Qin dynasty

Qin

221–206 BC
Territory controlled by the Qin c. 210 BC
Territory controlled by the Qin c. 210 BC
CapitalXianyang
Common languagesOld Chinese
GovernmentAbsolute monarchy
Emperor 
• 221–210 BC
Qin Shi Huang
• 210–207 BC
Qin Er Shi
Chancellor 
• 221–208 BC
Li Si
• 208–207 BC
Zhao Gao
Historical eraImperial
• Accession of Qin Shi Huang
221 BC
• Death of Qin Shi Huang
210 BC
• Surrender to Liu Bang
206 BC
Area
220 BC[1]2,300,000 km2 (890,000 sq mi)
CurrencyBan Liang
Preceded by
Succeeded by
Zhou dynasty
Qin (state)
Eighteen Kingdoms
Han dynasty
Nanyue
Qin dynasty
"Qin" in seal script (top) and regular script (bottom) Chinese characters
Chinese
Hanyu PinyinQín
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinQín
Bopomofoㄑㄧㄣˊ
Gwoyeu RomatzyhChyn
Wade–GilesChʻin2[2]
Tongyong PinyinCín
Yale RomanizationChín
IPA[tɕʰǐn]
Wu
RomanizationZin
Yue: Cantonese
Yale RomanizationChèuhn
JyutpingCeon4
IPA[tsʰɵn˩]
Southern Min
Hokkien POJChîn
Tâi-lôTsîn
Old Chinese
Baxter–Sagart (2014)*[dz]i[n]

The Qin dynasty (/ɪn/;[3] CHIN) was the first imperial dynasty of China. It is named for its progenitor state of Qin, which was a fief of the confederal Zhou dynasty that had endured for over five centuries. Beginning in 230 BC, the Qin under King Ying Zheng engaged in a series of wars conquering each of the rival states that had previously pledged fealty to the Zhou. This culminated in 221 BC with the successful unification of China under Qin, which then assumed an imperial prerogative—with Ying Zheng declaring himself to be Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China. This state of affairs lasted until 206 BC, when the dynasty collapsed in the years following Qin Shi Huang's death.[4]

Qin was a minor power for the early centuries of its existence. The strength of the Qin state was greatly increased by the reforms of Shang Yang in the 4th century BC, during the Warring States period. In the mid- and late 3rd century BC, the Qin state carried out a series of swift conquests, destroying the powerless Zhou dynasty and eventually conquering the other six of the Seven Warring States. Qin's 15-year existence was the shortest major dynasty in Chinese history, with only two emperors. However, the legacy of Qin strategies in military and administrative affairs shaped the consummate Han dynasty that followed, ultimately becoming seen as the originator of an imperial system that ultimately lasted in various forms until the Xinhai Revolution in 1911.

The Qin sought to create a state unified by structured centralised political power and a large military supported by a stable economy.[5] The central government moved to undercut aristocrats and landowners to gain direct administrative control over the peasantry, who comprised the overwhelming majority of the population and labour force. This allowed ambitious projects involving three hundred thousand peasants and convicts: projects such as connecting walls along the northern border, eventually developing into the Great Wall of China, and a massive new national road system, as well as the city-sized Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor guarded by the life-sized Terracotta Army.

The Qin introduced a range of reforms such as standardised currency, weights, measures and a uniform system of writing, which aimed to unify the state and promote commerce. Additionally, its military used the most recent weaponry, transportation and tactics, though the government was heavy-handed and bureaucratic. Qin created a system of administering people and land that greatly increased the power of the government to transform environment, and it has been argued that the subsequent impact of this system on East Asia's environments makes the rise of Qin an important event in China's environmental history.

When Qin Shi Huang died in 210 BC, two of his advisors placed an heir on the throne in an attempt to influence and control the administration of the dynasty. These advisors squabbled among themselves, resulting in both of their deaths and that of the second Qin emperor. Popular revolt broke out and the weakened empire soon fell to Chu general Xiang Yu, who was proclaimed Hegemon-King of Western Chu, and Liu Bang, who founded the Han dynasty. Han Confucians portrayed the Qin as a monolithic, legalist tyranny, notably citing a purge known as the burning of books and burying of scholars; however, the earliest account of this event is in Sima Qian's Shiji (c. 91 BC), and some modern scholars dispute its veracity.[6]

  1. ^ Taagepera 1979, p. 121.
  2. ^ "Qin dynasty". Encyclopædia Britannica. 19 November 2024.
  3. ^ "Qin". Collins English Dictionary (13th ed.). HarperCollins. 2018. ISBN 978-0-00-828437-4.
  4. ^ Li 2013, p. 6.
  5. ^ Tanner 2010, pp. 85–89.
  6. ^ Lander 2021.

Qin dynasty

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