Han Dynasty Classical China

Political, economic, social, cultural overview of the rise and fall of the Han Dynasty

3. Qin [Ch’in] Dynasty, 221-206 B.C.E.
 Established China’s first empire 
 Shi Huangdi (221-206 B.C.E)
 Legalist rule 
Bureaucratic administration
Centralized control
Military expansion – focus on military power
Book burnings  targeted
Confucianists
Buried protestors alive!
 Built large section of the Great Wall

4. The Qin Dynasty
Competing Ideologies of Empire
Struggle between Legalism and Confucianism
Qin rejected Confucian respect for the
past and for living a moral example
Ordered Confucian texts burned
Qin favored Legalism with its strict laws
and enforcement

5. Execution of Confucian Scholars
 A history of China, written centuries after
the Qin, depict the reported book burnings
and burying of Confucian scholars

6. The Qin Dynasty
Administrative Power
Autocracy – a government with unlimited power
Established a centralized bureaucracy of trained
officials – chose officials based on merit and
talent
Government jobs were no longer passed down to sons –
reduced the power of the nobles
Anyone who can afford it may own land
Empire divided into 36 provinces each controlled
by appointed officials

7. The Qin Dynasty
Military Power and Mass Mobilization
Qin defeated regional states by 221 B.C.E.
Armed forces essential to Qin success
Defeated Koreans and nomadic tribes
Mass mobilization of men for public works
including Great Wall of China
700,000 workers used to create capital city
Qin Shi Huangdi tomb included 7,000 life-
size figures of soldiers

8. The Qin Dynasty
Economic Power
Standard round coin with hole in center –
banliang
Standardization of weights, measures, etc.
Public works intended to improve economy
Canal and river transport systems
Road network for trade and communication
Irrigation in Sichuan for grain production
Acquisition of areas rich in iron ore and
two ironworking facilities

9. The Qin Dynasty
The Fall of the Qin Dynasty
Dynasty collapsed with death of Qin Shi
Huangdi in 210 B.C.E.
Oppression brought backlash – revolts of
people eager to escape the burdens of Qin
labor and military service
Succession fight within Qin – several
assassinations
Rebellions in regional capitals - first
rebellion led by peasant farmer Chen Sheng
(Dazexiang Uprising)
Had lost the Mandate of Heaven

11. Han Dynasty Overview
206 B.C.E.-220 C.E.
“People of the Han”  original Chinese
Expanded China’s borders and developed a
system of government that lasted for centuries
Paper invented [105 B.C.E.]
Silk Road trade develops; improves life for many
Confucianism became foundation of society
Buddhism introduced into China

12. Liu Bang - Founder
First emperor of the Han Dynasty (202 – 195 BCE)
Emerged as victor from the post-Qin power
struggles – mighty will + sheer luck
Modest background, low-level official
Established capital at Chang’an
Main challenge: form a government that could
secure order and dynastic stability without
reminding the people of the Qin’s harsh rule

13. Liu Bang - Administration
Centralized government—Central authority controls
the running of the state (Qin system maintained of
direct administration of localities by court
appointed officials)
Meritocracy – officials appointed by the court
based on their talent and abilities, not birth
Officials took care of many responsibilities
including public works, military, taxes, ceremonies,
judging lawsuits
Departed from Legalism
Lowered taxes and softened punishments
Set a model for succeeding emperors

14. Han Synthesis
The Han Synthesis- term refers to continued
reliance on Legalism (military, legal system),
but combined with Confucian education and
ethical system
Moral basis of superior-subordinate
relationships – subjects owed loyalty &
responsibility
 Han dynasty recorded Confucius’s teachings
and put a big emphasis on family.
Tried to replace Confucian books lost during
the Qin Dynasty

15. Emperor Wudi – Martial Emperor
Ruled 141 – 87 BCE – longer than any
other Han ruler
Main Challenge: Foreign policy and
expansion – How will he expand China’s
borders and secure its trade routes from
the western and northern nomadic
warrior tribes?

16. Emperor Wudi, 141-87 BCE
Strengthening the Power of Government
Emperor Wudi established a complex bureaucracy
New system ignored the nobles—relied instead on
trained scholars (mostly sons of merchants or
landowners)
Taxes paid for the large government and military
Chinese peasants owed part of their crops to the
government – also a month’s worth of labor each
year and two years service in the military

17. Emperor Wudi, 141-87 B.C.E.
Strengthened Power of Government
Wudi actively sought to decrease the power &
wealth of the feudal lords
Seized land, required they give expensive gifts
Required that lands be divided between all heirs –
to reduce the land size controlled by a single
family

Wudi actively sought to decrease the power
of merchants
Government took over profitable industries (iron,
salt, grain, liquor) and taxed the products heavily
to build up royal treasury
Taxes on these industries – pay for military

18. Wudi – “Martial Emperor”
Aggressive foreign policy – expanded borders
“Martial Emperor”
expanded China’s empire through war
Colonized Manchuria, Korea & Vietnam
Chinese culture strongly impacted these regions
Needed a strong military to open up the trade
routes to the West
Han as militaristic as Qin had been
Army of 300,000 to a million
Campaigns to the west for access to Central
Asian trade for horses, cattle, and furs

19. Expansion – 2 ways – Conquest & Migration
Military conquest brought new land and new
peoples living under Chinese rule
Created military-agricultural colonies on borders
North faced flooding and war casualties – causing
migrations to the south
South -- better rice growing – shifting population
over centuries from north to south
Southern residents faced fewer threats to life
Emperor Wudi, 141-87 BCE
Foreign Policy / Expansion

21. Foreign policy - tribute system
Way to manage relations with nomadic tribes to
the west and north without going to war
Goal – maintain peace and trade
Tribes had to recognize Chinese superiority
Tribal leaders presented gifts and hostages to
the Han emperor in return for valuable gifts from
emperor such as silk and gold
Tribes also got the right to trade at frontier
markets
In reality – China had little power over these
societies
Emperor Wudi, 141-87 BCE
Foreign Policy / Expansion

22. Xiongnu Challenge
Foreign policy challenge—the Xiongnu confederacy of
tribes raiding northern frontiers
Nomadic pastoralists –sheep, cattle, horses
Moved about in search of water and pastures
Did not farm, no writing – oral culture
Expert horsemen & archers – trained from boyhood
By 209 BCE – the Xiongnu tribes had established a
growing empire in Mongolia
Frequent border raids into China -- constant struggles
between China and the northern tribes will last for
1,500 years

24. Xiongnu Challenge – Passive
Foreign Policy
Refused to become a tributary state of
China –to be subservient to the emperor
Traditional tribute system failed
200 BCE – Xiongnu attacked and
surrounded the first Han emperor and
his army
China had to make annual gifts of
expensive goods, food, royal women to
the tribal chieftains to maintain peace
Xiongnu ranked as a co-equal state

25. Wudi (Emperor Wu) & the Xiongnu
Wudi took a different course of action
Wudi aggressively sought allies among the
nomadic tribes to fight the Xiongnu
Part of Central Asia came under the tribute system –
Wudi gained horses to increase cavalry
133 BCE – Wudi went on the offensive and
attacked the Xiongnu with over 100,000 men
Despite initial success – Wudi’s army could
never completely defeat them
Border war – costing government a fortune,
hard on soldiers – losing morale, people living
near borders faced constant warfare

26. Xiongnu Foreign Policy
Effective strategy of
extortion in dealing with
the Han
Military strategy –
lightning strike deep into
China and then retreat
Policy – alternating
military strikes with
diplomatic negotiations to
gain more goods from the
Han
Demanded to be treated
as a co-equal state

27. Han – Expansion of Great Wall

28. The Great Wall with Towers

29. Xiongnu – Peace Treaty
Civil war and political problems weakened the
Xiongnu after Wudi’s death – finally brought
under the tribute system in 51 BCE when a peace
treaty was negotiated
Xiongnu continued to have the upper hand in
diplomacy with the Han – demanded ever
increasing amounts of silk and other gifts
Peace on the frontiers -- important for the
growth and protection of Silk Road trade routes

30. Han Social Hierarchy

31. Other Classes
•Third class composed of artisans, made useful items, luxury goods
•Merchants occupied fourth class, trade not valued by Confucianism
•Slaves at bottom of society
•Military not an official class, but part of government and offered way to
rise in status - required two years of service – infantry made up largest
part of the military, cavalry increased under Han – use of the crossbow
Social StructureSocial Structure
•Han society highly structured, clearly defined social classes
•Emperor at top, ruled with mandate from heaven
•Upper class of palace court, nobles, government officials, scholars
•Second, largest class consisted of peasants, who grew empire’s food—
agriculture highly valued by Confucianism—big population—food
supply huge concern
Han Social Structure

32. •Confucianism shaped
Chinese society
•Confucius taught that family
was central to well-being of
the state
•Officials promoted strong
family ties
–Fathers head of family
–Filial piety stressed
–Obedience, devotion to
parents, grandparents
Family LifeFamily Life
•Children served parents
as they aged, honored
dead at household
shrines
•Han officials believed
dutiful children made
respectful subjects
•Some men even
received government
jobs because of respect
shown parents
Dutiful ChildrenDutiful Children
Han SocietyHan Society

33. Women in Han Society
Most women’s lives were centered on the home—
maintaining the household, raising and educating
children, managing household finances
Rural women worked in the fields, city women ran
shops, practiced herbal medicine—important
contributions to the family’s economic well-being
Wealthy women pursued education and culture
Ban Zhao – female historian and Confucianist
Husband was a court official and also a writer
She wrote a guidebook for women called Lessons for
Women—women should be humble and obedient – but
argued for the education of girls - based on Confucianism

34. A Confucian Bureaucracy – 130,000 officials
Wudi chose educated men with Confucian
principles
Established elite academy to teach
Confucianism – knowledge of Confucian
thought became requirement for promotion
Civil service exam system – complex
Exam covered law, history, literature, and
Confucianism
Emperor Wudi, 141-87 BCE
Politics Influences Society

35. History – Unites Society
**Han writers produced important works of history to
express a shared Chinese experience
Sima Qian (known as the Grand Historian, 145-85
B.C.)
Wrote Records of the Grand Historian
Believed in visiting historical sites, talking to
eyewitnesses, not glorifying the past
This early history became model for Chinese
historical writing

36. Unification of Chinese Culture:
Non-Han Peoples
Han emperors expanded the empire—brought
foreigners living under Chinese rule
Farmers encouraged to move south to new lands
and marry locals
Assimilation program—process of making
conquered peoples part of the Chinese culture
Intermarrying, schools set up to teach
Confucianism, local scholars were appointed to
government, Chinese written language spread

37. Trade Routes of the Ancient World
China’s Han period was a time of great prosperity, growth
and achievement, defining imperial Chinese civilization for
years. .

38. Foreign Policy & Origins of the Foreign Policy & Origins of the
Silk RoadsSilk Roads
As they conquered areas of Central Asia,
the Han learned people farther west
wanted Chinese goods
Zhang Qian was sent by Wu to secure
alliances in Central Asia against the
Xiongnu - returned from failed diplomatic
mission, 126 BC
Told of region’s riches, demand for
Chinese goods
 Events led to increased trade with
west
Zhang Qian—Silk Zhang Qian—Silk
Road pioneerRoad pioneer

39. Merchants traveling between China, Central Asia , and the West
used overland routes. The most famous were called the Silk
Roads. This network of routes eventually stretched from China
over 4,000 miles to Mediterranean Sea, and linked China to India,
the Middle East, and the Roman Empire..
•Travelers on Silk Roads crossed
rugged, barren terrain
•Faced attacks by bandits
•For protection, traveled in huge camel
caravans
•Bactrian camels – crucial to success
of the routes
•Stopped at stations along way – oasis
stops – grew into market towns
TravelTravel
•Most merchants traveled only
part of way
•Traded goods with merchants
from distant lands
•Most goods traded were luxury
items
•Small, valuable, highly profitable
TradeTrade
The Silk Roads -OverviewThe Silk Roads -Overview

40. Silk RoadsSilk Roads
Bactrian camel – essential
to the successful workings
of the Silk Roads

41. Silk Roads – 50 BCE – 250 CE
Silk Roads allowed for large-scale economic
exchange over a vast area stretching from
China to the Mediterranean
It isn’t a road – several interconnecting routes
50 BCE – 250 CE marks the first era of the
Silk Roads – coincides with the rise of stable,
powerful empires (Augustus in Rome, Han China,
Parthian in Persia, Kushan in Central Asia)
Empires provided security, improved road
systems, coinage, transport technology

43. Silk Roads – 50 BCE – 250 CE
Role of the pastoral nomads in Central Asia –
important role in exchange network
Their domesticated horses and camels – sought after
by the Chinese
Nomads were acclimated to the harsh environment of
the steppes – relied on for assistance by travelers
Acted as middle men moving goods through the region
 Han China – wanted horses, jade, farming products
(grapes, wine, fruits), Roman glassware
Rome – wanted silk, paper, Han iron, exotic spices
from China & India, incense and oils from Arabia –
spent fortunes on these items

44. Silk Roads & Cultural ExchangeSilk Roads & Cultural Exchange
Traders carried ideas as well as goods over the Silk Roads
The stirrup, invented in Central Asia, changed warfare –
mounted warriors could stand & charge enemy with a lance
Buddhism spread to China from India
Reached China in first century CE
Seen as a foreign religion by government and ignored
Han government became less stable, violence
increased
Buddhism’s message of rebirth offered hope
Buddhism gained popularity by 200 CE among merchants,
lower classes
Mahayana Buddhism developed (less strict form, focus
on salvation, doesn’t reject material world)

45. Han Economy
Economic Power
Developed ironworking techniques
Spread trade routes to the west
Raised land revenues and nationalized
private enterprise (creating government
monopolies)
Confucianists opposed these policies but also opposed
commercial activity in general

46. Trade grew in Han period
•Agriculture basis of economy
•Growth of trade increased
prosperity
•Led to contact between
China, other civilizations
Production of silk
•Most prized Chinese product
•Secret method for making silk
•Revealing secret punishable
by death
Han products
•Ironworkers made iron armor,
swords
•Artisans made pottery, jade
and bronze objects, lacquer
ware
Major industry
•Raised silkworms, unwound
threads of cocoons
•Dyed threads, wove into fabric
•Fabric beautiful, soft, strong
•Clothing costly, in high
demand
Han Economy & Industry

47. Economy: Silk Production
By 2400 B.C. the Chinese has domesticated the
silkworm and its main food source, the mulberry
tree (fully domesticated insect)
Sericulture (science of silk production)—heavily
guarded secret—punishable by death if revealed to
foreigners due to its economic importance
Production involved killing the worm and unwinding its
cocoon in a continuous thread of more than 2,000
feet long

48. Silk Production
**Women played
the predominant
role in silk
production

49. Han Commerce & Industry
• Emperor Wudi viewed the growth in Chinese
industry as a means for the government to make
money to pay for the military
•119 BCE government monopolies were established
on the production of iron, salt, liquor –private
businessmen now lost a big source of profit
•Government also stored grain and waited until
prices went up to sell it…goal was to provide more
constant prices and more profit

50. Papermaking
•One of most important Han inventions - paper
•Made by grinding plant fibers into paste, paste dried in sheets
•Created “books” by connecting several sheets of paper into long scroll
Farming
•Inventions included iron plow, wheelbarrow, collar harness allowed
oxen to pull heavier loads
•With a two-bladed iron plow, farmer could till more land
•Water mill—used to grind grain
Han AchievementsHan Achievements
Science & Tech Science & Tech
•Created seismograph to measure earthquake tremors; approximated pi
•Mining advances, use of natural gas as furnace fuel
•Made advances in acupuncture
•Invented an early magnetic compass, ship’s rudder, calendar based on
movements of both sun and moon , water clock, stronger iron

51. Classical AgeClassical Age
•During Han period, arts flourished, sciences
and technology improved life
•Han China boasted magnificent palaces,
multistoried towers (none survived)
Artisans and ArtistsArtisans and Artists
•Calligraphy – important art form after the
invention of paper
•Artisans produced glazed ceramic, bronze
figurines, jade carvings, silk cloth
•Artists painted portraits and nature scenes
on walls, scrolls, room screens
•During Later Han, Buddhist art flourished,
including temple wall paintings
Han AchievementsHan Achievements

52. Han Achievements
***Replica of Han *Replica of Han
seismometer c. 132 CE seismometer c. 132 CE
Hydraulic chain pumpsHydraulic chain pumps
Replica – grain Replica – grain
storage towerstorage tower
Gilded oil lampGilded oil lamp

53. Han Decline - Wang Mang
Usurping of Han power
Xin dynasty [9-23 CE]
Death of a child emperor led to attempt
of by military official Wang Mang to
create new dynasty – Confucian reformer
Flooding and course changes of the Yellow
River disrupted daily and economic life
Invasions of Xiongnu and rebellion in 23 CE
opened door for return of Han

54. Later or Eastern Han
Return of the Han– Later Han Dynasty
A Weakened Han Dynasty [23-220 CE]
Han weakness enabled barbarians to live
inside the Great Wall, serve in army, and
intermarry with Chinese
Led to sinicization (adoption of Chinese
culture) of barbarians
Han failed to force local government
officials to send tax revenues to central
government

55. Decline of the Eastern or Later
Han Dynasty
Wide gap between the rich and poor
Small farmers were in debt
Rich landholders were not required to pay taxes
Economic problems then led to political instability
184 – 205 CE – The Yellow Turban Rebellion
Peasant revolt against the government united by
teachings of Daoism
Agrarian crisis – famine in north sent farmers
into the south looking for work – labor surplus
exploited by wealthy landowners
Later Han Dynasty ruled until 220 CE – emigration
of nomadic peoples into the north kept the nation
divided

56. Decline of Han Dynasty
Infighting among ruling elites
Unequal distribution of land
Tax burden fell on peasants rather than
on large landowners
Series of peasant rebellions
Political corruption
Generals usurp political power - became
warlords

57. China – Reunification
**Why was China able to reunite in 6
th
C. CE?
Homogeneity of culture
Strong tradition of centralized
government,
Unifying values of Confucianism
Spread of language and writing system
throughout East Asia
Advanced farming and technology
Absorption of nomadic tribes who came
into the empire