China PERSIAN Chart for Classical Civilizations Key
ERA:
8,000 B.C.E. –
600 C.E.
POLITICAL
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Leaders/groups
Forms of government
Empires
State building/expansion
Political structures
Courts/laws
Nationalism/nations
Revolts/revolutions
ECONOMIC
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Agricultural, pastoral
Economic systems
Labor systems/ organizations
Industrialization
Technology/industry
Capital/money
Business organizations
(1029 B.C.E. – 258 B.C.E.) China
(Zhou)
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Ruled through alliances with
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regional princes and noble families 
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Dynasty came into China from the
north and replaced the Shang
rulers (claimed direct link through
ancestry to the Shang)
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China’s period of feudalism where
rulers depended on a network of
loyalties and obligations to/from
landlords and vassals
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Rulers gave land to the lords and
their families in exchange for their
supporters providing loyalty,
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troops, and taxes.
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Expanded territory, but caused or
complicated problems for the
central rule of the government
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Mandate of Heaven – the belief
that the gods (heaven) gave the
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rulers the right to rule
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Zhou state disappeared and gave
rise to the Qin after independent
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armies of regional rulers decreased
the power of the emperor
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Land expansion increased
agricultural lands (wheat growing
in the north and rice growing in the
south)
Use of copper coins
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RELIGIOUS
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Belief systems/ teachings
Philosophy
Holy books
Conversion
Key figures
Deities
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Banned human sacrifice
More restrained ceremonies to
worship the gods
Stressed a harmonious earthly life,
with balance between earth/heaven
Ceremonies to venerate or respect
ancestors
Confucius became a spokesman
for the great days before the
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(Qin)
Single law code
Last Zhou ruler deposed by
regional ruler who became
emperor after 35 years – Qin
(‘Dynasty) Shih Huangdi (First
Emperor); brutal ruler (legalism
philosophy) who restored order to
China following the decline of the
Zhou
Ordered nobles to appear at his
court and took control of their
feudal states
China organized into large
province ruled by bureaucrats
(non-aristocratic) appointed by the
emperor, who appointed lesser
bureaucrats who were in charge of
smaller regions
Expanded south to present-day
Hong-Kong on the South China
Sea and northern Vietnam
Burning of books common (threat
to autocratic rule)
Unpopular policies such as attacks
on intellectuals, high taxes, and
construction of the Great Wall led
to the downfall of the Qin as
peasant revolts broke out
Uniform tax system
Used forced labor, conscripted or
drafted by the government from
among the peasantry
National census (provided data for
collections of tax revenues and
labor services)
Standardized coinage and weights
and measures through the entire
realm to facilitate trade
Promoted the manufacturing of
silk cloth
Practiced the philosophy of
Legalism
China PERSIAN Chart for Classical Civilizations Key
decline of the Zhou (political
virtue and good government);
mostly appealed to the upper
classes; peasants maintained
polytheistic beliefs, focusing on
the spirits of nature
SOCIAL
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Family/ kinship
Gender roles/relations
Social and economic classes
Racial/ ethnic factors
Entertainment
Lifestyles
“Haves” & “have nots”
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INTERACTIONS
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ARTS
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War/conflict
Diplomacy/treaties
Alliances
Exchanges between individuals,
groups, & empires/nations
Trade/commerce
Globalization
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Art / Music
Writing/ Literature
Philosophy
Math / Science
Education
Architecture
Technology/ Innovations
Transportation
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ENVIRONMENTAL
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Location
Physical
Human/environment
Migration/movement
Region
Demography
Neighborhood
Settlement patterns
Disease
Urbanization/ cities (2 major)
Use of chopsticks – encouraged
politeness
Gap between the nobles (2% of the
population) and the peasants
“mean” = lowest possible status;
people who performed rough
transport and other unskilled jobs
Inherited social status (but could
move up with merit)
Standard spoken language
(Mandarin Chinese) promoted
linguistic unity
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Built the Great Wall of China to
protect against invaders
A set of Five Classics – written in
early part of Zhou dynasty and
edited during the time of
Confucius; basics of civil service
exams in the Han period,
including histories, speeches,
etiquette, ceremonies (over 300
poems about love, joy, politics,
and family life appear in the
Classics of Songs)
Calendar with 365. Days
(practical work in science was
encouraged)
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Great Wall of China
Road planning
Uniform writing system (Chinese
script) = single basic language
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Sponsored public works such as
new irrigation projects and canal
systems for agriculture