Ancient Chinese Dynasties Dynastic cycle Philosophies of the

• Ancient Chinese Dynasties • Dynastic cycle • Philosophies of the times • Crazy rulers

Bronze Age Empires

Anyang is capital of Shang dynasty

Divided kingdom into sections that were Governed by aristocratic Military officials

Oracle Bones

Oracle Bones Calendar

The Evolution of Chinese Writing during the Shang Pictographs Semantic-Phonetics

800 years!

“T’ien Ming” The Mandate of Heaven 1. The leader must lead by ability and virtue. King was link between heaven and earth. 2. Leadership must in accordance to the proper way, or the “Dao”. 3. The dynasty's leadership must be justified by succeeding generations. 4. The mandate could be revoked by negligence and abuse; the will of the people was important.

Feudalism • Peasants farmed land owned by a Noble • Outer part of land was for personal use • Inner plot was communally worked by town for Noble (lord) • Family was basic economic and social unit for town • Walled towns, merchants and artisans belonged to the lord

Feudalism • Filial Piety – Sons and daughters were subordinate to male head of family – Each person had their place in the system

403 BC…Zhou dynasty began to collapse due to civil war. Warfare led To many new inventions-

Qin Shihuangdi

Came to throne at age 13 Brutal Leader Created single monetary system Began building roads throughout empire Reduced powers of aristocrats Split up their lands Gave to peasants Taxed directly by the state Legalism – changed Chinese Politics dramatically Punishment, including death if opposed Extended China south Began building a series of walls to the north Protection from the Xiongnu (SHYUNG-NOO) “Wall of 10, 000 Li” United China

Han Dynasty • Liu Pang – Changed name to Han Gaozu – Strong ruler – Continued some of Qin Dynasty’s traditions: • Division of government – Military, civil service, censorate – Choosing officials based on merit, rather than birth

Papermaking Chinese legend tells that the new invention of paper was presented to the Emperor in the year 105 AD by Cai Lun. Archeological evidence, however, shows that paper was in use two hundred years before then. Either way, the Chinese were significantly ahead of the rest of the world. The craft of papermaking relied upon an abundance of bamboo fiber to produce a fine quality paper. In China the papermaker uses only the traditional materials and methods to produce fine art paper.

Inventions • The Rudder • Fore and Aft rigging – Helped with trade and exploration Chinese were able to sail to Australia, India and around the Horn of Africa.

Inventions Yo-Yo Papermaking Abacus Gunpowder Silk Compass Wheelbarrow Ancient China

Gunpowder Imagine their enemy's surprise when the Chinese first demonstrated their newest invention in the eighth century AD. Chinese scientists discovered that an explosive mixture could be produced by combining sulfur, charcoal, and saltpeter (potassium nitrate). The military applications were clear. New weapons were rapidly developed, including rockets and others that were launched from a bamboo tube. Once again, the raw materials at hand, like bamboo, contributed ideas for new technologies. Back to Inventions Ancient China

Compass By the third century AD, Chinese scientists had studied and learned much about magnetism in nature. For example, they knew that iron ore, called magnetite, tended to align itself in a North/South position. Scientists learned to "make magnets" by heating pieces of ore to red hot temperatures and then cooling the pieces in a North/South position. The magnet was then placed on a piece of reed and floated in a bowl of water marked with directional bearings. These first navigational compasses were widely used on Chinese ships by the eleventh century AD. Back to Inventions Ancient China

YO-YO or EMPTY BELL The oldest toy in the world was the yo-yo. The "empty bell" was invented during the Ming Dynasty between 1386 to 1644 AD. During the Chinese festivals in the old days, the Chinese yo-yo presentations played an important role as an entertaining program. The yo-yo became popular in the North part of China in the spring. The bamboo or empty bell was made of two ends of round saucer shapes with the middle being a horizontal piece of wood. They were mounted on a string and twirled with a vibrating motion. This emitted a humming sound. Back to Inventions Ancient China

Abacus The abacus is a calculator for adding, subtracting, dividing and multiplying. Tests have shown that, for operations of addition and subtraction, the abacus is still faster than the electronic calculator. Back to Inventions Ancient China

Silk China is the first country in the world that discovered the use of silk. Silkworms were domesticated as early as 5000 years ago. The production of silk thread and fabrics gave rise to the art of embroidery. Historical documents record the use of embroidery in China as early as 2255 B. C. Archaeological finds, however, place the beginnings of embroidery at some point during the Shang dynasty(1766 B. C. -1122 B. C. ) Back to Inventions Ancient China

Wheelbarrow The wheelbarrow was invented by the Chinese. The Chinese wheelbarrow had a single wheel in the middle of the wheelbarrow. Farmers used the wheelbarrow to take a load of produce to the market place. Builders used the wheelbarrow to carry heavy building supplies. Soldiers used the wheelbarrow to remove injured or dead people from the battlefield. Back to Inventions Ancient China