1. Classical China

2. Confucius Quotations
“Everything has its beauty but not everyone sees it”
“Study the past if you would define the future”
“To see what is right and not do it is want of courage”

4. Zhou (1029-258 BCE) Came in from the north displacing the Shang rulers
Dynasty flourished only until 700 BCE
No powerful government. Ruled through alliances
Feudal period of China with rulers dependent on regional network of loyalties

5. Greatest Impacts
Extended the territory of China by taking over the Yangtze River valley- “Middle Kingdom”
Heightened the role of the central government- Mandate of Heaven rule
Greater cultural unity, including language
Confucius ( BCE)
Era of Warring States ( BCE)
Regional rulers formed ind. armies and reducing the emperor’s power

6. Qin (221 – 202 BCE)
Qin Shi Huangdi (First Emperor)- brutal ruler but effective in recreating order
Powerful armies crushed regional rulers
Appointed governors
Extended China’s territory south (to present-day Hong Kong and northern Vietnam
Built the Great Wall in the north to protect against invasions (extended over 3,000 miles)

7. Legalism Political thought based on pragmatism; viewed people as evil
Favored a state based on law and the strict enforcement of the law
Disdained Confucian values in favor of an authoritarian state ruled by force

8. Qin Greatest Impacts
 Regulations, national census, made Chinese written script uniform, terra cotta warriors, Great Wall
Problems- very unpopular, high taxes
Qin Shi Huangdi Died in 210 BCE and empire collapsed

9.     Han (202 BCE – 220 CE)
Retained the centralized administration but reduced the brutal repression
Expanded Chinese territory pushing into Korea Indochina, and central Asia
Contact with India, Middle East

10. Wu Ti (140-87 BCE) Most famous Han ruler promoted peace
Improved workings of the state bureaucracy
Urged support for Confucianism
Huns in the north increased invasions and central authority weakened
CE- China in a state of chaos

11. Political Institutions
Qin stressed central authority and Han built successful bureaucracy
Strong local units- relied on tightly knit patriarchal families, ancestor worship
Shi Huangdi provided a single law code and uniform tax system
Wu Ti- training academy for soldiers
Trained scholar- bureaucrats
Military and judicial systems established

12. Confucius (Kung Fuzi) 551-478
He taught that if people could be taught to emphasize personal virtue a solid political life would naturally result
Respect for one’s superiors
Primarily a system of ethics
Mencius- promoted Confucius’s teachings and slightly modified them
His disciples wrote his sayings in The Analects
Emphasis on individual virtuous behavior both by the ruler and the ruled

13. Daoism
Religious philosophy that arose about the same time as Confucianism during the Zhou dynasty
Laozi (Lao-tsu)- furthered Daoism
Daoism embraced traditional Chinese beliefs in nature’s harmony and added a sense of nature’s mystery
General conditions of the world unimportant; harmony with nature is more important
Han rulers persuaded Daoist priests to stress loyalty to the emperor

14. Economy
Trade became increasingly important, esp. luxury items for the upper classes such as silks, jewelry and leather
Standardization of weights and currency facilitated trade
Annual labor required of subjects for public works projects
Technological advances- paper, ox-drawn plows, iron mining and tools, production methods in textiles
Expansion of cities and agriculture

15. Society
Agricultural society with typical features of huge gap between landed gentry and the peasants, esp. in terms of access to culture and language
3 classes: Landowning elite and bureaucrats, laboring masses, mean people
Note that merchants were not high in social status because of Confucian values
Women subordinate to men but could have influence within the household