History - Lesson 1

Question 1

What was Pre-Imperial China like?

Answer 1

• 6500 years ago, villages were created in fertile farming lands around the Huang and Yangtze rivers
• Small communities separated by mountains and rivers
• People from various ethnic groups formed a series of separate kingdoms and created different societies

Question 2

How long did dynasties usually rule for?

Answer 2

For 1300 years

Question 3

What do we know about the Xia dynasty?

Answer 3

• Ruled in c.2070-1650 BCE
• Not a lot of historical evidence

Question 4

What do we know about the Shang dynasty?

Answer 4

• c. 1650-1050 BCE
• Comes after the Xia dynasty
• Left written records on oracle bones (used for ceremonies when people wanted advice from the gods)
• Contains the earliest record of China’s history
• Produces huge quantities of bronze objects
• Rulers:
  - Created efficient organization
  - Taxed people
  - Gave land to local leaders in exchange for armies, animals and labour (FEUDALISM)
• Rulers used soldiers to enforce their will
• The dynasty ended when people revolted against the harsh rules of the last Shang king, Zhou Xin

Question 5

What do we know about the Zhou dynasty?

Answer 5

• c. 1050- 221 BCE
• Came after the Shang dynasty
• Come from Wei Valley
• Claimed the mandate of heaven (given the right to rule from God)
• Strengthened feudalism
  - By allowing nobles to control and use much of the king’s land in return for paying taxes and providing soldiers
  - Peasants lived on the land in exchange for their labour (farming)

Question 6

What do we know about the warring states?

Answer 6

• c. 475-221 BCE
• In 2nd half of the Zhou dynasty, nobles tried to gain power
• China experienced chaos and confusion
• Started with 150 states fighting
• Ended with only 7 remaining
• The leader of the state of Qin emerged as the strongest and claimed himself to be the emperor
  - This began a period called Imperial China (221 BCE- 1911 CE)

Question 7

What do we know about the Qin dynasty?

Answer 7

• c.221 - 206 BCE
• Came before the Han dynasty
• Qin Shi Huangdi established one central government to control people who fought with each other
• Forced main families who opposed him to live in his capital
• Collected weapons to melt down
• After 8 years of war, Liu Pang defeated armies of Qin Shi Huangdi
  
  • High taxes and food shortages caused rebellion
  • Qin Shi Huangdi commissioned the Great Wall of China

Question 8

What do we know about the Han dynasty?

Answer 8

• c. 206-220 BCE
• Gaozu became the first leader
  - Made laws easier to understand
• Disbanded armies, excused men with young families from military services
• Reduces tax
• Encouraged ex-soldiers to become farmers
• Han Wudi (c. 157-87 BCE)
• Han Wudi was the 7th Han emperor
• Based his rule on the teachings of Confucius
• Chose men to rule based on ability
• Forces taxes on:
  - Men to join the army
  - Salt and other essential resources
  - Used spies to enforce taxes
• People began to turn on him

Question 9

What do we know about the Red Eyebrows?

Answer 9

• Wang Mang ruled from 9-23 CE
• Promised to take land from wealthy and give to peasants
• Blamed for the famine
• People created an army called the “Red Eyebrows” to fight against Wang Mang (eventually killing him)

Question 10

What do we know about the Yellow Turbans?

Answer 10

• The rebellion group known as the Yellow Turbans showed that Han could not maintain control over China
• Han dynasty finally lost power in 220 CE after a rebellion
• For 400 years China was divided under the rule of families in different regions
• In 589 CE the Sui dynasty re-established China’s unified empire

Question 11

What do we know about the Eunuchs?

Answer 11

• Eunuchs (officials who had been castrated) increased their influence by organising more of the tasks that Han family members failed to perform
• Problems between peasantry weakened the government even further
• Population growth lead to shortage of farmland