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China’s First Civilizations
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The Geography of China
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Huang He – also known as Yellow River because of
its rich yellow soil that it carries from Mongolia to
Pacific Ocean
River flooded
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Negative – homes destroyed and lives lost –
“China’s sorrow”
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Positive – left behind rich topsoil in Huang He
valley; large amounts of food grown on small
farms
Chang Jiang (Yangtze River) flows east across
central China and empties into Yellow Sea; has rich
soil for farming
Mountains and deserts cover most of land and only
1/10 of land can be farmed; acted like a wall
around the Chinese
Himalaya close off China to southwest
Kunlun Shan and Tian Shan – mountain ranges on
China’s southwest border
Gobi Desert – vast, cold, rocky desert spreads east
from mountains
Chinese people united to form “the Middle
Kingdom”
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Who were the Shang?
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China’s first rulers were probably part of Xia dynasty
May have built first Chinese cities as evidenced by the findings of
huge walls, royal palaces and royal tombs
Shang are considered China’s next dynasty. They ruled from 17501450 BCE
Anyang – in northern China, China’s first capital
Most powerful people – king and his family
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First king used chariots and bronze weapons to take over
nearby areas and in time Shang kings ruled over most of
Huang He valley
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Chose warlords to govern territories, although king still
controlled large armies who helped him stay in power
Warlords and other royal officials made up upper class; also known
as aristocrats who passed their land and power from one
generation to the next, small number of enslaved people captured
in war
Few were traders and artisans, Most were farmers and worked land
that belonged to aristocrats (grew grains such as millet, wheat and
rice; raised cattle, sheep and chickens)
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How did people worship the
spirits and ancestors?
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Worshipped gods and spirits (believed
spirits lived in mountains, rivers and
seas
 Believed offerings of food and
other goods made gods and spirits
happy and that they would be
angry if not treated well
 Angry gods and spirits might cause
farmers poor harvest or armies to
lose battle
Honored ancestors and made
offerings in hope that they would help
in times of need and bring good luck To this day, people offer small paper
copies of food and clothing to
represent what is needed in the
afterlife
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How did people think they
could learn about the future?
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Kings believed they received power and wisdom
from gods, spirits and ancestors Religion and
government closely linked (like Mesopotamia
and Egypt)-Kings contact gods, spirits and
ancestors before making important decisions
Kings asked for gods’ help by using oracle
bones- Priests scratched questions on bones,
placed hot metal rods inside bones, causing
them to crack and read the pattern of cracks
(earliest known examples of Chinese writing)
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How did Chinese Writing
develop?
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Early Chinese writing used pictographs
(character that stands for objects) and
ideographs (two or more pictographs to
represent an idea)- Some characters
stand for sounds, but most represent
whole words, Some carvings are pictures
(ie. to go represented by a foot)
Created about 3500 years ago
Earliest forms founded on animal bone,
which show symbols were used to
represent words
Carved in vertical columns reading from
top to bottom like modern Chinese writing
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What did Shang artists create?
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Farmers produced silk and Artisans
made vases and dishes from fine
white clay, carved statues from ivory
and jade
Best known for works of bronze
(including sculptures, vases, drinking
cups and urns – used for rituals
honoring ancestors) which involved
many steps:
 Made clay molds in many section,
carved designs and poured
melted bronze into molds
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The Zhou Dynasty
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In 1045 BCE, Wu Wang,
an aristocrat in Shang
China led a rebellion
People supported him
because a great gap
existed between the rich
and poor
This new dynasty was
called the Zhou
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The Zhou Government
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The Zhou dynasty ruled for over
800 years; the longest in Chinese
history
Zhou King was head of
government
Large bureaucracy of people
responsible for different areas
reported to him
The kingdom was divided into
smaller territories led by aristocrats
appointed by king, land was
hereditary
Chinese consider King to be link
between heaven and earth
Kings chief duty was to carry out
religious rituals
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What was the Mandate of
Heaven?
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A heavenly law that gave the Zhou
king the power to rule
This mandate or formal order was
called the “Mandate of Heaven”
It means that the king was chosen by
the heavens based on talent and
virtue and that he would rule with
goodness and wisdom
King ruled according to the proper
“way” or Dao. It was his duty to keep
the gods happy
New Tools and Trade
A natural disaster could signal
unhappy gods and give the people
the right to overthrow him
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What new tools and trade
routes developed under the
Zhou?
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Chinese developed
irrigation and flood
control
Farming tools improvediron plows
Both advances caused
a population increase.
More food= more
people.
Trade and
manufacturing grewmost important good
was silk
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The Fall of the Zhou Dynasty.
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Over time the local rulers became
more powerful and stopped
obeying the Zhou king
This caused the “Period of Warring
States” an lasted almost 200 years
At first they fought on foot with
swords, spears and cross bows.
This war led to the development
of saddle and stirrup and horse
riding cavalry
Eventually the ruler of the Qin
state used a large cavalry to
defeat the other states and set up
a new dynasty.
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Words to Know
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Dynasty- a line of rulers who belong to the same family
Aristocrat- A noble whose wealth comes from the land
he or she owns
Pictograph- A character that stands for objects, such as
the moon and the sun
Ideograph- Character that represents an idea used in
Chinese writing
Bureaucracy- A system of appointed officials who run
different parts of the government
Mandate- A formal order
Dao- King ruled according to the proper “way” or Dao.
It was his duty to keep the gods happy
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Questions
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Name two rivers important to early Chinese
civilizations.
How long did the Zhou dynasty last?
What was the chief duty of Chinese kings?
From what metal did the Chinese make plows and
weapons during the Zhou dynasty?
What was the most important trade item during
the Zhou dynasty?
What was the first capital city of China?
Who were China’s first rulers?
What do people call the Huang He river?
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Answers
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The Huang He (Yellow River) and Chang Jiang
(Yangtze) were the two important rivers in ancient
China. The Huang He is known as China’s sorrow.
The Zhou was the longest Chinese Dynasty, it went on
for about 800 years.
The chief duty of Chinese kings was to carry out
religious rituals to keep the gods happy.
The Chinese made plows and weapons from iron
during the Zhou dynasty period.
Silk was the most important trade item during the
Zhou dynasty.
The first Capital City of Chinas was Anyang.
China’s first rulers were the Xia dynasty.
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Life in Ancient China
 Social
class -people who
share similar positions in
society:
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Landowning aristocrats,
peasant farmers, merchants
are the three main social
classes in ancient China
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The Aristocracy
 China’s aristocratic families:
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Owned large estates with large houses with tile roofs,
courtyards, and gardens; fine furniture, silk hangings
surrounded by walls to keep out bandits
Did not own large estates for long because each aristocrat
divided land among sons and resulted in less and less for
each generation
Relied on farmers to grow crops that made them rich
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Farmers
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9/10 Chinese were farmers
Lived in simple houses inside village walls
Grew wheat and grain (millet) on fields owned by aristocrats,
grew rice in south
Paid for use of land by giving part of crops to landowners
Most owned small piece of land for own family- Ate fish, turnips,
beans, wheat or rice, and millet
Paid taxes and worked one month per year building roads and
helping with government projects and also served as soldiers
during wartime
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Dry, mountainous land made it difficult for farming which was
greatly needed to feed the large population
Farmers cut terraces – flat areas like steps into mountain slopes,
which made land more available for farming and kept soil from
eroding
Terraces used for irrigation – rain flowed from one terrace to
next (terrace farming still used today)
First to use insects to protect crops from other insects and used
frogs and birds for pest control
Used bronze and iron tools for farming and harvesting
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Merchants or Tradesmen
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Ranked below farmers
regardless of wealth; Not
allowed to take
government jobs
Included shopkeepers,
traders and bankers
Lived in towns, provided
goods and services to
landowners
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Chinese Family Life
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Big families to help produce more crops and
become wealthier
Young children worked fields and older sons
raised own crops and provided for parents
Families took care of the aged, young, and sick;
Practiced filial piety
Chinese men , usually oldest male – head of the
family; sons could be the head in which case
mother had to obey the son
Men were respected as they grew the crops;
went to school, ran the government, and fought
wars
The jobs of the men were considered more
important than those of women
Women raised children and managed the
household, could not hold government posts
Women in royal court could influence
government and convince their husbands to see
things their way
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Chinese Philosophies
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Developed during the Period of Warring States
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As Zhou kingdom weakened, violence grew
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Rulers sent armies to destroy enemy states; villages of
men, women, and children were beheaded
Chinese looked for ways to restore order and create a
peaceful society; several philosophies were born out of this
need:
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Confucianism, Daoism, and Legalism
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Confucius
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Ancient China’s first great thinker and teacher who
wanted to end problems in China and bring peace
Believed people needed sense of duty (put needs of
others before their own) and society would do well
Similar philosophy as Golden Rule-Do onto others as
you would have them do onto you.
Traveled through China to persuade others to follow
Confucianism
 Taught that all men with talent of governing be
involved in government (not popular idea with
aristocrats) Message was carried and spread
throughout China
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The Life of Confucius
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Parents were poor, although may have had money at one time
Seems that parents died when he was very young
Talented scholar devoted to studies
Bookkeeper, stable manager, but wanted to be in government
Concerned with people not holding onto traditional values and struggling
government
He taught that people should
 Do their duty
 Honor promises to others, use education to improve themselves, avoid
extreme actions and feeling,
 Return to the beliefs and rituals of ancestors
Left politics when government officials were not interested and devoted his
life to improving society through learning and teaching
Did not write down ideas but followers put together a book of his sayings
called the Lun Yu
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What is Daoism?
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Promotes peaceful society and
based on teachings of Laozi (who
may not be a real person)
Ideas written in Dao De Jing (The
Way of the Dao); tells people how to
behave
Seek inner peace and live in
harmony with nature
Believe people should give up
worldly desires and should look to
nature and the Dao – the force that
guides all things
Unlike Confucianism which taught
people should work hard to improve
world, Daoism taught that people
should give up their concerns about
the world
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What is Legalism?
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“School of Law” disagreed with
idea of men in gov’t bringing
peace to society
Hanfeizi developed Legalism and
taught humans were naturally evil
 Believed they needed harsh
laws and stiff punishments and
strong leader needed to keep
order
Led to cruel laws and punishments
used to control farmers; followed
by many aristocrats
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Questions and Answers
1. How did farmers pay for the use of the land they farmed?
 They gave part of their crop to the landowners.
2. How did the amount of land owned by each aristocrat decrease over
time?
 Each aristocrat divided his land among his sons, so each generation
owned a smaller fraction of the original land.
3. How did farmers in ancient China increase the amount of productive
farmland?
 They built terraces into the mountain slopes.
4.What three farming methods helped farmers grow more food?
 Terrace farming, irrigation and pest control.
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More Q and A
5. Which of the Chinese philosophies encourages followers to concentrate
on duty and humanity?
 Confucianism is the philosophy that asks followers to concentrate on
their duty.
6. When did the ideas of Daoism become popular?
 Daoism became popular between 500 BCE and 300 BCE.
7. Why did Hanfeizi believe that people needed laws and punishments?
 To force them to do their duty.
8. Describe the concept of filial piety.
 Family members placed the needs of the head of the family above their
own.