13-02 The Qin Dynasty

The Qin Dynasty

The Qin rulers conquered all the other states and some surrounding regions. However, their dynastic rule from 221-206 BC was the shortest in the region's history. Their empire fell apart after only 15 years.

In only 9 years in successive wars from 230 to 221, the Qin conquered every other region of the former Zhou Empire. Then the Qin conquered outlying regions to the south all the way to Vietnam and to the north towards Korea. They had the biggest empire in the region's history until then.

The society was very centralized to the point that every dissenter against the rule of the court was killed, tortured, or sent for forced labor, and most literature was destroyed. The people were enslaved for wars and great construction projects.

The absolute power that the emperor and staff wanted for themselves corrupted them, and the dynasty quickly ended in assassinations and foolish policies and the people rebelled.

Great Construction Projects

The Qin were known for great construction projects. Major projects that strengthened the state were the Wei Canal that was completed in 246 BC and Dujiangyan that allowed irrigation of the Sichuan plain that was built in 256.

Perhaps it was this experience of success that led the Qin empire rulers to build even greater projects. They used the labor of millions of slaves to produce theGreat Wall and the Qin Mausoleum that includes the Terracotta Warriors.

The first Qin emperor called Qin Shi Huang exiled even his own son who would have been the prince to work on the Great Wall. It was said someone died for every foot of the wall that they built. The emperor wanted the high wall as a fortification to keep out northern tribes such as the Xiongnu.

The Qin Mausoleum is a huge tomb complex that was constructed near present day Xi'an. It was the mausoleum for the new emperor. It is said that most of it remains unexcavated and that only a small portion has been uncovered. The small part that has been uncovered called the Terracotta Army is astounding.