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Chapter 3
Ancient India and China
Geography of India
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India is a peninsula
Is a subcontinent
2 mountain ranges
protect the northHimalayas and
Hindu Kush
Oceans to the east,
west & south
Geography of India
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Regions of India
 Well
watered plain in the north
 Deccan Plateau in the center
 Coastal plains on either side of the Deccan
Plateau
 Mountain passes through the Hindu Kush did
allow migrating and invading people-Khyber
Pass
Geography of India
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Three great rivers:
 Indus
River
 Ganges River – sacred
 Brahmaputra
Geography of India
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Chief feature of India’s climate is the
Monsoon
 Winter
monsoon – from the north – hot dry
air
 Summer monsoon – from the southwest –
daily rains
Early Indus Valley civilization
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Developed about 2400BCE – same as the
Egyptians
Lasted for about 1,000 years then gone
Chief cities were Harappa & Mohenjo-Daro—
well planned cities, rich and poor sections
Rich had toilets and showers (sewer system)
Little is known about civilization because no one
can decipher written language
Economy
Agriculture grew wheat, barley, melons &
dates
 The first to grow cotton
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Religion
Polytheistic
 Revered sacred animals like the bull as well
as trees
 Worshipped a mother goddess & a threefaced god
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Decline
Declining about 1750BCE
 Why? Possible damage to local
environment
 Ended about 1500BCE when invaded by
the Aryans – used horses, chariots &
superior weapons
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Aryan Conquest- 1500BCE
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Nomads from southern
Russia
Organized into tribes
Elected chief – Rajah
lead the army and
ruled in peacetime
Defeated the Dravidians
Spread into the Ganges
Valley
Aryan Religion—Vedic Age
Chief text – Vedas—contain sacred
hymns, songs, prayers, and rituals
 First great epic is called the Rig-Veda
 Worshipped gods of nature – sun, sky, fire
etc.
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Aryan Religion
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Indra – warrior god,
god of thunder, and
strength who led
them all
Aryan Religion
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Varuna- god of order
& creation
Also honored animals
like monkey god &
snake god
Aryan Religion
Believed that a single spiritual power that
lives in all things
 Believed that gods included heroes, villains,
demons, etc.
 Vedic literature recorded the exploits of
the gods & goddesses
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Aryan Religion
Believed in reincarnation—introduced in
the Upanishads which are epic poems
with a mythical religious tone
 Mystics – people who devoted their life to
seeking spiritual truth
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Vedic Age – 1500BCE – 500BCE
Used chariots with bows & arrows to
conquer
 Valued cattle
 Your worth = # of cows & bulls you
owned
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Caste System—based on purity
and skin color
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Brahmins – priests
Kshatriyas – warriors
Vaisyas – merchants, farmers, artisans, etc.
Sudras – Dravidians & non-Aryans (servants
Pariah also known as untouchables were
outside the caste system
Social structure largest impact on India and
became basis of caste system
Aryan Culture
Written language – Sanskrit
 Created epic poems
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 Mahabharata
– India’s greatest epic poem—
contains 100,000 verses
 Ramayana
China
Geography of China
Ancient time – known as the “Middle
Kingdom” or Zhongguo
 Very isolated from other civilizations
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Geography of China
West & Southwest – mountains & deserts
 North – Gobi Desert
 East – Pacific Ocean
 Southeast- jungle
 Result: Chinese thought of outsiders as
barbarians
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Geography of China
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Four regions of China:
 Manchuria
 Tibet
Mongolia
 Xinjiang
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Heartland of China
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Yellow River – Huang He
 AKA
– “River of Sorrow”
Loess—fine windblown yellow soil
 Yangzi River is also important
 Earliest Chinese civilization developed
in the Huang He Valley
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Chinese Dynasties
China’s history is told through its dynasties
 Shang Dynasty – 1650 BCE to 1027 BCE
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Government
Warrior Kings
 Depended on loyal clans
 No city-states like the Middle East
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Written Language
Writing system – early writings found on
oracle bones
 Calligraphy—fine handwriting
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Religion
Polytheistic
 Shang Di-presided over
heaven and other
gods
 Used their
ancestors as gobetweens
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Religion
Yin – female, earth & darkness
 Yang – male, heaven, & light
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Zhou Dynasty – 1027 BCE
Mandate of Heaven – the right to rule
 Dynasty enjoyed heaven’s blessing only as
long as it governed wisely and justly
 Mandate justifies the changing of Chinese
dynasties
 Dynastic Cycle – the rise and fall of
dynasties—not a crime to rebel against
ruler who has lost mandate
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Zhou Dynasty
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Created feudal states - feudalism
Economy
Iron working
 Used money
 Expanded into the Yangzi Valley
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WARRING STATES
The late Zhou dynasty
 Wars lasted more than 500 yrs.
 Destroyed food supplies—led to mass
migrations to cities—led to shortage of
farmers—led to famine
 Cities were scenes of starvation, crime, and
disease
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Achievements of the Shang & Zhou
Bronze weapons, later iron
 The yoke, harness, & spoke wheel
 Accurate calendar – 365 ¼ days
 Silk making – about 1,000 BC
 First books and first to develop paper
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ANCIENT CHINESE
INVENTIONS
TEA
GUNPOWDER
COMPASS
SILK FABRIC
PAPER
EARTHQUAKE DETECTOR
PROCELAIN
ACUPUNTURE
LACQUE
PRINTING
IRON PLOW
SHIP’S RUDDER
HARNESS FOR HORSES
ALCOHOL
MECHANICAL CLOCK
SMELTING OF STEEL AND IRON
MAURYAN DYNASTY
322 B.C.E. Chandragupta Maurya seized
power and established first Mauryan
dynasty
 Characterized by autocratic rule, large
armies, and large bureaucracy
 Ashoka, Chandragupta’s grandson used
warfare to extend Mauryan rule—
eventually converted to Buddhism
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Gupta Dynasty
Brought political stability to India
 No great leaders
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