Qin Dynasty

Following the Warring States period, one man rose to power by conquering
all the surrounding areas. He was extremely cruel and desired absolute power over
his people. China became a solid empire under one family. Emperor Qin ran his
dynasty with absolute control. Punishment for those who disagreed with him was
swift and harsh. You could be put to death simply by suggesting another way to do
things. There was only Qin's way. 

In order to show his importance and power, Qin added a new name to his
own. He began calling himself Qin Shihuangdi, which means Qin, the first emperor
of China. Despite Qin’s promise to have his family rule for tens of thousands of
generations, the Qin Dynasty would last less than 15 years. Yet during these short
years, this dynasty would make changes that would effect the history of China for
thousands of years. So influential was Qin, that the name of the nation, China, is a
derivative of his name.

Qin wanted everything to be under his direct authority and control. He set
up strict military control and had strict written laws for all in his empire to follow.
Qin was a legalist. A legalist believes that people are basically bad. That's why it is
necessary to control every minute of their life. Otherwise, they'll do bad things,
which could hurt others. He burned books so he could control the thoughts of his
people. Qin also developed a spy system, so that all people kept an eye on each
other. Spies were rewarded very well.  

Although he was very controlling, China prospered during his time. Qin
standardized writing, weights and measures. He also standardized coins so people
would use the same currency throughout the empire. He built an extensive road
system and wanted China to be the most glorious nation on Earth. However, Qin
needed labor to expand the culture of his empire. He used the peasants, forcing
them to work under slave conditions, so that he could build roads, bridges, canals,
buildings, and his most famous building project of all, the Great Wall of China.

Early emperors had built walls in the northern territories to protect their
nation against attack from outside forces. These walls were spread across the
landscape, and not connected. Qin ordered his people to connect the existing walls
together, and to expand them, eventually covering a distance of over 4000 miles.
Hundreds of thousands of peasants were forced to help build the Great Wall of
China. Many of them died during the construction earning the wall the nickname,
“The Longest Graveyard in the World.” After working for several years, the Great
Wall of China was completed, and still stands today as one of the great building
projects in human history.

A huge archeological discovery came from this time period. A huge tomb filled
with over terracotta warriors were discovered in 1974. Qin’s burial site was well
known, but no one had an idea that nearby he had buried an entire army of over
8,000 warriors, generals, entertainers and horses made from clay. No two figures
are the same.

When Qin died, he had hoped his son would take over the empire, but the peasants
revolted and a new family took control of China.