Establishing the Zhou Dynasty SS6 - Mr. Berman Directions: Read and annotate the text below. Then answer the questions to the right. Around 1045 BCE, the Zhou, a group of people in northwestern China, moved into the central plains. They overthrew the Shang dynasty and established a new dynasty. To justify their conquest, they claimed that they had been given the Mandate of Heaven, a divine (or heavenly or godly) right to rule China. According to this belief, Heaven was a power that controlled human destiny. The king was considered the Son of Heaven. As long as the king did not govern well, Heaven would send sign of its displeasure, such as earthquakes and floods. When the king lost the support of Heaven, others had the right to overthrow him. The Zhou and later groups believed in the Mandate of Heaven. Between about 770 and 453 BCE, a number of small states often quarreled with one another. They eventually grouped into six or seven larger states that fought for power. These wars brought some 250 years of disorder to China. This historical time is often called the Warring States period. 1. Who overthrew the Shang dynasty? 2. How were they able to justify the overthrow? 3. Describe 2 characteristics

The Shang dynasty was overthrown by the Zhou. It was a group that lived in the northwest that decided to move down into the central plains.
In the Chinese culture from ancient times, people thought the Heaven (or godly figure) supports the good rulers, but if those rulers were not good and fare, the divine figures would show it with natural disasters such as earthquakes or floods. So the Zhou used this belief to justify the overthrow by putting themselves as the chosen ones from Heaven to rule Chine.
2 characteristics from that time were the superstitious of the people and the strong religion they had, allowing any group to justify rebellion just because "Heaven" told them to do it, and the second characteristic of that period was that it hadn't a true common identity, so the formation of a single country was difficult. that is why this period is known as the "Warring States period" since all Chine was divided into small countries controlled bye warlords that used to fight one another.