Tuesday, April 06, 2010

Qin Shi Huangdi review: the First Emperor and his reign

First emperor review . . .

1. The life of Shi Huang Di: a) 1200 BCE b) 200 BCE c) 200 AD d) it is fictitious.
2. Shi Huang Di’s version of the Great Wall was called a “precursor” to the later Great Wall. Precursor means
a) small version b) earlier example c) moveable pointer
3. Tomb: a) monument b) mound c) subterranean
d) mausoleum.
4. As an audacious autocrat the First Emperor burned and banned writing by __. a) Lao Tzu b) Tao c) Confucius d) Buddha.
5. The importance of his reign is intact after 2 millennium. That would be some a) 200 b) 2 thousand c) 2 million years.
6. As a young king, Huangdi began construction on a) roads b) canals c) obeisks d) his mausoleum.
7. When a youth becomes king he usually has a powerful member of the court who acts as his guide to decision-making. That person’s title? a) proxy b) consort c) regent d) caretaker.
8. Shi Huang Di’s period of rule was preceded by a period of civil war known as a) Warring states b) Confucian c) Primitive d) Troubles.
9. Shi Huang Di unified China economically by standardizing the Chinese units of measurements such as weights and measures, the currency, the length of the axles of carts (so every cart could run smoothly in the ruts of the new roads). He was not able to upgrade the legal system. T / F
10. What was his most important reform, according to Wikipedia?
a) silk b) currency c) writing d) elephants.
11. Shi Huang Di seriously sought the elixir of life, a magical potion which reputedly would enable immortality.
What is an elixir? a) health-giving drink b) magical cape or hat c) a pool of magical water d) hallucinogenic drug.
12. The huge terra cotta army buried with Shi Huang Di lies near which city? a) Beijing b) Shanghai c) Xi’an d) Hong Kong.
13. Qin survived an attempt at violent overthrow by a rival. Such a revolutionary attempt to take over the kingdom is called a
a) coup b) massacre c) liaison d) decapitation.
14. Qin, once known as King Zheng, tried to create a meritocracy in his governmental workers. T / F
15. Qin declared the symbol of his reign was fire and the color of all royal garments was red. T / F
16. The tribes which threatened the empire from the north were migratory, or a) golads b) morads c) nomads d) rolling stones.
17. In one of his greatest projects, the Ling Qu Canal was dug by Qin in the a) north b) south of the nation.
18. Epang Gong refers to a a) concubine b) palace c) river d) ruler in the city of Xi'an.
19. Many of the people in the Chinese court were referred to as eunuchs. This means that they were a) congenital b) silly c) asthmatic d) castrated.
20. Qin's main tomb has been exhumed but was closed to await more advanced archaeological technology. T / F


1. b 2. b 3. d 4. c 5. b 6.d 7. c 8. a 9. F 10. c 11. a 12. c
13. a 14. T 15. F 16. c 17. b 18. b 19.d 20. F