1. The Silk Road & Great Wall of China

2. Great Wall of China
Qin (chihn) Dynasty gains control of China in 221 B.C.
Dynasty- a series of rulers from the same family
Emperor Shi Huangdi (shee hwahng dee) united Chinese lands together to become an empire.
Built a system of roads and standardized currency.
Developed the idea for constructing the Great Wall.

3. Great Wall of China Benefit of the Wall Used for Defensive Purposes
Issues of the Wall
Not enough soldiers to cover the wall
Wall easily breached by invaders
Not maintained after Qin Dynasty
Only 3,100 miles long at this time (Length of US)

5. Great Wall of China
China goes through a long period of new dynasties beginning and ending, as well as Mongol rule. Because of this the Wall was rarely worked on.
2,000 years later, the Ming Dynasty begins reconstruction of the wall.
It takes them 200 years to fix/add on to the wall.
Responsible for the Wall that we see today.
5,500 miles long after Ming Dynasty

9. Silk Road
One of the oldest and most historically important trade routes
Linked the Roman Empire with China.
Trade carried on by foreign traders
Not common for traders to traverse the entire length

10. Rise of the Silk Road 2nd century BCE
From a desire for military purpose instead of for trade.
Han family needed help defeating nomad groups in North China.
Greco Bactrians helped the Han’s and supplied them with western horses.
Made people in each area desire goods produced in the other.

13. Items up for Trade
Chinese predominantly imported gold, gems, ivory, glass, perfumes, dyes, and textiles
Chinese exported furs, ceramics, spices, jade, silk, bronze and iron
Religion and ideas spread rapidly.

14. Development of the Route
Problems for Han rulers
Bandits
Policing became a problem
Building forts and defensive walls helped
Most significant commodity carried was religion
Buddhism, Christianity; and eventually Islam and Judaism

15. Decline of the Silk Road
Affected by the Crusades
Trade declined sharply till in the 13th century, until Mongols picked it back up
Isolationist policies of Ming dynasty (after Mongol)

16. Decline Cont’d
Discovery of a sea route from Europe to Asia in the late 15th century
Less cost, harassment and danger
Easier transportation of some items
Less prosperous