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Political Ruled by dynasties As Mesopotamia, Egypt and Indus were declining, Shang Dynasty in China was rising to power Zhou Dynasty –Mandate of Heaven: Justification through right of God –Dynastic Cycle: Pattern of the rise and fall of dynasties –Feudalism: nobles have permission from Kings to own and work king’s land

Economic Because of China’s isolation by natural barriers, early settlers had to supply their own goods within China Not much trade outside of China

Religious Family and Religion are closely linked –Prayed to ancestors because they thought their ancestors could bring them luck or disaster –Consulted the gods through ancestors Shang Di – Supreme God

Social Society was sharply divided between nobles and peasants Family was central to society Had arranged marriages Group was more important than the individual

Society

Intellectual Shang Dynasty was the first to leave written records Oracle Bones: animal bone or tortoise shells where priests scratched questions for gods then applied heat until it cracked. Then they priests interpreted the cracks

Intellectual No connection between written and spoken Chinese –Advantage: Someone can read Chinese without knowing how to speak it

LOVE HAPPY

Achievements Oldest Shang city – Anyang built in the woods mainly from wood –Had massive earth walls for protection –Found a wall 118 feet thick and 1.2 square miles

Achievements Introduced the chariot – a major tool of war Skilled in bronze work, silk and weapons

Achievements During the Zhou Dynasty they: –Built roads and canals –Developed blast furnaces that allowed them to produce cast iron

Geography Surrounded by natural barriers on all cardinal directions –North: Gobi Desert –East: Pacific Ocean –South: Himalaya Mountains –West: Taklaman Desert and Plateau of Tibet

GOBI DESERT PACIFIC OCEAN HIMALAYA MOUNTAINS TAKLIMAKAN DESERT

Geography Fertile plain found between 2 major rivers –1. Huang He (Yellow River) Floods left behind LOESS: yellow silt –2. Yangtze River Flooded unpredictably

–Huang He (Yellow River)

Huang He (Yellow River)

Yangtze River

Pictures Cited Slide 1 – Slide 3 – Slide 4 – Slide 5 – Slide 7 – Slide 9 – Slide 10 – Slide 12 – Slide 13 – Slide 14 – Slide 15 – Slide 16 – Slide 17 – Slide 18 – Slide Slide 20 – Slide 22 – Slide 24 – Slide 25 – Slide 26 – Slide

Dynasties of Ancient China World History

Geography Geographically isolated to some extent. Huang He (Yellow River) and Chiang jiang (Yangtze) rivers flood quite often.

How did China’s geography affect its early development?

Long rivers…. Fertile soil…. Temperate climate…. Isolated valleys…. *** All helped their civilization to flourish!

Xia Dynasty (Approx yrs ago) Ruler: Yu Irrigation and drained floodwaters Beginning of Chinese civilization No written records – existence is by legend

Shang Dynasty ( B.C.) Ruler: Wu Ding Developments: impressive cities & mastery with the art of bronze casting Farming society ruled by a king and an aristocracy Capital was Anyang Warlords governed territories Ancestor worship developed

Zhou Dynasty ( B.C.) (era of warring states) Developments: longest lived dynasty (800+ years); claimed the Mandate of Heaven Emperors called themselves “Sons of Heaven” Linguistic unity – Mandarin was standardized Daoism & Confucianism - related to politics Trade expanded to distant regions Set up an agricultural system (nobles & peasants) A.K.A. feudalism

Zhou Dynasty ( B.C.) (era of warring states) Expanded Chinese territory to Yangtze River Valley (wheat & rice growing areas added) Increased food production and use of iron Concept of the family grows in importance Chopsticks Use cavalry & crossbow Took steps to centralize government, but local leaders ignored central government