River Dynasties of China

P olitics The Xia Dynasty of China (from c to c BC) is the first dynasty to be described in ancient historical records A dynasty is a sequence of rulers considered members of the same family.

P olitics The earliest written record of Chinese past so far discovered dates from the Shang Dynasty in perhaps the 13th century BC and takes the form of inscriptions of divination records on the bones or shells of animals—the so- called oracle bones.

P olitics The Zhou Dynasty was the longest-lasting dynasty in Chinese history, from 1066 BC to approximately 256 BC. The Mandate of Heaven is a well-accepted and popular idea among the people of China, as it argues for the removal of incompetent or despotic rulers, and provided an incentive for rulers to rule well and justly. The concept is often invoked by philosophers and scholars in ancient China as a way to curtail the abuse of power by the ruler, in a system that otherwise offered no other check to this power. The Mandate of Heaven had no time limitations, instead depending on the just and able performance of the ruler. In the past, times of poverty and natural disasters were taken as signs that heaven considered the incumbent ruler unjust and thus in need of replacement.

P olitics More than 26 dynasties ruled China until The Qing dynasty collapses and is replace by the Republic of China

P olitics From 1027 to 256 B.C. –Period of warring states –Invaders came from the North and disrupted the dynastic cycle Prior to invasions warfare was honorable and fought with rules, after there was no law and order Decline of Dynasties

E conomics In China, as in West Asia, Africa, or Europe, most people have spent most of their time farming for the last ten thousand years. In northern China, people mostly farm wheat, while in southern China it is mostly rice.

R eligion In the Shang Dynasty (about 2000 BC), the earliest period we know much about, people in China worshipped a lot of different gods - weather gods and sky gods - and also a higher god who ruled over the other gods, called Shang-Ti.

R eligion Around 1500 BC, people began to use written oracle bones to try to find out what was going to happen in the future. By the time of the Chou Dynasty (about 1100 BC), the Chinese were also worshipping a natural force called t'ien, which we usually translate as Heaven. Like Shang-Ti, Heaven ruled over all the other gods.

R eligion Heaven also decided who would be the Emperor or Empress of China. The emperor or empress could only rule as long as he or she had the Mandate of Heaven (as long as Heaven wanted him or her to rule). You knew when the emperor or empress had lost the Mandate of Heaven because he or she would then be overthrown by somebody else who would become the new emperor or empress.

China’s Leader Mandate of Heaven- a just ruler had divine approval –A wicked or foolish ruler could lose the Mandate of Heaven How would the Mandate of Heaven work in United States politics?

R eligion Around 600 BC, under the Eastern Chou Dynasty, and for the next two hundred years, there were a lot of new ideas in Chinese religion. First, a Chinese philosopher named Lao Tzu (he may be mythical) created the philosophy of Taoism, which became very popular.

R eligion Taoists believe that there is a universal force flowing through all living things, and that respecting that force is essential to a happy life.

R eligion Confucianism holds that people should do their duty and follow their leaders and the gods faithfully. Order is the way to peace. If everyone just does what they are told, and what they are supposed to do, there won't be any fighting and nobody will be upset.

R eligion Buddhism has played an enormous role in shaping the mindset of the Chinese people, affecting their aesthetics, politics, literature, philosophy and medicine.

R eligion Emperor Ming (58–75 CE) precipitated the introduction of Buddhist teachings into China. Buddhism is a religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha

R eligion But these new philosophies did not end the old religious practices. Everybody kept on worshipping their ancestors and the traditional Chinese gods, and they kept on believing in the Mandate of Heaven.

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S ocial - I ntellectual - A rts The ancient Chinese invented many things we use today, including paper, silk, matches, wheelbarrows, gunpowder, the decimal system, the waterwheel, the sundial, astronomy, porcelain china, lacquer paint, pottery wheel, fireworks, paper money, compass, seismograph, medicines, dominoes, jump rope, kites, tea ceremony, folding umbrella, ink, calligraphy, animal harness, playing cards, printing, abacus, wallpaper, the crossbow, ice cream, and... well, you get the idea.

S ocial - I ntellectual - A rts Family was central –Most important virtue was respect for one’s parents Writing –Helped unite diverse lands –How could a unified writing system do this?

S ocial - I ntellectual - A rts Ancient Chinese dynasties were protected by the Himalaya Mountains to the west and Yellow Sea to the east

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Ancient Chinese dynasties were protected by the Himalaya Mountains to the west and Yellow Sea to the east

S ocial - I ntellectual - A rts Chinese civilization originated in various regional centers along both the Yellow River and the Yangtze River valleys in the Neolithic era, but the Yellow River is said to be the Cradle of Chinese Civilization

S ocial - I ntellectual - A rts The Yellow River Carried silt, and deposited it along it’s banks “China’s Sorrow” Nickname for the Yellow River floods 1887 flood killed over 1 million people

S ocial - I ntellectual - A rts Women stayed in the home Feet would be purposely disfigured

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Bronze Developed advanced ways of shaping Bronze