The Spring and Autumns

Maya S, Student Writer

The Spring and  Autumns were a time of weakness in the Zhou dynasty lasting from 771 to 481 BCE.The Spring and Autumns period started when the capital was moved to Luoyi in 770 BCE. Because of the moment, changes took place in culture, economy, politics and military(www.travelchinaguide.com). The Spring and autumns caused weakness in the Zhou dynasty because it caused a change in politics so the government became unstable. Changing culture affected people because they had to change their daily life and what they believed in. Changes in economy caused confusion during trade, leading to fighting. The change in military caused other armies to be able to attack China. The Spring and Autumns lead china to a period of weakness in government, culture and military.

The Spring and Autumns caused battles withing the Zhou dynasty over land. There was over 140 states which all had different leaders. Afew states gained power and overthrew smaller ones and force the people of the smaller states to acknowledge their leaders(www.travelchinaguide.com). During the Spring and Autumns there was not single ruler who held the most power. Having 140 states with different rulers caused battles between the states and tension between people. When one state overthrew another, the respect of subject and ruler was broken. Breaking respect was going against confucious religion and government causeing a weaker government. Because there were 140 different states and rulers, tension in governments made the Zhou dynasty weaker.

Picture Collage

This illustration shows King Wu, One of the Seven overloards. King Wu's significance to the Zhou dynasty was that he was a leader of one of the seven states.

The Great Wall of China was started by vassals from the Zhou Dynasty, in the northern part of China. Construction of the Wall started in the 7th century BCE for defensive purposes. The construction of the Great Wall was started to protect people from outside armies.

This is Decheng Hall, a Confucius Temple from The Zhou Dynasty. Confucianism was important to the Zhou Dynasty because it was a form of government and religion that was based on respect.

This map shows the boundaries of the Zhou dynasty during its reign of power. The Zhou dynasty was in the eastern part of China where there is plenty of water and lower elevation, allowing life to thrive. 

These iron and bronze swords were developed in the Warring states Period to protect each overloads' kingdoms from each other. Weapons were created to protect each overloads' land so they would have equal amounts of power and one would not try to overthrow the others.

Eastern Zhou Maps

www.chinahighlights.com

 

This map roughly shows the Eastern Zhou dynasty from 771 BCE to 221 BCE. Like most dynasties in China,  the Eastern Zhou dynasty was in China Proper. The elevation of eastern Zhou is lower than the rest of china because it is closer to the shore. Being on the east coast, there was plenty of water and made better living conditions for a dynasty. Rivers running throughout Eastern Zhou alowed water to be accesed farther in land so civilation could thrive. Fertile land gave China the oppurtunity to farm and people took advantage and grew in agricultural succes.





 

The Seven Overloards in the Warring State Period

Maya S, Student Writer

The seven overlords of the warring state were Qi, Chu, Yan, Han, Zhao, Wei and Qin. Each of these kingdoms was the most powerful during the warring states so they became known as the seven overlords. The seven overlords expanded their forces and territories to strengthen themselves which caused struggle in the side by side kingdoms. The warring states were a period was from 476 BCE leading to the unification of China in 221 BCE.

To developed economy, each of the states had to issue reforms. The most famous reform was from Shang yang to Qin. From 359 BCE to 350 BCE, Shang yang from the Wei kingdom issued a series of reforms on Qin. Shang yang’s reforms on the Qin kingdom were to make the Qin kingdom stronger. During the middle of the Warring period, Qin and Qi were the most connected states. This caused the East-West confrontation which was a struggle between two diplomatic tactics. Near the end of the Warring period the Qi state lost almost all of its power so the alliance with Qin was broken. Chu was destroyed along with Qi leaving Zhao the only state to keep its strength. The power of Zhao caused it to become Qin's most threatening enemy. In the battle of Changping, Zhao was destroyed, ending the Zhou dynasty and launching China into the Qin dynasty.



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This map showes the territories or states of the Seven Overloards in the Warring State peiod.