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Concept
Qin dynasty
Summary
The Qin dynasty (ˈtʃɪn ; ), or Ch'in dynasty, was the first dynasty of Imperial China. Named for its heartland in Qin state, it arose as a fief of the Western Zhou and endured for over five centuries until 221 BC, when it evolved into an empire following its complete conquest of other rival states, which lasted only until 206 BC. It was established in 221 BC when Ying Zheng, who became the king of Qin state in 246 BC, declared himself the first emperor (Shi Huangdi).
Qin was a minor power for the early centuries of its existence. The strength of the Qin state was greatly increased by the Legalist reforms of Shang Yang in the fourth century BC, during the Warring States period. In the mid and late third 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. Its 15 years was the shortest major dynasty in Chinese history, with only two emperors. Despite its short reign, however, the lessons and strategies of the Qin shaped the Han dynasty and became the starting point of the Chinese imperial system that lasted from 221 BC, with interruption, development, and adaptation, until 1912 (with a brief restoration in 1917).
The Qin sought to create a state unified by structured centralized political power and a large military supported by a stable economy. 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 standardized currency, weights, measures and a uniform system of writing, which aimed to unify the state and promote commerce.
Official source
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