Qin Shih Huang di, China's first emperor

[Rob_Hugo@PortNW]

259-210 B.C. He was a prince of the state of Qin (also Ch'in) . He was involved in fighting that resulted in defeating warring states and unifying China for the first time. The name, China, comes from the state of Qin (Ch'in). He reorganized the government and got rid of boundaries of old feudal states by redividing the empire: 40 provinces or political units, sudividing those into smaller counties with military government, civil administrators and supervisors who'd report to him. He even relocated feudal leaders and their families to the capital to prevent rebellion, keep an eye o them and to make them useful.
Li Ssu, a historian, simplified and standardized the written language under the emperor's direction. Li Ssu selected a word list and sent it throughout China. This was China's first dictionary.
Some other accomplishments:
- standardized weights and measurement
- established that the width of all wagon axles had to be the same (because of ruts in the road)
- a system of paved roads
- elaborate mausoleum built for himself
-built Terra Cotta warriors to guard his mausoleum
-employed Li Ping t work on a nirrigation sysem of canals
- built the Great Wall from north China Sea to Yelow Sea~1,000 mi long, 15'-50' high; 15'-25' wide
- confiscated and melted all weapons not belonging to his force
- gave peasants land to assuage their anger over other offenses
-expanded his empire NW into Korea; did he found Japan?; southern into S. Viet Nam
He was terribly frightened of anything that threatened his authority and burned books on odes, poems and Confucianism, in fact all books except those about agriculture, trees, divination and medicine. He executed cofucian scholars and exiled their sons.
He was very superstitious. He also was so fearful of dying that he constantly looked for potients that could keep him young. It is thought that it was one of these potients that killed him.
In his lifetime he accomplished a lot for the advancement of China. He traveled to see how his projects were going. His authoritarian leadership made him unpopular and diminished the quality of life for himself and his subjects. Sometime, if you haven't already, compare Qin Shih Huang di to Sae Jung the Great of Korea. Now there's a contrast.

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