Qin and Han Dynasties PDF

The Qin Dynasty (221 – 206 BC) 秦 Qin Dynasty First Imperial Dynasty Legalism Anticonfucianism Standardized form of government Ended the period of warring states Began the Great Wall of China Standardized small seal script “Qin” and “China” The Legalism Philosophy of Yang At least theoretically, a k...

The Qin Dynasty (221 – 206 BC) 秦 Qin Dynasty First Imperial Dynasty Legalism Anticonfucianism Standardized form of government Ended the period of warring states Began the Great Wall of China Standardized small seal script “Qin” and “China” The Legalism Philosophy of Yang At least theoretically, a kind of group responsibility of the population was introduced. Weights and measures, coins and the track width of the roads were standardized in the state of Qin. Laws written in Small Seal Script Xiao Zhuan (小篆) Qin laws were recognized throughout China, and enforced from region to region through military control and imperial inspections. All people are subject to me, Every field harvest, and Everyone can have enough food. Literature With the exception of previous dynasty books regarding medicine, herbs, divining and agriculture, all Confucian books were banned. fen 焚 "burning" might be a writing error for the character jin 禁 "prohibiting" The Han Dynasty (206 BC – 220 AD) Early Han Liu Bang and his successors created a stable government with an administrative model taken over from the Qin, but enriched with the state doctrine of Confucianism. The ethos of the time preferred Daoism and HuangLao thought (黃老) and the proposition that the state goes best with a laissez-faire government. Symbol of Confucianism The Silk Road In order to make trade possible, Emperor Wudi began to develop what has been called in modern times, the Silk Road. Following this route merchant traders took silk from China to the West, and brought glass, linen, and gold back to China. Expansion of Trade The Silk Road would become instrumental in the development and expansion of trade, and the accumulation of wealth in both China and Rome, as well as in Egypt and other nations, including in the Baltic. Civil Service Civil servants had to deal with the responsibilities of governing an empire: public works, civil and martial law, foreign policy, organization of religious ceremonies, yearly reports to the Imperial rule. The highest ranks worked in the palace and reported directly to the empire. These officials would have control over large areas of the empire. Other officials worked in local districts, where they would collect taxes and act as judges. They even kept the local census and often taught or managed local schools. These civil servants were the equivalent of the Roman Praefect, which is a sort of modern mayor. Art In Han art, the human being became the center of attention. We find scenes of daily life, pictures of animals and men, decorations that make us laugh and feel the happiness of a social interacting during a feast or a banquet. We see the hard work of the peasants and hunting scenes of the Han aristocracy on clay bricks and on lacquered objects. Mural of driving a carriage (Coffin chamber of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Zhu county, Luoyang city) Religion The Confucianism that was adopted in the Han era was one somewhat mixed with Legalism. Scholars taught that a strong emperor was necessary. Mencius' philosophy became the standard Confucianism of the rulers of the Han Empire. Literature and Philosophy Although the dynasty adhered to the principle of a non-interfering government, they had to rely on professional scholars because they were the people who needed to administer the empire. "An empire can be conquered from the horseback, but not ruled from a horseback", is a recommendation by Lu Jia valid for all Chinese dynasties. Dong Zhongshu Literature and Philosophy While the original Confucianism only centered around man and his position in the society, Han time Confucianism was highly intertwined with the theory of the Five Elements and the philosophy of Yin-Yang that assumed an everlasting change and influence of all things. The Interactions of Wu Xing: The creation cycle (black, circle shaped arrows) and the overcoming cycle (white, star shaped arrows). Literature and Philosophy Poetry developed to a regular, five and seven syllable poem style later called "old poem" (gushi 古詩). During the reign of Wu Di, a short-lived Office of Music (Yuefu 樂 府 ) was established that collected popular and exotic poems throughout the country. Literature and Philosophy Dictionary At the court library, a scholar named Xu Shen (許慎) wrote the first etymological character dictionary of China, the Shuowen jiezi (說文解字) with 540 radical determinants. Page from a copy of a Song dynasty edition of the Shuowen, showing characters with the 言 element, including 說 shuō Society Hunting and Harvesting Contribution The state academy (Taixue) was installed to produce intelligent and well-educated scholars for state service. Graduates of the academy engaged in many fields of science and technology – theoretical like mathematics and musical theory, and practical, like medicine and acupuncture. The book Shennong bencaojing (神 农本草经) – book on agriculture and medicinal plants – was published at this time. Much more than before, scholars tried to develop a worldview based on natural science. Contribution The word “China” is allegedly derived from the name of the Qin dynasty, and a lot of terms for “China” are derived from the name of the River Han 漢水 that also gave its name to the Han dynasty. “Chinese language” is called hanyu 汉語, “Chinese characters” are called hanzi 汉字, the majority of people inhabiting China are called hanren 汉人 or hanzu 汉族. The word “Han” does not simply mean “man”, but “hero”. Many small dynasties in later times styled themselves "Han", even Korean and Japanese families claimed to be descendents of the dynastic family of the Han, the Liu. The Korean capital Seoul is called Hancheng 漢城 "City upon Han River". Oldest Tea in the World Archaeologists have discovered the oldest tea in the world among the treasures buried with Emperor Han Jingdi (188–141 BC) of the Han Dynasty. The fact that there was tea found in the tomb of an Emperor tells us that tea was considered to be very valuable, since it was worth taking with, in the afterlife. The tea discovered in the Emperor’s tomb seems to have been of the finest quality, consisting solely of tea buds – the small unopened leaves of the tea plant, usually considered to be of superior quality to ordinary tea leaves. Tomb of Emperor Jingdi, Xi An The Roman Empire and The Han Dynasty (206 BC – 220 AD) 27 BC – 285 AD (Undivided) Han Rome Well-organised bureaucracy based on confucian ethics. Well-organised bureaucracy founded on Roman law and classical learning. Emphasis on family ancestors. Emphasis on family – pater familias. Reliance on landed gentry. Reliance on patricians. Superior engineering: roads, canals, the Great Wall. Superior Engineering: viae, aqueducts, sewers, amphiteatres Decline Han Infighting amongst elite classes. Uneven distribution of land and tax burden. Peasant rebellions. Warlordism. ▪ Generals divide empire in Three Kingdoms around 220 AD. Rome Infighting – Praetorian guards and barrack emperors. Difficulties in administrating a vast empire ▪ The empire was split in two in 284 AD.