History – Terms and Concepts

BC AD

BCE CE

PRIMARY Source

SECONDARY Source

• BC – Before Christ: used in dating years prior to the estimated birth of Jesus (Christ)

• AD – Anno Domini: Christian term = years after the birth of Jesus (Christ)

• BCE – Before Common Era: • CE – Common Era:

• Primary Source = texts that have first-hand and direct relationships to the specific historical event

• Secondary Source = texts which have an indirect and not first-hand relationship to the specific historical event.

ANCIENT

What do YOU know about China?

Geography of China• Larger than the United States• Climate varies

– North• Temperate and cold

– South• Subtropical• Erosion• Floods and droughts

• Important rivers– Hwang ho (Yellow River) – north – Yangtze River – central China

• Enclosed by high mountains, hot deserts, wide oceans

Mapping Activity Task: Using the map displayed on the white board. Identify the following features on the map.

1. In green colour China.2. In red mark The Great Wall of

China.3. In pen mark Beijing on the map.4. In blue pencil draw

approximately where the Yellow River and Yangtze River.

5. Give your map a title 6. Create a key for your map 7. Ensure you have included an

orientation.

Read: What did the Ancient Chinese do for me?

Looked Like:

Sounded like:Felt like:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4W7pzj0Kaos

Engineering an Empire – China

Finish @ 10:18

Two Interesting Facts

Geography of ChinaPhysical features

Lesson 2

What are the physical characteristics of China and how did these characteristics affect the development of ancient Chinese society? People’s lives are inevitably affected by their environment and often the way they organise their society can be indirectly or directly linked to their environment. The map below shows China as it exists today, although in ancient times it was not as large.

China covers the greatest land mass in Asia

True/False

China shares a border with a large number of countries

True/False

China has an extensive coast line

True/False

China is situated south east of Australia

True/False

China would most likely have a variety of climate types

True/False

Himalayas

Gobi Desert

Tibetan PlateauNorth China

PlainYellow River

Yangtze

River

Wei River

1. Use the satellite image above to determine the two largest rivers in China.2. China has several natural frontiers (physical features that might help to prevent others

from attacking China). Examine the satellite image and name two of these natural frontiers.

We Do Activity:

Copy this table into your history books.

Examine the photographs of China’s landscapes.

1 Very high mountain peaks covered in snow, with barren plateau in foreground.

2

3

4

5

Rich fertile soil of rice terraces

Loess landscape along the Yellow

River

Himalayan mountains

Gobi Desert

River systems, Yellow River

Question:

Which one of these phrases best sums up China’s landscape?

a) It all looks the same.b) It is all covered in deserts.c) There are many different types of landscape.d) It is very flat.

What was the impact of the rivers on Chinese society? A distinctive Chinese culture based on the rivers was able to develop in the eastern river valleys of the Yellow and Yangtze Rivers and eventually in the vast North China Plain between the two rivers. The role of the Yellow and Yangtze Rivers can be seen in Chinese mythology, especially the story of the Great Flood. In Chinese tradition, Yu the Great, who ruled towards the end of the third millennium BCE, is credited with developing ways of dealing with such devastating floods.

How did irrigation help to develop ancient China? In all the civilisations that have developed along river valleys, including Egypt, India, Mesopotamia and China, irrigation has been the key to progress. Irrigation is the distribution of water to the land by artificial means such as channels, ditches or pipes. China developed some of the most sophisticated irrigation systems in the ancient world. Dams, channels and even large canals were developed to manage the rivers. Dams stored water, which was diverted through channels to bring a constant water supply to the fields. Canals not only linked the rivers but also opened up the rivers to safer transport so that goods could be sent to markets beyond the local area. The photograph in Source 4 shows one of the major irrigation structures from ancient China. It is the Dujiang Weir, which is part of the Dujiang Irrigation System in south eastern China. It was one of several major engineering accomplishments of the Qin Dynasty in the third century BC (BCE). It is now a World Heritage site. A remarkable feature of the project is the fact that the system cuts through the mountain. This was accomplished without using explosives to remove the mountain rock.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4W7pzj0Kaos

Engineering an Empire – China

Start @ 10: 18Finish @ 17:19

History – Terms and Concepts

BC AD

BCE CE

PRIMARY Source

SECONDARY Source

Warm-Up

Early developments in China

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4W7pzj0Kaos

Engineering an Empire – China

Start @ 17:19Finish @ 24:51

China in Place and Time What were the major continuities and changes in Chinese history?

Geography has had a significant influence on the development of China. Throughout the history of China, the focus of power was largely in the eastern regions of the country where the main river valleys of the Yellow River and the Yangtze River are situated. The earliest settled communities emerged in the Yellow River Valley and successive generations of rulers generally sought control of these rich agricultural lands, in particular the Northern Plain between the two rivers.

While the size of the area that successive Chinese rulers controlled, changed over time, the eastern regions of China continued as key centres of Chinese power.

The following maps illustrate the extent of Chinese territory at different times in its history.

Map 1 shows China during prehistoric times (Neolithic Age = New Stone Age)

Maps 2 to 11 show China’s major dynasties. A dynasty is a succession of rulers from the same family. This meant that the same family maintained power for several generations until they lost power.

1. What evidence is there from these maps that the Yellow River and Yangtze River remained a focal point of early Chinese history? (Use your knowledge about the location of these rivers to help you answer this question.)

2. How do the maps illustrate the dominance of the eastern parts of the country in China’s history?

3. Note one benefit Chinese rulers might get from expansion beyond the eastern part of the continent?

4. Note one disadvantage Chinese rulers might face by expanding the areas under Chinese control?

5. Name two periods where the Chinese Empire lost territory.6. Which dynasty controlled the largest amount of territory?7. Which dynasty covered the least amount of territory?

Task: Map Interpretation

How long have humans lived in China? Humans have lived in China for more than 100 000 years and there is evidence of settled communities based on agriculture dating to at least 10 000 years ago. These earliest communities settled in the Yellow River Valley and cultivated grain crops and domesticated animals. When did ‘ancient’ China exist? It is difficult to identify exactly what period of Chinese history can be called ‘ancient’ because there is no specific date when ‘ancient’ China began or ended. Many of the customs and characteristics of Chinese life, established in the earlier dynasties, continued right up to the 20th Century. However, many historians see the term ‘ancient’ as more appropriate for the period from the establishment of the Xia Dynasty in the third millennium up to the end of the Han Dynasty in 220 AD (CE). A more appropriate name for pre-modern (i.e. pre-20th century) China is traditional China but it is also referred to as Imperial China.

TIMELINE ACTIVITY

How did the Chinese explain the rise and fall of dynasties and the changing nature of rule in China? Chinese dynasties often ruled for long periods of time but eventually a dynasty would find itself being challenged and eventually overthrown. The Chinese believed that there were certain patterns which characterised government in China and influenced how events unfolded. This was called the ‘dynastic cycle’. Central to understanding the dynastic cycle and how it explained Chinese history is the concept ‘Mandate of Heaven’. Heaven represented divine authority and a ruler was expected to rule justly with the interests of his people at heart. If he did this then Heaven would continue to bless his reign and those of his sons, as long as they continued to be just rulers. Failure to rule justly could result in the dynasty being overthrown and a new ruler taking power. The emperor was all powerful and to rebel against the Son of Heaven (Emperor) was to challenge divine authority. When a new ruler seized power from another ruler, he needed to justify what he was doing by ensuring that Heaven approved of his actions. He had to show that he had a mandate or permission to rule. He did this by highlighting the inadequacies of the former ruler or pointing to natural disasters or other problems to show that Heaven had withdrawn its mandate. A new dynasty or family of rulers would be established and the process (cycle) would begin again.

Dynastic cycle

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4W7pzj0Kaos

Engineering an Empire – China

Start @ 24:51 Finish @ 30:38

Next Lesson The structure of Chinese Society