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Chapter Seven
 Within the
Himalayan
Mountains is the
“The Roof of the
World” the huge
plateau, or raised
plain that forms
most of Tibet. This
plateau sits higher
than most of the
mountains in the
United States.
 The two rivers that begin in
the Tibetan Plateau are the
Huang River and the Indus
River, which begins a 3,000
mile trip across northern
China.
 The Huang has been a major
force in China’s history. It
picks up silt along its winding
journey. The Huang River is
also known as the Yellow
River, and the Huang River
empties into the Yellow Sea.
 It spreads silt along the North China Plain to
create one of the world’s largest deltas. The
Huang River also creates miles of fertile
marshland.
 The North China Plain is a large lowland region
of eastern China watered by the Huang River.
 About 4,000 B.C., farming communities
developed along the lower part of the Huang
River. China’s oldest civilization grew from
these farming communities.
 Define Loess-What
color is it?
 Loess has been a
blessing and a curse
to Chinese farmers.
Explain this: while it
provides fertile soil,
its lightness makes it
easy for storms to
carry that kind of
soil away.
 Like farmers in the
Indus Valley, ancient
Chinese farmers
made use of the
Huang Valley’s
fertile soil. They
also fought to
control river
flooding.
Use the following data to complete the
following: 1,800 3,000, and 4,000
The Nile is about_____ miles long, the
Indus is about _____miles long and the
Huang River is about _____miles long.
How much longer is the Nile than the
Indus? How much longer is the Nile
than the Huang.
 Huang farmers needed to control floods.
They began building earth levees to hold
back the Huang River.
 Define Levee
 Over time, what happened because of the
build up of loess?
 The ancient Chinese farmers (like the Sumerians and
people under Chandgrupta in India) built canals to
bring water to their fields.
 What happened to these canals?
 Loess provided a rich soil. What did the farmers grow
in this region?
 When farmers cleared trees from rich loess-lands to
plant crops, what happened? And what is it?
 Is all of China suitable for farming? Why?
 Define steppes
 Like people in other river valleys, farmers along the
Huang raised crops. Along China’s northern steppes,
people herded animals.
Map: Using the maps on page 161, 169, 172, 403-404, R-10
and 406, draw and label a map of China with the
following locations:
China, Pacific Ocean, Tibetan Plateau, Huang River,
Great Wall of China, Chang River (aka Yangtze River),
Beijing (aka Peking), Qin Mts. (Qinling Mts), East
China Sea, Silk Road, South China Sea, Gobi Desert
 This map should be completed on computer paper.
Shang Dynasty
商朝
 At the same time that Egypt was being united and
city-states and towns were expanding in the Fertile
Crescent and Indus Valley, farms along China’s
Huang river were growing larger.
 By about 1700 B.C. one kingdom had won control
over the large Huang River delta
 One of its earliest capitals was a city called Shang,
which became the state’s name.
 Since it was ruled by one family for a long period of
time, the government became known as the Shang
dynasty
 The Shang dynasty came to an end around 1100 B.C..
For many years afterward there was conflict and
turmoil in the Huang River Valley.
 Slowly one region, called Qin (pronounced CHIN)
built up its strength.
 Qin’s ruler was a general who would one day order the
making of the great clay army.
 In 211 B.C. this general led a real




army to take control of the
Huang River delta. He
eventually conquered all of
northern China.
The Qin general declared
himself China’s emperor.
What is an emperor?
This emperor took the name,
Shihuangdi, which means “First
Grand Emperor”
Shihuangdi boasted that his
Qin dynasty would last for
10,000 generations.
 What played a part in the victory of the Qin armies?
 The original Qin region was protected by the Qinling
Mountains on one side and by the Huang River on the
other.
 Shihuandgdi had new ideas about how a government
should be run. He split the empire into 36 provinces.
 Define province
 What did this emperor let farmers do?
 Shihuangdi forced many nobles to move the capital
city of Xianyang.
 What did he take away?
 Why do you think he did this?
 Local leaders used the writing
systems to report to the capital.
Written language also helped the
government to record and collect
taxes.
 Shihuangdi also created a single
system of money to be used
throughout the empire.
 Why would this be helpful to the
empire?
 Coins were made out of bronze
and had a hole in the center
which allowed people to keep
their money on a string.
 Shihuangdi believed in a philosophy called legalism.
It emphasized strong government, strict laws, and
efficient enforcement of them.
 Legalistic administrative practices have been a
continuing force in Chinese governance.
 Today, the term “legalist” is sometimes used to refer to
someone who is overly strict in adhering to the letter of
the law.
 Create a Flow Map showing the events from the end of
the Shang Dynasty to the founding of Qin empire.
(Events below are not in order-use you text to create
this Flow Map):
 Conflict and Turmoil, Chinese empire, Qin control of
Northern China, fall of the Shang dynasty, build up of
Qin strength.
 Under Shihuangdi’s leadership, unified China grew
bigger and stronger. The empire also became
increasingly rich by the taxes from China’s farmers.
 Farmers were required to build the highways that
linked the cities of the empire. Farmers were required
to strengthen and connect walls along the empire’s
northern border. These walls were built to keep out
the people of the northern steppes.
 Later walls made up the Great Wall of China that
eventually grew to be more than 1,500 miles long!
 Why were farmers considered to be the backbone of
the Qin Empire? What special jobs did they do?
 Farmers also spent
most of their time
growing crops such
as wheat, rice, and
other crops.
 One of the greatest
building projects in
the Qin Empire was
the construction of a
tomb for Shihuangdi.
The emperor wanted
his tomb to be a
spectacular mirror of
the real world.
 Describe the clay
army
 How long did the Qin dynasty actually
last?
 What did the farmers and nobles do
after Shihuangdi’s death?
 China’s first emperor would leave a
lasting legacy, which included a
centralized system of writing,
government, and money.
 Around 221 B.C., Shihuangdi unified China with its
powerful armies and by strengthening government.
He created standard (same) writing and money
systems across the empire.
 Farmers were the backbone fo the Qin Economy. They
served as farmers and builders.
 Read paragraphs on p. 172-173 about the great wall of
China built under the rule of Shihuangdi.
 In 206 B.C., Shihuangdi’s Qin dynasty was overthrown
by rebel armies. These armies were led by a farmerturned-general called Han Gaozu. His family began
the mighty Han dynasty, which would rule China for
over 400 years.
 During the Han dynasty, China expanded north to
what are today North and South Korea and south to
the country of Vietnam.
 Find these on page R10 and draw an illustration of these
countries and label them.
 Shihuangdi lived by
the idea that a ruler
should be able to do
whatever he chooses.
Later, Han rulers
thoughts were based
on the teachings of a
man named
Confucius.
 Like Buddha, Confucius lived through an age of
warfare and conflict. In this time of conflict,
Confucius suggested a different, more peaceful way of
living.
 Unlike Buddha, Confucius’ ideas would not start a new
religion, but they would reshape entire civilizations.
Confucius had a passion for learning. His mastery of
subjects helped him get a job in government. In later
years, he devoted his life to teaching.
 Confucius’ ideas are called Confucianism. What did
Confucius think about society?
 A central idea of Confucianism was to have respect
within the family. This idea also applied to
government. A child must respect a parent and a
subject must respect the ruler. However, the ruler had
to be wise and good. Confucianism taught that
emperors did not have the right to rule just because
they came from a certain family.
 Each emperor, according to Confucius, received a right
to rule from the gods, called the Mandate of Heaven.
This mandate, or command echoed the Shang belief
that the gods spoke to the kings through oracle bones.
 Read the Golden Rule of Confucius under Many Voices.
 Wudi was the first strong emperor of the Han dynasty.
Wudi created schools to prepare students for
government service.
 Very good students sometimes were sent to the
empire’s best school, the Grand School. During the
Han Dynasty many inventions were made. Han craft
workers invented paper which provided a way to keep
written records. They mad paper from the bark of
mulberry trees. The mulberry trees are the ones that
feed China’s silkworms.
 Create a classification system for the Han Dynasty:
Han Dynasty
Achievements
Science Math Arts Trade
 Silk Making- page 180
 Silk is made from silkworms. Ancient Chinese farmers
discovered how to make silk around 2700 B.C.. In the
spring women cut the leaves from the mulberry trees to
feed the silkworms. The silkworms spin cocoons. Why did
Chinese emperors decide to keep silk making a secret from
other civilizations?
 What would rulers threaten people with if they told the
secret of making silk?
 Silk production is still limited mainly to China
 China remains the largest producer of silk. Japan is second,
countries of the former Soviet Union are third. The only
significant producer of silk in the Americas is Brazil.