China L3 Continued: Han Dynasty

China L3 Continued: Han Dynasty

Learn about the leaders of the Han Dynasty and some of the achievements made during this era

The Han Dynasty

One of the rebels who helped overthrow the Qin dynasty was a talented ruler named Liu Bang. By 202 BC, Liu Bang won out over his rivals and became emperor of China. Born a peasant, Liu Bang became the first emperor of a new dynasty, the Han Dynasty. Liu Bang created a stable government, but one that was less harsh than Shi Huangdi’s.

Multiple Choice

Who became the next emperor of China that was less harsh than Shi Huangdi?

• Liu Han

• Liu Bang

• Liu Qin

• Wudi

Stability

 Stable governments were a feature of the Han Dynasty, which lasted for about 400 years. Han rulers realized that they needed educated people to work in the government. They set up the civil service system based on Confucianism to meet that need.

Multiple Select

What was a feature of the Han Dynasty?

Choose 1

• war and chaos

• harsh government control

• stable government

 In 140 BC, Liu Bang’s great-grandson, Wudi, came to power. Under Wudi, the Han Dynasty reached its greatest power. About 15 years old when he took the throne, Wudi ruled for more than 50 years.

Fill in the Blank

Who came to power after Liu Bang at just 15 years old and made the Han Dynasty reach its greatest power?

Chinese Advancement

Because the Han government was stable, the Chinese could turn their attention to improving their society. During the Han Dynasty, China became the most advanced civilization in the world.

Open Ended

During the Han Dynasty, China became the most advanced....

The Chinese made significant advances in farming tools and other technologies. Some of these advances are shown in the chart at the right. During the Han Dynasty, the Chinese invented many practical devices that did not reach Europe until centuries later. Among these was paper, something the world still depends on every day.  Some of the achievements made in ancient China were in the Arts, medicine, and technology.

Multiple Select

What did the Chinese make significant advances in during the Han Dynasty?

Choose 3

• arts

• military conquest

• technology

• medicine

The Arts

  Examples of  achievements made in the Arts were silk weaving, bronze working, architecture like temples and palaces, Jade carving and poetry in history and writing.

Open Ended

Name 2 Ancient Chinese achievements made in the Arts.

Artisans

 Han dynasty artisans created beautiful objects of bronze, including finely made mirrors. On one side of the mirror, the metal was polished enough to show a reflection. The back was decorated with gems, animal symbols, and writing. Mirrors were important in China because they symbolized self-knowledge.

Multiple Choice

What did Chinese mirrors symbolize?

• self-knowledge

• self-respect

• beauty

• protection

Medicine

Accomplishments in medicine were varied. In herbal remedies, they learned how to use plants to heal. They discovered the circulatory system, which is that blood travels through the body. And they also learned how to do acupuncture, which is the treatment of disease using needles.

Multiple Choice

Which form of Chinese medicine is using needles to heal?

• herbal remedies

• acupuncture

• circulatory system

• surgery

Technology

The Chinese also made great advances in technology.  They made paper from wood pulp, created the iron plow for breaking up soil, a rudder-which is a device for steering ships, the compass, a wheelbarrow, and a seismoscope, a device that registers the occurrence of earthquakes.

Multiple Choice

Which one of these was not a technology invention made by the ancient Chinese?

• wheel

• wheelbarrow

• compass

• rudder

• paper

Warrior emperor

 During Wudi's reign his main interests were war and military matters. In fact, his name means “Warrior Emperor.”  He made improvements to Shi Huangdi’s Great Wall. He also strengthened the army. By the end of Wudi's reign, Chinese rule stretched west into Central Asia, east into present-day Northern and Central Korea, and south into present-day Vietnam.

Multiple Select

What were Wudi’s main interests?

Choose 2

• wealth

• education

• war

• military matters

End of Han Empire

 The great Emperor Wudi died in 87 B.C. China's stability and prosperity continued under later Han emperors. Many new ideas and technologies developed. But over time, the empire began to weaken. A series of very young emperors, one was only 100 days old, ruled the empire. People within the government struggled for power over these young emperors. While they struggled, no one paid attention to running the empire. Roads and canals fell into disrepair.

 As the rule of the emperors weakend, warlords, local leaders of armed groups, gained power. The last Han emperor was kept in power by one such warlord, named Cao Pei. At first Cao Pei tried to control the empire through the emperor. In AD 220, he declared an end to the Han dynasty. In its place, he set up his own Wei dynasty. However, the Wei dynasty had control only over parts of northern China. It ended after about 50 years, and China broke up into a number of smaller kingdoms.

Fill in the Blank

What word means a "local leader of an armed group" that took over after the Han emperors weakened?