Lu Commandery ( Chinese : 魯郡 ) was a Chinese commandery that existed from Han dynasty to Tang dynasty . It was located in present-day southern Shandong province.
83-614: The commandery's predecessor was the Xue Commandery (薛郡), an administrative division established during Qin Shi Huang 's reign on the former territories of Lu state . In early Western Han, it was part of the Kingdom of Chu , a vassal kingdom/principality of the Han dynasty. In 155 BC, Emperor Jing created a separate Principality of Lu, and granted it to his son Liu Yu . Yu's descendants held Lu until
166-693: A century later in the Han dynasty official Sima Qian 's Records of the Grand Historian . As a court scholar, Sima had every reason to denigrate the earlier emperor to flatter his own, but later Confucians did not question the story. According to the historian Ulrich Neininger, their message was, "If you take our life, Heaven will take the life of your dynasty." Modern scholars agree that Qin Shi Huang gathered and destroyed many works that he regarded as incorrect or subversive. He ordered two copies of each text to be preserved in imperial libraries. Some were destroyed in
249-424: A descendant of Confucius, described the alchemists as Confucianists and entwined the martyrs' legend with his story of discovering the lost Confucian books behind a demolished wall in his ancestral house. Qin Shi Huang also followed the theory of the five elements : fire, water, earth, wood, and metal. It was believed that the royal house of the previous Zhou dynasty had ruled by the power of fire, associated with
332-468: A larger group descended from a prominent ancestor , usually said to have lived during the time of the legendary Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors , and the clan name ( 氏 ) comprised a smaller group that showed a branch's current fief or recent title. The ancient practice was to list men's names separately— Sima Qian 's "Basic Annals of the First Emperor of Qin" introduces him as "given the name Zheng and
415-491: A signal, the muscular assassin hurled the cone at the first carriage and shattered it. However, the emperor was travelling with two identical carriages to baffle attackers, and he was actually in the second carriage. Thus the attempt failed, though both men were able to escape the subsequent manhunt. Numerous state walls had been built during the previous four centuries, many of them closing gaps between river defences and impassable cliffs. To impose centralized rule and prevent
498-643: A slab of lead, and Gao Jianli swung it at the king but missed. The second assassination attempt had failed; Gao was executed shortly after. In 230 BC, King Zheng began the final campaigns of the Warring States period , setting out to conquer the remaining six major Chinese states and bring China under unified Qin control. The state of Han , the weakest of the Warring States, was the first to fall in 230 BC. In 229, Qin armies invaded Zhao , which had been severely weakened by natural disasters, and captured
581-736: The Classic of Poetry and the Book of Documents , which meant that these texts would have been exempted, and that the Book of Rites and the Zuozhuan did not contain the glorification of defeated feudal states which the First Emperor gave as his reason for destroying them. She suggests that the story might be based on the fact that the Qin palace was razed in 207 BCE and many books were undoubtedly lost at that time. Martin Kern adds that Qin and early Han writings frequently cite
664-418: The Classic of Poetry or the Book of Documents was to be punished especially severely. According to the later Shiji , the following year Qin Shi Huang had some 460 scholars buried alive for possessing the forbidden books. The emperor's oldest son Fusu criticised him for this act. The emperor's own library did retain copies of the forbidden books, but most of these were destroyed when Xiang Yu burned
747-449: The Shiji written by Sima Qian during the Han dynasty, the first emperor was the eldest son of the Qin prince Yiren, who later became King Zhuangxiang of Qin . Prince Yiren at that time was residing at the court of Zhao , serving as a hostage to guarantee the armistice between Qin and Zhao. Prince Yiren had fallen in love at first sight with a concubine of Lü Buwei , a rich merchant from
830-538: The Twelve Metal Colossi , which he used to adorn his Palace. Each statue was said to be 5 zhang [11.5 meters] in height, and weighing about 1000 dan [about 70 tons]. Sima Qian considered this as one of the great achievements of the Emperor, on a par with the "unification of the law, weights and measurements, standardization of the axle width of carriages, and standardization of the writing system". During 600 years,
913-467: The Book of ), history ( Shujing and especially historical records of other states than Qin), and philosophy. The ancient collection of poetry and historical records contained many stories concerning the ancient virtuous rulers. Li Si believed that if the people were to read these works they were likely to invoke the past and become dissatisfied with the present. The reason for opposing various schools of philosophy
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#1732887236187996-480: The Han dynasty that succeeded the Qin. Since the mid-20th century, scholars have begun questioning this evaluation, inciting considerable discussion on the actual nature of his policies and reforms. According to the sinologist Michael Loewe "few would contest the view that the achievements of his reign have exercised a paramount influence on the whole of China's subsequent history, marking the start of an epoch that closed in 1911 ". Modern Chinese sources often give
1079-516: The Ordos Plateau from the nomadic Xiongnu , although the Xiongnu later rallied under Modu Chanyu . Qin Shi Huang also worked with his minister Li Si to enact major economic and political reforms aimed at the standardization of the diverse practices among earlier Chinese states . He is traditionally said to have banned and burned many books and executed scholars . His public works projects included
1162-525: The Western Wei army in his castle; Yuan set fire to the collection of national records. According to Sima Qian 's Records of the Grand Historian , after Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China , unified China in 221 BCE, his chancellor Li Si suggested suppressing intellectual discourse to unify thought and political opinion. Chancellor Li Si said: "I, your servant, propose that all historians' records other than those of Qin 's be burned. Except
1245-486: The Xiao Mountains . As it turned out, Liu Bang and Xiang Yu could not read. 竹帛烟销帝业虚， zhú bó yān xiāo dì yè xū 关河空锁祖龙居。 guān hé kōng suǒ zŭ lóng jū 坑灰未冷山東亂, kēng huī wèi lĕng shān dōng luàn 劉項原來不讀書. liú xiàng yuán lái bù dú shū Tradition had it that after being deceived by two fangshi alchemists, Xu Fu and Han Zhong , while seeking prolonged life, Qin Shi Huang ordered more than 460 scholars in
1328-524: The Xin dynasty , when the prince was deposed and Lu became a commandery. In 2 AD, the principality consisted of 6 counties: Lu (魯), Bian (卞), Wenyang (汶陽), Fan (蕃), Zou (騶) and Xue (薛). In Eastern Han, Lu Commandery was initially granted to Liu Xing (劉興). However, Lu was later merged to the Principality of Donghai (東海) while Xing was relocated to Beihai . After the death of Liu Qiang (彊), Prince Gong (恭) of Donghai,
1411-525: The state of Wey . Lü consented for her to be Yiren's wife, who then became known as Lady Zhao after the state of Zhao. He was given the name Zhao Zheng, the name Zheng ( 正 ) came from his month of birth Zhengyue , the first month of the Chinese lunar calendar ; the clan name of Zhao came from his father's lineage and was unrelated to either his mother's name or the location of his birth. ( Song Zhong [ zh ] says that his birthday, significantly,
1494-473: The weights and measurements . Wagon axles were prescribed a standard length to facilitate road transport. The emperor also developed an extensive network of roads and canals for trade and communication. The currencies of the different states were standardized to the Ban Liang coin. The forms of Chinese characters were unified. Under Li Si, the seal script of the state of Qin became the official standard, and
1577-476: The "objectionable" books, poetry and philosophy in particular, were preserved in imperial archives and allowed to be kept by the official scholars. In some categories of books, history suffered one of the greatest losses of ancient times. Extremely few state history books before Qin have survived. Li Si stated that all history books not in the Qin interpretation were to be burned. It is not clear whether copies of these books were actually burned or allowed to stay in
1660-604: The Classics, especially the Documents and the Classic of Poetry , which would not have been possible if they had been burned, as reported. Sima Qian's account of the execution of the scholars has similar difficulties. First, no text earlier than the Shiji mentions the executions, the Shiji mentions no Confucian scholar by name as a victim of the executions, and in fact, no other text mentions
1743-412: The Emperor, to cover the foul smell of his body decomposing in the summer heat. Pretending he was alive behind the wagon's shade, they changed his clothes daily, brought food, and pretended to carry messages to and from him. After they reached Xianyang, the death of the Emperor was announced. Qin Shi Huang had not liked to talk about his death and had never written a will. Although his eldest son Fusu
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#17328872361871826-727: The First Emperor, creating the title which would be used as the title of the Chinese sovereign for the next two millennia. Qin Shi Huang also ordered the Heshibi to be crafted into the Heirloom Seal of the Realm , which would serve as a physical symbol of the Mandate of Heaven , and would be passed from emperor to emperor until its loss in the 10th century. During 215 BC, in an attempt to expand Qin territory, Qin Shi Huang ordered military campaigns against
1909-468: The First Emperor. However, a number of modern scholars have doubted this account of his birth. Sinologist Derk Bodde wrote: "There is good reason for believing that the sentence describing this unusual pregnancy is an interpolation added to the Shiji by an unknown person in order to slander the First Emperor and indicate his political as well as natal illegitimacy". John Knoblock and Jeffrey Riegel, in their translation of Lü Buwei's Lüshi Chunqiu , call
1992-461: The Qin script itself was simplified through removal of variant forms. This did away with all the regional scripts to form a universal written language for all of China, despite the diversity of spoken dialects. According to Chinese records, after unifying the country in 221 BC, Qin Shuhuang confiscated all the bronze weapons of the conquered countries, and cast them into twelve monumental statues,
2075-526: The Second Emperor, later known as Qin Er Shi or "Second Generation Qin". The immediate family members of Qin Shi Huang include: Qin Shi Huang had about 50 children (about 30 sons and 15 daughters), but most of their names are unknown. He had numerous concubines but appeared to have never named an empress. Burning of books and burying of scholars The burning of books and burying of scholars
2158-608: The Xiongnu nomads in the North. Led by General Meng Tian , Qin armies successfully routed the Xiongnu from the Ordos Plateau , setting the ancient foundations for the construction of the Great Wall of China . In the South, Qin Shi Huang also ordered several military campaigns against the Yue tribes , which annexed various regions in modern Guangdong and Vietnam. In an attempt to avoid a recurrence of
2241-505: The Yan army, along with King Xi of Yan , were able to retreat to the Liaodong Peninsula . After Qin besieged and flooded their capital of Daliang , the state of Wei surrendered in 225 BC. Around this time, as a precautionary measure, Qin seized ten cities from Chu, the largest and most powerful of the other Warring States. In 224, Qin launched a full-scale invasion of Chu, capturing
2324-588: The academics whose duty includes possessing books, if anyone under heaven has copies of the Shi Jing [Classic of Poetry], the Shujing [Classic of History], or the writings of the hundred schools of philosophy , they shall deliver them (the books) to the governor or the commandant for burning. Anyone who dares to discuss the Shi Jing or the Classic of History shall be publicly executed. Anyone who uses history to criticize
2407-457: The baby was born after an unusually long period of pregnancy. According to translations of the Lüshi Chunqiu , Zhao Ji gave birth to the future emperor in the city of Handan in 259 BC, the first month of the 48th year of King Zhaoxiang of Qin . The idea that the emperor was an illegitimate child, widely believed throughout Chinese history, contributed to the generally negative view of
2490-493: The capital of Handan in 228. Prince Jia of Zhao managed to escape with the remnants of the Zhao army and established the short-lived state of Dai , proclaiming himself king. In 227 BC, fearing a Qin invasion, Crown Prince Dan of Yan ordered a failed assassination attempt on King Zheng. This provided casus belli for Zheng to invade Yan in 226, capturing the capital of Ji (modern Beijing ) that same year. The remnants of
2573-475: The capital of Shouchun in 223. In 222, Qin armies extinguished the last Yan remnants in Liaodong and the Zhao rump state of Dai. In 221, Qin armies invaded the state of Qi and captured King Jian of Qi without much resistance, bringing an end to the Warring States period . By 221 BC, all Chinese lands had been unified under the Qin. To elevate himself above the feudal Zhou kings, King Zheng proclaimed himself
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2656-497: The capital to be buried alive in the second year of the proscription. The belief was based on this passage in the Shiji (chapter 6): The first emperor therefore directed the imperial censor to investigate the scholars one by one. The scholars accused each other, so the emperor personally determined their fate. More than 460 of them were buried alive at Xianyang, and the event was announced to all under heaven to warn followers. More people were internally exiled to border regions. Fusu,
2739-407: The capital, Lao Ai successfully fled the battlefield. A price of 1 million copper coins was placed on Lao Ai's head if he was taken alive or half a million if dead. Lao Ai's supporters were captured and beheaded; then Lao Ai was tied up and torn to five pieces by horse carriages, while his entire family was executed to the third degree. The two hidden sons were also killed, while the mother Zhao Ji
2822-491: The central government took over Donghai Commandery , and the principality's territory became equivalent to Lu Commandery. The commandery once again became the Principality of Lu in 232, when the Cao Wei dynasty granted it to Cao Wen (曹溫). The commandery was restored with the establishment of Jin dynasty . In Song dynasty , the commandery administered 6 counties, including Zou, Wenyang, Lu, Yangping (陽平), Xinyang (新陽), and Bian. It
2905-627: The centuries. In 214 BC the Emperor began the project of a major canal allowing water transport between north and south China, originally for military supplies. The canal, 34 kilometres in length, links two of China's major waterways, the Xiang River flowing into the Yangtze and the Lijiang River , flowing into the Pearl River . The canal aided Qin's expansion to the south-west. It is considered one of
2988-476: The colour red. The new Qin dynasty must be ruled by the next element on the list, which is water, Zhao Zheng's birth element. Water was represented by the colour black, and black became the preferred colour for Qin garments, flags, and pennants. Other associations include north as the cardinal direction , the winter season and the number six. Tallies and official hats were 15 centimetres (5.9 inches) long, carriages two metres (6.6 feet) wide, one pace ( 步 ; bù )
3071-462: The current Great Wall of China . Transporting building materials was difficult, so builders always tried to use local materials: rock over mountain ranges, rammed earth over the plains. "Build and move on" was a guiding principle, implying that the Wall was not a permanently fixed border. There are no surviving records specifying the length and course of the Qin walls, which have largely eroded away over
3154-452: The dagger unrolled from the map, the king leapt to his feet and struggled to draw his sword – none of his courtiers were allowed to carry arms in his presence. Jing stabbed at the king but missed, and King Zheng slashed Jing's thigh. In desperation, Jing Ke threw the dagger but missed again. He surrendered after a brief fight in which he was further injured. The Yan state was conquered in its entirety five years later. Gao Jianli
3237-570: The emperor's personal name written as Ying Zheng, using the ancestral name of the House of Ying . The rulers of the state of Qin had styled themselves kings from the time of King Huiwen in 325 BC. Upon his ascension, Zheng became known as the King of Qin or King Zheng of Qin. This title made him the nominal equal of the rulers of Shang and Zhou , the last of whose kings had been deposed by King Zhaoxiang of Qin in 256 BC. Following
3320-401: The emperor’s eldest son, counseled: "The empire just achieved peace, and the barbarians in distant areas have not surrendered. The scholars all venerate Confucius and take him as a role model. Your servant fears if Your Majesty punishes them so severely, it may cause unrest in the empire. Please observe this, Your Majesty." However, he did not change his father's mind and instead was sent to guard
3403-562: The end, forces burned the national library of Weiyang Palace . '[3]' At the end of the Han dynasty , the Three Kingdoms dissipated of the state library by upheavals that resulted from the Wei (魏), Shu (蜀), and Wu (吳) contests '[4]' At the end of Yang-Jia turbulence , dissipation of the state library by the upheavals of Western Jin . '[5]' Emperor Yuan of the Liang dynasty surrounded by
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3486-489: The executions at all until the 1st century AD. The earliest known use of the famous phrase "burning the books and executing the Confucians" is not noted until the early 4th century. Sima Qian reports that the scholars were "keng, 坑", a word that he uses in several other places. The context in these places shows that the meaning is "to kill", not "to bury alive". The character in earlier texts meant "pit, moat" and then took on
3569-470: The fighting following the fall of the dynasty. He had scholars killed, but not by being buried alive, and the victims were not rú ( Chinese : 儒 ; lit. 'Confucians'), since that school had not yet been formed as such. '[1]' Book burning of the First Qin Emperor '[2]' Wang Mang 's capital Chang'an was attacked and the imperial palace ransacked. Mang died in the battle and, at
3652-613: The frontier as a de facto exile." An account given by Wei Hong in the 2nd century added another 700 to the figure. In 2010, Li Kaiyuan (李开元), a researcher in the field of history of the Qin dynasty and Han dynasty , published an article titled The Truth or Fiction of the Burning the Books and Executing the Ru Scholars: A Half-Faked History (焚书坑儒的真伪虚实—半桩伪造的历史), which raised four doubts about "executing
3735-668: The generations. (In fact, the scheme lasted only as long as his immediate heir, the Second Emperor .) The new title carried religious overtones. For that reason, sinologists starting with Peter A. Boodberg or Edward H. Schafer —sometimes translate it as "thearch" and the First Emperor as the First ;Thearch. The First Emperor intended that his realm would remain intact through the ages but, following its overthrow and replacement by Han after his death, it became customary to prefix his title with Qin. Thus: As early as Sima Qian, it
3818-482: The imperial archives. Even if some histories were preserved, they possibly would have been destroyed in 206 BCE when enemies captured and burnt the Qin imperial palaces in which the archives were most likely located. At the end of the Qin, the Epang Palace 's national records were destroyed by fire. Tang dynasty poet Zhang Jie ( Chinese : 章碣 ) wrote a poem (titled 焚书坑, Fen Shu Keng , "Pits for Book-burning") about
3901-433: The incorporation of diverse state walls into a single Great Wall of China and a massive new national road system, as well as his city-sized mausoleum guarded by a life-sized Terracotta Army . He ruled until his death in 210 BC, during his fifth tour of eastern China . Qin Shi Huang has often been portrayed as a tyrant and strict Legalist —characterizations that stem partly from the scathing assessments made during
3984-582: The king of Qin , after which he became King Zheng of Qin . By 221 BC, he had conquered all the other warring states and unified all of China , and he ascended the throne as China's first emperor. During his reign, his generals greatly expanded the size of the Chinese state: campaigns south of Chu permanently added the Yue lands of Hunan and Guangdong to the Sinosphere , and campaigns in Inner Asia conquered
4067-650: The lower reaches of the Yellow River , and someone inscribed the seditious words "The First Emperor will die and his land will be divided" ( 始皇死而地分 ). The Emperor sent an imperial secretary to investigate this prophecy. No one would confess to the deed, so all living nearby were put to death, and the stone was pulverized. During his fifth tour of eastern China, the Emperor became seriously ill in Pingyuanjin ( Pingyuan County, Shandong ), and died in July or August of 210 BC, at
4150-467: The mandatory ideology of the Qin dynasty. Beginning in 213 BC, at the instigation of Li Si and to avoid scholars' comparisons of his reign with the past, Qin Shi Huang ordered most existing books to be burned , with the exception of those on astrology, agriculture, medicine, divination, and the history of the state of Qin . This would also serve to further the ongoing reformation of the writing system by removing examples of obsolete scripts. Owning
4233-462: The minds of the best scholars on the Emperor's quest. Some of those buried alive were alchemists, and this could have been a means of testing their death-defying abilities. The emperor built a system of tunnels and passageways to each of his over 200 palaces, because traveling unseen would supposedly keep him safe from evil spirits. In 211 BC, a large meteor is said to have fallen in Dongjun in
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#17328872361874316-502: The mission in 227 BC. The assassins gained access to King Zheng by pretending a diplomatic gifting of goodwill: a map of Dukang and the severed head of Fan Wuji . Qin Wuyang stepped forward first to present the map case but was overcome by fear. Jing Ke then advanced with both gifts, while explaining that his partner was trembling because "[he] had never set eyes on the Son of Heaven ". When
4399-436: The mystical Mount Penglai . They sought Anqi Sheng , a thousand-year-old magician who had supposedly invited Qin Shi Huang during a chance meeting during his travels. The expedition never returned, perhaps for fear of the consequences of failure. Legends claim that they reached Japan and colonized it. It is also possible that the Emperor's book burning, which exempted alchemical works, could be seen as an attempt to focus
4482-399: The news could trigger a general uprising during the two months' travel for the imperial entourage to return to the capital Xianyang. Li Si decided to hide the emperor's death: the only members of the entourage to be informed were a younger son, Ying Huhai , the eunuch Zhao Gao , and five or six favourite eunuchs. Li Si ordered carts of rotten fish to be carried before and behind the wagon of
4565-480: The palace in Shaqiu prefecture , about two months travel from Xianyang, at the age of 49. The cause of Qin Shi Huang's death remains unknown, though he had been worn down by his many years of rule. One hypothesis holds that he was poisoned by an elixir containing mercury , given to him by his court alchemists and physicians in his quest for immortality. Upon witnessing the Emperor's death, Chancellor Li Si feared
4648-509: The palaces of Xianyang in 206 BC. Recent research suggests that this "burying Confucian scholars alive" is a Confucian martyrs' legend. More probably, the emperor ordered the execution of a group of alchemists who had deceived him. In the subsequent Han dynasty, the Confucian scholars, who had served the Qin loyally, used this incident to distance themselves from the failed regime. Kong Anguo ( c. 165 – c. 74 BC ),
4731-408: The personal name of Qin Shi Huang as Ying Zheng, with Yíng ( 嬴 ) taken as the surname and Zheng ( 政 ) the given name. However, in ancient China, the naming convention differed, and the clan name Zhao ( 趙 ), the place where he was born and raised, may be used as the surname. Unlike modern Chinese names , the nobility of ancient China had two distinct surnames: the ancestral name ( 姓 ) comprised
4814-412: The policy of destruction by both the Qin dynasty and the rebels (of which Liu Bang and Xiang Yu were the examples cited as they entered the capital city Xianyang one after the other.): As the smoke from burning bamboo and silk clears, the empire is weakened. (The) Hangu Pass and the Yellow River guard the domain of Qin Shi Huang in vain. Pits of ash were not yet cold, disorder reigned east of
4897-689: The political chaos of the Warring States period , Qin Shi Huang and Li Si worked to completely abolish the feudal system of loose alliances and federations. They organized the empire into administrative units and subunits: first 36 (later 40) commanderies , then counties , townships, and hundred-family units (里, Li , roughly corresponding to modern-day subdistricts and communities ). People assigned to these units would no longer be identified by their native region or former feudal state, for example "Chu person" (楚人, Chu rén ). Appointments were to be based on merit instead of hereditary right. Qin Shi Huang and Li Si unified China economically by standardizing
4980-548: The present shall have his family executed. Any official who sees the violations but fails to report them is equally guilty. Anyone who has failed to burn the books after thirty days of this announcement shall be subjected to tattooing and be sent to build the Great Wall . The books that have exemption are those on medicine, divination, agriculture, and forestry. Those who have interest in laws shall instead study from officials. Three categories of books were viewed by Li Si to be most dangerous politically. These were poetry (particularly
5063-408: The queen dowager. He found a man named Lao Ai . According to The Record of Grand Historian , Lao Ai was disguised as a eunuch by plucking his beard. Later Lao Ai and queen Zhao Ji got along so well that they secretly had two sons together. Lao Ai was ennobled as Marquis, and was showered with riches. Lao Ai had been planning to replace King Zheng with one of his own sons, but during a dinner party he
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#17328872361875146-529: The reason Han dynasty scholars charged the Qin with destroying the Confucian Five Classics was partly to "slander" the state they defeated and partly because Han scholars misunderstood the nature of the texts, for it was only after the founding of the Han that Sima Qian labeled the Five Classics as "Confucian". Nylan points out that the Qin court appointed classical scholars who were specialists on
5229-461: The resurgence of feudal lords, the Emperor ordered the destruction of walls between the former states, which were now internal walls dividing the empire. However, to defend against the northern Xiongnu nomads, who had beaten back repeated campaigns against them, he ordered new walls to connect the fortifications along the empire's northern frontier. Hundreds of thousands of workers were mobilized, and an unknown number died, to build this precursor to
5312-450: The ru scholars" ("坑儒") and argued that Sima Qian had misused historical materials. Li believes that the burning the books and executing the ru scholars is a pseudo-history that is cleverly synthesized with real "burning the books" (真实的"焚书") and false "executing the rú scholars" (虚假的"坑儒"). The scholar Michael Nylan observes that despite its mythic significance, the Burning of the Books legend does not bear close scrutiny. Nylan suggests that
5395-416: The same father but from a different mother. After Zhao Zheng inherited the throne, Chengjiao rebelled at Tunliu and surrendered to the state of Zhao. Chengjiao's remaining retainers and families were executed by Zhao Zheng. As King Zheng grew older, Lü Buwei became fearful that the boy king would discover his liaison with his mother, Lady Zhao . He decided to distance himself and look for a replacement for
5478-515: The statues were commented upon and moved around from palace to palace, until they were finally destroyed in the 4th century AD, but no illustration has remained. While the previous Warring States era was one of constant warfare, it was also considered the golden age of free thought. Qin Shi Huang eliminated the Hundred Schools of Thought , which included Confucianism and other philosophies. With all other philosophies banned, Legalism became
5561-428: The story "patently false, meant both to libel Lü and to cast aspersions on the First Emperor". Claiming Lü Buwei—a merchant—as the First Emperor's biological father was meant to be especially disparaging, since later Confucian society regarded merchants as the lowest social class . In 246 BC, when King Zhuangxiang died after a short reign of just three years, he was succeeded on the throne by his 13-year-old son. At
5644-418: The surname Zhao " —or to combine the clan surname with the personal name: Sima's account of Chu describes the sixteenth year of the reign of King Kaolie as "the time when Zhao Zheng was enthroned as King of Qin". However, since modern Chinese surnames (despite usually descending from clan names) use the same character as the old ancestral names, it is much more common in modern Chinese sources to see
5727-425: The surrender of Qi in 221 BC, King Zheng reunited all of the lands of the former Kingdom of Zhou . Rather than maintain his rank as king, however, he created a new title of huángdì ( emperor ) for himself. This new title combined two titles— huáng of the mythical Three Sovereigns ( 三皇 , Sān huáng ) and the dì of the legendary Five Emperors ( 五帝 , Wŭ Dì ) of Chinese prehistory . The title
5810-611: The three great feats of ancient Chinese engineering, along with the Great Wall and the Sichuan Dujiangyan Irrigation System . As he grew old, Qin Shi Huang desperately sought the fabled elixir of life which supposedly confers immortality. In his obsessive quest, he fell prey to many fraudulent elixirs. He visited Zhifu Island three times in his search. In one case he sent Xu Fu , a Zhifu islander, with ships carrying hundreds of young men and women in search of
5893-511: The time, Zhao Zheng was still young, so Lü Buwei acted as the regent prime minister of the State of Qin, which was still waging war against the other six states . Nine years later, in 235 BC, Zhao Zheng assumed full power after Lü Buwei was banished for his involvement in a scandal with Queen Dowager Zhao. Zhao Chengjiao , the Lord Chang'an ( 长安君 ), was Zhao Zheng's legitimate half-brother, by
5976-436: Was 1.4 m (4.6 ft). In 230 BC, the state of Qin had defeated the state of Han . In 218, a former Han aristocrat named Zhang Liang swore revenge on Qin Shi Huang. He sold his valuables and hired a strongman assassin, building a heavy metal cone weighing 120 catties (roughly 160 lb or 97 kg). The two men hid among the bushes along the emperor's route over a mountain during his third imperial tour. At
6059-405: Was a close friend of Jing Ke, and wanted to avenge his death. As a famous zhu player, he was summoned to play for King Zheng. Someone in the palace recognized him and guessed his plans. Reluctant to kill such a skilled musician, the king ordered his eyes put out, and then proceeded with the performance. The king praised Gao's playing and even allowed him closer. The zhu had been weighted with
6142-641: Was common to shorten the resulting four-character Qin Shi Huangdi to 秦始皇 , variously transcribed as Qin Shihuang or Qin Shi Huang. Following his elevation as emperor, both Zheng's personal name 政 and possibly its homophone 正 became taboo . The First Emperor also arrogated the first-person pronoun 朕 for his exclusive use, and in 212 BC began calling himself The Immortal ( 真人 , Others were to address him as "Your Majesty" ( 陛下 , in person and "Your Highness" ( 上 ) in writing. According to
6225-526: Was eventually abolished during Northern Qi . In Sui and Tang dynasties, Lu Commandery became the alternative name for Yan Prefecture . It included 10 counties: Xiaqiu (瑕丘), Qufu (曲阜), Qianfeng (乾封), Sishui (泗水), Zou (鄒), Rencheng (任城), Gongqiu (龔丘), Jinxiang (金鄉), Yutai (魚台) and Laiwu (萊蕪). Qin Shi Huang Qin Shi Huang ( Chinese : 秦始皇 , pronunciation ; February 259 – 12 July 210 BC)
6308-419: Was first in line to succeed him as emperor, Li Si and the chief eunuch Zhao Gao conspired to kill Fusu, who was in league with their enemy, general Meng Tian . Meng Tian's brother Meng Yi , a senior minister, had once punished Zhao Gao. Li Si and Zhao Gao forged a letter from Qin Shi Huang commanding Fusu and General Meng to commit suicide. The plan worked, and the younger son Hu Hai started his brief reign as
6391-430: Was heard bragging about being the young king's stepfather. In 238 BC, while the king was travelling to the former capital, Yong ( 雍 ), Lao Ai seized the queen mother's seal and mobilized an army in an attempted coup d'état . When notified of the rebellion, King Zheng ordered Lü Buwei to let Lord Changping and Lord Changwen [ zh ] attack Lao Ai. Although the royal army killed hundreds of rebels at
6474-495: Was intended to appropriate some of the prestige of the Yellow Emperor , whose cult was popular in the later Warring States period and who was considered to be a founder of the Chinese people. King Zheng chose the new regnal name of First Emperor ( Shǐ Huángdì , Wade-Giles Shih Huang-ti) on the understanding that his successors would be successively titled the "Second Emperor", "Third Emperor", and so on through
6557-411: Was on the first day of Zhengyue . ) Lü Buwei's machinations later helped Yiren become King Zhuangxiang of Qin in 250 BC. However, the Shiji also claimed that the first emperor was not the actual son of Prince Yiren but that of Lü Buwei. According to this account, when Lü Buwei introduced the dancing girl to the prince, she was Lü Buwei's concubine and had already become pregnant by him, and
6640-591: Was placed under house arrest until her death many years later. Lü Buwei drank a cup of poisoned wine and committed suicide in 235 BC. Ying Zheng then assumed full power as the King of the Qin state. Replacing Lü Buwei, Li Si became the new chancellor . King Zheng and his troops continued their conquest of the neighbouring states. The state of Yan was no match for the Qin states: small and weak, it had already been harassed frequently by Qin soldiers. Crown Prince Dan of Yan plotted an assassination attempt against King Zheng, recruiting Jing Ke and Qin Wuyang for
6723-484: Was that they advocated political ideas often incompatible with the totalitarian regime. The extent of the damage to Chinese intellectual heritage is difficult to assess, for details have not been recorded in history. Several facts, however, indicate that the consequences of this event, although enduring, were not extensive. First, it is recorded in Li Si's memorial that all technological books were to be spared. Secondly, even
6806-646: Was the founder of the Qin dynasty and the first emperor of China . Rather than maintain the title of " king " ( wáng 王 ) borne by the previous Shang and Zhou rulers, he assumed the invented title of "emperor" ( huángdì 皇帝 ), which would see continuous use by monarchs in China for the next two millennia. Born in Handan, the capital of Zhao , as Ying Zheng ( 嬴政 ) or Zhao Zheng ( 趙政 ), his parents were King Zhuangxiang of Qin and Lady Zhao . The wealthy merchant Lü Buwei assisted him in succeeding his father as
6889-423: Was the purported burning of texts in 213 BCE and live burial of 460 Confucian scholars in 212 BCE ordered by Chinese emperor Qin Shi Huang . The events were alleged to have destroyed philosophical treatises of the Hundred Schools of Thought , with the goal of strengthening the official Qin governing philosophy of Legalism . Modern historians doubt the details of the story, which first appeared more than
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