Han Dynasty (206BC- 220AD)
After Qin Shih Huang Di died, many people throughout the Qin Empire revolted
against his successor. What is important is that although the people of China did not like
the legalist methods of the Qin, they did like the cultural, and economic benefits of a
united China, and in the short reign of the Qin (221BC-206 BC- just 15 years!), they had
also accepted the belief in a Chinese national identity. Basically, the Chinese believed
that they should stay united because they still feared another warring states period - - they
just wanted more rights than Qin Shih Huang Di’s legalism allowed.
The Han Dynasty came to power just 1month after Chin Shih Huang Di’s death.
The Han Dynasty kept a centralized government like the Qin, but they tried to get rid of
the harsh laws and violence. The first emperors of the Han Dynasty tried to rule as
Taoists. They allowed great freedoms and even allowed some areas to rule themselves
without stopping them.
However, in 140 BC, an emperor named Wu Di decided that Taoism is not suited
for empires, he thought that it made China weak. He switched China to a Confucian
country - - based instead on the ideas of Confucius. This created a great government
bureaucracy, in which everyone was required to read the writings of Confucius. Those
that understood them the best, whether they were rich or poor, were given important
duties with the government, those that did not, whether they were rich or poor, were
given small duties. All in the Han dynasty believed in the Confucian system, and it lasted
for hundreds of years (until 1911!!!), even after the Han Dynasty ended.
During the Han Dynasty, the silk road was created. This road went from Eastern
China, to central Asia. It brought goods (silk, spices etc..) across Asia, and some even
found their way to Europe.
Eventually, the aristocracy became very opposed with the Han Dynasty and its
Confucian ideals. The aristocracy felt that they should be granted certain rights because
of their status, but the Han Dynasty refused to recognize them as special - - the Han only
felt that the special were those that did well in learning about Confucius whether they
were rich or poor. By 220 AD, the rich had all banded together and brought down the
Han Dynasty.
1.) What did people like about Chin Shih Huang Di? What did they dislike?
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2.) What did the Han Dynasty carry over from the Qin Dynasty? What did they change?
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3.) How did the first emperors of the Han try to rule? Why was it changed?
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4.) What did Wu Di change about the Han Empire?
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5.) How does the Confucian Bureaucracy work?
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6.) What do you think some of the short term and long term effects of the Silk Road
were?
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7.) Why did the aristocracy overthrow the Han Dynasty?
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