Chinese civilization is the oldest continuous, homogenous major culture in the world today.

Historians have usually dated the beginning of Chinese civilization to the establishment of the Xia dynasty more than 4,000 years ago. Chinese civilization was the last of the great ancient civilizations to fully flower. By the time the Shang (1523-1028 BCE) began to emerge, societies in Mesopotamia and the Nile River Valley were advanced civilizations. The earliest Chinese civilization was a river valley civilization like Egypt, Mesopotamia, and India. Chinese civilization was founded on the Huang He (Yellow) River, the second largest river in China after the Yangtze.

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Post-Neolithic Dynasties in China Shang Dynasty (1523-1028 BCE) Zhou Dynasty (1027-256 BCE) Qin Dynasty (221-206 BCE) Han Dynasty (206 BCE-220 CE) Six Dynasties (220-586) Sui Dynasty (581-618) Tang Dynasty (618-906) Five Dynasties (907-960) Song Dynasty (960-1279) Yuan (1280-1365) Mongol rule Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) Qing Dynasty (1644-1912) Manchu rule

Powerful Central Authorityemperor Worship of Ancestors Beginning with Han Dynast, CONFUCIANISM is official governing philosophy Chinese citizens mix Confucian beliefs with TAOISM Huang Ho (Yellow River) is cradle of civilization also termed River of Sorrowsits floods destroy even as they give livelihood. Millet cultivation; stone tools; emergent urbanization. Three cultural heroes: Fu Hsiinvented writing; Shen Nungfarming and commerce; Yellow Emperorgovernment and Taoism

Confucianism
Kung Fu-tzu (Confucius) 551 B. C. E.-479 B. C. E. Public order comes from jen or humane behavior between people. Superiors should govern well Inferiors should obey Shureciprocity and chungdoing ones best

Taoism
Based on ideas of Lao Tzu Taothe way of heavenunity Balance of yang (malenesscold, heaven) and yin (femaleness, warm, earth) Government should guide people, not rule them.

Legalism
Founded by Hsun Tzu (298-238 B. C. E.) People are evil and must be controlled through harsh laws. Reward good deeds, punish bad deeds severely. Utilitarianismmeant that government would encourage agriculture over other pursuits Rule of Lawlaw is supremeand law is standard in entire real (two ideas that persist in Chinese state)

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Shi Huangdi centralized political power in his hands. His way of ruling became a model for future Chinese dynasties. He did this by: Appointing officials at the provincial and county level / they did not inherit their positions like under the Zhou Unified the system of weights and measures Standardized the money system Constructed a system of roads all over the empire

1. Emperor 2. Grand Council a. assisted by a secretariat and a chancellery b. included representatives from all three authorities:
1) 2) 3) Civil Military Censorate

3. Department of State Affairs a. composed of six ministries

1) 2) 3) 4) 5) 6) Justice Military affairs Personnel Public works Revenue Ritual

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Landed Upper Classes

The elites throughout Chinese civilization until the 20th century.
Played a dominant role in the political and economic life of China. The best arable land was concentrated in their hands. Peasants worked as tenant farmers for them.

Peasantry
Chinese peasants owned their own land since Shang period but were often turned into tenant farmers when the landed aristocracy grabbed their land. Before the Tang, many peasants were reduced to serfdom or slavery again by aristocratic landowners. For most of Chinas history, the peasantry was crushed with a host of different taxes. Also forced to work on public works: - irrigation projects - constructing the Great Wall - military conscription Chinese peasant rebellions were the largest and most violent of any society.

Merchants
Merchants were treated particularly poorly in comparison to other societies. During the Zhou dynasty, they were considered the property of the local lord and on occasion could even be bought and sold like chattel. Qin rulers viewed them as parasites / private commercial activities were severely restricted and heavily taxed. During the Han dynasty, merchants were prohibited from seeking political office, restricted to where they could live, and generally viewed as parasites that do not add value to Chinese society. The Tang and Song dynasties continued to restrict the merchants.

Shi Huangdi tried to break their power by dividing their estates among the peasants. Most attempts by Chinese leaders to break the power of the landed nobility by distributing the land to the poor ended in failure.

Other Social Groups: Eunuchs

Shi Huangdi established a class of eunuchs who served as personal attendants of the emperor and female members of his family. Eunuchs became a standard fixture of the Chinese imperial system.

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Agriculture
For most of Chinese history, agriculture was the main economic activity and the main source of production. The predominance of agriculture even led the Ming rulers to suspend forever overseas exploration. When the Industrial Revolution developed in Europe, China ignored it.

Commerce
From the days of the Qin, the state directed much trade and manufacturing:
weapons / operated shipyards, granaries, mines directed foreign trade with neighboring countries

Chinas trade and prosperity grew greatly under the Han dynasty. The Tang and Song dynasties relaxed the government monopoly on long-distance trade and encouraged private commerce. Trade and foreign contact increased under the Tang and Yuan dynasties. The Mongols controlled China under the Yuan / their empire stretched to Europe and south into the Middle East. The Ming rulers who replaced the Mongols at first strictly curtailed foreign contacts until Muslim eunuch Zheng He was allowed to go on 7 explorations from 1405-1432. Afterwards, all maritime expeditions were suspended indefinitely. This marks the beginning of Chinas stagnation and decline.

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