was provincial ruler who unified all of China through conquest (1st to call himself “Emperor”)

• Absolute ruler and would punish those who were bad

• Despised Confucianism and persecuted scholars

• Built the Great Wall of China, canals and roads connecting China, unified written language and measurements

• Also had an immense army of clay soldiers surround him in his tomb

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HAN DYNASTY (206 B.C.E.- 220 C.E.)

• The Han took over for the Qin Dynasty.

• After several years of civil war the Han Emperors emerged victorious

• During Han China the culture Invented:

• Paper

• Lead glazed ceramics

• Advanced silk weaving

• Porcelain

• Created Civil Service Exams for Govt. service based on history and Confucianism

• Used for the Bureaucracy. Government Jobs.

• Civil Service exams allowed common men to move up the social ladder

• Weakened Nobles’ powers.

• Made the Han Emperors more powerful

HAN DYNASTY - GOVERNMENT

SIZE OF HAN CHINA

• Established the “Silk Roads” from China to the Roman Empire

• Network of Trade Routes.

• Nobody traveled entire route.

• Multiple exchanges along the way

• Buddhism traveled to China from India on the Silk Road

SILK ROADS

SILK ROADS

LIFE IN THE HAN DYNASTY

• Families had many children, the boys were raised to be in the military or work in the government, and the girls would be raised to serve their future arranged husband

• Each Family split their land among their sons evenly

• So each generation had less and less wealth and land

• Eventually this caused social instability and civil unrest

• The Han Empire lasted over 400 years

• The Empire was so big that communication suffered and individual Governors started to break away

• Social Instability

• Corruption in the Govt.

• Huns Also invaded

• They never overran China the way they did Rome or India

END OF THE HAN EMPIRE