History of the Great Wall of China
Sir Dig-a-Lot spoke, “The Qin dynasty lasted for 15 years in China from 221 BC to 206 BC. Emperor Qin was the first one to pull China together as one country. His methods of doing so were not really great though.”
Rohan asked, “What do you mean, Sir Dig-a-Lot?”
Sir Dig-a-Lot said, “Well, emperor Qin was the first one to introduce bureaucracy in his kingdom. He divided it into 36 provinces, each overlooked by two officials. However, he didn’t trust his own people and set up a spy system that made sure the appointed people were working.
He took away all the land from the nobles because he didn’t want them to be powerful. He also allotted jobs to the people in his kingdom and if anyone didn’t want to do their assigned job, they were sent to work on the Great Wall of China.
He also practiced censorship- he destroyed many books and over 400 scholars who disagreed with him were buried alive.”
Rohan said, “Did he do anything good for his kingdom?”
Sir Dig-a-Lot smiled and said, “Well yes Rohan. He standardized weights, currency, language and laws. He also introduced a code of law which helped instill discipline in the kingdom. His greatest contribution was having built the Great Wall of China.
Although many lives were lost during its construction it proved to be a great strategic structure during wars. The Qin dynasty pretty much ended with Emperor Qin Shi Huang’s death in 212 BC. His son could not rule the kingdom as sternly and people overthrew the rule.”
Rohan said, “In a way it was good that it ended.”
Sir Dig-a-Lot said, “Yes, it was. But the Qin dynasty lay the foundation for all future dynasties.”
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