Download Ancient China Packet 2

Ancient China Packet 2
(Class Set)
Directions for Part 1 and Part 2 packets:
1) Read the following articles
2) While you read, write down the main ideas of each article including any information that you
deem important on the notes handout provided.
3) After reading and writing down the main ideas, answer the multiple choice questions for each
article
4) When finished with the assignments, turn in your answer sheet and the article packet.
PACKET 1 DUE DATE: end of class on Wed, Dec 3rd
PACKET 2 DUE DATE: end of class on Friday Dec 5th
**This is not homework unless you are absent**
Ancient China: The Great Wall
What is it?
The Great Wall of China is a wall that covers much of the northern border of China. If you take the length
of the entire wall, plus various branches, it is around 5,500 miles long! No wonder they call it the Great
Wall.
Great Wall of China
A wide road on top of the wall where soldiers could defend
Why did they build the wall?
The wall was built to help keep out northern invaders like the Mongols. Smaller walls had been built over
the years, but the first Emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang, decided that he wanted a single giant wall to
protect his northern borders. He ordered that a single strong wall be built with thousands of lookout
towers where soldiers could guard and protect his empire.
Who built it?
The original Great Wall was started by the Qin Dynasty and following dynasties continued to work on it.
Later the Ming Dynasty rebuilt the wall. Much of the Great Wall that we know today was built by the
Ming Dynasty.
The wall was built by peasants, slaves, criminals, and other people that the emperor decided to punish.
Soldiers were involved in building the wall and in managing the workers as well.
It is estimated that millions of people worked on the wall over the course of over 1000 years. Some
scientists think that up to 1 million people died while building the wall. People building the wall were not
treated very well. Many people were just buried under the wall when they died.
What did they build it with?
Generally the wall was built with whatever resources were available nearby. The earlier walls were built
with compacted dirt surrounded by stone. Much of the later Ming wall was built with bricks.
Was it just a wall?
The wall was really a fortification to protect the northern border. It was a wall, but also had watchtowers,
beacon towers to send signals, and blockhouses to house soldiers. There were soldiers guarding the walls
and towers. There were also towns built along the wall to garrison soldiers so they could quickly get to
the wall in case of a large attack. It is estimated that over 1 million soldiers guarded the great wall during
the height of the Ming Dynasty.
Fun Facts about the Great Wall of China
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There are over 7,000 lookout towers that are part of the Great Wall.
Today the walls continue to erode, however historians are trying to protect what sections they
can.
The height and width of the wall varies over its length. The current wall built by the Ming
Dynasty averages around 33 feet tall and 15 feet wide.
It is the longest man made structure in the world.
Wide moats were often dug outside the wall in flat areas to make an enemy approach more
difficult.
Smoke signals were used to indicate an attack. The more enemies that were attacking, the more
smoke signals they would make.
It was named one of the New Seven Wonders of the World.
Many people say that the Great Wall can be seen from the Moon without aid. However, this is
just a myth.
The wheelbarrow, which the Chinese invented, no doubt was a great help in building much of the
wall.
The wall extends through all sorts of terrain, even into the mountains. Its highest point is over
5,000 feet above sea level.
Questions:
1. The Great Wall of China was built to keep out what invaders?
a. The Japanese
c. The Persians
b. The Mongols
d. The Tartars
2. Where was the Great Wall located?
a. Along the western border
b. Along the southern border
c. Along the northern border
d. Along the ocean to the east
e. Around the city of Beijing
3. What Ancient Chinese dynasty first began work on the Great Wall?
a. Han
c. Tang
b. Ming
d. Qin
4. Why were towns built along the Great Wall?
a. To house soldiers who guarded the wall and defended against attacks
b. Because it was very safe to live close to the wall
c. Because they already had one wall built, making the town easier to defend
d. They weren`t because it was too far north and no one wanted to live there
e. To establish trade with the people on the other side of the wall
5. What were some other constructions along the Great Wall that aided in the defense against attacks?
a. Lookout towers
d. Beacon towers to send signals
b. Block houses for housing soldiers
e. All of the above
c. Moats of water
6. If you put all of the sections of the wall together, about how long would the wall be?
a. 10 miles
b. 150 miles
c. 1000 miles
d. 2500 miles
e. 5500 miles
7. Which Chinese dynasty re-built much of the Great Wall that still stands today?
a. Han
b. Ming
c. Tang
d. Qin
e. Song
8. Which of the following statements is not true about the Great Wall of China?
a. It is considered to be one of the New Seven Wonders of the World
b. It was built over the course of over 1000 years
c. It is the longest manmade structure in the world
d. Only the rich and wealthy were allowed to work on the wall
e. During the Ming Dynasty, around 1 million soldiers were on guard at the wall
9. Smoke signals were often used to signal an attack.
TRUE or
FALSE
10. What was the wall built out of?
a. Wood
b. Marble
c. Stone and bricks
d. Wrought iron
e. Chain links
Ancient China: The Terracotta Army
The Terracotta Army is a part of a massive burial tomb built for Emperor Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China.
There are over 8,000 life size statues of soldiers buried along with the emperor.
Tomb for Emperor Qin
Emperor Qin wanted to live forever. He spent much of his life and resources searching for immortality and the
"elixir of life". He also spent a huge amount of resources building for himself the largest single tomb built to a
leader in the history of the world. He felt this huge army would protect him and help him to keep his power in the
afterlife. He died and was buried in 210 BC, over 2000 years ago.
The Soldiers
The soldiers of the Terracotta Army are life-size statues. They average around 5 feet 11 inches tall with some
soldiers being as tall as 6 foot 7 inches. Despite there being so many statues, no two soldiers are exactly alike. There
are soldiers of all ages with different ranks, facial features, and hair styles. Some of the soldiers look calm, while
others look angry and ready to fight.
The soldiers were even designed with different clothing and armor. Men from the cavalry are dressed different than
foot soldiers. Some soldiers don't have armor. Perhaps they were supposed to be scouts or spies.
As impressive as the soldiers are today, they were likely much more impressive 2,000 years ago. The soldiers were
painted to look even more realistic and then covered with a lacquer finish. They also held real weapons such as
crossbows, daggers, maces, spears, and swords.
How did they build so many soldiers?
To build 8,000 life size statues must have taken a large army of workers. Archeologists estimate that over 700,000
craftsmen worked on the project for several years. The bodies of the soldiers were made in an assembly line fashion.
There were moulds for the legs, arms, torsos, and heads. These pieces were then assembled together and custom
features such as ears, mustaches, hair, and weapons were added later.
There are between 8 and 10 different head shapes for the soldiers. The different head shapes represent people from
different areas of China as well as different personalities of the soldiers. The heads were made from moulds and then
customized and attached to the bodies.
Other Statues
The tomb is most famous for its large rows of soldiers, but there were plenty of other statues to accompany Emperor
Qin in the afterlife. There were 150 life-size cavalry horses and 130 chariots with 520 horses buried with the army.
In other areas of the tomb, figures of government officials and entertainers have been found.
Archeologists have had to reconstruct the soldiers from thousands of pieces
A soldier and his horse
When was the army discovered?
The Terracotta Army was discovered by farmers digging a well in 1974, over 2,000 years after it was covered over
during the burial of Emperor Qin. The army was located about a mile from the tomb of the emperor.
Interesting Facts about the Terracotta Army
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The horses in the army are saddled. This shows that the saddle had been invented by the time of the Qin
Dynasty.
There are four main pits that house the army. They are around 21 feet deep.
The bronze weapons of the soldiers were found in excellent condition because they were coated with a thin
layer of chromium which protected them for thousands of years.
Most of the statues were found broken into many pieces which archeologists have been carefully putting back
together for many years.
Terracotta is a common type of hard-baked clay. Once the soldiers were shaped with wet clay, they would have
been allowed to dry and then baked in a very hot oven called a kiln so the clay would harden.
1. Who was the Terracotta Army built for?
a. Kublai Khan
c. Confucius
b. The Yellow Emperor
d. Emperor Qin
2. What was the Terracotta Army a part of?
a. A palace
c. An art exhibit
b. A tomb
d. A sculpture contest
3. About how many clay soldiers were part of the Terracotta Army?
a. 300
c. 900
b. 200
d. 8000
4. True or False: The soldiers of the Terracotta Army all looked exactly the same.
TRUE or
FALSE
5. What was the average height of the soldiers?
a. 3 feet 9 inches
b. 4 feet 6 inches
c. 5 feet
d. 5 feet 11 inches
e. 7 feet
6. What is terracotta?
a. A type of bronze
b. A special kind of paper mache
c. A hard-baked clay
d. An easily carved, but long lasting wood
e. A soft rock found in southern China
7. When was the Terracotta army discovered by Chinese farmers?
a. 1200
b. 1453
c. 1697
d. 1974
e. 2011
8. What custom features were added to the soldiers to make them unique?
a. Armor
b. Weapons
c. Ears
d. Hair
e. All of the above
9. Around how many craftsmen do archeologists estimate worked on the terracotta army and the tomb of
the emperor?
a. 8,000
b. 15,000
c. 100,000
d. 700,000
e. 5,000,000
10. The Terracotta Army was found completely intact and looking exactly as it did when it was buried
2000 years ago.
TRUE or FALSE
Ancient China: The Forbidden City
The Forbidden City was the palace of the Chinese emperors during the Ming and Qing dynasties. It is located
in the heart of Beijing, the capital city of China, and is the largest ancient palace in the world.
When was it built?
The Forbidden City was built under the orders of the powerful Yongle Emperor of the Ming Dynasty between
the years 1406 to 1420 AD. More than one million people worked on the construction of the expansive palace.
The best materials were brought in from all over China including specially made "golden" bricks, logs of the
rare Phoebe zhennan trees, and blocks of marble. When the palace was completed, the Yongle Emperor moved
the capital of the empire to Beijing city.
How big is the Forbidden City?
The Forbidden City is enormous. It covers an area of 178 acres that include 90 palaces with courtyards, 980
total buildings, and at least 8,700 rooms. The total floor space is over 1,600,000 square feet. The emperor had
an army of servants, however, to take care of his palace and all the people that lived there.
Features
The Forbidden City also served as a fortress to protect the emperor and his family. It is surrounded by a 26 feet
high wall and a 170 feet wide moat. Each corner of the palace has a tall guard tower where guards used to keep
watch for enemies and assassins.
Each side of the palace has a gate with the main gate being the Meridian Gate to the south. The other gates
include the Gate of Devine Might to the north, the East Glorious Gate, and the West Glorious Gate.
An ancient painting of the walls of the Forbidden City
Layout
The layout of the Forbidden City followed many Ancient Chinese rules of design. The main buildings all were
aligned in a straight line from north to south. There are two main sections to the palace: the outer court and the
inner court.
 Outer court - The southern part of the palace is called the outer court. It was here that the emperors
conducted official ceremonies. There are three main buildings in the outer court including the Hall of
Preserving Harmony, the Hall of Central Harmony, and the Hall of Supreme Harmony. The largest of
the three is the Hall of Supreme Harmony. It was in this building that the emperors held court during
the Ming dynasty.
 Inner Court - To the north is the inner court, where the emperor and his family lived. The emperor
himself slept in a building called the Palace of Heavenly Purity. The Empress lived in a building
called the Palace of Earthly Tranquility.
Special Symbolism
The Forbidden City was designed using Ancient Chinese symbolism and philosophy. Here are a few examples:
 The buildings all faced south which stood for holiness. They also faced away from the north which
symbolized the enemies of the Chinese, cold winds, and evil.
 The roofs of the buildings in the city were made with yellow tiles. Yellow was the exclusive color of
the emperor and symbolized his ultimate power.
 The ceremonial buildings are arranged in groups of three. The number three represented heaven.
 The numbers nine and five are used often because they represent the majesty of the emperor.
 The traditional five elemental colors are used throughout the design of the palace. These include
white, black, red, yellow, and green.
 The roof of the library was black to symbolize water in order to protect the writings from fire.
Is it still there today?
Yes, the Forbidden City still lies at the center of Beijing city. Today it is the Palace Museum and houses
thousands of artifacts and pieces of art from Ancient China.
Interesting Facts about the Forbidden City
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Twenty-four different Chinese emperors lived in the palace over the course of nearly 500 years.
About 100,000 artisans and craftsmen worked on the palace.
The last emperor of China, Puyi, continued to live in the Forbidden City for twelve years after he
abdicated the throne in 1912.
The Chinese name for the palace during ancient times was Zijin Cheng which means "Purple
Forbidden City". Today the palace is called "Gugong" which means "Former Palace".
The movie The Last Emperor was filmed inside the Forbidden City.
QUESTIONS
1. What was the Forbidden City?
a. A palace for the emperor
b. A tomb for soldiers
c. A temple to Confucius
d. A prison
2. What modern day Chinese city is the Forbidden City located at the center of?
a. Shanghai
c. Shenzhen
b. Beijing
d. Wuhan
3. What two Chinese dynasties used the Forbidden City as the palace for their emperor?
a. Tang and Qin
c. Zhou and Qing
b. Ming and Qing
d. Yongle and Ming
4. What was the main function of the inner court?
a. It was where the emperor met with his ministers
b. It was where official ceremonies were held
c. It was where the emperor and his family lived
d. It was where the army camped
e. It was where most large sporting events were held
5. What sort of fortifications did the palace have?
a. A 26 feet high wall all the way around it
b. Tall towers at each corner
c. A moat of water surrounding it
d. All of the above
e. None of the above
6. What direction did all of the buildings face?
a. North
b. South
c. East
d. West
e. They faced different directions
7. What was the main function of the outer court?
a. It was where the empress lived
b. It was where the emperor held official ceremonies
c. It was where the emperor lived
d. It was where the farmers grew rice
e. It was where the children of the emperor played games
8. What color were the roofs of most of the buildings in the Forbidden City?
a. Yellow
b. Red
c. Blue
d. White
e. Green
9. How many emperors ruled china from this palace?
a. 24
c. 20
b. 9
d. 40
10. The Forbidden City was completely destroyed in a fire during World War II; there is nothing left.
TRUE or FALSE
Ancient China: Emperor Qin Shi Huang
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Occupation: Emperor of
China
Reign: 221 BC to 210 BC
Born: 259 BC
Died: 210 BC
Best known for: First
Emperor of China,
established the Qin
Dynasty
Early Life
Prince Zheng was born in 259 BC. His father was king of the Qin state. At the time Zheng was born, China
was divided up into 7 major states. These states fought each other all the time. Historians call this time in
Chinese history the Warring States period.
Growing up as a prince, Zheng was well educated. He learned about China's history and also about war. He
would someday rule the Qin and would lead his warriors into battle against the other states.
Becoming King
When Zheng was just thirteen years old his father died. Zheng was now king at a very young age. For the first
several years, a regent helped him to rule the land, but by the time he was 22, King Zheng took full control. He
was very ambitious. He wanted to conquer the other Chinese states and unite China under one rule.
Uniting China and Becoming Emperor
Once he had complete control of the state of Qin, King Zheng set out to conquer the other six Chinese states.
He took them on one by one. The first state he conquered was the Han state. Then he quickly conquered the
Zhao and the Wei. Next he took on the powerful Chu state. Once the Chu state was defeated the remaining
Yan and Qi states fell easily.
Now King Zheng was leader of all of China. He declared himself emperor and changed his name to Shi Huang,
which meant "first emperor".
Organizing the Empire
Qin Shi Huang did much to organize his new empire. He wanted it to run smoothly for thousands of years. He
established reforms in many areas including:
 Government - Emperor Qin did not want the conquered states to think of themselves as independent
nations. He divided the country into administrative units. There were 36 "commanderies" which were
further divided into districts and counties. He also declared that government positions would be
appointed according to people's abilities.
 Economy - Emperor Qin also unified China by establishing a common currency (money) and standard
units of measure. With everyone using the same money and measurements, the economy ran much
smoother.
 Writing - Another important reform was a standard way of writing. There were many ways of writing
in China at the time. Under Emperor Qin, everyone was required to teach and use the same type of
writing.
 Construction - Emperor Qin made a number of improvements to the infrastructure of China. He had a
vast network of roads and canals built throughout the country. This helped to improve trade and travel.
He also began the building of the Great Wall of China. He had many of the existing walls throughout
the country connected to form a long wall that would protect China from the invaders to the north.
A Tyrant
Although Emperor Qin was a skilled leader, he also was a tyrant. He outlawed most forms of religion requiring
people to be loyal and obedient only to the government. He also ordered that most of the existing books be
burned. He wanted history to begin with his rule and the Qin dynasty. Those scholars who did not bring their
books to be burned were killed.
Building a Tomb
Today Qin Shi Huang may be most famous for his tomb. He had over 700,000 workers constructing his tomb
throughout his life. They built a vast terracotta army of 8,000 soldiers, horses, and chariots that he thought
would protect him in the afterlife. Go here to learn more about the terracotta army.
Death
Qin Shi Huang died while traveling on a tour of Eastern China in 210 BC. His second son, Huhai, was on the
trip with him. He wanted to become emperor, so he hid his father's death and forged a letter from his father to
his older brother telling him to commit suicide. After his brother killed himself, Huhai became emperor.
Interesting Facts about Emperor Qin
 He was obsessed with trying to live forever. He had his best scientists work on finding an elixir of
immortality that would enable him to never die.
 Emperor Qin had thought his family would rule China for thousands of years. However, the empire
collapsed only three years after his death.
 Some documents indicate that he was the son of a lowly merchant and not the son of the King of Qin.
 When he first became King of Qin, there were many assassination attempts on his life. Perhaps this is
what made him so obsessed with living forever.