The Emperor’s Clay Army
How did Shi Huangdi build an empire in
China?
In 1974 farmers in
the Huang He
uncovered life-size
clay soldiers while
digging a well.
An entire clay
army- more than
8,000 soldiers,
horses, and
chariot has been
unearthed!
No two
soldiers
looked alike.
Each soldier
held a real
weapon to
fight off the
enemy.
The Qin Dynasty
6.6.5
The Big Idea
The Qin dynasty unified China with a
strong government and a system of
standardization.
Main Ideas
• The first Qin emperor created a
strong but strict government.
• A unified China was created through
Qin policies and achievements.
Shi Huangdi
• Yin Zheng took the throne in 221 BC and gave himself
the title Shi Huangdi, which means “first emperor.”
• Burned books and writings that dealt with any practice
other than Legalism.
• Strict government/harsh punishments.
• Expanded empire to ensure that no more revolts in the
new territory.
• Claimed all power and took land away from the lords.
Commoners were forced to work on government building
projects.
• China was divided into districts with their own governors.
Qin’s most famous
ruler was a general
who would one day
order the making
of the clay army.
He led an army to
take control of the
Huang He delta,
and won battle
after battle,
conquering all of
northern China.
The Qin
general
declared
himself China’s
emperor. An
emperor is the
supreme ruler
of an empire.
The Qin general
took on the name
Shi Huangdi,or
“First Grand
Emperor.” Shi
Huangdi boasted
that his dynasty
would last for
10,000
generations.
Geography played a part in the emperor’s
victory. The Qin region was protected by
the Qinling Mountains on one side and the
Huang He River on the other.
In addition to strong
armies, Shi Huangdi
split his empire into
provinces, or political
divisions of land. To
weaken the power of
the nobles, Shihuangdi
let farmers own land.
This forced many
nobles to move to the
capital city, Xianyang.
To further weaken the power of the nobles in
Xianyang, Shi Huangdi took away their
bronze weapons.
Unified China
Politics
• Shi Huangdi
took
complete
control of the
land and the
people.
• There was a
strict chain of
command.
• Taxes and
building
projects were
introduced.
Culture
• Shi Huangdi
set up a
uniform
system of
law.
• Rules and
punishment,
writing
styles, and
money were
consistent
across China.
Finance
• Gold and
copper coins
were
standardized.
• Uniform
weights and
measures
help
standardize
trade and
other legal
issues.
To unify China, Shi
Huangdi set up a single
system of writing
throughout the empire.
Local leaders used this
writing to report to the
capital, and to record
and collect taxes.
Shi Huangdi also created a
single system of money.
Standardized gold and
copper coins were used
throughout China. Holes in
the coins allowed people to
keep their money on a string.
Qin Achievements
Building Projects
• Massive government building projects
gave jobs to many poor workers.
• New roads were built and maintained to
provide easy access to and from these
buildings.
Water Systems
• Canals were built to connect rivers and keep
trade fast and efficient.
• Irrigation systems that are still in use today
watered the fields and made more land good
for farming.
The empire became rich, as taxes from China’s
farmers flowed into the capital. But farmers were
required to build highways, and walls along the
northern border. These walls were built to keep out
people of the northern steppes.
The Great Wall Of China
• Built to protect the country from
invasion
• Linked previously built walls across
China’s northern frontier.
• Years of labor from hundreds of
thousands of laborers.
Much later, similar walls would be built
across these same mountains and valleys,
making up the Great Wall of China. The
Great Wall of China grew to be more than
1,500 miles long.
Farmers worked as soldiers and builders, and
were the backbone of the empire. Farmers kept
the empire strong, but their lives centered
around the seasonal floods of the Huang.
Farmers continued to grow wheat, rice, and
other crops to feed the empire.
One of the greatest building projects of
the Qin Empire was the construction of
a tomb for Shi Huangdi. The emperor
wanted his tomb to be a spectacular
mirror of the real world.
The tomb’s many
horses and soldiers
stood guard, ready
to protect the
emperor from
attack.
Shi Huangdi’s burial place lies
under a giant mound near the
clay army. Archaeologists have
not yet uncovered the contents of
the tomb.
The tomb contained a map
of the empire, models of
the Huang He, and bright
stars on the ceiling. To
keep out robbers,
crossbows were set up that
would shoot arrows if the
tomb was disturbed.
The Fall of the Qin:
The Oppressed Rise Up
• Many scholars, peasants, and nobles grew resentful
of Shi Huangdi’s harsh policies and complete
control.
• Upon the death of Shi Huangdi, the country began to
unravel.
• Rebel groups fought among themselves, and
eventually the Qin capital was burned to the ground.
• With no authority present, the country fell into civil
war.
Shihuangdi’s Empire lasted only 15 years. After his
death, farmers and nobles revolted against his harsh
rule. However, Shi huangdi left a legacy of systems of
writing, money, and government that would last for
centuries.