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Think: What is the best way to transfer power, from one government to the next?

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Mandate of Heaven

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Mandate of Heaven

Originated in the Zhou Dynasty

1027-256 BCE

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Mandate of Heaven

Determines whether an emperor of China is sufficiently virtuous to rule.

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If he does not fulfill his obligations as emperor, then he loses the Mandate and thus the right to be emperor.

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Mandate of Heaven

  • Heaven grants the emperor the right to rule.
  • Since there is only one Heaven, there can only be one emperor at any given time.
  • The emperor's virtue determines his right to rule.
  • No one dynasty has a permanent right to rule.

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Mandate of Heaven

Signs the Mandate has been lost:

  • peasant uprisings
  • foreign invasions
  • famine
  • environmental problems
    • drought or floods or earthquakes

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Mandate of Heaven

Justified rebellion against an unjust, tyrannical, or incompetent ruler.

If a rebellion was successful in overthrowing the emperor,

  • it was a sign he had lost the Mandate of Heaven
  • the rebel leader had gained it.

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Mandate of Heaven

Zhou leaders claimed that the Shang emperors had become corrupt and unfit, so Heaven demanded their removal.

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BCE Dynastic China

  • Xia 2000 - 1700 BCE
  • Shang 1700 - 1027 BCE
  • Zhou 1027 - 256 BCE
  • Spring & Autumn 770 - 476 BCE
  • Warring States 475 - 221 BCE
  • Qin (Ch’in) 221 - 206 BCE
  • Han 206 BCE - 220 CE

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Mandate of Heaven

While the decline of the Zhou dynasty began the Warring States Period (475-221 BCE), the Qin Dynasty began in 206 BCE and the cycle continued throughout the history of China.

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Mandate of Heaven

China’s Last Emperor,�Pu Yi.

Qing Dynasty

Abdicated in 1912.

Born 1906, Died 1967.

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What is the best way to transfer power, from one government to the next?

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Exit Ticket

Explain how the Mandate of Heaven relates to power transfer in Chinese history:

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Why did it work?