China

1
Chinas Dynasties
2
I. Ancient China
3

• 12,000B.C. to 2,000 B.C.
• Agricultural communities with some hunting and
  gathering
• Climate wetter, warm
• Most of North - lakes and Marshes
• Most Central 1 big lake
• Silk already been discovered
• Painted and Black Pottery
• Bury dead face down
• Fired bones to see into future

• Neolithic China

4

• Xia Dynasty

• 2100-1800 B.C.
• Thought to be myth
• Only in oral history
• Evidence found 1959 in city of Yanshi
• Agrarian (farmers)
• Bronze weapons and Pottery
• Ruling acted as shamans
• Dramatic rituals to confirm power

5

• 1700-1027 B.C.
• First true dynasty
• King had much power
• Polytheistic
• Human sacrifice
• Bronze weapons, fittings for chariots, worship
  vessels
• Descent passed from eldest bro to youngest bro
• Writing invented (found on oracle bones, bronze
  and stone)
• Many Public works Many People

• Shang Dynasty

6

• Zhou Dynasty

• 1027-221 B.C.
• Western and Eastern
• Mandate of Heaven
• Took over because Shang were morally degenerated
• Changed govt. to feudal system (landowners
  vassals to king)
• Descent became patriarchal
• Banned human sacrifice
• Polytheistic (sun/stars)
• Second half called Warring State Period
• One Hundred Schools Period Cultural flowering
• Confucianism, Taoism, Legalism()
• Laws written down
• Much poetry/prose
• Money economy
• Population explosion!!

7
2. Early Imperial China
8

• 221 207 B.C.
• Qin Shi Huangdi unified China for first time
• Ruled only 37 years
• Implemented Legalism (rewards and punishments)
• State had absolute control over people
• Group responsibility
• Standardized language, writing, currency,
  measurements and axle length
• MANY Public works (Great Wall, roads, irrigation
  canals, palace, Terra cotta Army (6,000 soldiers)
• Shi Huangdi not popular!
• Public works/taxes great burden
• Nobility transplanted, all power taken away
• Writings of great philosophers burned
• Banned all books advocating other forms of
  government
• Executed 400 opponents

• Qin Dynasty

9

• Han Dynasty

• 206B.C. -220A.D.
• Western and Eastern
• Continued to rule like Qin but gradually
  incorporated Confucian ideals
• Main Goal was unification of China
• Much expansion
• Silk Road developed
• Education more important
• Encyclopedias written
• Millions died in fighting
• Left land for peasants and freedom of debt as
  lenders died!
• Economic and Political struggles arose
• Peasants revolted (begun by Yellow Turbans)
• 3 kingdoms emerged

10

• The Three
• Kingdoms

• 220A.D. 265A.D.
• Disunity and civil war
• Kingdoms grew out of the 3 chief economic areas
• Buddhism began to spread
• Tea Discovered
• Porcelain developed
• Tsao Tsao made great impact
• Used other cultures barbarians in army
• Assimilation among people

11

• Chin Dynasty

• 265A.D. 420A.D.
• Eastern and Western
• Ssu-ma Yen started Dynasty
• Was an assimilated barbarian
• Reunified China again
• Never a stable empire
• Declared armies disbanded and all arms returned
• Some sold theirs instead to neighboring countries
• Fatal mistake!
• Chin defeated by Huns
• Disunity continued

12

• Dynasties of
• North and
• South

• 420A.D. 588A.D.
• Another lengthy period of disunity
• N. Dynasties N. Wei, E. Wei, West Wei, N. Qi,
  N. Zhou,
• S. Dynasties Song, Qi, Liang, Chen
• Buddhism flourished (in N. especially)
• Tenets appealed to country people
• Offered hope in Buddhisms reincarnation to a
  better life if one lived their current life well.
• Meant nobles who oppressed them would come back
  to a harder life

13
3. Classical Imperial China
14

• Sui Dynasty

• 580A.D. 618A.D.
• China united again
• Accomplished many things
• Grand Canal extended
• Built granaries around capitals
• Fortified The Great Wall
• Reconstructed 2 capitals near Yellow River
• Confucianism regained popularity

15

• Tang
• Dynasty

• 618A.D. 907A.D.
• Tang Code
• Continuous scale of penalties
• Degree based on amount of time that would be
  spent mourning if the person died
• Tax based on of people in family, not how much
  land
• Rice production rapidly increased
• Expanded empire to Iran
• Only female empress (Wu Chou)
• Finances put in order
• Tea became popular
• Warfare and internal struggles made peasant life
  difficult
• Peasant uprisings led to Tangs fall

16

• The Five
• Dynasties

• 907A.D. 960 A.D.
• 4 important advances
• Trade increasingly important, especially tea
• Translucent porcelain developed
• Movable type
• Books became readily available
• Allowed more people to become educated
• Paper money invented
• Foot binding began
• Widely practiced-rich and poor
• Few did not-boat women of Kuang-tung, aboriginals
  of S.W., non-Chinese groups surrounding China
• Buddhism experienced sharp decline

17

• North and South
• Song Dynasties

• 960A.D. 1279A.D.
• Great advances
• Used gunpowder as weapon
• First autopsy performed
• Neo-Confucianism developed
• Pursuit of the Way encouraged nobles to live up
  to Confucian ideals by being less selfish.
• Education and examination system became central
  to upper class
• Best ships in world
• Carried 500 men, 4 decks, 6 masts, 12 sails
• Used charts and compasses
• Most technologically and culturally advanced
  people in the world
• Diplomacy favored instead of fighting

18
4. Late Imperial China
19

• Yuan Dynasty

• 1279A.D. 1368A.D.
• 1st time China ruled by foreigners-Mongols
• Genghis Khan conquered, but grandson, Kublai Khan
  became emperor
• Culturally very different made ruling very
  difficult
• Excessive spending trade restrictions severely
  depleted China economically.
• No trade out, but outside could come in
• Marco Polo experienced friendlier China than the
  natives
• lt100years China impoverished
• Governing duties led to lax military training
• No interest in holding onto an impoverished
  country.

20

• Ming
• Dynasty

• 1368A.D. 1644A.D.
• Founder (Hongwu) was peasant
• Created laws that improved peasant life
• Low taxes
• Granaries stocked (famine)
• Maintained dikes
• Great cultural development
• Novels written (still read today)
• Blue and white porcelain
• Encyclopedias written
• Dictionaries written
• Reduced of Chinese characters
• Built more of and repaired Great Wall
• Money always a problem, went back to copper coins
  but counterfeiting a problem
• Zheng He made 7 diplomatic expeditions
• After last voyage records destroyed and
  shipbuilding restricted to small ships
• Internal power struggles led to downfall

21

• Qing
• Dynasty

• 1644A.D. 1911A.D.
• Last Dynasty
• 2nd time ruled by foreigners the Manchu
• First 3 emperors peace and prosperity.
  Peacegrowth
• Taxes low but Public works maintained
• Internation trade grew
• European missionaries allowed. Later outlawed
  when Christian sailors looted the Chinese coast
• Boarders expanded
• Instituted changes in dress
• Men Shave heads and wear queues. Also wear
  Manchu cothes
• Women No change in clothes but outlawed foot
  binding. Impossible to enforce. 1688A.D. ruling
  withdrawn
• Wests impact felt for first time
• British imported opium
• Much Chinese used to pay for opium
• Many became addicted
• 1839A.D. opium trade abolished
• BOXER REBELLION
• China forced to sign treaty-Hong Kong and trade
  rights. Virtually turned China into a British
  colony.

22

• Qing
• Dynasty
• (Cont.)

• Internal rebellions weakened China
• Japans Westernization meant China needed to
  buffer for attack
• Emperors were younger and younger power in
  hands of empresses and other advisors
• Tzu His empress who held the most power of all
  empresses
• Uneducated
• Opposed all reform
• Reformers executed
• Before death placed 2 year old on thrown!
• After 2 years Republic of China arose.
• No more dynasties