Download Legalism in the Qin (Ch`in) Dynasty (221

Mr. Curzan
Roots Of Civ.
NAME: ________________________________ DATE: ________________ PER: ____
Legalism in the Qin (Ch’in) Dynasty
(221-206 B.C.E.)
The Emperor: Qin Shi Huang
Qin (pronounced “Ch’in”) took his throne in the state of Qin at age 13. The first thing
the young king did was to order the construction of his tomb. He ordered 720,000
conscript laborers (non-paid) to hurry up and build his tomb to his specifications. The
second thing he did was go to war with his
neighbors, including the last Zhou king. It took him
quite a while to get rid of everyone who was
bothering him in ancient China. Finally, all of China
was under his control. That had never happened
before. The different feudal states in China had been
at war with each since Xia times. Big ruling families
rose up, but they never controlled all of China. Qin
was the first. The new ruler wanted a new name. He
did not want to be called a king. That was too
common. He chose emperor.
First Emperor Qin set about running all of China
just as he had so successfully run the state of Qin.
His dynasty lasted only 15 years, not because he
was overthrown, but because he died of natural
causes. In the 15 years that he was First Emperor
Qin, he accomplished an amazing amount of
change. He did not accomplish things kindly. Much
of his rule was cruel. It was illegal to whine about Qin’s government. If you simply said
that things could improve, you could be put to death. First Emperor Qin was a legalist,
meaning that he ran his dynasty with absolute control and extreme and harsh punishment.
Being Qin, he started with first things first.
BUREAUCRACY: First, he got organized.
• Management: China was divided into provinces, each with two government
officials in charge. He divided the empire into 36 provinces. He divided each of the
provinces into districts. He put two officials in charge of each province – a governor and
a defender. Part of their job was to put strong people in charge in each district.
• Bureaucracy: Workers were trained, paid, and reported to supervisors.
That was not enough order for First Emperor Qin. He wanted trained people in charge at
every level. To accomplish this, he organized a system in which everyone is appointed to
a specific job, and everyone is trained for that job. Each worker received a salary. Each
worker had to follow strict rules and report to a supervisor. People at each level
supervised those below them.
• Protection: People were rewarded for telling on others. He set up a spy system. He
urged people to spy on each other, at work, and at home in their village or neighborhood.
If people turned in lawbreakers, they were rewarded. If they did not, they were executed.
It was a simple system, and it worked very well.
This organizational system gave him great power. That power allowed him to make huge
changes. Qin knew that to unify China there had to be big changes. Most of his laws had
something to do with protection.
THE GREAT WALL: He made people work as laborers on the wall without pay.
The Zhou had built pieces of the wall
here and there, to protect parts of their
dynasty. Qin began a huge project to
connect the various pieces into one huge
wall, to protect China from the Mongols
in the north. People who worked building
the wall were not paid for their labor.
They did not have a choice. This project
continued long after his death for many
hundreds of year until the wall was over
3700 miles long.
LAND OWNERSHIP: He took land away from thousands of nobles. He did not want
noble families rising up against him. Anyone could own land, as long as he paid the land
tax. Anyone who argued with him was either buried alive or put to work building the
Great Wall.
STANDARDIZATION: He introduced one system of weights, measures, money,
written language, laws. To unify China, Qin knew it was essential to have one system of
weights and measures, of money, and of a standard written language. He minted coins.
He announced the weights and measures system that would be used, along with the
written language that was acceptable in Qin times. Nobody argued with him. If they did,
they would be buried alive or sent to the wall to labor. Qin also announced a new law
code that applied to everybody and he introduced law enforcement to enforce these laws.
THE PEASANTS: The people had two jobs—farming and weaving (making silk.)
Those who sought to make money from crafts and trade would be seized and made into
slaves and sent to work on the wall. If they were lazy, they would be made into slaves or
sent to work on the wall. In Qin’s dynasty, you had to do your job, and do it well, or you
would be put to work doing something you could do, like be a slave or work on the wall.
EDUCATION / BOOK BURNING: He persecuted scholars and destroyed books.
Qin did not believe in any education for the common man. The more people study, the
less time they will have to grow food. Education was time away from growing food.
Thus, education and the teachings of Confucius were bad. Useless books were burned.
Useless books were defined as any book except those about medicine, agriculture or
prophecy. Over 400 scholars who refused to turn in their books were buried alive or sent
to the wall to work. Censorship is the control of what people read, write, hear and see.
Qin practiced total censorship.
Qin’s Tomb TERRA COTTA SOLDIERS: Can you imagine digging in your yard one
day, and discovering a life-sized terracotta soldier, made 2000 years ago completely out
of clay? That’s what happened in China
in 1974! By the time archaeologists had
finished digging, they had uncovered
over 6000 life-size terracotta soldiers!
Some are kneeling with terracotta bows,
ready to shoot. Some are standing. Some
have moustaches. Some have armor.
They also found terracotta horses,
spears, and chariots—all life-sized, all
made out of clay. It took 720,000
laborers about 34 years to create this
incredible grouping. They finished just
in time, right around 210 B.C.E., when
First Emperor Qin died. His son, the
second Qin emperor, saw to his burial.
What did Qin think of his method of fixing China’s problems?
Qin did not think that his rule was cruel. “A thousand may die so that a million may live.”
He built roads, canals, and bridges. His public works projects probably saved millions of
lives that would have been lost to floods and famine. Although many people died
building the great wall, this wall did provide an advantage in war.
No rebellion occurred during the emperor’s rule. He died in 210 B.C.E.. Once he was
dead, his son took over. But he did not rule for long. People revolted against the Qin
government all over the countryside. The peasant who led that revolt became the first
emperor of the Han Dynasty.
Qin (Chi’in) Dynasty Questions: (Use complete sentences)
1. What is censorship?
2. What is standardization?
3. What is bureaucracy?
4. The peasants had two jobs. What were they?
5. How were government officials chosen?
Why or why not: (Use complete sentences)
Do you think government officials liked living in Qin times?
Do you think peasants liked living in Qin times?
Do you think nobles liked living in Qin times?
Refer to the paragraphs in this material. In each case, Emperor Qin made a change to
protect something. From what did he protect these things in each case? (A one or two
word answer for each is all that is needed.)
The Great Wall -
Land Ownership -
Standardization -
The Peasants -
Book Burning -
Terra Cotta Soldiers -
What evidence proves that the Emperor was a legalist? (meaning he had strict legal
control over all activities, a system of rewards and punishments for all classes, and an
powerful monarchy)
Was Qin Shi Huangdi a “good” leader, a “bad” leader
or was he a successful leader?
On the table below, list any actions or achievements from the reading and then describe
them. Decide whether they made Emperor Qin a good, bad, or successful leader.
Ying Zheng / Qin Shi Huangdi
Action /
Description
Achievement
Decide whether Qin Shi Huangdi was a good, bad, or successful leader. Explain your
response using the evidence that you collected: