His. 113-4. Qin Dynasty

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HISTORY 113

CHINESE CIVILIZATIONQin Dynasty (221 - 206 B.C.E.)

Michael D. Berdine, Ph.D.

Office Hours: by appointment

Email: [email protected]

Chinese CivilizationQin Dynasty

The Qin dynasty was a short dynasty with aspan of only fifteen years.

It opened 2,000-year-long imperial historyin China and exerted a far-reachinginfluence on the subsequent dynasties.

To protect the northern frontier, the first Qinemperor ordered the construction of theGreat Wall.


The king of the Qin state, Ying Zheng, conquered

the other six dukes through ten years of wars and

brought an end to riotous Warring States Period

(476 B.C.E. - 221 B.C.E.) in 221 BC.

He built up the Qin Dynasty, the first unified,

multi-national, autocratic and power-centralized

state in Chinese history

Xianyang, a city near Xian in Shaanxi Province,

was his capital city.

Qin Dynasty (221 - 206 B.C.E.)


Ying Zheng (original name of Emperor QinShi Huangdi) led a tough childhood.

His father, son of the King of Qin, was heldhostage in the state of Zhao until Lu Buwei,a wealthy merchant secured their releaseback to the Qin.

Ying Zheng became the King of Qin at theage of 13 upon the death of his father.


Since he was too young to administer hiscountry, the real power was in the hand of

the prime minister, Lu Buwei. Because of this, Lu Buwei was the real

father of the young emperor.

When Ying Zheng was 22, he assumed thethrone, arrested the prime minister andsentenced him to death.


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At the news, the prime minister did nothingbut roared out with laughter, "Well done,well done, that is my boy."

With assistance of wise and innovative men,Ying Zheng carried out a series of reformsto develop agriculture and the military.

Soon after, he launched a unificationcampaign from 230 B.C.E. to 221 B.C.E.

Qin Shi Huangdi (259-210 B.C.E.


In 221 B.C.E., Qin defeated the other six

states and for the first time in history, all

China became a unified empire.

The emperor was a great politician; after he

unified the country, he carried out a series of

political reforms.

Ying Zheng assumed the title "Shi Huangdi.


He believed his achievements surpassed those of"San Huang" (three previous emperors) and "WuDi" (five previous emperors), legendary rulers inremote antiquity.

"Shi" which means the first, combined with"Huangdi", the given names of his predecessorssignifies his supremacy over them.

Although his reign lasted little more than adecade, it had a defining influence on Chinese

civilization.


To organize his new empire, Qin Shi Huang

abolished the existing feudal system.

He moved thousands of people to southernborder areas to pioneer the virgin land.

He divided the country into 36 prefectures,

and subdivided into more counties.


These were put under the control of military and

administrative officials who were his direct

appointees. All the regional governments were subordinate to

the central government, which was in the charge

of the emperor himself.

Roads radiating from Xianyang, the capital, were

built linking the former Yan, Qi, Wu and Chu

areas.


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To strengthen the northern border, the Emperorsent slaves and criminals to build the line ofdefense now known as the Great Wall.

As a northern tribe, the Xiongnu kept plunderingthe northern frontiers, Emperor Qin found anunusual remedy to solve the problem.

He appointed one of his excellent generals,Mengtian, to the northern areas Mengtian beatback the Xiongnu tribe and supervise theconstruction of the Great Wall.


Today the Great Wall winds up and down acrossdeserts, grasslands, mountains and plateaus

stretching approximately 6,700 kilometers (4,163

miles ) from east to west of China.

With a history of more than 2000 years, some of

the section of the great wall are now in ruins or

even entirely disappeared.

The well-preserved sections of the Great Wall in

Beijing are China's most famous tourist site.


These sections are mainly the remains from

the Ming Dynasty, an era of tremendous

construction.

The wall runs across the northern part of

Beijing for over six hundred kilometers

with various passes and towers.

Great Wall of China


He standardized the script used forwriting, the coinage, introducing a circular

copper coin with a square hole in thecenter.

He standardized weights and measures,and codification of the law.

These reforms benefited both the economyand cultural exchange during the period.


Qin Shi Huangdi was apprehensive about

the prospect of death.

When he ascended the throne in 246 B.C.E.he commissioned the construction of his

tomb, work which intensified following

conquest of the rival states.


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In the second year after becoming emperor,he started the construction of his mausoleum,

which took almost 700,000 conscripts over

30 years.

In order to continue his reign after his death,

he also ordered the construction of the

Terra-Cotta Army east of his mausoleum.

Qin Shi Huangdis Tomb and Army


Despite all great works he did, Emperor Qin

ruled as a ruthless tyrant.

In order to standardize the thinking of his

subjects, he burnt most of the books in the

country.

He imposed heavy taxes and forced

thousands to work on the Great Wall.


The emperor died while away from his capital on

tour in 210 BC.

His demise sparked uprisings across the country

and thus the Qin dynasty ended in 206 BC.

A reformer as well as tyrant, Qin Shi Huang, left

to posterity his immense and monumental Qin

Mausoleum, a creation of both blood and tears.


His tyranny and that of his successorresulted in widespread opposition to the

regime throughout the country. Peasant uprisings continually plagued the

Qin dynasty.

In 207 B.C.E., after less than three years onthe throne the Second Emperor wasassassinated.


In 207 B.C.E., the brilliant aristocratic general

Xiangyu's army inflicted heavy losses on the Qin

army. The following year, Liu Bang (Gaozu) broke

Xianyang, the capital of Qin, and ended the

notorious Qin Dynasty.

In pursuit of the domination of the country, a four-

year war, known as Chu-Han War, broke out

between Xiangyu and Liubang.


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Xiangyu

, who was born in an aristocratic familyof former Chu State in present Jiangsu Province.

At the end of the Qin Dynasty (221 - 206 BC), he

rose up and led his men to defeat the main body of

Qin army, proclaimed himself King Of West Chu.

The other was Liu Bang, who was also from

present Jiangsu Province.


It was Liu Bangs army who first broke intothe Qin capital in 206 BC and abolished all

the harsh laws set by the Qin.

This helped him to win popularity among

local people.

However, Liu Bangs army was inferior to

Xiangyus.


When he found himself pressured by by

Xiangyu, he beat a temporary retreat in

Hanzhong in Shaanxi Province.

There he took the title King of Han, and

worked secretly at building up his army.

Soon he got the upper hand over Xiangyu,

after a tug of war that lasted four years.


Due to his arrogance and blindness to men

of ability, in 202 BC Xiangyu eventually

lost the war and committed suicide.

With his defeat of Xiangyu, Liu Bang

established the Han Dynasty (206 B.C.E. -

24 C.E.), and proclaimed himself the

Emperor of the Han.

Han Dynasty (206 B.C.E. - 24 C.E.),

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His. 113-4. Qin Dynasty