History › Classical age › Han dynasty
Qin Shi Huang, first emperor of China
unified China 221 BC; ruled as emperor 221–210 BC· Person· Asia
Well documentedSolid records, physical evidence or scientific consensus.
King of Qin who conquered the six rival Warring States and in 221 BC made himself China's first emperor.
See it on the History map →What happened
Born Ying Zheng, he took Qin's throne at 13 and by 221 BC had defeated every rival. He took the new title Huangdi, 'emperor', and ruled through appointed officials, not hereditary lords. He standardized writing, coins, weights, measures and even cart-axle widths, and built roads and canals. He also burned many books and reportedly executed scholars. Obsessed with immortality, he died in 210 BC; his dynasty collapsed four years later.
Why it matters
He created the model of a unified, centrally governed China that every later dynasty tried to restore. The word 'China' probably comes from 'Qin'.
Legacy and how we know
Sima Qian's Records of the Grand Historian (c. 100 BC), written under the hostile Han; excavated Qin legal texts; and his tomb's Terracotta Army, found in 1974.
Still debated
His burial mound remains unopened. How much of the 'burning books and burying scholars' story is later Han propaganda is debated.
Inside this (1)
Connections (3)
▸Zhou dynasty and the Mandate of Heaven fragmented into the Warring States united by Qin Shi Huang, first emperor of ChinaWell documented
The connection
After 771 BC the Zhou kings lost real power, and their vassal lords became independent states. In the Warring States period (475–221 BC) seven large states fought with mass armies. Qin, on the western edge, reorganized under strict Legalist laws that rewarded farming and soldiering. Between 230 and 221 BC Qin's king conquered the other six, ending the Zhou world.
When and how
Northern and central China, 475–221 BC; Qin's reforms under minister Shang Yang (350s BC); conquests by King Zheng, the future Qin Shi Huang.
How we know
Sima Qian's history, Qin legal documents on bamboo excavated at Shuihudi in 1975, and archaeology of walled cities and weapons.
Debates and open questions
Why Qin, rather than a richer eastern state, won is debated: harsh discipline, a defensible base, irrigation projects, or capable rulers.
▸Qin Shi Huang, first emperor of China was followed by Han dynastyWell documented
The connection
Qin's harsh laws, heavy taxes and forced labor provoked revolts soon after the First Emperor died in 210 BC. Rebels toppled his heir in 207–206 BC. Liu Bang, a minor official of peasant background, won the civil war that followed against his rival Xiang Yu and founded the Han, keeping much of Qin's system but with milder laws.
When and how
China, 210–202 BC; the Chen Sheng uprising (209 BC), Liu Bang and Xiang Yu.
How we know
Sima Qian's Records describe the fall; excavated documents show early Han law codes closely copying Qin ones.
Debates and open questions
How harsh Qin rule really was is debated, since the Han, who wrote its history, had reason to blacken it.
▸Qin Shi Huang, first emperor of China joined up early sections of Great Wall of ChinaMostly agreed
The connection
After unifying China, Qin Shi Huang sent General Meng Tian with a large army, reportedly 300,000 men, against the Xiongnu nomads. Meng Tian linked the earlier northern walls of the Qin, Zhao and Yan states into one frontier line and extended it, mostly in rammed earth. Legends of workers buried inside the wall grew from its human cost.
When and how
Northern China, c. 215–210 BC; General Meng Tian and conscripted laborers and convicts.
How sure are we?
Sima Qian's Records describe the wall-building; surviving rammed-earth segments in Inner Mongolia and elsewhere are dated to the Qin era.
Debates and open questions
How much wall Qin actually built, rather than repaired and connected, is uncertain; little clearly Qin-built wall survives.