The History of China

The Middle Kingdom

GeographyHigh mountain ranges to the west

and southwest – the Tien Shan and the Himalayas.

The Gobi desert is located in the north and the Pacific Ocean is to the east.

The Chinese heartland lay along the east coast and the valleys of the Huang He, or Yellow River, and the Yangzi.

Huang He RiverThe Huang He is also known as

the Yellow River.The Huang He got its name from

the loess, or fine windblown yellow soil, that it carries from Siberia and Mongolia.

The river is also called the River of Sorrows because once the loess settles on the bottom of the river, it raises the water level.

Early ChinaSome of the oldest examples of writing

are on oracle bones. Calligraphy is a form of elegant

handwriting.The Mandate of Heaven is the divine

right to rule.The Mandate of Heaven explains the

Chinese dynastic cycle (rise and fall of dynasties).

Philosophy and Religion in China

ConfucianismThe Analects are a collection of the

teachings of Confucius.Confucianism is a philosophy that was

concerned with worldly goals, especially how to ensure social order and good government.

Harmony develops when people accept their place in society.

The Five RelationshipsFather to SonElder Brother to Younger

BrotherHusband to WifeRuler to SubjectFriend to Friend

• Confucius put filial piety, or respect for ones parents, above all other duties.

Legalism Legalism grew out of the

teachings of Hanfeizi. He believed all humans are

naturally bad and goodness is acquired.

Greed was the motive for most actions.

The only way to achieve order was to pass strict laws and harsh punishments.

Buddhism in ChinaBuddhism originated in India. Its great appeal was the promise of

escape from suffering.Through prayer, good works, and

devotion, anyone could hope to gain salvation.

By 400 CE, Buddhism had spread throughout China.

The Dynasties1. Zhou Shi Huangdi was the first emperor. The Great Wall of China

2. Han dynasty Civil Service System; government

officials should win positions by merit. Emperor Wudi opened up the Silk Road

which linked China with the west. Confucianism became the belief system

of the government. Weak rulers, high taxes, peasant

uprisings, and outside invaders brought about the fall of the Han dynasty.

Two Golden Ages of China

3. Tang and Song dynastiesExpansion (Vietnam, Korea, and Tibet

had to pay tribute to China)Redistributed land to the peasantsThe Grand Canal linked the Huang He to

the Yangzi River.Economic expansion Increase in rice productionMost scholar-officials came from the

gentry.The gentry were experts in

Confucianism.Foot bindingGunpowder, block printing, and the

pagoda

The Mongols in ChinaUnder the protection of the

Mongols, who now controlled the great Silk Road, trade flourished across Eurasia.

Cultural exchanges increased as foods, tools, inventions, and ideas spread along trade routes.

5. The Yuan dynastyKublai Khan wanted only Mongols

in the military and to hold top government jobs.

Marco Polo visited Kublai Khan’s palace and remained in China for 17 years.

Polo’s book astonished readers in Europe.

6. Ming dynastyRestored civil service system and

ConfucianismRooted out government

corruption and disloyaltyPeasants produced huge rice

crops.The sweet potato and corn

reached China from the Americas.

Voyages of Zheng HeIn 1405, Zheng He commanded the

first of seven expeditions. He was at the head of 62 large

ships and hundreds of smaller ones, carrying 25,000 sailors.

The Manchu ConquestBy the early 1600s, the Manchu

invaders pushed through the Great Wall.

They set up a new dynasty called the Qing dynasty.

They adopted a Confucian form of government.

Crops from the Americas boosted farm output and contributed to a population increase.

19th Century ChinaOpium Wars, 1840 to 1842 British merchants sold opium, which was grown

in northern India, in China. The British East India Company wanted to

reverse the trade deficit that has made China wealthy.

In 1842, the Treaty of Nanking was the first of the unequal treaties that China was forced to sign.

The treaty opened up five ports to foreign trade, extraterritoriality, an indemnity to British citizens, and control of Hong Kong.

Boxer Uprising, 1899 to 1901Nationalist movement to

remove foreigners from China.

The Boxers fought against imperialism in China.

The Great Powers intervened and defeated the Boxers.

Chinese Revolution of 1911Established the Republic of

ChinaSun Yat-sen became the first

president of the Republic of China.

Three Principles of the People

Nationalism Democracy Social Welfare