The Han Dynasty Flashcards
Who obsessed the idea of immortality?
Qin Shi Huang
Why did Qin Shi Huang die?
He dies from an “immortality potion”
What is the name of the wall which is 15000 mile long?
the Great Wall of China
What was the results of the Time of Chaos (Civil War)?
the emergence of two strong leaders Xiang Yu and Liu Bang
What did Yu do?
- ruled over multiple war lords
- allowed them to keep land they gained
What did Bang do?
He betrayed Yu and earned the title emperor. He starts Han Dynasty which would go on to rule China
for over 400 years.
What was the first action about?
- Lowered taxes
- Created a centralized government
- Softened punishments
- Brought about stability
After Bang’s death, his son became an emperor, but in name only. Then who had real power in reality?
His mother empress Lu (ex wife of Bang)
Why did people executed empress Lu’s family after Lu’s death?
to remain Bang family’s power
How did emperors choose their next heir?
The emperor chooses his favorite wife’s son to be the next heir.
Who hold the crown for the longest?
Wudi (Liu Bang’s great grandson)
Why did Wudi get his nickname?
He gained the nickname based upon his policy of expanding through war.
Who were defeated by Wudi?
Xiongnu who were fired nomads.
Who colonized the northern areas, aka Manchuria?
Wudi
Why did Chinese people follow the orders of their emperor as if it was the word of god?
Because they believed that the emperor was the link between heaven and earth.
What were the orders of their emperor?
- Government levied taxes
- Peasants served for the governments military.
- Peasants were worked on roads and transportation.
What is the unique thing in Chinese Society?
Soldiers were below the peasants in the rank.
What is Bureaucracy in Han Dynasty?
- Hans government employed over 130,000.
- They were divided into 13 ranks for various civil servant jobs that government officials work for.
What is Confucianism?
The Han believed that Confucius(공자) values such as respect, generosity, truthfulness and diligence and kinds were needed in a good public servant.
Confucianism created meritocracy. However, what was the problem?
In practice, studying for the exam required time and money, something peasants did not have. So in reality, the rich continued to serve for government.
Which invention made writing easier, which helped expanding the spread of books?
Paper
What was invented for horses by the Han?
collar harness
What was the most important commodity for 60 millions people in Han?
Silk
Who was the Great Historian, wrote about history of China from the ancient dynasties to Wudi?
Sima Qian
Why did poor people keep getting poorer for paying taxes?
- Rich do not pay taxes
- Poor need to borrow money from rich to pay taxes. When returning borrowed money are charged interest.
When economic change instability grow, and power struggles continue, who overthrew the Han?
Wang Mang
What did Wang Mang do?
- Minted new money
- Took away large landholdings from the rich and planned to redistribute the land to the poor. However, this plan angered many rich landholders.
What happened after a great flood in 11AD?
- massive famine
- many peasant revolts.
Following Wangs death, the Han were restored into power. This era is known as the _____ ___ _____
Peace was restored and the dynasty was prosperous.
“later Han years”.
What leads Han to split up?
- Unfair taxes
- Power struggles in the palace
- Natural disasters -> Famine
