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Classical China

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Title: Classical China


1
Classical China
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Classical Civilizations
  • Distinctions
  • 1000 BCE
  • Larger
  • Durable cultures with long-lasting impact
  • Why?
  • military conquest, new iron weapons
  • Leaders linked territories together
  • Trade
  • religion
  • conquests

4
China
  • Classical Civilizations
  • Three Dynastic cycles
  • Zhou 1029-258 BCE
  • Qin 221 -202 BCE
  • Han 202 BCE 220 CE

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Zhou Dynasty
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  • Tried to provide cultural unity by
  • -Banning human sacrifice
  • -Unifying language, Upper Class
  • Positives
  • Expanded Chinese Territory (From Huanghe to
    Yangtze)- An area known as the middle Kingdom
  • Rice and Wheat
  • Encouraged population growth
  • Heightened central government ( Shang and Heaven
    mandated their rule)

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Zhou
  • Did not establish powerful government
  • Ruled through alliances, nepotism (I give you
    land, you give me troops and tax money)
  • Could not control territories

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Decline of Zhou
  • -Rival states constantly competed
  • -Nomadic peoples ruled
  • Wars between long established households and
    newcomers were frequent
  • Banditry was widespread
  • BUT cultural unity helped lead to an effort to
    define Chinese Culture
  • This convinced one man that it was his lifelong
    quest to restore centralized control, peace and
    order in China

9
Confucius
  • Wrote the analects elaborate collection of
    political ethics- became central belief system
    for the Chinese
  • Still, despite cultural unity, rulers fought,
    deposed last Zhou emperor, became sole ruler of
    China

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Qin
  • Started by Qin Shi Huangdi
  • Brutal
  • took control away from aristocrats and took over
    their estates
  • Organized China into provinces, ruled by
    non-aristocratic bureaucrats
  • Used army to crush resistance

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Qin
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Great Wall
-3000 miles -Wide enough for chariots to move
along its crest Largest construction project in
human history Built by forced labor from
peasantry
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Innovations
  • National census ( for tax revenue and labor)
  • Uniform written script, completed basic language
    for all educated Chinese
  • Sponsored irrigation, manufacturing ( especially
    of silk)
  • Attacked formal culture, burned books,etc

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Fall
  • Shi Huangdi was HIGHLY unpopular
  • Attacks on intellectuals
  • High taxes
  • Forced labor
  • He was described as a monster who
  • had the heart of a tiger and a wolf. He killed
    men as though he could never finish, he punished
    men as though he were afraid he would never get
    around to them all

15
Territory and expansion
  • In addition to centralization, extended territory
    from Hong Kong to Northern Vietnam

16
Rise of Han
  • On Shi Huangdis death in 210 BCE, massive
    revolts broke out
  • One peasant leader defeated the others
  • Established third classical Chinese dynasty, the
    HAN, in 202 BCE

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Han
  • Lasted 400 years
  • Centralized but less oppressive
  • Early on, expanded
  • Began direct contact with India and the Middle
    East
  • Bureaucracy improved, government work linked to
    formal training based on Confucian teachings
  • Established Shrines to worship the philosopher

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Han
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Wu Ti (147-87 BCE)
  • Most famous Han ruler
  • Enforced peace
  • the nation had met with no major disturbances
    so that except in times of flood or drought,
    every person was well supplied and every family
    had enough to get along on

22
Government
  • Largest political system in the Classical World
  • Structure of governmentability to control vast
    empire

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Government in Qin and Han
  • Strong local units
  • Tight-knit, patriarchal families, enhanced by
    ancestor worship-led to family authority
  • For ordinary people, village leaders were more
    important, helped regulate property, coordinate
    planting and harvesting

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Under the Qin
  • Shi Huangdi attacked local rulers
  • Established
  • single law code
  • Uniform tax system
  • Appointed governors with military control to rule
    provinces
  • Had ministers with specialties for advice

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Under the Han
  • Still, attacked local warrior landlords.
  • Created large, highly skilled bureaucracy
  • -130,000 bureaucrats, .2 of population
  • -Wu Ti established exams, first example of civil
    service tests
  • -Developed schools to train men for tests
  • Mostly upper-class, but if could rise up ( if you
    could master Chinese characters)

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Positives of bureaucracy
  • Advisors had to be trained and qualified ( not
    friends or family of emporer)
  • Tighly governed, all levels of authority
    integrated, but could take a month to reach
    people
  • Emporer
  • Bureaucrats
  • Families
  • Fathers

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Han
  • Not steady expansion ( or overly militaristic)
  • Judicial matters, crime and legal disputes very
    important ( torture and execution common)
  • Confuscian philosoph guided government
  • Organized economic production, standardization of
    currency, weights, facilitated trade, public
    works, irrigation systems, stored agricultural
    surplus to control price, required annual labor
    from every male peasant
  • Commanded unbelievable power in the eyes of of
    the ordinary Chinese

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