world
🏯 1. QIN DYNASTY — CHINA
Time: 221–206 BCE
Important ruler: Qin Shi Huang
What you need to know:
The Qin Dynasty unified China by conquering the other Chinese states.
Qin Shi Huang created a strong centralized government, meaning the emperor had most of the power.
The Qin followed Legalism, which believed people needed strict laws and harsh punishments to maintain order.
The government standardized writing, weights, measurements, and currency, making the empire easier to control.
The Qin used forced labor for huge construction projects, including roads and parts of the Great Wall.
The dynasty was very short because its harsh rule, high taxes, and forced labor caused resentment and rebellion.
⭐ Remember:
Qin = Unification + Legalism + Centralized government + Harsh rule
🪷 2. MAURYA DYNASTY — INDIA
Time: c. 322–185 BCE
Chandragupta Maurya
Founded the Maurya Dynasty.
Created a large, centralized empire.
Used a strong military and bureaucracy to control the empire.
Divided the empire into provinces and collected taxes.
Ashoka
Ashoka became one of the most important Mauryan rulers.
At first, he was a military conqueror and expanded the empire through warfare.
After the Kalinga War, he was disturbed by the suffering caused by the war and changed his approach to ruling.
He adopted Buddhism and began promoting dharma.
⭐ Remember:
Chandragupta = founded the empire
Ashoka = Buddhism + Dharma + Edicts
🪨 3. THE EDICTS OF ASHOKA / ROCK & PILLAR EDICTS
These are very important.
Ashoka had his messages carved into rocks and stone pillars throughout his empire.
What did they promote?
Nonviolence
Compassion
Respect for others
Religious tolerance
Moral behavior
Kindness toward people and animals
The edicts allowed Ashoka to communicate his ideas to people throughout his huge empire.
Why are they important?
They give historians evidence about how Ashoka wanted his empire governed and what values he promoted.
⭐ Remember:
Ashoka → Edicts → Dharma → Nonviolence + tolerance + morality
🏛 4. PERSIA
Characteristics of Persian Governance
Persia controlled an enormous empire, so it needed an effective way to govern many different peoples.
Satrapies
Persia divided its empire into provinces called satrapies.
Each province was governed by a satrap, or governor.
The satrap:
Collected taxes
Maintained order
Helped enforce the king’s policies
But the Persian king still had ultimate authority.
Tolerance
Persian rulers, especially Cyrus the Great, were often relatively tolerant toward conquered peoples.
They could often:
Keep their religions
Keep local customs
Maintain aspects of their culture
This helped Persia maintain control without constantly fighting rebellions.
Communication
Persia built roads and communication systems that helped:
Move armies
Transport goods
Send messages
Connect distant parts of the empire
⭐ Remember:
Persian governance = Satrapies + Taxes + Roads + Tolerance
🏛 5. THE ROMAN EMPIRE
Growth of the Roman Empire
Rome began as a small city but expanded into a huge empire through military conquest.
Why did Rome grow?
Strong and organized military
Conquered neighboring territories
Built roads
Created effective government systems
Incorporated conquered peoples
Used citizenship to help integrate people into Roman society
Rome eventually controlled much of the Mediterranean region, Europe, North Africa, and parts of the Middle East.
Why were roads important?
Roman roads:
Allowed soldiers to move quickly
Connected cities
Helped trade
Made communication easier
Helped Rome control distant territories
⭐ Remember:
Rome grew through military conquest + organization + infrastructure.
🏗 6. ROMAN ENGINEERING
Rome was famous for its advanced engineering.
Aqueducts
Structures that transported fresh water into cities.
Roads
Extensive roads connected the empire and helped with military movement and trade.
Arches
Arches allowed Romans to build stronger and larger structures, including bridges and buildings.
Concrete
Roman concrete allowed them to construct enormous and durable structures.
Why does this matter?
Roman engineering helped Rome maintain and develop its massive empire.
⭐ Remember:
Roman Engineering = Roads + Aqueducts + Arches + Concrete
✝ 7. EDICT OF MILAN
313 CE
Issued by Constantine and Licinius.
What did it do?
The Edict of Milan established religious tolerance for Christianity in the Roman Empire and allowed Christians to practice openly.
It also helped end the persecution of Christians.
⭐ Remember:
Edict of Milan = Christianity allowed to be practiced openly
Don’t confuse it with Christianity becoming the official religion of Rome—that happened later.
🏯 8. HAN DYNASTY — CHINA
Time: 206 BCE–220 CE
The Han Dynasty came after the Qin Dynasty.
What you need to know:
The Han kept a strong centralized government.
The government became heavily influenced by Confucianism.
The Han period was known for stability, economic growth, expansion, and trade.
China expanded its territory and became a major power.
⭐ Connection:
Qin = strict Legalism
⬇
Han = Confucianism + more stable government
🌏 9. “THE MIDDLE KINGDOM”
“Middle Kingdom” was a term associated with ancient China.
It reflected the Chinese belief that China was at the center of the civilized world.
China was seen as an important and central civilization rather than simply one kingdom among many.
⭐ Remember:
Middle Kingdom = China viewed itself as the center of civilization
☯ 10. CONFUCIANISM — GENERAL PRINCIPLES
Confucianism was based on the teachings of Confucius.
It focused heavily on creating a stable and orderly society.
Main ideas:
Respect for authority
Respect for parents and elders
Education
Proper behavior
Responsibility
Social harmony
Everyone fulfilling their role in society
Confucianism emphasized that society would work well if people behaved properly within their relationships.
Important relationships:
Ruler → subject
Parent → child
Older → younger
Husband → wife
Friend → friend
The idea was that people had responsibilities toward each other.
⭐ Remember:
Confucianism = Respect + Responsibility + Education + Social Order
👨👩👧 11. FILIAL PIETY
This is one of the most important Confucian concepts.
Filial piety = respect, obedience, and devotion toward your parents and ancestors.
Children were expected to:
Respect their parents
Obey them
Care for them
Honor their ancestors
Why was it important?
The family was considered the foundation of society. If people respected and obeyed their parents, Confucians believed they would be more likely to respect authority and maintain order in society.
⭐ Remember:
Filial piety = Respect your parents + honor your ancestors
⚔ 12. ALEXANDER THE GREAT — RISE & FALL
Alexander the Great was the king of Macedonia.
Rise
Alexander inherited a powerful army from his father, Philip II.
He conquered a huge territory, including:
Greece
The Persian Empire
Egypt
Parts of Central and South Asia
He became one of the most successful military conquerors of the ancient world.
Why was he important?
Alexander’s conquests spread Greek culture, language, and ideas across the territories he conquered.
This helped create Hellenistic culture, which combined Greek culture with local cultures.
India
Alexander reached northwestern India.
His soldiers were exhausted and refused to continue farther east, so Alexander turned back.
Fall
Alexander died in 323 BCE.
He did not leave a strong adult successor capable of keeping the empire together.
His generals fought over the empire and eventually divided it into several kingdoms.
⭐ Remember:
Alexander = Conquered Persia → Spread Greek culture → Reached India → Died → Empire divided
☸ 13. CHARACTERISTICS OF BUDDHISM
Buddhism began with Siddhartha Gautama, known as the Buddha.
Main problem:
Suffering is part of human life.
Buddhism teaches that suffering is strongly connected to desire and attachment.
Four Noble Truths
1. Life involves suffering.
2. Desire/attachment causes suffering.
3. Suffering can end.
4. The Eightfold Path provides a way to end suffering.
Eightfold Path
The Eightfold Path teaches people how to live in a way that helps overcome suffering.
It includes ideas involving:
Right understanding
Right intentions
Right speech
Right actions
Right livelihood
Right effort
Right mindfulness
Right concentration
Nirvana
Nirvana = liberation from suffering and the cycle of rebirth.
Buddhism vs. Hinduism
A useful distinction:
Hinduism:
➡ Karma + Samsara + Moksha
Buddhism:
➡ Suffering + Desire + Eightfold Path + Nirvana
📌 EVERYTHING ON YOUR REVIEW SHEET IN ONE PLACE
Empires
Qin Dynasty
→ Legalism, centralized government, unification, harsh rule
Maurya Dynasty
→ Chandragupta, Ashoka, centralized government, Buddhism
Persia
→ Satrapies, tolerance, taxation, roads
Roman Empire
→ Expansion, military, engineering, Christianity
Han Dynasty
→ Confucianism, centralized government, stability
Key Concepts
Persian Governance
→ Satrapies + governors + taxes + tolerance + roads
Growth of Roman Empire
→ Military conquest + roads + organization + citizenship
Ashoka’s Edicts
→ Dharma + morality + tolerance + nonviolence
Edict of Milan
→ Christianity allowed to be practiced openly
Roman Engineering
→ Roads + aqueducts + arches + concrete
Middle Kingdom
→ China viewed itself as the center of civilization
Confucianism
→ Social order + respect + responsibility + education
Alexander the Great
→ Rise through conquest → spread Greek culture → empire divided after death
Filial Piety
→ Respect/obedience toward parents and ancestors
Buddhism
→ Suffering → desire → Eightfold Path → Nirvana
⭐ If I were studying for this exact review sheet, I would especially memorize:
Ashoka + Edicts, Persian satrapies, Roman growth/engineering, Edict of Milan, Confucianism + filial piety, Alexander’s rise/fall, and the Four Noble Truths.