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The Zhou Dynasty & the Mandate of Heaven

The Zhou Dynasty & the Mandate of Heaven. Global History I Honors: Spiconardi. The Zhou (1045-256 BCE). Dynasty Establishment The Zhou overthrow the Shang and eventually establish to capitals Western Capital = Xian Eastern Capital = Luoyang. The Zhou (1045-256 BCE). The Zhou King

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The Zhou Dynasty & the Mandate of Heaven

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  1. The Zhou Dynasty & the Mandate of Heaven Global History I Honors: Spiconardi

  2. The Zhou (1045-256 BCE) • Dynasty Establishment • The Zhou overthrow the Shang and eventually establish to capitals • Western Capital = Xian • Eastern Capital = Luoyang

  3. The Zhou (1045-256 BCE) • The Zhou King • Served as the head of a growing government • Controlled the armies • Seen as an intermediary between the people and the god Shang Ti • The Zhou King made sacrifices to the god of heaven • If any sacrifices or prayers were missed, great ill was predicted to fall on the kingdom of the neglectful leader

  4. The Zhou (1045-256 BCE) • Feudalism • Like the Shang, the Zhou divided the kingdom into territories • Each territory was a walled city • King had little to no control over these walled territories • Each territory was governed by appointed nobles • Nobles had peasants farm the land • Territories eventually became more & more independent Primogeniture  first born inherits all property/possessions of his father

  5. The Zhou (1045-256 BCE) • Social Hierarchy • Lords • Members of the army • Artisans and merchants • Farmers • Society was based on agricultural production • Slaves • Veryfew in Zhou Dynasty China Center section was tilled by all peasants for the lord of their territory

  6. The Zhou (1045-256 BCE) • The Warring States  period of chaos and fighting among China’s feudal lords • As each territory became more independent, the Zhou’s authority became decentralized • The feudal nobles fought one another and China was no longer united

  7. The Mandate of Heaven • Mandate of Heaven  the divine approval to rule • Zhou: “Heaven…has sent down ruin on the Shang. The Shang has lost the Mandate, and we Zhou have received it…I believe the heavens favor those who are sincere in their intentions…The Mandate of Heaven is not easy to gain. It will be lost when men fail to live up to…the virtues of their forefathers.”

  8. The Dynastic Cycle • Dynastic Cycle  explanation of the rise, fall, & establishment of dynasties in China • Chinese believe leadership had to be changed when problems came about, not laws or institutions • Rulers were seen as sons of heaven and father to the Chinese people • Leaders had to be moral and upright In essence, the Zhou King had to rule effectively or the people had a right to revolution

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