Warring Kingdoms Unite
Coach Parrish
Chapter 5, Section 3
OMS
Shi Huangdi
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Shi Huangdi – China’s first emperor. In 1974,
several farmers were digging a well for trees
when they discovered some terra cotta, a
reddish type of pottery.
Below the pottery they found terra cotta
soldiers. When all was finished,
archaeologists found 6000 life like soldiers
guarding the tomb of Shi Huangdi.
Terra Cotta Warriors
Terra Cotta Soldier (Up Close)
Terra Cotta Video Clip
The Qin Dynasty
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Shi Huangdi’s dynasty lasted only two
generations, although he said it would
last for 10,000 generations. Before the
rule of Shi Huangdi, China was divided
into several warring kingdoms.
Shi conquered these kingdoms to unite
China.
China’s First Emperor
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Shi Huangdi’s original name was Zhao Zheng.
He ruled the Qin people, who lived in China’s
western border.
By 221 BC, Zheng ruled over most of the land
that makes up modern day China. The name
Shi Huangdi means “First Emperor.” Because
Qin is sometimes spelled Chin, the name
China comes from the Qin Dynasty.
Strengthening the Empire
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Shi Huangdi sought to strengthen China
through strong and harsh rule. Shi first
wanted to protect China from its enemies.
Shi ordered what was the largest construction
project in Chinese history. It is now the
Great Wall of China.
There had been smaller walls but he decided
to connect them. He ordered hundreds of
thousands of workers to help out. The
project took 10 years. Over time, it stretched
to over 4500 miles.
Great Wall of China
On The Wall
Great Wall and Forbidden City
Clip
Organizing the Government
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To help put down rebellions within the
empire, Shi Huangdi put thousands of
farmers to work building roads. The
roads allowed the army to rush to any
area where an uprising was forming.
Shi killed or imprisoned any local ruler
who opposed him. He divided China
into districts, ruled by officials.
Economic and Cultural
Improvements
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Shi Huangdi declared that one currency
– type of money, be used throughout
China. The new currency was a round
coin with a square hole in the middle.
Shi also ordered the creation of
common measurements, improved
writing, and issued a code of law.
Restricting Freedoms
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Shi Huangdi also tried to control the thoughts
of his people. In 213 BC, he outlawed the
ideas of Confucius and other thinkers. He
required people to learn the philosophies of
Qin scholars.
Qin scholars believed that bad behavior
should be punished. Sometimes enforcing
behaviors were brutal. Shi had all books in
China burned except for those about
medicine, technology, and farming. Many
scholars protested so he killed them all.
End of a dynasty
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Shi’s death in 210 BC was followed by
four years of chaos and civil war that
ended with the murder of his son.
Power then passed to Shi’s grandson,
but he failed to hold China together.
A new dynasty would take power, the
Han Dynasty.
Han Dynasty
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One of the rebels who helped overthrow the
Qin Dynasty was Liu Bang – became emperor
of China in 202 BC after outlasting his rivals.
Liu was born a peasant but became leader of
China as the first emperor of the Han
Dynasty. The Han Dynasty lasted 400 years.
The Han Dynasty set up the civil service
system used for selected government
officials.
Wudi: Warrior Emperor
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In 140 BC, Liu Bang’s great-grandson, Wudi,
came to power. Under Wudi – Han Dynasty
reached its greatest power. He took power
when he was 15 and ruled for 50 years.
Wudi’s main concern were war and military
matters. He made improvements to the
Great Wall and strengthened the army. He
also expanded China’s territory.
End of the Han Empire
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The great emperor Wudi died in 87 BC.
China’s stability continued under later
Han emperors, but not for long. A
series of young rulers, one was only
100 days old, caused the Han Dynasty
to decline.
It eventually fell and China slipped back
into a number of smaller kingdoms.