Download Slide 1 - Marlboro Central School District

Qin
Dynasty
(pronounced “Chin”)
of
Ancient
China
Qin Shi Huang
• declared himself the first emperor of the entire nation
• dynasty lasted from 221 B.C. to 207 B.C.
• declared Xianyang the capital
• decided a round coin with a square hole should be the only
money used, which allowed for better commerce
• placed great importance on irrigation and road building
projects, which saved lives from flooding and famine
• had the Great Wall of China Built, which provided an
advantage in war

to prevent his people from thinking freely, he had many
books burned, including those of Confucius

after learning that some scholars spoke negatively about
him, he had 460 of them buried alive

built his famous mausoleum, terra-cotta warriors and
horses

forced his people to work hard, pay high taxes, follow strict
laws, and give service to the military

Qin believed in legalism, which was a philosophy that
people are basically bad and must have every part of their
lives controlled so that they have the discipline needed to
work hard and fight battles
 developed a system called a bureaucracy
* divided the empire into 36 provinces, which were then
divided into districts
* 2 government officials were in charge of each province
* to make sure everyone was doing their jobs, he set up a
spy system – people had to spy on each other
* anyone who reported a lawbreaker would be rewarded
* people who didn’t do their jobs were sent to work on the
Great Wall
 Qin did not believe in education for the common man
o when he grew old, Qin decided he wanted to be immortal,
so he asked the scientists and doctors to work on creating
a medicine that would make him a god
o according to legend, the doctors gave him medicine with
mercury in it, which led to his death
o his son took over after his death, but was not in power long
o the people, led by peasants Chen Sheng and Wu Guang,
and later Xiang Yu and Liu Bang, revolted against the Qin
rule