Download The Han Dynasty

The Han Dynasty
The Han Dynasty
• After the Qin dynasty ended, many groups
were fighting over who would control
China. A group led by Liu Bang won and
began the Han Dynasty.
Liu Bang
• Liu Bang was a peasant…how was a peasant
able to become the first king of a dynasty?
– The mandate of heaven…the people believed he was
sent by heaven to be king
– Everyone liked him
• Liu Bang was very different from the Legalism
rules of the Qin
– He wanted to take away the harsh rules
– He lowered taxes and made punishments less severe
Emperor Wudi
• Wudi became emperor of the Han dynasty
in 140 B.C.
• Wudi made Confucianism the official
“religion” of China
• Some people who came from wealthy
families could take a test on Confucianism;
if they passed they could get a job in the
government.
The Family
• Family was the most important thing to a person
• It was important to honor the family and
ancestors
• Confucianism was the official religion, so kids
were taught to obey their elders
• The father was the head of the family; kids
respected their father and wives respected their
husbands
• Boys were valued more than girls because boys
could carry on the family name
Han Inventions
• Many things were invented during the Han
dynasty:
– Paper
– The sundial-a early form of the clock
– The seismograph-measures the strength of
an earthquake
• They believed that earthquakes were signs of
future evil events
– Acupuncture-putting needles through the skin
to cure disease and relieve pain
The Silk Road
• During the Han dynasty, the Chinese
started making new things like iron armor
and tools and silk
• Silk was very highly valued and only the
Chinese knew how to make it
– The people who knew how to make silk
promised to keep it a secret or they could be
punished by death
– Why do you think it was so important for them
to keep the silk making process a secret??
The Silk Road
• Lots of people from other parts of the world
wanted Chinese things like silk and porcelain
• China began trading with other far away lands
by traveling a route that went across Asia,
through deserts and mountains, through the
Middle East, until it reached the Mediterranean
Sea.
• This trade route was called the Silk Road
– Why do you think it was called the Silk Road?
The Silk Road
• Traveling the Silk Road was very
difficult…there were robbers, bad weather,
deserts, mountains, dangerous animals,
and more
Buddhism comes to China
• When China traded with people from
different cultures they learned about new
religions like Buddhism
• Buddhism being introduced in China is an
example of diffusion, spreading ideas from
one culture to another.