Download The Xia Dynasty

Study Guide Chapter 2
Classical Civilization: China
1. What are were the major dynasties talk about in Ch 2 in sequence order?
First the Xia Dynasty( C dynasty) 1994 BCE-1766BCE, Shang Dynasty 1766
BCE-1026 BCE, Zhou Dynasty(Chou Dynasty) 1122 BCE-256 BCE plus
supplement, Qin Dynasty(Chin Dynasty pronounce) 221 BCE -206 BCE, Early
Han Dynasty 206 BCE-9AD, Xin Dynasty 9 AD-24AD, Later Han Dynasty 25
AD -220 AD.
Quick Overview of each Dynasty:
The Xia Dynasty
About 1994 BCE - 1766 BCE
The Xia dynasty has been called the first dynasty. The Xia dynasty was said to have
ended only when a Xia ruler mistreated his people and was overthrown by his people.
However, there isn't any archaeological record to prove this story; the Shang dynasty is
the first dynasty to be documented with reliable historical evidence.
The Shang Dynasty
1766 BCE - 1027 BCE
The Shang dynasty ruled parts of northern and central China. Its capital city was located
at Anyang near the border of Henan from about 1384 BCE. This dynasty was based on
agriculture; millet, wheat, and barley were the primary crops grown. In addition to the
crops, silkworms, pigs, dogs, sheep, and oxen were raised. Aside from their agricultural
prowess, the Shang dynasty was also advanced in metallurgy. Bronze ships, weapons,
and tools were found from that era.
The Shang dyansty was an aristocrastic society, with a king ruling over the military
nobility. Territorial rulers were appointed by him in return for their support in his military
campaigns. Underneath the aristocratic class was the priest class. The priests kept the
records of the government and were also in charge of religion. The religion in the time of
the Shang dynasty was based on ancestor worship and a worship of many gods; the main
god was known as Shang Ti, the Lord on High.
The fall of the Shang dynasty was much like that of the Xia dynasty, the last king was a
cruel tyrant. Instead of the people overthrowing the king, he was killed by a king from a
rival kingdom, the Chou kingdom. The Chou dynasty was part of the Shang kingdom; its
civilization was a combination of the Shang culture and that of non-Chinese civilizations.
The Zhou Dynasty
1122 BCE - 256 BCE
The Chinese civilization expanded during the time of the Zhou dynasty. The massive size
that the dynasty covered was too much for the Zhou leaders to handle due to the poor
means of communication. Because of this, the leaders decided to appoint people to
oversee each of the territories. The territories started off as walled off cities. The leader of
each of the territories were the lords, each receiving the title through inheritance. Next in
the hierarchy were the fighting men, followed by the peasants and the domestic slaves.
Soon, these territories became more independent, eventually breaking away from the
main Zhou dynasty leaders.
The Zhou society was based on agricultural production. During that time, the land of the
lords was divided among the peasants to grow crops. They were divided up into three by
three squares, with the eight outer squares being worked on by the peasants. The center
tract of land was worked on by all eight of the peasants for the lord. The extent of this
type of land distibution was unclear, but the later dynasties believed that this was the
most equitable way of dealing with land distribution and use.
The religious practice of the Zhou empire reflected their hierarchical way of life. The
Zhou kings believed that they were given a mandate from heaven to rule. The kings
prayed and sacrificed to Shang Ti, the Lord on High, now called T'ien (Heaven), and to
their ancestors. The lords of the territories prayed to the local nature gods and to the gods
of agriculture in addition to their ancestors. If any sacrifices or prayers were missed, great
ill was predicted to fall on the territory or kingdom of the neglectful leader.
Eastern Zhou
In 770 BCE, the Zhou kings lost control of the territories they had delegated to their
lords. These territories, along with non-Chinese forces, rebelled and defeated the original
Zhou capital. The Zhou then formed a new capital farther East. From this new capital, the
Zhou forfeited their political and military control over their territories.
The territories now were larger and more powerful than the original Zhou kingdom. Even
though the Zhou were not in control, they still thought they were appointed by the
heavans and continued to be the ceremonial lords of the kingdoms. During this time,
there was great economic growth, even among the constant warfare between the
territories. It was also during this time that China entered its Iron Age.
The Iron Age brought iron-tipped oxdrawn plows and improved irrigation techniques
which increased the agricultural yield which in turn increased the population. With the
increase in population came greater wealth, and people started to become merchants and
traders. With the explosion of the merchant and trader class, the improvement of
communication was inevitable. The improvement came in the form of expanding the
horseback communication system. This increase in the economic situation allowed the
rulers to control more and more territories. Communication was far better than before,
and a ruler could have a larger empire and still be kept up to date on situations that may
arise.
The territories that were located at the edges of the Zhou empire expanded into nonChinese countries. Upon expanding, the kingdoms of the Zhou became more diversified
and these kingdoms selectively chose the aspects of the newly acquired culture to
assimilate into their own. One such aspect was the mounted cavalry. Before, all the
Chinese fighting was by foot soldiers. By the 6th century, seven powerful states arose
from the former Zhou territories. With the Zhou dynasty's decline and the rise of power
of the former territories, the situation in China became unstable. Then, by the late 5th
century, the Zhou dynasty fell into a state of interstate anarchy, this period was known as
the Period of the Warring States.
The Golden Age of Chinese Philosophy
403 BCE - 221 BCE
Due to the instability of China, an intellectual movement swept through China that
shaped China's state and culture. The most influential of the philosophers was
Confucious. Confucius was the representation of the emerging class of administrators
and advisors that were needed to aid rulers deal with the ever-present need of diplomacy
with other states and internal administration. Confucius wanted a return to the Zhou style
of governing. He believed that the rulers of that period had tried to develope a society
based on the example of great personal virtue. By this, Confucius then took to the task of
creating a class based on virtue that would take over the high positions of government
and lead the people by their example.
In addition to Confucianism, another school of philosophy was Taoism. The principles of
Taosim are explained in the Tao-te-Ching or "Classic of the Way and Its Virtue." This
text is said to have been created by Lao-tzu and in the works of Chuang-tzu. The Taoist
philosophy was based on simplicity. The belief is that the government should be hands
off, and let the people deal with the problems of nature and the people should return to
primitive agricultural communities.
Legalism was the third school of philosophy. The philosophers felt that, during their time
of great disorder and chaos, something needed to be done. The legalist philosophers
believed that every aspect of life should be ruled by a set of strict and impersonal laws.
To have this system work, the legalists needed to have a powerful and wealthy state
where the ruler had ultimate authority. The wealth and military strength is what gave the
state and ruler power.
Fall of the Zhou Dynasty and the Rise of the Ch'in State
During the 4th century BCE, the state of Ch'in, one of the former territories of the Zhou
kingdom, emerged as a power. Based on theories of a leading legalist, the Ch'in kingdom
reformed its administration, economy, and military and became stronger as the Zhou
empire weakened and eventually died in 256 BCE. Soon, the Ch'in had conquered the
seven other warring states.
The Qin Dynasty
221 BCE - 206 BCE
The Qin Dynasty was the dynasty that redefined China. The emperor of this era wanted to
conquer the warring states that the Chou dynasty had in essence created. This emperor
succeeded and China was one nation once more. Upon conquering all the warring states,
the emperor pronounced himself as the first emperor of China or, Shih Huang Ti. The
unified China was larger than it ever was. This was the first time outside forces
acknowledged the existance of another race of people, and aptly named the nation China
after the then current dynasty, the Qin.
The first emperor not only unified China, but went about standardizing writing, weights,
and measures throughout his kingdom. This was used to promote internal trade among
the newly aquired states. The states each had their own standards of measuring and
weighing, and the Qin emperor wanted his kingdom to be as one to strengthen it. This
standardization was good for the weights and measurements but was not good for
philisophical ideas.
During this time, many schools of thought were outlawed; only legalism was given
official sanction. In 213 BCE, all the books of the opposing schools of thought were
burned except for the copies held in the Qin imperial library. The only way for emperor
to keep his nation together was to have all his subjects think the same way. Any deviation
would throw China back to the hundreds of years of warring.
The Qin empire was vast. The first emperor pushed China's borders South to current day
Vietnam, and current day Korea. But the central kingdom was still in the Yellow River
Valley. Regardless, of all the accomplishments of the Qin, the best known is the Great
Wall of China.
The construction of the Great Wall of China did not come without a price. It came with
massive financial burden as well as human life. This led to resentment of the Qin emperor
by his people. Not only that, the intellectuals were not happy with the emperor either; the
books they coveted were burned at his hands.
By this time, the emperor had grown old and he did not want to face death. He wanted to
be immortal. He set all the court scientists and doctors to work to make some sort of
medicine that would make him a god. The doctors came up with a deadly solution that
they truely thought would work. The medicines the doctors prescribed were pills that
contained traces of mercury which eventually lead to the emperors death.
When the emperor died, China went into a rage, and a rebellion against the Qin dynasty
ensued, leading to the next dynasty, the Han.
The Early Han Dynasty
206 BCE - 9 AD
From the turbulent Ch'in dynasty a rebel leader, Liu Pang, arose to seize control of the
former Ch'in empire. He proclaimed himself emperor in 206 BCE. He established the
Han dynasty which would become the most durable dynasty of the imperial age. The Han
empire was established using what the Ch'in had already set up. The only difference is
that some of the policies were modified, especially those that had caused the Ch'in
collapse. Taxes were also reduced drastically, while the government played a smaller role
in the economic policies.
One of important contributions of the Han was the establishment of Confucianism as the
official ideaology over Legalism. The Confucianism was not the pure studies of
Confucius, but a conglomeration of various other philosphies and superstitions to
augment the complex and sparse teachings of Confucius. This changed the way that the
empire was run. Before, emperors appointed people to positions regardless of thier
competence. Now, the emperors chose the people they thought were the best suited for
the job based on merit. Written examinations were used to identify the best qualified
people for the job. In the 2nd cnetury BCE, an imperial university was established to
teach students the five classics of the Confucian school to prepare them to become
bureaucrats.
The height of the Han empire was under the rule of Emperor Wu Ti, who ruled the Han
empire from 140 to 87 BCE. Emperor Wu wanted to expand his kingdom and did, but at
a price. The once abundent coffers of the Han kingdom, collected in the days when the
government was hands off regarding the economy, were empty. This led to the reestablishing of the legalist philosophy; taxes and old policies were reinstated. This did not
go well with the people and large land owners opposed the centeral government by
refusing to pay taxes. The government overlooked the large land cases and over-taxed the
peasants. The peasants did not like the change and a revolt ensued.
The Xin Dynasty
9 AD - 23 AD
During the revolt, a courtier, Wang Ming, deposed and infant emperor and established the
short Xin dynasty. Slavery was abolished in this time and the peasants' lives were
improved. State monopolies on salt, iron, and coinage were strengthened and new
monopolies were created. Wang Ming tried to do too much and this lead to his downfall.
He tried to pass legislation on land but it was repealed. A large rebellion, led by a group
known as the Red Eyebrows, succeeded in killing Wang Ming and restoring the Han
dynasty.
The Later Han Dynasty
25 AD - 220 AD
The weakness of the administration plagued the Later, or Eastern Han dynasty, from the
beginning. As it was under the Earlier Han dynasty, the centeral government was
weakened by infant emperors' mothers being appointed to leadership roles. With the help
of the court eunuchs, the later emperors were able to get rid of this problem, but at the
price of giving the eunuchs power equal to the mothers. This new power of the eunuchs
did not sit well with officials, so the government was again divided by factionalism.
Between 168 and 170 warfare exploded between the eunuchs and bureaucrats. The new
eunuch power threatened the bureaucrat's position, something that the eunuchs thought
the bureaucrats should not have had in the first place. By 184, two great rebellions broke
out, led by Taoist religious groups. It wasn't until 215 that the great Han general, Ts'ao
Ts'ao, was able to calm the rebellious attitude.
EXTRA INFORMATION:
Three Kingdoms
The end of the Han dynasty was marked by the separation of the large families of that
dynasty. The families took advantage of the weakened state of the government and
started to establish their own private armies. Many dynasties were established during this
time.
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Wei Dynasty (220 AD - 265 AD)
Shu Dynasty (221 AD - 263 AD)
Wu Dynasty (222 AD - 280 AD)
These three kingdoms constantly fought one another during this time. But, in 265 Yen
Ssu-ma, a general in the Wei dynasty overthrew the throne and created the Western Tsin
or Chin dynasty (265 AD - 317 AD) in Northern China. Yen had reunited North and
South China, but it fell apart when he died.
The Han Dyansty had fought non-Chinese tribes to the north to standstill. This warring
brought the invasion of these northern tribes when the Later Han Dynasty collapsed. The
non-Chinese invasions began in 304, and, by 317, the tribes had taken the control of the
Tsin Dynasty. But, even though the Northern Tribes had wrested control of one dynasty,
they could never take all of China. The non-Chinese rule lasted for about three centuries.
This was the first time the non-Chinese controlled China. Their rule lasted until the
Northern Wei Dynasty (386 AD - 534 AD) reclaimed China in 420 AD.
During the second half of the 5th century, the Northern Wei adopted a policy of
Sinification. The agricultural part of Northern China was administered bureaucratically as
it was in earlier chinese dynasties. Even though the Chinese were conquered by foreign
tribes, they still had influence on their new rulers. Chinese clothing, customs, and
language were adopted by the foreign invaders. After tribal cheiftains had been
overexerted by the official policies of SInification, they rebelled and in 534 the dynasty
fell. For the next 50 years, Northern China was ruled by non-Chinese.
DIFFERNCES
The Zhou dynasty based around regionalism. This is, when the the government does not
have a central rule, but has different leaders governing over different provinces. In other
words, a spread out rule rather than a central one. Regionalism led to the eventual demise
of the Zhou because it left them vulnerable to attacks.
The Qin was ruled by Shi Huangdi, who introduced legalism, as well as laying down the
principles for Bureaucracy in China. Legalism was; either you listen to the government
and do as your told, or be killed. The Qin dynasty based on a centralized government,
rather than regionalism. Shi Huangdi was a ruthless leader, and when he died, revolts
broke out leading to the demise of of the Qin dynasty. Also, the Qin created the Great
Wall. Also, a decline in the arts can be credited to Huangdi's believe in a Totalitarian
government.
The Han dynasty was much less ruthless than the Qin; although they still had a
centralized government, and they elaborated further on Bureaucracy. The Han's first ruler
was Wu Ti. Wu Ti set up institutions, for certain high class people called Mandarins, to
be taught how to rule. He in turn, sent them to many provences of his dynasty and had
them rule over the societies. In a way, the Han supported regionalism because they had
rulers spread throughout their dynasty; but they also had a strong centralized government.
The Hans demise can be contributed to internal rebellions, as well as external invasions.
2. Compare and Contrast the Qin Dynasty(Chin Dynasty), Zhou Dynasty(Chou
Dynasty), Shang Dynasty, Han Dynasty, and Belief Legalism, Daoism,
Confucianism, Buddhism.
Qin and Zhou
Qin:
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Zhou:
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Same:
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221-202 B.C.
Found a new imperial dynasty that promised to bring an end to the centuries of
strike
Leader Shi Huangdi(was a tyrant)
Stressed central authority
Successful government
Expanded Chinese territory
Great wall started
Central Government
Bureaucracy
Book burning
National Census
Considered barbarians by Shang
Overthrown Shang in 1050 B.C.E.
Created “Mandate of Heaven”
Daoism
C.771 B.C.E. beuracife over run be. Zhou
Formed 100 schools in inter years
They were powerful dynasties
Shang and Han
Shang:
 T’ang began ithe Shang dynasty
 Built their cities in Northern China around the eastern pore of the Yellow River
 Bronze Age people
 Used oracle bones to predict future
 Ruled in city-state
 Invented writing
 Pictograph & ideographic ( form of writing)
 Worshipped “Shang Ti” as a “God-like” figure
 Daisa (Shang Ti” One man nature
 Loved alcohol
 Ancestor were extremely important
 Portolenial family (passed down by feimors)
Han:
 Expanded the power of bureaucracy
 Reduced brutal repression
 Peaceful times
 Return to Confucianism
 Expanded china
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Same:
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End in State of chaos
Finished Great wall
Silk Road
Strong government
Expanded China
Strong belief system
City-state
Legalism and Daoism(Taoism)
Legalism:
 Was the political system during the yin and the early have they disdained
Confucian writer in favor an authoritarier state that Ruled by force
Daoism(Taoism)
 Found in Laozi + China in the 6th century BC
 The zhuanzi end the diode Jins as important record of Daosism
 The basic principle is to seek perfect harmony and balances in an throughout life
3. Talk about the Great Wall of China and time it took to built it Explain.
The Great Wall was built over many years. It is believed the original Great Wall
was built over a period of approximately 20 years. All sections of the Great Wall of
China, including some barely visible ruins of the first wall and remains of walls built by
successive dynasties, were built over a period of more than 2000 years (8th century BC 17th century AD).
Many thousands of people were involved in the building of the wall. From records it
appears that 300,000 soldiers and 500,000 common people were involved in constructing
the original Great Wall under Emperor Qin. Many people lost their lives during this work
and archaeologists have discovered many human remains buried under sections of the
wall.