ANCIENT CHINA BY DANIEL KING INTRODUCTION Ancient China
ANCIENT CHINA BY DANIEL KING
INTRODUCTION Ancient China was a very interesting time in history. It revolutionised a lot of things that I will go into in more detail. It had many dynasties and was ruled by many emperors.
DYNASTIES In Ancient China a Dynasty is when a family rules over for generations. Some of the most famous dynasties are the Xia dynasty, the Shang dynasty, Zhou dynasty and the Han dynasty. Dynasties can last for as long as they can. Their isn’t a limit for how long a dynasty can last for. There are two ways a dynasty can end. 1. They can end after a big war or fight and the public didn’t like them anymore if they didn’t succeed. 2. They can end by another family overthrowing the current dynasty and that’s how new dynasties are made. FUN FACT. Some historians believe that the Xia dynasty is fake. There aren’t as many written records of the Xia dynasty as there are with some of the other dynasties.
EMPERORS AND EMPRESSES In many other ancient cultures the leadership was dominated by males. This was not always the case in Ancient China. In fact an empress started her own dynasty know as the Tang Dynasty. Her name was Wu Zetain and she ruled the Tang Dynasty as empress from 655 - 690 AD and then as emperor for 15 years. An emperor is a person who rules over as a king basically. One emperor even had a terracotta army built for him when he went to the afterlife. His name was Shi Huangdi and he was the founder of the Qin Dynasty.
TERRACOTTA ARMY The Terracotta Army is a collection of terracotta sculptures depicting the armies of Qin Shi Huang, the first Emperor of China. It was made for the emperor so he would have an army in the after life. The army was buried with the emperor in 210 -209 BCE in Lintong District Shaanxi, China. It is mostly soldiers but there are even horses. It is a very interesting part of Chinese history and that’s why it is a very popular tourist attraction.
GREAT WALL OF CHINA The Great Wall Of China is one of the seven wonders of the world and it definitely deserves it’s place there. The great wall can be seen from space. It is a border that went around ancient china but goes through the muddle of modern China. The Ming Dynasty built the wall from as early as the 7 th century. To build such a massive wall it would have had to take them years to build. It actually continued until the 17 th century. They built seven different walls and connected them. It was built to protect all of Ancient China from attack. Little of the original wall remain but other dynasties have kept it intact for all these years. Its size is 21, 196 km.
CHINESE NEW YEAR The Chinese New Year is a very big celebration in China. Many also call it Lunar new year. It occurs on Friday the 12 th of February. Chinese new year goes on for two weeks with a seven day long holiday. There is also a very big tradition that goes with Chinese new year that is known worldwide. Each year comes with a different animal. 2020 is the year of the rat. In order the 12 Chinese new year animals are; Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog and Pig. The story goes that a race was organised by the Jade Emperor- one of important gods in traditional Chinese religion. Twelve species turned at the starting line of his race. Those twelve animals were the twelve animals of the Chinese zodiac signs for Chinese new year. One of the traditions that goes with Chinese new year is decorating your house with the animal of that year. Another tradition is that children receive a red envelope with money inside. A big part of Chinese new year is fireworks. It is said that centuries ago lions came and ran through the towns during Chinese new year. They had a weakness though. Loud noises and colours. So the Chinese made fireworks to scare them away.
SUMMARY Ancient China made some of the most incredible structures and some incredible people that have lived in one of the most revolutionising times in the history of man kind. Dynasties was their way of life and their emperors are some of the most interesting people. Having a fake army built for you sounds kind of weird but in their time and in their beliefs it was pure genius. They built a structure that can bee seen from space its so big. Their new year is one of the biggest celebrations worldwide. Thank you
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