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Chapter 7, Section 3, The Qin and Han Dynasties
Emperor Qin Shihuangdi
1. In 221 BCE, the warlord of the Qin province conquered the other warring states and
took the title Qin Shihuangdi. What does this title mean? The First Qin Emperor
2. What philosophy did he base his rule on? Legalism
3. How did he treat people who opposed him and books he disapproved of?
(COMPLETE SENTENCE(S)) He had everyone who opposed him punished or
killed, and books opposing his views were burned.
4. Name three ways that Qin Shihuangdi unified China.
 He created one currency.
 He ordered the building of roads.
 He ordered the construction of a canal (the Grand Canal) connecting the
Huang He and the Chiang Jiang Rivers.
5. Who were the Xiongnu?
They were nomads from the Gobi Desert who were masters at fighting on
horseback and who often attacked Chinese farms and villages.
6. How did Qin Shihuangdi protect the Chinese people from the Xiongnu?
He forced farmers to work on connecting and strengthening the existing walls to
create the Great Wall of China.
7. Many people in China opposed Qin Shihuangdi.
a. Aristocrats were angry because he reduced their power.
b. Scholars hated him because he burned their writings.
c. Farmers hated him because he forced them to build roads and the Great
Wall.
8. What happened to the Qin Dynasty after Qin Shihuangdi’s death?
Four years after his death, people overthrew his dynasty. Then civil war
followed, and soon a new dynasty was established.
The Han Dynasty
9. Who was the founder of the Han Dynasty and what did he call himself? Liu Bang
Han Gaozu, “Exalted Emperor of Han”
10.Under what ruler did the Han Dynasty reach its peak, and what does his title mean?
Han Wudi “Martial Emperor of Han”
11.Under this ruler, in order to get jobs in the bureaucracy, job seekers had to take long,
difficult tests.
12.This emperor required them to do this because he wanted talented people to fill
government positions.
13.This process come to be known as civil service examinations, and it tended to favor
the rich because only wealthy families could afford to educate their sons for the
difficult exams.
14.Look at the section titled “The Chinese Empire Grows.” Make a cause-and-effect
diagram based on the information in this paragraph. Start with a box with the
statement “The population grew from 20 million to 60 million.” Include as many
boxes in between as necessary, and end with a box with the statement, “Aristocrats
now possessed thousands of acres of land, while the peasants were trapped in
poverty.”
The pop grew
from 20 mill
to 60 mill.
Farmers divided
land among more
sons; average
farmer only
owned 1 acre
Farmers
couldn’t
raise enough
to live
Many sold their
land to
aristocrats and
became tenant
farmers
Aristocrats now
possessed 1000s of
acres of land, while
peasants were trapped
in poverty.
15.Name three inventions created in China during the Han Dynasty.
Waterwheels to grind grain into flour
Iron drill bits used to mine more salt
Steel (a stronger, more refined form of iron)
Paper made from wood pulp
(not in text book) wheelbarrow, seismograph, stirrup
16.Name three advancements in medicine made by Chinese doctors during the Han
Dynasty.
Discovered that certain foods prevented disease
Used herbs to cure illnesses
Eased pain by sticking needles into patients’ skin
17.What advancement did the Chinese make in sailing during the Han Dynasty?
Rudders on ships
A new way of using sails that allowed ships to sail into the wind (tacking)
The Silk Road
18.Why did Zhang Qian travel to the west?
To explore and to find allies for China against its enemies, especially the Xiongnu
19.When he returned after 13 years and described an empire to the west with people
“who cut their hair short, wear embroidered clothes, and ride in very small chariots,”
what empire was he describing? The Roman Empire
20.What was the Silk Road?
It was a large network of trade routes stretching 4000 miles from western China
to Asia.
21.How did goods get from Central Asia to the Mediterranean Sea (the Roman Empire)?
Merchants used camels to carry goods from China to central Asia. From there
Arabs traders carried the goods to the Mediterranean Sea (the Roman Empire).
Major Changes in China
22.When did merchants and scholars first bring Buddhism from India to China? During
the 100s C.E. (A.D.) Was it very popular at first? No. (Only a few merchants and
scholars were interested.)
23.What caused the Han rulers to lose respect and power after Wudi, and what caused
unrest among the farmers?
His successors were weak and foolish, and the aristocrats began grabbing land
and wealth. Dishonest officials and greedy aristocrats caused unrest among the
farmers.
24. Between 190 CE and 220 CE, a series of events made the situation for Chinese people
very bad. Between 190 CE and 220 CE, a series of events made the situation for Chinese people
very bad. What happened in 190 CE (A.D. 190)? What happened in 220 CE (A.D. 220)? Then what
happened to make the situation even worse?
In 190 C.E., a rebel army attacked Luoyang (the Han capital).
By 220 C.E., China was in a civil war.
Then northern nomads invaded China.
25.How did the events of this period make Buddhism popular among the Chinese people?
Buddhist ideas helped people cope with their stress and fear.