B2: The Shang Dynasty

Question 1

when was the Shang Dynasty?

Answer 1

lasting from 1600 to 1046 B.C.

Question 2

when, traditionally, was the Shang Dynasty ruled?

Answer 2

ruled during the second millennium BC, traditionally succeeding the Xia Dynasty and followed by the Western Zhou Dynasty

Question 3

what were the geographical features and properties that surrounded Ancient China?

Answer 3

China was significantly isolated from the rest of the world, surrounded by the Pacific Ocean, the Himalayas and the Tibetan Plateau, and desert, dense jungle, and mountains on the north and south sides of China.

Question 4

true or false? the Shang Dynasty was the earliest ruling dynasty of China in recorded history.

Answer 4

true

Question 5

what is the Mandate of Heaven?

Answer 5

a concept created in 1046 BCE by the Zhou as a justification for their overthrow of the Shang, based on the idea that there could be only one legitimate and true ruler of China at a time and that the ruler had the blessing of the gods.

Question 6

what provides historians with evidence of the Shang Dynasty shaping the development of Imperial Chinese civilisation?

Answer 6

religious practices, metalworking, and military advances.

Question 7

what is the connection between Shang China and Imperial China (regarding religion)?

Answer 7

Shang China’s sacred burial and spiritual rituals and those in Imperial Chinese civilisation.

Question 8

as the Shang practiced ancestor worship, what did they provide for their supreme god?

Answer 8

provided food and even human sacrifices to ensure the happiness of their supreme god

Question 9

who was the Shang’s supreme god?

Answer 9

Shang Di.

Question 10

what did the Shang feel was going to occur if they did/did not please their ancestors?

Answer 10

felt that the family would continue to prosper in society if they pleased their ancestors; otherwise, the spirits would act and enable horrible things to happen to them.

Question 11

what evidence towards Shang ancestor worship has been discovered?

Answer 11

the written divinations discovered on several oracle bones and the sacrifice of living things to appease their gods.

Question 12

where, when, and why who, were oracle bones first discovered,

Answer 12

researcher Luo Zhenyu located the bones at Anyang in 1908

Question 13

what are oracle bones?

Answer 13

parts of animal bones used in divination ceremonies in ancient China

Question 14

what do the use of oracle bones for advice show?

Answer 14

shows the close connection between religion and politics

Question 15

what did oracle bones document regarding the Shang royal house?

Answer 15

their divination practices, involving speaking with ancestors and deities said to be able to grant good fortune, misfortune, and direction to humanity.

Question 16

what did the Shang royal house believe the Gods would communicate through oracle bones?

Answer 16

believed that the gods would communicate their desires for the growth of their kingdom through cracks in oracle bones.

Question 17

by who, and how would these desires be translated

Answer 17

the king (often serving as a priest) would then translate the gods’ desires based on the lines and cracks in the writings.

Question 18

what were oracle bones written with?

Answer 18

inscribed with a brush and ink made of lampblack or cinnabar, or carved using a stylus.

Question 19

how did oracle bones tell the future?

Answer 19

ancient Chinese nobles threw the bones into a fire, which were then decoded by fortune seekers who saw messages about the future in the cracks that were formed by the fire

Question 20

what did the Shang people believe regarding Gods response to the questions?

Answer 20

Gods responded to questions from the Shang and guided them in tough times like wars, droughts, or economic difficulties.

Question 21

how do oracle bones give historians an insight into the wars and battles during the Shang Dynasty?

Answer 21

the bones had writing about the predictions of future battles, for example, how many men to send or the outcome.

Question 22

what bronze development were significant to the development of Imperial China?

Answer 22

the development of both bronze weapons and bronze religious sculptures

Question 23

what did the bronze manufacturing create regardning the casting of bronze?

Answer 23

developed a highly sophisticated method for casting bronze

Question 24

what did the bulk of the production go into manufacturing, and what were these usually specifically designed/destined for?

Answer 24

manufacturing of vessels required for ritual purposes, usually specifically designed and destined to accompany deceased members of the elite to their tombs/graves → burial objects

Question 25

EVIDENCE: what bronze objects were found in Queen Fu Hao’s tomb?

Answer 25

195 bronze vessels, and more than 271 smaller bronze items

Question 26

what did the sacrificial bronze vessels provide evidence towards regarding Fu Hao?

Answer 26

provide significant evidence to archeologists of Fu Hao’s status as a high priestess and oracle caster as these artefacts were significantly rare objects from around the kingdom

Question 27

what did this discovery demonstrate regarding general Shang Dynasty rulers?

Answer 27

the power and wealth of the Shang rulers.

Question 28

what else (apart from burial items) were manufactured from bronze?

Answer 28

bronze swords and spearheads

Question 29

how did these bronze swords and spearheads give Shang soldiers an advantage in battle.

Answer 29

bronze swords and spearheads were stronger than other available metals, and the production of bronze weaponry was highly advanced for the time period

Question 30

how did the Shang Dynasty come to power, and what does this show about their military strength (back then and continuous)?

Answer 30

in battle by defeating the evil king of the legendary Xia, showing the significance of their military strength, and this continuous strength which protected the city from invaders.

Question 31

additionally, what did the introduction of metalworking bring to Shang society (jobs, structure, ect.)?

Answer 31

it brought clearly defined jobs to a newly classist society, as the Shang society was not just hierarchically stratified but organised into productive, functional groups.

Question 32

what type of society was the Shang due to their imposition of rule through the use of military force?

Answer 32

autocratic

Question 33

what type of warriors were the Shang soldiers, and what weaponry did they carry with them?

Answer 33

the warriors were foot soldiers, armed with bronze weapons such as daggers, spears and ji (a long stick with a bronze spear on the end).

Question 34

how many soldiers did the Shang King personally take into battle?

Answer 34

the Shang King had approx. 1000 soldiers, comprising of both professional and part-time soldiers

Question 35

what was the size range of the regular Shang armies

Answer 35

ranged from 3,000 to 13,000 warriors from all the social classes

Question 36

apart from the casting of bronze weaponry, what other military advancement gave the Shang an advantage over their opponents?

Answer 36

they domesticated horses and developed the chariot, which gave them a massive military advantage over their opponents.

Question 37

what Shang weaponry recovered from Anyang burial sites were found as evidence of the Shang’s power?

Answer 37

bows made from cattle bone/horn, arrowheads made from stone, bone, and bronze, halberds (an axe blade topped with a spike) made with bronze blades and wooden shafts, shields made out of wood and leather, and chariots decorated with bronze and turquoise

Question 38

what did the Shang armies take from their enemies during the war?

Answer 38

wealth, food, animals and prisoners of war

Question 39

how many prisoners of war did oracle bones once document as being taken at the same time

Answer 39

approximately 30,000

Question 40

what were prisoners of war used as?

Answer 40

slaves or sometimes slaughtered for sacrifice

Question 41

what message did this send to the opposing nation-states?

Answer 41

that the Shang are ruthless and significanlty more powerful than all others

Question 42

what did the Shang’s military size and power overall allow them to do?

Answer 42

allowed them to expand their kingdom