Chinas First Civilizations The Shang Dynasty 1750 BC

China’s First Civilizations

The Shang Dynasty 1750 BC – 1045 BC • Divided people into groups : • Kings and his family – Used armies to rule most of northern China-Huang He valley – Divided the kingdom into territories , ruled by warlords • Warlords and other royal officials ( aristocrats) – Wealth came from the land they owned – Passed land their power from one generation to the next

Shang Dynasty - divisions • Traders and artisans – This was a very small group in society • Farmers – Most worked for aristocrats , this was the largest group in society – Grew millet, wheat, rice and raised cattle, sheep and chickens • Enslaved peoples – Captured in war, very small group • A huge gap existed between rich and poor. Kings lived in luxury and treated people cruelly

Gods , Spirits and Ancestors

Spirits and Ancestors • Spirits – Worshiped gods and spirits, both equally important – Spirits lived in mountains, streams and seas – Offering of food and other goods were made to keep gods and spirits happy; angry gods and spirits could cause a bad harvest or armies to lose battles and wars

Ancestors • Honored departed family members • Offerings were made in the hope that ancestors would help them in a time of need or bring them good luck • Today people go to temples and burn paper copies of food and clothing, copies represent things their ancestors need in the afterlife

Telling the Future

Telling the future • Kings received power and wisdom from gods, ancestors and spirits • Kings duty was to contact the gods, ancestors and spirits before making important decisions • Kings asked help by using oracle bones – Priests asked questions by scratching questions onto the bones – Hot rods were placed inside the bones, causing them to crack – Cracks made a pattern, which were the answers to their questions

Chinese Language

Chinese Language • Pictographs – Characters that stand for objects ( mountains, sun, moon) – Characters usually represented whole words – Some characters stand for sounds • Ideographs – Characters that join two or more pictographs

Shang Artists • • Silk- made into colorful clothing Vases and dishes made from white clay Carved statues from ivory and jade Bronze works: – Sculptures – Vases – Drinking cups – urns

Zhou Dynasty

Zhou Dynasty 1045 BC- 245 BC • Because of poor treatment of common people, Shang kings lost the support of the people • 1045 BC- Wu Wang led a rebellion, defeated the Shang king and formed a new dynasty called the Zhou

Zhou Government • King was the head of the government and responsible for defending the kingdom • King appointed officials for different areas of the government ( bureaucracy) • Divided the kingdom into smaller territories and appointed trusted aristocrats to run them • Kings were the link between heaven and earth, chief duty was religious rituals

Mandate of Heaven

Mandate of Heaven • Kings claimed they ruled China because they were chosen to rule by gods because of their virtue and wisdom ( heavenly law) • Kings were to rule with goodness and wisdom • People expected the king to rule in the proper “Way” called the Dao • Kings must keep gods happy or a disaster or bad harvest could occur, this would be a sign that the king had failed his duty

Mandate of Heaven • Gave rights to the people to overthrow a dishonest or evil king and one who failed to do his duty • King was not considered a god • Each new dynasty claimed the Mandate of Heaven

Zhou Technology and Trade • Technology – Developed irrigation systems and flood control – Iron plows made farming easier and allowed them to expand their farms – Both advances allowed the people to produce a surplus of crops, started trade and caused the population to grow to 50 million people • Trade – Silk was the main trade item and was traded all over Asia and the Mediterranean