The Han Dynasty

THE HAN DYNASTY

Date and Map of dynasty
The Han Dynasty started in 206 B.C. lasting over 400 when it cam to an end in 2020 A.D (3). (Image: http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/prehistory/china/early_imperial_china/han.html)

Reasons for take-over
The peasants did not appreciate the ruling of the Qin. The Qin’s form of government was very new to the people and the people did not understand it. The labor work and taxes were too much for the people to handle and it had been the first time that China had an Emperor so everything worked differently. After the death of the 1st emperor (Shi Huangdi), his son became emperor (2). Liu Bang prince of Han defeated the Qin during a battle in the valley of Wei. The Qin dynasty came to an end opening the door of the Han dynasty (1). (Image: http://img267.echo.cx/img267/4769/goguryobattleabattlescenekogur.jpg)



Leaders of the Civilization
After defeating the Qin, Liu Bang became emperor of China. Liu Bang named Ch’ang-an the new capital. At the beginning of his reign, he used the same form of government as the Qin but later used force and the help of confucianists to rule (1).
Another very important emperor during the Han dynasty was Wu Ti, he had a reign of great military expansion in China. He expanded China’s borders into Vietnam and Korea. He was emperor from 141 BC until 87 BC; during his reign Wu Ti was able to relocate 2 million to the northwest of China in order to colonize the area (1). (Image: http://acc6.its.brooklyn.cuny.edu/~phalsall/images/han-fdr.jpg)

Leaders from another civilization
Marcus Aurelius was emperor of Roman from 161-180. He was considered the last of the “five good emperors” of Rome. During his reign, he promoted philosophy, literature, and arts. Marcus focused more on the spirit of Italy and maintained peace as much as possible (5). (Image: http://www.livius.org/a/1/emperors/marcus_aurelius.jpg)


Accomplishments
During the 4014 years of the Han dynasty, China had transformed into a completely new country (3). The first half of the Han dynasty (206 BC-23 AD) was very much focused on governmental changes and military expansions (1) (3). The second half of the Han dynasty (25-220) was very successful with foreign policy (1) (3).

In the first Han dynasty, confucianists became part of ruling along with force. People weren’t as much judged based on their social status but more on their education and philosophies (1). People became more equalized, but that resulted in the fall of the first Han dynasty (1). During the expansion of China’s borders, the Silk Road was established (4). The Silk Road made it easier for traders to cross the mountains. Iron tools developed as well and Oxen-drawn ploughs became one of the most useful tools for farmers. Silk weaving and copper work became very popular jobs during the time (4). During the second Han dynasty, China explored a lot of west Asia and was introduced to paper money for the first time (1) (3). Most of its development was based on luck. The Huns which used to be great enemies with the Chinese were defeated by the Chinese, giving china a safe passage to Turkestan. This opened many doors for china mainly for trading. (4)
(Image: http://www.historyforkids.org/learn/china/economy/pictures/papmny.jpg)



Reason for fall
Struggle to keep power in Turkestan increased taxes for peasants and increased labor work in China. Due to the high taxes a peasant uprising occurred for the second time during the Han dynasty, they called themselves the Yellow Turbans. This caused the Han Empire to unite with other factions in order to defeat the Yellow Turbans. The Yellow Turbans were conquered but China did not stay united. This movement caused the down fall of the Han dynasty and the beginning of the Three Kingdoms (4).
(Image: http://www.variety.com/rbidata/photogallery/variety/2034.jpg)

Bibliography

(1) http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/prehistory/china/early_imperial_china/han.html
(2) http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/prehistory/china/early_imperial_china/qin.html
(3) http://sacu.org/dynhan.html
(4) http://ww.chinaculture.org/gb/en_aboutchina/2003-09/24/content_22724.htm

(5) http://www.thenagain.info/webchron/Mediterranean/MAurelius.html