1. Huang He River Valley-Ancient China
Lecture & packet notes

2. Objectives Locate physical features of Huang He River Valley
Civilization on a map
Identify and explain
PERSIA-G
characteristics of
Huang He River
Valley Civilization

3. China
Huang He River Civilization

4. Geography Important features: _______________ Himalayas Huang He
Yangtze
________________
Taklamakan
Gobi
Geography
Talk to your neighbor –
How did these physical
features affect the development
of ancient
Chinese
Civilizations?

5. Mountains Deserts, Ocean Rivers
Provided _____________ from invaders – ___________ – no trade with outsiders
Provided water and fertile soil. _________ (windblown silt) from unpredictable flooding of the ______________________ replenished the soil with nutrients. It also colored the river yellow, giving it the name “________________”

6. The Huang He
River has also
been called
“______________________” because of its
history of
_____________ floods.

7. Taklamakan Desert with snow

8. The Gobi Desert

9. The Yangtze River

10. The first civilizations emerged on the Huang He River around
Political
The first civilizations emerged
on the Huang He River around
__________ BCE.
Hereditary Rule
The ruler’s son
became the ruler
after the ruler
died.
__________________________________________________________________
China’s earliest
governments were
______________.
What is a dynasty?

11. There were _________ dynasties in Ancient China:
Political
1. The first dynasty was the ________ but little is known because there are no _____________ records
2. The ________ dynasty followed and many artifacts and writings were found in its capital city of ________.

12. Political Anyang Ruled by a king
Capital city was surrounded by a massive wall – 118 feet wide and 1.2 miles
What can you conclude about their government?
Political
Artifacts included the chariot and bronze weapons

13. By 1027 BCE, the Shang Dynasty was overthrown and the third dynasty began called the Zhou Dynasty.
Political
Zhou rulers justified their use of force by claiming that they had the “Mandate of Heaven”

14. Mandate of Heaven: Divine power to be the emperor of China given to virtuous leaders
*If a leader does good for the people and always behaves correctly, then he is granted the power to rule by the gods/heavens (higher power) and can keep it; If he doesn’t act right and follow his duties as emperor, then he loses it (the power)
*Concept was started by the Zhou Dynasty to justify taking power

16. Ancient Dynasties of China Political
256 BCE
1532 BCE
1027 BCE
Zhou Dynasty
begins
Shang Dynasty
Qin Dynasty
Era of
Warring States
Almost 900 years of rule
Over time, the Zhou government became de-centralized and regional nobles gained more and more power. A system of feudalism developed. What is feudalism?

17. Feudalism: A government system in which regional landowners grant land to knights or warriors in exchange for loyalty and protection.
During the last 500 years of Zhou rule, regional rulers were constantly at war with each other. This period is called the Era of Warring States.
Political

18. Economy How did China’s geography affect its economy?
Talk to your neighbor.
Because of China’s isolation by natural barriers, there was not much trade outside of China
Its economy was agricultural.

19. Economy Cont.
As territory in the North and South were united during the Zhou dynasty, China gained crop diversity: grains from the northern fields and rice from the south led to rise in population
Rice would become a staple in the Asian diet

20. Because China was geographically isolated, it did not trade with other civilizations until the Classical period (500 BCE-500 CE).
In the Classical period, it would become a manufacturer to the world, trading along the Silk Road and Indian Ocean routes.
Economy Cont.
Porcelain

21. Chinese Culture From its earliest history, Chinese culture emphasized:
1. Importance of family
2. The group is more important than the individual

22. Religion Religious beliefs:
Ancestor worship: Deceased ancestors could bring good fortune or disaster.
Through ancestors, gods were worshipped, especially a supreme god, Shang Di.
The Chinese consulted
the gods using oracle bones.

23. Religion Cont.
Questions were etched into the bones of animals, usually turtle shells.
The bones would then be exposed to heat.
The cracks in the shell were then interpreted to see how the gods answered.
Oracle bone

24. Society Society was comprised of two main classes: nobles and peasants
The nobles were landowners. The peasants worked the land for the nobles.

25. Society Cont. Women were expected to obey their fathers and husbands.
Their marriages were arranged when they were years old.
The most important job for a woman was to produce a son.

26. Intellectual
Chinese writing developed from pictographs or drawings of objects.
The system used today is directly related to the writings found on oracle bones from the Shang dynasty.

27. Intellectual Cont.
There is no connection between written and spoken Chinese
Advantage: Someone can read Chinese without knowing how to speak it
Love
A common language developed during the Zhou Dynasty – Mandarin Chinese

28. Shang Achievements The Shang civilization excelled at using
bronze for weapons,
carrying vessels and
beautiful objects.
Chariots were invented and used in battle
Artifacts pictured
from Anyang

29. Shang Achievements Cont.
Silk production began during the Shang dynasty and
became a prized fabric of the nobles.
Silk thread from silkworms is woven to make beautiful
cloth.

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

31. Zhou Achievements Cont.
Iron was used for weapons and farm tools which expanded agriculture for China’s growing cities.
Coined money also developed during the Zhou Dynasty.

32. Photo Credits