Han Achievements
Warfare:
The Han had a large army which could fight well because of its’
new technologies. They improved how iron was made and because of
this advancement they made stronger armor. They made fish-scale
armor that flexed with the body. They were the first to make iron
swords that were very long so they could swing at an enemy from a safer
distance. They also made effective cross bows. One of their more
creative inventions was the kite. They used it to measure widths of
guarded walls of their enemies, to send messages from one part of their
army to another and even made bamboo pipes on kites to frighten enemy
troops. When the kite was flown as night the bamboo pipes made a
sound which sounded like “beware, beware” coming from ghostly spirits.
Government
The Han used the idea of a centralized government as did the Qin
dynasty. The Han however used Confucian ideas of governing with
ethical behavior. The government was a bureaucracy which means it
was structured as a pyramid of power. There were few people at the
top as government officials who lived in the capital and advised the
highest ruler, the emperor. Lower level officials lived throughout the
empire and were to check roads and canals, and make sure enough
grain was stored in case of famine. Before the Han dynasty government
officials were chosen by the social level. But the Han hired officials
based on their ability to and knowledge. The young men were
required to learn 5 classic books by heart and then take a test that took
several days. If they passed they could be hired to be a civil servant ( a
civilian who would work in government). They could not work in their
own home district so they would not favor their friends or relatives. They
were evaluated every 3 years to see if they should be promoted, demoted
or fired.
Agriculture
Farmers had to grow food for their family and grain to be stored in
the granary – grain storehouses. They made their own clothing, built
their homes and gave one month of unpaid labor to the government to
build canals and roads. Inventions that helped them farm were a chain
pump to move water from low irrigation ditches and canals to the fields.
The advanced iron making allowed them to have stronger plows. The
invention of the wheelbarrow allowed them to move their goods more
easily than on their backs or in buckets from their shoulders.
Industry
The two biggest industries were salt and silk. Salt was used to
preserve meat and vegetables. The Han people of the Han dynasty
learned how to mine salt from the earth instead of only using sea salt.
They used iron tipped bamboo drills and drilled until they reached salt
water. A hollow bamboo pole with a valve was dropped into the well.
The pole filled with water, the valve was closed and the pole brought up.
The water was boiled until all the water evaporated and only the salt
remained. Silk is made from silk worms’ cocoons. A machine that was
foot powered allowed the silk threads to be wound on a large reel ready
to be used to weave into cloth.
Art
At first in China people wrote and drew on bamboo and silk. Silk
was easy to roll into scrolls but very expensive. Bamboo strips were
placed side by side and written on vertically. Art and writing advanced
with the invention of paper. Paper was made from silk, hemp fibers,
bamboo, seaweed and straw. The materials were boiled into a soupy
pulp, A screen was dipped into the pulp to be taken out of the pot. When
the pulp dried on the screen you had paper! Paper allowed for the art
form of calligraphy to develop. Calligraphy is a valued style of writing
that flowed naturally as though it was inspired by nature.
Medicine
Ancient Chinese medical practices are still used today. The
ancient Chinese thought that illness was caused by the forces of yin and
yang being out of balance. Healers tried to restore the balance. On
healing practice was acupuncture. Thin needles are inserted into
specific parts on the body to rebalance the yin and yang. The Chinese
also learned how to listen to a heartbeat and feel a pulse to know the
health of a person. They discovered that blood circulates from the
heart through the body and back to the heart. They also realized that
a type of wine could be used as an anesthetic.
Science
The Chinese were advanced astronomers studying the heavens.
They discovered the moon shines because it reflects the light of the sun
and learned how solar eclipses happen when the moon blocks the view of
the sun. They invented a seismograph to detect earthquakes. The
bronze seismograph had a pendulum inside that vibrated when the earth
shook and released one of eight balls. The ball fell in the direction of the
earthquake so they knew of earthquakes from several hundred miles
away. They also invented a magnetic compass to determine which way
is north or south.