1. China In Antiquity China Video Link
I. The Dawn of Chinese Civilization
A. The Land and People of China
1. Legend: Chinese society was founded by a series of rulers who brought “civilization”
s B.C.E. agriculture began, particularly near the Yellow and Yangtze rivers
a. The Yangshao and Longshan Neolithic cultures
3. Only 12 percent of China is arable
4. China isolated by Gobi Desert, Central Asia, and Tibetan plateau
5. Agrarian China vs. Asian nomads
China In Antiquity
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2. China In Antiquity
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3. China In Antiquity China Video Link
I. The Dawn of Chinese Civilization (cont…)
B. The Shang Dynasty (c. 1500s–1000s B.C.E., replaced the Xia dynasty)
1. Political Organization
a. Capital was at Anyang
b. Oracle bones earliest surviving writing, a way to communicate with the gods
c. Chariot warfare
1) Chariots perhaps through Indo-European contacts
d. Ritual sacrifices were performed at death of Shang kings
1) Lead to the custom of veneration of ancestors
China In Antiquity
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4. China In Antiquity
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5. China In Antiquity
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6. China In Antiquity China Video Link
I. The Dawn of Chinese Civilization (cont…)
B. The Shang Dynasty (cont…)
2. Social Structures
a. Farm villages were the basic social unit
1) Clans rather than nuclear families
b. Some class differentiation: aristocratic elite, peasants, a few merchants, slaves
c. Bronze casting
China In Antiquity
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7. China Video Link II. The Zhou Dynasty (1000s–200s B.C.E.)
A. Political Structures
1. Capital near present-day Xian and a second capital near modern Luoyang
2. More extensive and complex bureaucracy than Shang
3. The Mandate of Heaven
a. Heaven: an impersonal law of nature rather than anthropomorphic deity
b. King not divine but ruled as representative of Heaven
1) Kings were chosen because of their talent and virtue
c. If the king did not rule effectively, he lost the Mandate of Heaven and could be replaced by a new king or dynasty
4. Zhou began to decline by 500s B.C.E.
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8. China Video Link II. The Zhou Dynasty (1000s–200s B.C.E.) cont…
B. Economy and Society
1. The “well field system”: peasants had own lands but also cultivate their lords’ land
2. Merchants were not independent but under control of local lords
3. Late Zhou saw considerable economic and technological growth, including massive water control projects, iron plowshares, the collar harness, natural fertilizer
4. Development of extensive trade in silk, to as far away as Greece
5. Development of a money economy
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9. I. Zhou Dynasty Pronounced (“JOH”…with tone) Dynasty
Ruled for more than 800 years, which made it the longest lasting Chinese dynasty.
King Wu conquered the Shang around 1000 BC and claimed the Mandate of Heaven. Continued the Zhou legacy.
Zhou kings set up feudal estates and appointed relatives to positions of power over city-states.
At first they were loyal, but eventually they began to challenge the king.
After a defeat around 771 BC the political power went to the Nobles.
Nobles fought amongst each other for power for 500 years.

10. All of these achievements helped the population to grow.
II. Zhou Achievements
Built roads and expanded trade
Formed cavalry by obtaining horses and creating chariots
Developed the cross-bow
Expanded the writing system
Developed iron plows
Irrigation systems
Flood control systems
All of these achievements helped the population to grow.