Qin and Han Dynasties

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Qin and Han Dynasties
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Qin Unify China

• Qin (chin) replaced the Zhou
• Used Legalism to unify China
• Strong military defeated invaders
• Seized land
• Murdered Confucian scholars and burned books
• Placed ppl loyal to the ruler in government
• Violently put down resistance
• Government had unlimited power

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Government Sponsored Projects

• Poor ppl suffered because they were forced to do
  grueling work
• Building highways
• New irrigation ditches were built
• Built the Great Wall of China
• Closed gaps from existing walls and extended
  along the empires borders
• Worked for no pay, killed if they refused, many
  dies anyway from starvation, crushing labor, or
  the harsh winters

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Han Dynasty Overthrows the Qin

• Ppl resented the high taxes, harsh labor quotas
  and severe punishment system of the Qin
• After a civil war broke out in China, Han took
  over
• Han lowered taxes and softened harsh punishments
• Han dynasty lasted 400 years (202BC-200AD)

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Highly Structured Government

• Used a complex bureaucracy
• Bureaucracy-a system of departments and agencies
  formed to carry out the work of government
• Applicants for civil service jobs were tested on
  their knowledge of Confucianism
• Civil service-govt. jobs within a bureaucracy
• Confucian scholars advised the emperors court
• In theory anyone could take the exam, in reality
  few peasants could afford to educate their sons
  so most govt. jobs were held by the wealthy

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Tech. Commerce Culture

• Many inventions were made that influenced Chinese
  life
• Paper -gt helped spread education
• Collar harness for horse -gt pull heavier loads
• Perfected a 2 blade plow -gt greater agricultural
  surplus
• Silk was a valuable trade item, production was
  kept a secret making it harder to get silk and
  they could charge higher prices
• Chinese becomes the common written language