1. Chinese Empire
Chapter 9

2. The Qin Qin was a mountainous kingdom located in northwestern China
Beyond the kingdom, there were foreign lands of Asia
Although by the late Zhou dynasty, Qin had become the strongest kingdom in western China, King Zheng wanted more power!

3. Uniting the Warring States
Kin Zheng of Qin was ruthless, he defeated each kingdom one by one
By 221 BC, Qin forces defeated their last enemy and united China
There are still challenges:
Languages and customs varied
Rebellion may occur
Invasion by nomads

4. The First Emperor
The Qin ruler decided that the Chinese needed to become one people by one government
King was too small of a word for such a vast empire
He then declared himself Shi Huangdi – “First Emperor”
“Huagdi” is tied to the gods and legendary rules of China’s past

5. The Great Wall
Before the Qin unification, the smaller kingdoms had walls to protect themselves from other kingdoms
Shi Huagdi had these walls torn down and began work on one of the largest public works projects in history
The Great Wall
A long wall running east and west along his empire’s northern border to defend the empire from nomads living close by

6. Protection Building the wall was dangerous and many workers died
It did not always keep invaders out, but other emperors who followed also relied on the wall for protection

7. Establishing Standards
Shi Huagdi knew he needed to standarize daily life
Standards for economy
Standards for culture
Anyone who did not follow the standards was punished as a traitor
Most importantly, the empire established a single written language

8. Establishing Standards
Transportation became standardized
The government established a standard length for the axles of all vehicles, making travel between different areas easier
All carts and wagons could travel in the same ruts on the same roads
A uniform set of weights and measures was also set into place
This made trade easier
Currency was the same throughout China

9. Organization
Shi Huagdi introduced the concept of centralization (central government system)
He organized China into 36 provinces
Each province was divided into counties
Each county had a leader who reported to central government who then reported to the emperor
To prevent rebellion, Shi Huagdi forced thousands of noble families to move to the capital where spies could watch them

10. A Legalist Government
In the alte Zhou dyansty, the Qin rulers brought in advisors to help make the Qin stronger
Shang Yang was a very important advisor who belonged to a school of thought called Legalism
According to this, a strong leader and a strong legal system are needed to create social order

11. A Legalist Government
The Qin kings took more direct control over the common people with heavy taxes and labor requirements
The kingdom became stronger and more orderly
Shi Huagdi became very interested in harsh laws and following Legalist Han Feizi

12. Rules and Punishment under Legalism
Han Feizi did not agree with Confucianism
Instead, he believed people must be forced to do good
This was done by making strict laws and enforcing them
Shi Huagdi made a uniform legal code across his empire with very severe punishments
Ex: a thief could face physical punishment as harsh as cutting off the feet or nose
Ex: less serious theft may receive punishment of harsh labor such as working on the walls or the roads

13. Censoring Thought
The First Emperor tried to control Chinese thought by censoring ideas he found dangerous or offensive
Debate about the government was banned
People could not praise past rulers or criticize the present one
Books that did not support his policies were burned

14. Fall of the Qin Dynasty
About 3 years after Shi Huagdi’s death, the dynasty collapsed
A soldier named Chen Sheng led a rebellion
He was leading troops north to defend the borders of China, but a storm of heavy rains delayed them
He knew that arriving late would have a severe penalty so he and his men decided they had nothing to lose by rebelling

15. Fall of the Qin Dynasty
As news of Chen Sheng’s uprising spread, many others rose up to support him
Qin generals tried but could not put down these rebellions
Knowing the punishment for failure, some of the generals joined the rebellions
The rebels joined together long enough to defeat the Qin, but then began fighting amongst themselves and chaos erupted AGAIN