• Zhou kings were thought to be the link between the gods and people. The Mandate of Heaven was a heavenly law that gave Zhou kings the power to rule. The Mandate of Heaven also gave people rights.

• The Dao was the proper way kings were to rule their people.

A mandate is a formal command to rule or do something

important

• Wu Wang and his followers rebelled against the Shang dynasty and created the Zhou dynasty.

• The Zhou dynasty ruled longer than any other dynasty in Chinese history. Wu Wang

• Kings in the Zhou dynasty served at the head of the government. In a bureaucracy, officials are responsible for different areas of government that all serve under the king.

• The Zhou kingdom was divided into smaller territories. Each territory was led by an aristocrat.

Contributions of the Zhou Dynasties

• Chopsticks were invented, which changed the way people ate their food.

• Irrigation and flood-control systems were developed during the Zhou dynasty. Farm tools, such as the plow, were developed.

• Silk was an important trade item during the Zhou dynasty.

• Fighting lasted for almost 200 years during the “Period of the Warring States.”

Things invented during this

conflict1. Saddle & Stirrup2. Crossbows

The Zhou Dynasty

• What was the Mandate of Heaven?– It was a divine right given to the king to rule as long as he

ruled well. If he ruled poorly, others had the right to overthrow him!

• What is feudalism?– System of government where the king owns all the land.

He gives land to loyal supporters & in exchange they have to provide soldiers to fight for the king. Peasants, called serfs, work the land for the king.

7

• Three major theories—Confucianism, Daoism, and Legalism—were developed to reinstate peace after the Period of the Warring States.

• Confucianism isn’t properly speaking a religion; it’s a way of behaving so you’ll do the right things.

• Confucius was a great thinker and teacher, who believed that people needed a sense of duty to be good.

• Confucianism taught that all men with a talent for government should take part in government.

• This idea opened government up to the lower classes. This caused him to be disliked by the aristocrats. How dare Confucius

think the peasants are as good as us!

Excerpt from The Analects of Confucius, c.400 BCE

“Do not do unto others, what you would not want

others to do to you”

“If you make a mistake

and do not correct it, this is called a mistake”