The Fall of the Qin Dynasty:

An Imbalance of Political Philosophies

Tyson Luneau
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts 02 May 2011 HIST 310: Chinese Culture and Civilization

The Qin Dynasty marked the first time in history that the entire state of China would be unified under one government. After the chaos of the Warring States period, which lasted from approximately 475 BCE to 221 BCE, the powerful Qin state established the first Chinese empire. No longer would the different areas of China be governed by a variety of factions. Under the powerful and dedicated leadership of emperor Shi Huangdi, China would prosper greatly in the years to come. However, despite the Qins strong leadership and highly organized bureaucratic structure, the dynasty would fall shortly after its assumption of power. Just fifteen years after the unification of China, the Qin Dynasty fell and after a brief period of civil unrest, the Han Dynasty took shape under the leadership of Liu Bang in 202 BCE.1 But what led the Qin Dynasty to fall so quickly? While Shi Huangdis leadership proved to be very strong and he established a very efficient and successful empire, many of his policies created a great deal of civil unrest. Ultimately, the Qin Dynasty only lasted for a short span of fifteen years due to its overwhelming reliance on legalist philosophy and policy. Unlike more successful and longer-lasting empires like the Han and Tang, the Qin state did not balance legalist ideas about government with those of other philosophies, resulting in a harsh style of rule that greatly upset many of the people of China. Had the Shi Huangdi and his successor, Qin Er Shi, balanced these ideas with those of other Chinese philosophies like Confucianism and Daoism, the Qin Dynasty could have potentially become a very successful and long-lasting empire. In order to understand the policies which led to the fall of the Qin Dynasty, one must first understand the Legalist doctrine. The exact origin or establishment of the legalist philosophy and school of thought is often debated. While the Legalist doctrine was refined and organized by
Michael Loewe, The Former Han Dynasty in The Chin and Han Empires, 221 B.C. A.D. 220, vol. 1, The Cambridge History of China, ed. Denis Twitchett & Michael Loewe (New York: Cambridge University Press, 1986), 20-21.
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figures like Han Fei Tzu and Li Si, many of the ideas about strict adherence to law and moral conduct date back as far as the 7th century BCE, with important figures such as Kwan Chung (708-643 BCE) and Tzechan (543-522 BCE) contributing to such early influences. The ideas of these two important figures would dictate the philosophy that would become the Legalist doctrine.2 Although it draws certain influences from other philosophies like Confucianism, Daoism, and the ideas of Motze, Legalism managed to redefine the Chinese idea of law, narrowing it down to a simple definition. According to Han Fei Tzu, Law is that which is observed by the government as orders and regulations, and observed by the people as standards of reward and punishment. Reward lies in obeying the law; punishment is meted out to those who disobey.3 From these other philosophies, Legalism drew several ideas. The philosophy is often referred to as a merging of the three school of thought mentioned previously. Legalism borrowed the concept of li, referred to as the concept of law that governments and people must abide by, from Confucianism. From Taoism, Legalists derived the ideas of minimalism and natural order, which states that things will work out naturally if personal involvement is not pursued. And from the Moti school of thought, Legalism borrowed the idea of uniformity, applied to the idea of li. By merging ideas from these three schools of thought, early Legalists were able to apply their findings to government in a very efficient and practical manner.4

Liang Chi Chao, History of Chinese Political Thought, trans. L.T. Chen (New York: AMS Press, 1969),

113.
3 4

Liang, 114. Liang, 114-115.

Above all, Legalists hold the supremacy and centralization of authority as the most important features of government. Furthermore, Legalists proposed the idea that a ruler must have complete and unquestioned authority. Zhengyuan Fu, a modern Chinese historian and professor, stated the following about the Legalist assumption of power:

The legalists believed that to ensure the domination of the ruler over his subjects, his power must extend to all aspects of social life that is, he must have total control. They not only formulated justification for their ideal totalitarian social order but also devised a blueprint of political institutions, policy programs, and specific measure to realize their political ideal.5

To hold Legalism in a completely harsh light would be impractical however. The Legalist doctrine, through the use of an organized and efficient central state, brought about several benefits. Particularly during the Qin era, Legalism provided a way of governing that is commonly seen as more practical than its Confucian predecessors. According to Frances Wood, author of Chinas First Emperor and His Terracotta Warriors, the legalists were good because they set up an administration run by men of talent, promoted economic growth through the encouragement of agriculture, standardization and improvements in communication, and set out clear laws y which all lived.6 Still, Legalism came as a shock to the Chinese people who, after experiencing the chaos and discord of the Warring States period, were accustomed to the lack of a central authority and individual interpretations of law. Realistically, all of China, or even a slim majority of the land, had never been unified under one ruler. The direct transition into a Legalist system with Shi Huangdi as the supreme ruler of the land was not well received by many of the people.

Zhengyuan Fu, Chinas Legalists: The Earliest Totalitarians and Their Art of Ruling (Armunk, NY: M.E. Sharpe, 996), 33. 6 Frances Wood, Chinas First Emperor and His Terracotta Warriors (New York: St. Martins Press, 2007), 46-47.

Ultimately, China was not ready for such a drastic change in government after the overwhelming disunion experienced during the Three Dynasties and the Warring States periods.7 But how did Shi Huangdis rule fit into all of this disapproval? There are often two distinct interpretations of Qin Shi Huangdi, Chinas first emperor. Some take the view that the Qin Dynasty represented a time of great political and economic progress. While he exhibited harsh, sometimes merciless rule, there were a number of great advancements that came about under his rule. Perhaps the most recognized achievement of the Qin era was the construction of the Great Wall. Though the way in which it was built is questionable, it served not only as a valuable defense against nomadic enemy tribes, but also as a symbol of Chinese prestige and engineering prowess. In The Tiger of Chin, historian Leonard Cottrell explained the significance and size of the Great Wall in the following passage:

So much has been written about this stupendous monument that it is difficult to look at it with fresh, unprejudiced eyes. As a piece of ancient military engineering, there is nothing with which it can be remotely comparedallowing for its numerous loops and spurs, the total length of the Great Wall is about 2,240 miles. If built in Europe, in the form of a rectangle, the wall would enclose large parts of France, Italy, Austria, Switzerland, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Poland, and a segment of Russia. In the United States, it would completely surround the combined area of Utah, Colorado, Arizona, and New Mexicoaccording to astronomers it would e visible from the moon, with the naked eyeAll of this would be remarkable enough if the Wall had been built in relatively flat land, with occasional low hills, as in the case of the Roman Wall in Britain. But to appreciate the full wonder of Shi Huang Tis achievement, one must imagine this enormous and massive system of defenses traversing the peaks of the highest Scottish mountains, or running halfway up the Rockies. Near the Tibetan frontier, the Wall climbed to a height of six thousand feet8

Joseph R. Levenson and Franz Schurmann, China: An Interpretive History (Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1969), 79-80. 8 Leonard Cottrell, The Tiger of Chin: The Dramatic Emergence of China as a Nation (New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1962), 152-153.

Aside from its sheer size, the Wall also provided a sense of pride and security for those living near it. No longer would the inhabitants of northern China have to live under the constant fear of attack from outside barbarians. The Wall was also a symbol of advanced civilization and wealth for the nation, showcasing its superiority over the nomadic people that lay outside its boundaries.9 The Great Wall was but one of many public works projects that began under the reign of Shi Huangdi. During the Qin era, a network of roads was created and built, connecting many major Chinese cities. The increased ease of transportation greatly benefited domestic commerce and trade. An additional network of transportation and trade was developed with the expansion of previously existing canals and construction of several major canals, which not only increased the ease of domestic trade, but also assisted with irrigation.10 The emperor also called for a number of monuments and important buildings, including the building of a new imperial palace.11 Another great achievement of the Qin Dynasty involved the standardization of weights, measurements, and currency. This was part of the dynastys quest for total unification. The emperor established a single currency, the copper coin, to replace the numerous currencies that existed during the Warring States period and to improve the efficiency of domestic trade. The emperor also standardized the written language of China, as well as the widths of cart axles, so as to improve communication and transportation.12

Cottrell, 156. W. Scott Morton and Charlton M. Lewis, China: Its History and Culture, 4th ed. (Blacklick, OH: McGraw-Hill Professional, 2004), 46, eBrary, http://site.ebrary.com/lib/mcla/docDetail.action?docID=10083588 (accessed April 29, 2011). 11 David C. Wright, History of China (Westport CT: Greenwood Press, 2001), 46-47, eBrary, http://site.ebrary.com/lib/mcla/docDetail.action?docID=10040736 (accessed April 29, 2011). 12 Morton and Lewis, 46.
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The emperors political reforms achievements were perhaps some of the most influential of all Qin policies. These political reforms, particularly the beginning of centralization and the expansion of bureaucracy, began with the initial unification of China in 221 BCE, with the establishment of the dynasty. The emperor divided China into 36 provinces, each of which was subdivided into separate counties. Each province, commonly referred to as a commandery, was appointed a governor, military commander, and Imperial inspector by the central government. These posts, unlike many of previous bureaucracies established during the Zhou period, were not hereditary, and future officials were to be appointed by the central government.13 Because Qin China was much smaller in land area and population than China today, maintenance of order and monitoring the bureaucracy were both much easier. As mentioned, the establishment of a road system in China, which stretched for around 22,000 miles, helped to improve transportation within the nation. This increased ease of transportation aided the central government in this monitoring process, and it even allowed the emperor himself to complete five national tours.14 These grand achievements in government, economy, infrastructure, and national identity were the major factors that allowed for not only the initial unification of China, but for the perseverance of the state. And while the Qin Dynasty only lasted for a mere fifteen years, its legacy was long-lasting and China remained as a unified state for all of the dynasties that would follow, save for small periods of disunion. However, the Qin Dynasty was certainly not a completely positive force, nor is it always viewed in this light.

Edgar Kiser and Yong Cai, War and Bureaucratization in Qin China: Exploring an Anomalous Case, American Sociological Review 68, no.4 (August 2003): 528-529, http://www.jstor.org/stable/1519737 (accessed April 30, 2011). 14 Kisser and Yong, 529.

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The second and perhaps most common interpretation suggests that Shi Huangdi was a tyrant who was bent on destruction. In the following excerpt, Joseph R. Levenson and Franz Schurmann, authors of China: An Interpretive History, explain this common view on the first emperor: Chinese scholars of later ages have always viewed the Chin dynasty with extreme distaste. The image of Chin Shih Huang-ti as a usurper, murderer, burner of books, and oppressor of the masses has remained as firmly embedded in China as the image of Nero has remained in the West. To some extent, the hatred of Chinas first emperor stems from the fact that he was the one who snapped the thread to the golden age of antiquity.1516

During his reign, Shi Huangdi committed a number of atrocities that today are viewed as irrational, destructive, and sadistic. The infamous Qin book burning that occurred around the year 212 BCE was part of the emperors process of assuming total intellectual control. Shi Huangdi attempted to wipe away any traces of Confucian, Daoist, or any other type of literature that was deemed impractical. He staged public burnings of these texts, as well as the destruction of numerous historical artifacts that were associated with these prohibited philosophies.17 The emperor only saved those texts which he deemed practical, such as books concerning medicine, agriculture, pharmacy, arboriculture, and other important aspects of survival. He eliminated anything which dealt with or told of the ways of the past.18 The emperor did not stop at the texts of philosophies that did not fall in line with this Legalist view. The emperor also attempted to erase certain portions of history. He called for the
Levenson and Schurmann, 79. Qin, Chin, and Tsin are all variable spellings that refer to the same dynasty. The spellings differentiate based on.. 17 Ssu-ma Chien, The Basic Annals of Pre-Han China, vol. 1, The Grand Scribes Records, trans. Tsai-Fa Cheng, Zongli Lu, William H. Neinhauser, Jr., and Robert Reynolds (Indianapolis: Indiana University Press, 1994), 150. 18 Jacques Gernet, Ancient China: From the Beginnings to the Empire (Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1968), 133.
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elimination of the historical records of the other Warring States, so as to eliminate any sort of possible opposition to Qin rule. Despite protest from scholars who attempted to justify the retaining of these important records, many were lost in the burning of books and the purge of opposing intellect.19 The emperor took this intellectual purge a step further when certain scholars resisted the book burnings. Ssu-ma Chien, one of the most well regarded Chinese historians, mentioned this in The Grand Scribes Records, stating the following:

Thus he had Imperial Scribes interrogate the various masters. The masters accused and implicated one another to extricate themselves. Those who violated prohibitions, more than 460 of them, he had trapped [and executed] at Hsien-yang, letting the world know it, in order to warn those [who might commit the same crime] later. He levied more exiles and sent them to the frontiers.20 This purge of opposing ideology was greatly influenced by Qins legalist background. The emperor justified his actions as a means to impose total control over his subjects. These actions were also performed to promote uniformity among the Chinese. The book burnings and execution of scholars were but two examples of this attempt to achieve uniformity. The central government also seized private weapons and means of warfare, in order to further consolidate power and establish a military monopoly.21 The emperor also went as far as to promote all forms of criticism, and severely punished those whom he thought attempted to offer such thoughts or words. 22 Shi Huangdi also extended his cruelty to those who were enlisted to complete his various public works projects. While some of these projects greatly benefited the security, economy, and
19 20

Wood, 81 Ssu-ma Chien, 150. 21 Levenson and Schurmann, 71. 22 Gernet, 133.

infrastructure of China, those who were forced to build them often suffered greatly. Hundreds of thousands of Chinese were forced into extremely difficult manual labor to build these projects, and the emperor tortured and killed those who resisted or did not perform their duties to his expectations.23 Regardless of the his popular opinion or moral implications, Shi Huangdi proved himself as an effective emperor who brought China together as a single nation for the first time in history. However, the first emperors death in 210 BCE marked the beginning of the end for the Qin Dynasty. Ironically, the emperor died during middle age while on a trip to rural western China to consult several religious leaders about an elixir of immortality. His chief aid, Li Si, and Zhao Gao, leader of the eunuchs chose to keep the emperors death until a new ruler could be secured for the empire.24 A great deal of discord erupted upon the death of the first emperor. Prior to his death in 210 BCE, Shi Huangdi sent a letter to his eldest son, Fu-Su, ordering to return to Hsien-yang to succeed him and take the throne. However, the letter was intercepted by a group that was plotting against Shi Huangdi, and Fu-Su received a false letter containing accusations of disloyalty that also ordered him, as well as general Meng Tien, to commit suicide. Fu-Su obeyed this order promptly, and after some doubt and a short prison sentence, Meng Tien followed suit. The plotters succeeded in their mission when their desired successor, Hu-hai, took the throne in 209 BCE, taking the name Qin Er-Shi Huangdi, August Emperor of the Second Generation.25

Wright, 46-47 Morton and Lewis, 47. 25 Derk Bodde, The State and Empire of Chin in The Chin and Han Empires, 221 B.C. A.D. 220, vol. 1, The Cambridge History of China , ed. Denis Twitchett and Michael Loewe (New York: Cambridge University Press, 1986), 81-82.
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The second emperor made a daring attempt to carry out many of the ambitious policies of his predecessor. Er-Shi continued to utilize harsh Legalist-influenced brutality in the execution of those who opposed his rule. The famed Chinese historian Ssu-ma Chien noted the following instances in his grand records:

Thus, he proceeded to kill the great vassals and the noble scions. In one criminal case, petty officers, his close attendants, and the three officials of the [Palace] Attendants were all involved; none of them were able to remain in their positions, and six noble scions were slaughtered in TuThe Second Emperor sent an envoy with a decree for Chiang-lu: You failed to serve as vassals and this crime demands your death. The officers should carry out the law at once!26 The second emperors decision to follow in the footsteps of his predecessor, Shi Huangdi, was daring at best. The first emperor, although sometimes cruel in intention, was a strong and able leader who accomplished a great deal of feats in his short reign. It was questioned as to whether Er-Shi could live up to such an expectation. He attempted to assert his power again within his first year in the construction of a new palace, as well as a new defense system for Hsien-yang, the capital of the Qin Dynasty. He established all of this in hopes of extending the power and prestige of the dynasty, as well as to assert himself as an equally powerful and qualified ruler.27 However, the chaos that ensued within the concluding years of the Qin Dynasty proved to be too much for the new emperor. A series of rebellions broke out at the hands of several rebel factions, led by Chen She, a former farm laborer, Liu Bang, who would later found the Han Dynasty, and Hsiang Yu, an initial ally of Liu Bang who would later turn against him. These different rebel factions, who were responsible for widespread slaughters of commendery

26 27

Ssu-ma Chien, 157. Ssu-ma Chien, 157-158.

governors and other low-level bureaucratic officials, would prove to be one of the main factors in the decline of the Qin state.28 After again displaying his brutality through the severe punishment and execution of veteran statesman Li Ssu, the second emperor became disillusioned. Derk Bodde explained the emperors final months of decline in 207 BCE in his work, The State and Empire of Chin, in the following excerpt: on a date corresponding to 27 September 207m we are told that Chao Kao [appointed Chancellor after Li Ssus death], presented a deer to the Second Emperor in the court, but called it a horse. Most or all of the courtiers acquiesced in the deception, thus inducing the emperor to believe he was suffering from hallucinations. He went into retirement in an isolated palace, where, sometime during the first half of October, Chao Kao engineered the appearance of a fake armed gang of bandit rebels. In the ensuing disorder, which involved some fighting, the Second Emperor committed suicide.29

With Er-Shi eliminated, Chao Kao enlisted Tzu-ying, grandson of the First Emperor, as a puppet ruler. Although, Tzu-ying proved to be an extremely ineffective and cowardly ruler, he summoned the courage to execute Chao Kao just a few weeks after his assumption of power. However, his inability to rule over an already unstable China took its toll on the empire when rebel leader Liu Bang entered the Qin capital region and demanded the submission of Tzu-ying in December of 207 BCE. According to Bodde, when Liu Pangs superior, Hsiang Yu, came in turn to Hsien-yang with his forces a couple of months later (January/February 206), he sacked the city, burned the palaces with a resulting loss of literature that was possibly even greater than that caused by the earlier official burning of the books, and executed Tzu-ying.30

28 29

Bodde, 83. Bodde, 84. 30 Bodde, 84.

There are certainly a number of factors that contributed to the fall of the Qin state, both on the surface and in ideology. However, all of these factors can essentially be traced back to the imbalance of political philosophy wielded by the emperors of the Qin Dynasty. The dynastys overwhelming use of Legalist philosophy was met with a great deal of public discontent. When this Legalist authority was transferred to the second and third emperors, who did not possess the ability to properly wield such power while maintaining order, chaos ensued as the people resisted the harsh rule that had been imposed upon them for over a decade. There is even an argument that the Qin states use of absolute power went beyond the ideas and principles contained within the Legalist philosophy. Although Legalism has no official, single-authored text like other Chinese philosophies like Confucianism and Daoism, the Laozi is often referred to as the work by which Legalists act and govern. However, there is question as to whether or not the actions of Shi Huangdi and Er-Shi were in accordance with the guidelines established in the Laozi. In an article titled The Original Compilation of the Laozi, Hongkyung Kim, a professor at the State University of New York at Stony Brook, explained the contradictory nature of Qins actions. In the article, he asked, How could the Laozi be produced on the Qin soil, especially considering the fact that the Laozi criticizes the pursuit of supreme power? This is a plausible question. The political orientation of Qin, which adopted a strong legalism, never fully reconciled with the Laozi.31 Nonetheless, the Qin rulers relied on their own strict interpretation of Legalism. Unlike its Confucian predecessor, the Zhou Dynasty, the Qin Dynasty held the rule of law above all. In

Hongkyung Kim, The Original Compilation of the Laozi: A Contending Theory on its Qin Origin, Journal of Chinese Philosophy 34, no. 4 (2007): 619, http://libproxy.mcla.edu:2074/gtx/infomark.do?&contentSet=IACDocuments&type=retrieve&tabID=T007&prodId=AONE&docId=A171804880&source=gale&srcprod=AONE&us erGroupName=mlin_w_masscol&version=1.0 (accessed April 27, 2011).

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The History of Chinese Political Thought, Liang Chi-Chao states the following in regard to the Qin philosophy of Legalism: The chief aim of the Legalist school is not to follow the virtue which is occasional, but to apply the law which is fixed. This is a misuse of the idea of the law of nature to human affairs. What is meant by fixed is that there exists an unchangeable law of cause and effect which determines all things. By this law we can forsee the future, and can have a certain knowledge of what results may be expected to follow.32

Still, the Qin system was difficult for the people of China to digest. As mentioned previously, the lack of order experienced during the Warring States period was in very sharp contrast with the systematic centralized power exhibited by Shi Huangdi. In Ancient China, Jacques Gernet states that Chin had always been poor and backward, and had long been accustomed to the frugal and laborious lifebut the other Chinese peoples were more evolved and were unable to bear such a harsh regime. They had preserved their social and cultural traditions despite the political changes which had taken place.33 Essentially, only a small portion of the Chinese population would sit idly while the Qin rulers assumed absolute power. In a land that is as diverse in cultural traditions as China, such an uncompromising political philosophy such as Legalism is bound to fail if utilized exclusively. Despite its great achievements, the Qin Dynasty was established only to fail based upon its reliance on a strictly Legalist system of government. And while it certainly left a lasting impact on the Chinese idea of centralized rule and bureaucracy, the manner in which such a government deals with its constituents has rarely mimicked that of the Qin era, save for part of the twentieth-century, during Mao Zedongs Great Cultural Revolution. During this era, Mao

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Liang, 134 Gernet, 134.

often referred to and mimicked the ruling style of Shi Huangdi, even going as far as to claim that he had outdone the first emperor.34 Still, for all of his ideological failings, Shi Huangdi was a prime example of a strong, dedicated ruler. It is indeed difficult to find any being that, if given the sort of power possessed by Shi Huangdi, would not execute the same sorts of orders. When such power was transferred to rulers who were less able and less qualified to run such a government, the injustices grew larger and more frequent. In their interpretive history of China, Levenson and Schurmann stated the following on this issue:

Power is always hard to institutionalize. When power is bound up with a single great man, the dilemma created by his demise is particularly acute. Lesser men begin to struggle for power and often succeed in blunting its effectiveness. Where a society is ruled by power alone and regular authority is weakly established, a time of danger has come.35

In understanding the fall of the Qin Dynasty, one must understand how the strict reliance on Legalism as a political philosophy created the absolute power wielded by its emperors. It is in the tradition of all Chinese dynasties that there are powerful, able rulers as do exist weak, effectively useless ones. When such power is granted to a ruler that is incapable of properly wielding it, the situation becomes a recipe for disaster. In the case of Qin, this strict following of Legalism was destined to fail, regardless of how able the first emperor was. Had Shi Huangdi been able to blend certain elements of Confucianism or Daoism, the Qin Dynasty may have become a prosperous and long-lasting era in Chinese history. The succeeding governments, most notably the Han, were able to utilize certain aspects of Qin centralization and bureaucracy without the absolutism or corruption that became a part of its existence.

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Wood, 144-145 Levenson and Schurmann, 80.