Qin Dynasty

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Qin Dynasty Territory

The Qin Dynasty ( Chinese  秦朝 , Pinyin Qíncháo , W.-G. Ch'in Ch'ao ) was the first dynasty of the Chinese Empire . It emerged from the state of Qin , the westernmost of the seven states that vied for supremacy during the Warring States' era . Qin managed to get by 221 BC. To conquer all rival empires and thus for the first time to unite the entire Chinese-populated territory under one crown. This was the culmination of a development that had already started in the previous centuries and one of the most important events in Chinese history. After the unification of the empire, the Qin king Zheng assumed the imperial title; he is therefore known as Qin Shihuangdi . However, the real architect of the united kingdom is its chancellor Li Si . The territory ruled by the Qin Dynasty was much larger than that which its predecessors, such as the Shang or Zhou dynasties , could control.

The few years that the Qin Dynasty outlasted are among the most politically creative periods in Chinese history. Building on the philosophy of legalism , Qin created the main features of the Chinese state system, which endured in the following centuries: the imperial bureaucracy, systematic recording of the population and lands for tax purposes, legitimation of the empire, building a wall to protect against the peoples of Inner Asia and the Use of uniform measurements, writing and currency throughout the empire. Last but not least, the name China is derived from the word Qin .

After the death of the first emperor in 210 BC. Riots broke out across the country. Despite the military strength of the Qin, the civil war that followed brought the dynasty down. In 207 BC The rebel Xiang Yu had the third Qin emperor Ziying executed, shortly afterwards Liu Bang founded the Han dynasty .

For a long time the Qin dynasty was unilaterally condemned as barbaric and militaristic by Chinese historiography. For a long time, the Qin were also regarded as a typical example of totalitarianism among Western scholars . However, the analysis of archaeological finds has led to a more balanced picture over the past few decades.

Origin and Rise of the Qin State

Qin State

The origins of the Qin go back to the Zhou Dynasty . The Zhou kings gave fiefs to relatives, allies or members of the fallen House of Shang to ensure their loyalty. This division of the country gradually led to the political fragmentation of the empire. During the spring and autumn period there were around 170 states, which in turn were again divided into fiefs. The Zhou lords lost their meaning. This fragmentation consolidated until the Warring States Period , when 7 states fought each other. These states were independent and viable from one another. Although they largely had a common language and culture, there were borders, tariffs, changing alliances, intrigues and wars.

In 897 BC Feizi got a fief from the Zhou king near today's Tianshui ( Gansu Province ) to breed horses for the royal court. The descendants of Feizi did not take long after the title of duke ( Gong ) and gained influence; in the year 770 the Zhou king was even forced to seek the protection of this new generation from an attack by the Rong . In return, Qin was elevated to duchy by the king. The exact origin of the Qin people is unknown. Due to its location, the inhabitants and the ruling family of Qin were influenced by, or even descended from, non-settled inner-Asian peoples, although the state evolved into the 5th century BC. In constant battles with exactly these nomadic neighbors. At the same time, Chinese culture and its customs were gradually adopted.

Shang Yang

During the rise and growth of Qin, the capital was relocated several times; from about 350 BC It was located in today's Xianyang near Xi'an ; the region around Xi'an, known as the area within the passes ( Guanzhong ), was to remain the center of the Chinese empires for centuries. Until then, because of its location, but also because of its low cultural development, Qin was viewed by its rivals as an outsider and "barbaric". Under the rule of Duke Xiao and his adviser Shang Yang , between 361 and 338 BC BC, however, carried out far-reaching reforms in the sense of the philosophical current of legalism , which gave Qin advantages over its neighbors, especially in agriculture, administration and economic policy. In 325 the Qin rulers finally assumed the title of king, as the monarchs of the other states had already done.

Military expansion

Since its inception, the Qin Kingdom had grown steadily, expanding primarily to the west and northwest. The actual military expansion of Qin State began in 316 BC. BC, when Shu and later Ba (the regions of today's Chengdu and Chongqing , today's Sichuan ) were conquered, thereby decisively weakening the rival Chu on its southern border. In 256 it was again Qin that wiped out the Zhou dynasty, even if at that time this was no longer of great political importance due to its weakness. The neighboring powers tried, however, to curb the expansion of Qin either through alliances against Qin or through appeasement.

Three assassinations of the Qin King Zheng have been reported . One of these attacks was carried out in 227 BC. Exercised by the envoy of Yan State , who had traveled to the Qin king with a document of submission, a map of Yan and the head of a defected Qin general. Another action aimed at stopping Qin's advance was the construction of the 120 km long Zheng Guo Canal north of the capital Xianyang, which was planned by Zheng Guo , who came from Han . Allegedly the aim of the instigators of this plan was to deprive Qin's economy of resources through this huge project and thus to weaken the state. Although this "conspiracy" was exposed, the canal was finished; the economic benefits of the project also strengthened Qin. According to the chronicles, the discovery of this conspiracy led Qin to plan to expel all foreigners. However, this is unlikely to be historical.

For the last few years before the unification of the empires, the chronicles report a large number of military disputes with such astronomical army strengths and casualties that doubts about the correctness of the information almost arise. The six realms that existed alongside Qin were eventually conquered in quick succession: Han (230), Chao (228) and Wei (225), which were east of Qin, then 223 Chu in the south, and finally Yan and Qi im Northeast (222 and 221 respectively).

Reasons for the Success of Qin State

Why a state that was originally the least culturally developed and was on the edge of Chinese territory could develop the strength to unite the empire is the subject of numerous studies. A number of factors have contributed to this development:

  • the establishment of an efficient administration. Reforms that were begun under Prince Xiao and his advisor Shang Yang and which implemented the theories of the philosophical current of legalism , resulted in Qin having the most efficient state of all the Chinese empires of the time. On the basis of legalism, which emphasized governing by law instead of Confucian governing by virtue , laws were created, certain actions were punished or even rewarded, and numerous implementing ordinances and norms were issued. A report from the year 264 BC BC describes the officials of Qin as feared but impartial . Another significant innovation was the introduction of two chancellery offices, one on the left and one on the right. The term bureaucratic state centralism was coined for the form of government of the Qin Kingdom . The neighboring states of Qin were also influenced by legalistic ideas; However, Qin was the most consistent in implementing his ideas.
  • military strength. Due to the constant conflict with the nomads through the reforms of General Wei Ran , Qin had a trained and powerful army. In addition, the registration of all households, which had just been introduced at the time, enabled efficient recruitment of soldiers. Theories that Qin might have had military advantages also because of the protrusions in iron processing are invalidated by archaeological finds; Most of the weapons found are made of bronze, but the iron that was mostly cast at the time was soft and brittle. Since the rise of the Qin State also saw the transition from chariots to massive infantry armies combined with the use of crossbowmen as the dominant form of warfare, the ability of the administration to recruit armed forces at short notice was crucial.
  • Concentration of all power and authority on one ruler instead of distributing it to vassals, as was previously the case. This innovation goes back to the philosopher Fan Sui .
  • Improvements in agriculture. The well field system that had dominated until then was abolished and the area used for agriculture was expanded. Farmers from other countries were settled in the previously sparsely populated Qin Territory. Compulsory labor was replaced by taxes and land made buyable and sellable. The yields increased because the farmers' income grew directly with the yields. In addition, canal construction made extensive land usable; the effect of these structures did not take effect until Qin was already well advanced in its expansion. More efficient agriculture allowed cities to grow and manpower to build roads and bridges.
  • willingness to accept foreigners in high positions. Personalities like Shang Yang , Lü Buwei , or Li Si all did not come from Qin, but came from rival states, where they could not get into the positions they were seeking. The implementation of their ideas, however, was decisive for the state organization of Qin and ultimately for its breakthrough. Only in the case of military leaders did Qin not need foreigners.
  • the location of Qin, which was protected by mountain ranges and the Yellow River . It was thus protected from attacks by rival neighboring empires and was able to act from this cover.
  • a series of competent and long-lived rulers that brought continuity and stability with it.

family tree

Family table qin.png

Area of ​​influence

The heartland of the Qin Dynasty lay in the valley of the Wei River and on the upper reaches of the Yellow River , along whose course 90% of the region's population lived. It consisted of a mountainous and dry part in the northwest, today's Gansu and the north of Shaanxi and the loess plateau of today's Shaanxi, Shanxi and western Henan . This area had soft and fertile soil, enough moisture to grow wheat and millet, and it was relatively safe from floods. The embankment plain of the Yellow River, i.e. today's Henan, southern Hebei , Shandong and the north of Jiangsu and Anhui became part of the Qin Empire through the conquest of neighboring states. Although this region has fertile soils, it is often flooded and exposed to a monsoon climate, which necessitates the construction of wells and field irrigation.

The rulership of the Qin Dynasty is thus divided into two parts, which are separated from each other by the Hangu Pass . The area to the west of this pass is also known as Guanzhong and has the capital Xianyang as its center. The area east of this pass, the center of which was the old capital of the state of Qi , Linzi , had a significantly higher population, but was considered militarily weaker than the area of ​​the mountainous west. Thus, during the Qin Dynasty, the situation was that the less densely populated and culturally less advanced west of the country ruled over the more populous east.

The current economic center of the country, the Yangtze , was more of a border region during the Qin dynasty. The upper reaches of the Yangtze with today's Chengdu had already become part of Qin long before the unification of the empire, the middle reaches of the river, the heartland of the former Chu , as well as its lower reaches, remained economically weak and relatively insignificant. Today's southern China, also today a region with a very humid climate, was too swampy for agriculture at the time of the Qin Dynasty and was outside the Chinese cultural area. It was considered a place where swamps, jungles, diseases, poisonous plants, wild animals and tribes ruled and a place of exile until the Tang Dynasty ruled hundreds of years later . Nevertheless, Qin tried to assert his claim to rule over the south by showing a military presence in today's Fujian , Guangdong and northern Vietnam .

Some regions that are part of China today were unexplored or unknown from the perspective of the Qin Dynasty, including today's northeast China ( Manchuria ) and most of Inner Mongolia , the southwest with Yunnan and Guizhou and the western regions of Xinjiang or Tibet .

Rule of the Qin Dynasty

Qin Shihuangdi
Qin Shihuangdi
A Qin terracotta soldier, US photo 1979 in Xi'an.

administration

After the empire was unified in 221, the then valid division of the country into kingdoms and fiefs was completely abolished. In their place, the territory was subdivided into 36 command offices ( jùn ), which in turn were subdivided into circles . At the head of each command post was a three-person body consisting of a governor, a military commander and an imperial inspector. Magistrates presided over the districts. All of these positions were filled centrally; Their owners could be recalled at any time. These titles were also not inheritable. By the end of the Qin Dynasty, four to six more command posts were created, while the number of counties rose to about 1,000. This system was carried on, with certain adaptations, by all later dynasties.

This administrative system was not new in 221, nor was it invented in Qin. It was likely originally introduced into Chu to administer newly conquered or colonized lands. However, Qin was the state that implemented this system most consistently. It later served to limit the influence of local rulers. What was new, however, was that the proposal by then Chancellor Wang Kuan to divide the empire into fiefs based on the model of the Zhou kings and to give these fiefs to relatives of the emperor was rejected at the instigation of Li Si . This marked a sharp break with the past, the beginning of the imperial bureaucracy and the end of feudalism. Thus the emperor had direct administration over the entire empire.

The aristocratic families, who had ruled kingdoms and principalities up until then, and their entourage, were relocated to the capital and came under the supervision of the central government. For this purpose, exact copies of the palaces of their places of origin were built in the capital. It is likely that these were from now on paid for by the government to replace their previous income. Chinese chronicles speak of 120,000 families who came to newly built palaces in Xianyang this way and stayed there until the fall of the Qin dynasty. However, the number of 120,000 families is in all likelihood too high; it results from the fact that the Chinese word wan means 10,000 today, but just a lot at the time of the chronicler .

In parallel to the forced resettlement of the former elite, weapons were collected, brought to the capital and melted down. Bells and twelve huge statues were cast from them and placed in the palace complex. Two of these statues survived into the 14th century. In addition, the First Emperor arranged for numerous city walls and other military installations to be demolished.

Imperial title

One of the first political activities after the unification of the empire was that the king asked his ministers for suggestions for a new ruler title. The new title should replace the title of king and express the status of ruler over the whole of Tianxia . He decided on the title Huangdi , which is only very inadequately translated as emperor , and chose for himself the ruler name Shi Huangdi , i.e. first exalted emperor , because he saw himself as the first of an infinite ruling dynasty. The Huangdi imperial title was retained until the end of the Chinese Empire. Huang means shining or lofty , but the term Di in particular turned out to be a wise choice, as it came from the Shang dynasty and referred to the deity from which the Shang allegedly descended. In addition, the four chief deities of the spread in Qin most faith were as Di referred. It was introduced during the Zhou Dynasty as a name for the legendary sages who are said to have founded human civilization. When the Zhou kingship lost its influence, there were several attempts by other kings to assume the ruler title Di. These efforts had to be abandoned after external pressure; By the time the empire was unified in 221, however, Di was already a term that conveyed a strong political message and the superhuman quality of the new ruler.

Standardization of the Chinese script

The Great Seal Script, which was in use at the beginning of the Zhou Dynasty, had changed over time and regional differences had developed. The result was that the same character could have different spellings in different places.

A reform directly attributed to Li Si in the Chronicles , but likely carried out by officials subordinate to Li Si, introduced the following measures:

  • Simplification and rationalization of the sometimes very complex spellings, which resulted in the small seal script . Signs were also significantly changed structurally, while other signs were completely omitted.
  • Abolition of local variants and introduction of single-valid spellings, although at least some of the forms customary in the state of Qin were probably retained as standards
  • Implementation of these new spellings throughout the empire.

The simplification of the script initially met the needs of the central imperial administration, which required the preparation of numerous documents. One important reason for these changes was probably that phonemic elements in the characters no longer reflected the pronunciation, which had also changed. In total, around a quarter of the characters were abolished in the course of this standardization. This reform laid the foundation for further simplifications during the immediately following Han dynasty , after which the script remained practically unchanged until the introduction of abbreviations by the People's Republic of China. It can be assumed that without the standardization of the Chinese script, several orthographies would have been established during the Qin dynasty. It is questionable whether a united Chinese empire would have lasted for a long time.

legislation

The laws of the Qin Dynasty are essentially based on the eminent legalist Shang Yang . Two principles are ascribed to them:

  • group responsibility for offenses in families and in units of five or ten families into which the population has been divided
  • the threat and application of particularly cruel punishments to prevent criminal offenses. In addition to the death penalty by beheading, the penalties included cooking in a cauldron, cutting the hips, tearing them apart with two chariots or the particularly severe Five Penalties , i.e. mutilation by cutting off body parts before the actual execution.

Although Qin is known for horrific punishments, the same punishments were found in other Warring States Period states, and they continued to apply after the fall of the Qin Dynasty.

However, the laws of the Qin also offered incentives for desired behavior. Even under Shang Yang, a hierarchy of 17 or 18 levels had been created, on which one could ascend through praiseworthy deeds. Originally, this only applied to behavior in the military (for example, someone who killed an enemy was given a promotion of one rank), but later also through other activities, such as delivering grain to the government in times of need. If you had reached a certain rank, you were exempted from labor and military service, from a further rank you were rewarded with land. The rank was not inheritable, the land ownership associated with the rank probably already. This ranking system was extended to the entire empire in the Qin Dynasty and retained in a modified form by the Han Dynasty . The original aim of this hierarchy was probably to limit the power of the traditional aristocracy, but at the same time it promoted social mobility: for the period shortly after the unification of the empire, significantly more dignitaries of non-aristocratic origin can be identified than during the early Qin state.

The laws were passed solely in the interests of the state; the individual had, according to the philosophy of legalism, to submit to the goal of a powerful state. Another characteristic of the legalistic way of thinking was a certain egalitarianism , i.e. that the laws should be applied to all members of society, including the imperial family. Two "primary" activities were defined as the interests of the state, namely agriculture and the military. All other activities, such as commerce, the arts, or the manufacture of luxury goods should be proscribed; however, the degree of implementation of this policy is unclear. The aim of the legalists was a stable society based on a satisfied peasantry. Although the following dynasties did not adopt legalism like the Qin dynasty, traders and traders could never assume a dominant position in Chinese society.

However, legal texts discovered in excavations suggest that during the Qin period great importance was attached to precise administration, standardized reports and procedures. This included how and when the reports were to be created and sent, as well as bans on cutting wood, robbing bird nests or poisoning fish at certain times. Measures and weights were also standardized throughout the empire; Measuring vessels from the year 221 with the insignia of Shang Yang were found in excavations outside of the territory then inhabited by Chinese.

Currency was another area that reformed and unified during the Qin Dynasty. During the Warring States Period, each state had its own coins, which came in a variety of shapes. Coins were introduced relatively late in Qin; According to the chronicles, the first metal coins came into circulation in Qin 356. The new coins introduced shortly after the unification of the empire were round with a square hole in the middle; the following dynasties also retained this form. With this step, other goods such as jade, pearls, silver and tin lost their function as objects of exchange.

Unified by law in 221 BC Last but not least, the wheelbases of all cars that were on the streets of Qin. The goal was obviously to make sure the wheels fit into the grooves on the paths. The wheelbase was around 1.50 meters in the Qin and Han dynasties.

Conquests and colonization

Shortly after the unification of the empire, military actions to enlarge the empire began on behalf of the First Emperor under the important General Meng Tian . The information about the exact time of these actions in the chronicles is contradictory. In the north there were campaigns against the Xiongnu over several years , during which the Ordos region, parts of what is now Inner Mongolia and what is today Gansu to about Lanzhou were annexed to the empire. More important than the expansion to the north, however, was the expansion of the empire in the direction of the fertile and rain-rich south. Three or four new command posts were established in what are now Fujian , Guangdong and Guangxi provinces ; At that time, non-Chinese peoples with a high level of cultural diversity lived in these regions, and they were only sinized and assimilated in the following centuries . The new command offices were initially lost with the fall of the Qin dynasty.

The newly conquered areas were developed through the settlement of farmers from the heartland of the empire. The first of these resettlement actions is for the year 219 BC. Documented when Qin Shi Huangdi decided after a long stay on the south side of the Shandong Peninsula to transport 50,000 households to this region and to settle there. Further resettlements followed in the course of the southern and northern expansion of the empire. The people who were resettled included convicted criminals, debt slaves, and military or labor conscripts who had shirked their obligations. Officials who were not upright on duty and traders whose activities in the Qin Empire should be ostracized could also be punished with resettlement. Eventually, normal households willing to settle in areas to be colonized were rewarded with the exception of labor service or with advancement in hierarchy.

Construction activities

For larger building projects in pre-imperial China, farmers were called in to do labor. Through the unification of the empire and the simultaneous better access of the bureaucracy to the population, the Qin dynasty had the ability to mobilize workers much more massively than was possible before.

From 220 BC BC began with the construction of imperial highways, which led from the capital Xianyang mainly to the north and east. The most important of these was the 800 km long straight road built by Meng Tian , which begins just outside of Xianyang and leads to the vicinity of today's Baotou . It was not finished when the Qin dynasty fell, but remains of it have survived to this day. The streets had a width of up to 24 m in flat terrain. Overall, the road network that existed during the Qin Dynasty is estimated to be around 6,800 km in length. In the vicinity of the capital, Xianyang, the streets had a middle lane that was to be kept clear for the emperor and high officials.

The same Meng Tian who was entrusted with the road construction also had 300,000 men to fight the Xiongnu and to build a wall. The chronicles say that he built a wall 10,000 li long that stretched from Lintao to Liaodong. Whether the wall of the Qin period was really that length and whether it was interrupted or not is not certain. The wall built by the Qin ran further north than the wall still visible today, which dates from the Ming Dynasty . Meng Tian was also able to fall back on sections of the wall that were created by the individual Warring States from 300 BC. Were built. The logistical efforts as well as the number of victims must have been colossal; Whether the wall ever fulfilled its protective function against the nomadic peoples of Inner Asia is a matter of dispute.

In 212 BC The First Emperor started the construction of a new throne hall south of the Wei River. This palace was later named Epang Palace . The dimensions of this new palace are given as 675 meters long and 112 meters wide. For the same year, the chronicles mention the huge burial site that was then under construction. It is said that 700,000 men were deployed for these two projects, more than twice as much as for the construction of the wall.

In connection with the southern expansion is a canal construction project, alongside the Zhengguo Canal and the Dujiangyan irrigation system, the third major canal project that was realized under Qin Shihuangdi. With the Lingqu Canal the Xiang , a tributary of the Yangtze River , was connected with the Li Jiang , a tributary of the West River . This meant that a waterway could be created that could move grain and other materials uninterrupted by water from northern China to what is now Guangzhou . This canal is still used today. For a country that had no natural north-south waterway, the geography was unfavorable for coastal shipping and land transport was expensive, the importance of this waterway can hardly be overestimated.

Inspection trips

The first emperor of the Qin dynasty undertook a total of five extended inspection trips through his empire, which brought him and his chancellor Li Si to all places of importance. While other rulers did so, Qin Shi Huangdi was not surpassed by any other monarch in China in terms of frequency and length of travel. In addition to his interest in visiting his empire, his belief in an elixir of immortality was the driving force behind the travels. Hoping to find this elixir in or near the sea, he traveled several times to and along the east Chinese coast, and stayed there for a long time.

On his first trip to the east coast of China, the emperor met a wizard named Xu Fu who asked permission to explore the sea. He promised to look for three mountain islands on which the immortals would live. The emperor sent him with a fleet and numerous boys and girls , but this fleet never returned. According to legend, this is how Japan was settled.

During the inspection trips, the First Emperor had a total of six large tablets with inscriptions set up, the texts of which are ascribed to Li Si and which extol the achievements and glory of the Qin dynasty. Although only a fragment of one of the tablets has survived, the inscriptions have survived with one exception. Furthermore , ceremonies were carried out , especially on important mountains such as Tai Shan , with the aim of promoting Qin's fame in heaven. On his fifth voyage, the First Emperor died unexpectedly in July / August 210 in what is now southern Hebei . His trip had taken ten months by then.

Excesses

Two episodes mentioned in the Chronicles have shaped the reputation of the Qin Dynasty to this day. They are known in China as Burning Books and Burying Scholars .

On the occasion of a reception in the Imperial Palace in 213 BC. The First Emperor was extolled by scholars for having established peace by dividing the country into commanderships and districts instead of dividing the country into kingdoms and duchies as the previous dynasties had done. Scholars from the former state of Qi, a heartland of Confucianism , explained, however, that the ruling dynasties before Qin lasted so long precisely because the rulers rewarded their relatives and deserving ministers with fiefs. Legalist Chancellor Li Si's reaction was violent; he recommended that all books that were capable of criticizing the present with the aid of the past should be burned. This included works of other philosophical currents than legalism, the chronicles of other states and especially the Book of Songs and the Book of Documents . The works in the imperial library ( 觀 文 殿 , guānwéndiàn ) and all books on medicine, agriculture, forestry and astrology should be exempt from this decree. In addition, anyone who criticized the present with the help of the past should be executed.

The proposal was approved by Emperor Qin Shihuangdi; the decree was only issued in 191 BC. Taken back by the Han dynasty. The aim of the Qin Dynasty book burning was not to burn the entire inventory of books. It is not clear how many books were actually burned and how many documents from the Zhou Dynasty were lost as a result of this action. It is believed that the damage caused by the rebel burning of the Imperial Palace in 206 was much greater, and that more documents were lost in later centuries. However, this deliberate destruction of literature meant that the Confucianist historians of the following dynasties tended to paint a negative picture of Qin.

A second episode is ascribed to the year 212. A certain Master Lu, a magician from the east China coast, advised the First Emperor to stay away from other men as this would enable him to discover the elixir of immortality. The emperor subsequently had numerous palaces rebuilt, decorated and executed anyone who appeared in these palaces during his presence. Once when he saw the entourage of his Chancellor Li Si from a hill, he was annoyed by the large number of them. Li Si reduced his entourage accordingly when the emperor realized that there was a leak in his own entourage. Since no one wanted to admit to informing Li Si, he executed all those who were with him at the time. In addition, the emperor learned of diatribes in which he was described as cruel and power-hungry. For this he had personally chosen 460 scholars executed. He sent his son Fusu, who criticized him for the executions, to the northern border of his empire to oversee Meng Tian's military and construction activities .

This episode from Shiji has done much to ensure that the First Emperor is traditionally portrayed as a cruel, terrifying figure. In all likelihood, however, it is an invention that Sima Qian either adopted without comment from another source when compiling his chronicle, or that was later added to the chronicle by strangers. The characters used also suggest that the scholars were buried alive , which further increases the drama this story has given the character of Qin Shihuangdi.

Ideologies and philosophies

The Qin Dynasty is seen as the purest embodiment of the philosophy of legalism and, in fact, legalism was not implemented by any subsequent ruler as it was in Qin. The empire and its emperor, who probably accepted legalism as a political necessity, were influenced by other important values ​​and schools of thought. It can also be assumed that the scholars did not consciously join a school in their time, and that the classifications were made too much later.

Legalism is roughly divided into two currents, one of which is based on the thinking of Shang Yang and provides for strict laws, group responsibility, and reward and punishment as tools for state building. However, the teachings of Shen Buhai emphasize the methods and techniques a state must use to build a bureaucratic, depersonalized administration. Although Shen Buhai was Chancellor of Han State , his theories were also applied in Qin, as shown by the writings of Li Si and also legal texts that were unearthed during excavations and which testify to a remarkably high level of development in quantitative techniques in the Qin Empire.

The Confucianism was another influential philosophy of the Qin empire. Even if the centers of Confucianism were not originally in Qin, but in other countries, Qin Shihuangdi financed an institute of academics with 70 members. These were consulted on numerous questions such as the formulation of rites, ceremonies, sacrifices or dream interpretations. Confucian institutions were exempt from the infamous book burnings. The importance of Confucianist ideas is further illustrated by the stone inscriptions of the First Emperor and traditional criminal cases demonstrate that the laws of Qin criminalized disregard for Confucianist values, such as the duties of a child. Thus, contrary to what is often presented, Confucianism and legalism of the Qin dynasty were not opposing but complementary currents of thought.

The five-element doctrine was probably also given great attention by the First Emperor; at least it takes up a large part of the Shiji. This philosophy states that the elements earth, metal, wood, fire and water appear in a constantly recurring and unchangeable order. The element of fire was associated with the Zhou house. The Qin rulers had cosmologists who advised them on how best to obtain the support of the forces of the element water for themselves; the color black (the equivalent of water among the colors) was thus the preferred color for clothes and flags; the number six (the equivalent of water in the world of numbers) was taken into account in regulations on the length of the wagon and the height of the hat, and certain ceremonies or executions took place predominantly in winter, the equivalent of water to the seasons. However, the historicity of this information is not out of question.

Taoism in its form of the Qin period as well as witchcraft and shamanism found great interest from the First Emperor, who believed in the existence of an elixir of immortality and hoped to find this with the help of magicians.

Downfall

Death of the First Emperor

The First Emperor died on his fifth inspection tour in 210, in what is now southern Hebei , at the age of 49. His favorite son Huhai , Chancellor Li Si and the eunuch Zhao Gao were with him on this trip . Zhao Gao was Huhai's teacher, especially in legal matters, and he held the important role of overseeing the entry and exit of imperial documents. Shortly before his death, Qin Shihuangdi wrote a paper in which he called his eldest son Fusu , whom he had sent to Meng Tian on the northern border of the empire , to the capital Xianyang so that he could take the throne there. Zhao Gao betrayed the emperor by withholding the letter and instead forging an imperial letter in which he accused Fusu and Meng Tian of infidelity to the court and asked them to commit suicide.

The Terracotta Army in the Qin Shihuangdis Mausoleum

Qin Shihuangdi was buried in a mausoleum that had been under construction for several years. Numerous concubines, treasures and soldiers made of terracotta were buried with him; those workers who carried out the work on the mausoleum also accompanied the emperor to the grave in order to keep the secret of the complex. This grave with its terracotta army is now one of the most important tourist magnets of the People's Republic of China.

Huhai thus ascended the throne as second emperor . Like his father, he too went on an inspection tour and was immortalized in one of the stone tablets that the First Emperor had put up. At the same time, however, Zhao Gao took power. In 208 he had the aging Li Si and his family executed; Li Si died the gruesome death in the Xianyang Market Square from the five sentences and the subsequent severing of the body at the waist. A little later he took over the office of Chancellor and drove the Second Emperor to suicide. The new emperor became a grandson of Qin Shihuangdi, Ziying . This let Zhao Gao stabbed shortly after his accession to the throne.

Rebellions

In 209 BC The first major rebellion broke out in the Qin Empire. The chronicles tell of two farm workers named Chen She and Wu Guang from the former Chu State who were given the task of bringing 900 forced laborers to the Great Wall. Heavy rain delayed the arrival of the workers; According to Qin law, the two men should have been sentenced to death for this. They decided to rebel and managed to take control of a certain territory. Chen She subsequently assumed the title of Great Chu and even managed to besiege a city not far from the capital Xianyang in the winter of 208. However, Chen She's troops were defeated by an army of Qin General Zheng Han ; Chen She was murdered shortly afterwards by one of his followers.

For the militarily strong Qin Empire, the suppression of this rebellion was no problem. However, it triggered numerous revolts, especially in areas that had previously belonged to other states and where loyalty to the old rulers still prevailed. This led to a series of murders of imperial officials in various command posts; the central government, however, did not have the ability to react quickly to these events. Inspired by the rebellion Chen Shes organized in 209 BC. Two members of the former Chu royal family, Xiang Liang and Xiang Yu , rioted, murdered the governor Kuai Chi and restored the Chu kingdom by installing a grandson of the previous king as ruler. Something similar happened in Yan, Han, Wei, Zhao and Qi. Also in the former Chu, the peasant leader Liu Bang murdered the governor of Pei and then assumed the title of Duke of Pei .

Qin sent an army east to recapture the lost territories. There was a siege of a strategically important city in Zhao State , which the rebels under Xiang Yu were able to win. As a result, Xiang Yu established himself as a capable military leader, while numerous veteran Qin generals were defeated or had to surrender. At the same time as this siege, the newly installed Chu King Liu Bang sent an army to the heartland of Qin, namely the Guanzhong region . After he had succeeded in defeating a Qin army at Lantian , he had a free way to the Qin capital, Xianyang. There Ziying, the Third Emperor, surrendered to the peasant leader Liu Bang, just 46 days after his accession to the throne.

According to an agreement with the King of Chu, Liu Bang should have become the new King of Qin. According to the chronicles, he confiscated Qin's state documents, had the palace and armories cordoned off and the harsh and unpopular criminal code abolished. About two months later, Xiang Yu and his troops arrived in Xianyang City, had Ziying and his family executed, and the palace was ransacked and burned. This ended the Qin Dynasty and the 700-year existence of Qin State. Whether Liu Bang actually behaved as nobly as described in the chronicles when taking Xianyang cannot be verified. When interpreting the sources, it should be noted that Liu Bang later ascended the imperial throne, so the historians worked in his service.

Xiang Yu planned to turn the formerly united kingdom into a federation of 18 kingdoms, led by a 19th kingdom. He saw himself as king of this 19th realm. He had the king of Chu murdered and made Liu Bang king of the most remote part of Qin called Hanzhong . This betrayal led to a war that Liu Bang, with the support of military leaders Xiao He and Han Xin, won in 202 in a decisive battle in what is now Anhui. He proclaimed himself the first emperor of the Han dynasty . As a man of the people, he abolished some of the most unpopular laws of the Qin Dynasty, provided fiefs for his followers, but generally continued the policies of the Qin Dynasty.

Historical evaluation

The rapid collapse of the Qin dynasty preoccupied historians shortly after the establishment of the successor dynasty. The Qin were accused of failing to show humanity and righteousness, of failing to recognize the difference between conquering and consolidating, and, by not admitting vassal states, of neglecting their own followers. In general, Confucian scholars qualified the Qin dynasty as barbaric and militaristic.

It was not until the first half of the 20th century that Chinese historians began to paint a more balanced picture of the Qin Empire. In the 1970s, Maoism and the Cultural Revolution turned the prevailing opinion into its opposite by condemning Confucianism and extolling the legalistic Qin state as progressive. The Marxist historians, however, explained the rapid fall of the Qin with a class struggle of the peasants among figures like Chen She or Liu Bang against the ruling class. Apart from the fact that at the time of the fall of the Qin the peasants are unlikely to have had class consciousness and that they were by no means better off in the Han dynasty, numerous historical facts speak against this thesis.

Rather, the incompetence and intrigues after the death of the First Emperor as well as an overuse of the available resources are likely to have led to the fall of the Qin.

Source studies

The most important source for understanding the Qin dynasty is the work Shiji by the chronicler Sima Qian and his father Sima Tan . In chapters 5 and 6 it reports on the state and the Qin dynasty and in chapter 15 it lists numerous events in tabular form. The second half of the work consists of the biographies of the important personalities of the time. This part has been translated into English by the sinologist Derk Bodde , while the first part was translated into French by Édouard Chavannes . The Shiji largely processes the lost chronicles of the state of Qin, the authors complain about the incompleteness of these chronicles. It contains numerous tendentious entries that may have been later inserted into the text by strangers.

The Han Shu of Ban Ku partially overlaps with the Shiji and also provides information about the laws of the Qin. The works of the philosophers Han Fei and Shen Buhai as well as philosophical treatises, which are probably incorrectly ascribed to Shang Yang , have also been passed on and translated into European languages .

The chronicles focus very much on political and military history. Archaeological finds such as B. in the grave of an important Qin official in Hubei in the 1970s, the gaps in the written records can only partially close.

literature

  • Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 .
  • Mark Edward Lewis: The Early Chinese Empires: Qin and Han. London 2007, ISBN 978-0-674-02477-9 .
  • Helwig Schmidt-Glintzer: History of China up to the Mongolian conquest 250 BC - 1279 AD Oldenbourg, Munich 1999, ISBN 3-486-56402-1 .
  • Michael Straehle: Book burnings and censorship in ancient China and their consequences. In: Communications from the Association of Austrian Librarians. Vienna 56.2003, ISSN  1022-2588 , pp. 41-47. (on-line)
  • Jacques Gernet: The Chinese World . Suhrkamp, ​​Frankfurt 1994, ISBN 3-518-38005-2 .

Web links

Commons : Qin Dynasty  - album containing pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , p. 69.
  2. ↑ Helwig Schmidt-Glintzer: History of China up to the Mongol conquest 250 BC Chr. - 1279 AD Munich 1999, p. 18.
  3. ^ Mary B. Rankin, John K. Fairbank, A. Feuerwerker: Perspectives on modern China's history. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 13: Republican China 1912-1949. Part 2, Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24338-6 , p. 49.
  4. ↑ Helwig Schmidt-Glintzer: History of China up to the Mongol conquest 250 BC - 1279 AD Munich 1999, p. 13 and p. 97.
  5. ↑ Helwig Schmidt-Glintzer: History of China up to the Mongol conquest 250 BC - 1279 AD Munich 1999, p. 19.
  6. ↑ Helwig Schmidt-Glintzer: History of China up to the Mongol conquest 250 BC Chr. - 1279 AD Munich 1999, pp. 6–7 and p. 13.
  7. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , p. 21.
  8. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , p. 24.
  9. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , p. 31.
  10. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , p. 33.
  11. ↑ Helwig Schmidt-Glintzer: History of China up to the Mongol conquest 250 BC - 1279 AD Munich 1999, p. 106.
  12. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , pp. 31f.
  13. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , p. 31.
  14. ↑ Helwig Schmidt-Glintzer: History of China up to the Mongol conquest 250 BC Chr. - 1279 AD Munich 1999, p. 4.
  15. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , p. 34.
  16. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , pp. 34ff.
  17. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , p. 38.
  18. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , p. 40.
  19. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , p. 45.
  20. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , p. 44.
  21. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , p. 45.
  22. ^ Mark Edward Lewis: The Early Chinese Empires: Qin and Han. London 2007, ISBN 978-0-674-02477-9 , pp. 35-37.
  23. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , pp. 36, 38, 47-48 and 50
  24. ↑ Helwig Schmidt-Glintzer: History of China up to the Mongol conquest 250 BC - 1279 AD Munich 1999, pp. 7, 10 and 15
  25. ^ Mark Edward Lewis: The Early Chinese Empires: Qin and Han. London 2007, ISBN 978-0-674-02477-9 , pp. 16-17.
  26. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , pp. 23f, pp. 46-47.
  27. ↑ Helwig Schmidt-Glintzer: History of China up to the Mongol conquest 250 BC Chr. - 1279 AD Munich 1999, p. 15.
  28. ^ Mark Edward Lewis: The Early Chinese Empires: Qin and Han. London 2007, ISBN 978-0-674-02477-9 , p. 37, p. 39.
  29. ↑ Hubert Schleichert, Heiner Roetz: Classical Chinese Philosophy. Frankfurt am Main 2009, ISBN 978-3-465-04064-4 , p. 202.
  30. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , pp. 27, 35, 46.
  31. ↑ Helwig Schmidt-Glintzer: History of China up to the Mongol conquest 250 BC - 1279 AD Munich 1999, p. 16.
  32. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , p. 48.
  33. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , p. 46.
  34. ^ Mark Edward Lewis: The Early Chinese Empires: Qin and Han. London 2007, ISBN 978-0-674-02477-9 , pp. 5-11.
  35. ^ Mark Edward Lewis: The Early Chinese Empires: Qin and Han. London 2007, ISBN 978-0-674-02477-9 , p. 18.
  36. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , pp. 25f, p. 30.
  37. ↑ Helwig Schmidt-Glintzer: History of China up to the Mongol conquest 250 BC Chr. - 1279 AD Munich 1999, p. 10.
  38. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , p. 64.
  39. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , pp. 54-55.
  40. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , p. 101.
  41. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , pp. 53ff.
  42. ↑ Helwig Schmidt-Glintzer: History of China up to the Mongol conquest 250 BC Chr. - 1279 AD Munich 1999, pp. 18-19.
  43. ^ Mark Edward Lewis: The Early Chinese Empires: Qin and Han. London 2007, ISBN 978-0-674-02477-9 , p. 52.
  44. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , pp. 56-58.
  45. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , p. 50, p. 58.
  46. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , p. 37 and p. 28f.
  47. ^ Mark Edward Lewis: The Early Chinese Empires: Qin and Han. London 2007, ISBN 978-0-674-02477-9 , p. 45.
  48. ^ Charles Holcombe: The Genesis of East Asia: 221 BC-AD907. University of Hawaii Press 2001, ISBN 0-8248-2465-2 . , P. 31.
  49. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , p. 36, p. 66.
  50. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , p. 38, p. 59.
  51. ↑ Helwig Schmidt-Glintzer: History of China up to the Mongol conquest 250 BC Chr. - 1279 AD Munich 1999, p. 15.
  52. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , pp. 59-60.
  53. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , p. 60.
  54. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , pp. 65-66.
  55. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , pp. 61-62, p. 101.
  56. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , pp. 62-63.
  57. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , pp. 63-64.
  58. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , p. 65.
  59. ↑ german.cri.cn ( Memento of the original from April 16, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / german.cri.cn
  60. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , pp. 65-68, p. 78.
  61. ↑ Michael Straehle: Book burnings and censorship in ancient China and their consequences (PDF; 100 kB). In: Announcements of the Association of Austrian Librarians. Association of Austrian Librarians 2003, pp. 41–47.
  62. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , pp. 69-72, p. 96.
  63. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , p. 30, p. 81.
  64. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , p. 97.
  65. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , pp. 72-81.
  66. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , pp. 81-84.
  67. ↑ Michael Loewe: The Former Han Dynasty. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , pp. 112-113.
  68. ↑ Michael Loewe: The Former Han Dynasty. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , pp. 113-115.
  69. ↑ Michael Loewe: The Former Han Dynasty. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , pp. 113-115.
  70. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , p. 84.
  71. ↑ Michael Loewe: The Former Han Dynasty. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , pp. 113-115.
  72. ↑ Michael Loewe: The Former Han Dynasty. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , pp. 116-119.
  73. ^ Mark Edward Lewis: The Early Chinese Empires: Qin and Han. London 2007, ISBN 978-0-674-02477-9 , p. 19.
  74. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , pp. 89-90.
  75. ↑ Derk Bodde: The state and empire of Ch'in. In: The Cambridge History of China. Volume 1: The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 BC-AD220. Cambridge 1986, ISBN 0-521-24327-0 , pp. 90ff.