Qin Shi Huang: The First Emperor of China

Meet Qin Shi Huang (259–210 BCE), China’s first emperor and a man whose legacy shaped the country forever. In this episode of Brief History of China, we dive into his remarkable story—one of the most influential emperors in Chinese history. As I mentioned in my last video, Qin Shi Huang was a strong supporter of Legalism and transformed China’s political system, language, and much more. Though the Qin dynasty lasted only 15 years, his impact remains undeniable today. From the ambitious beginnings of the Great Wall to the largest known burial site on Earth, his fingerprints are still everywhere in modern China.

0:00 Intro
0:18 He United China
1:02 He Standardised Everything
1:57 He Built the Great Wall
2:27 He Ended the Feudal System
2:41 His Capital: Xi’an
3:04 His Quest for Immortality
3:22 His Mausoleum: Largest on Earth
4:00 Fall of a Giant
4:27 Coming Up: Buddhism

#china #chinahistory #qinshihuang #qindynasty #greatwall #greatwallofchina #terracottaarmy #mausoleum #history #ancientchina #chineseculture

Image credits:
EN-WarringStatesAll260BCE by Philg88 is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0. No changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/...
Chinese plain 5c. BC-en by Hugo Lopez –Yug is licensed under CC-BY-SA-3.0. No changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/...
Qin Unification by SY is licensed under CC-BY-SA-4.0. No changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/...
Qin Weight Iron by Zcm11 is licensed under CC-BY-SA-3.0. No changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/...
Map of sinitic languages full-en by Wyunhe is licensed under CC-BY-3.0. No changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/...