How Did Shi Huangdi Justify China?

The Emperor of China, who began the construction of the Great Wall and built the Terra Cotta Warriors, came to power at 13. His teenage years were consumed by war with other states, each fighting for power. Shi Huangdi was born in 259 BC in the Qin state of China. That time, known as the Warring States Period, was 254 years of six independent states battling each other for dominance. As well, a philosophy coming to age at that time was legalism. This ideology was defined by a belief that people were naturally not ethical and that they needed strict laws to govern them, followed by harsh punishments for those who didn’t obey. Additionally, it believed in the unity of a country so that those in power could effectively rule. Shi Huangdi’s legalist ideas aided him in gaining and for some time
Henceforth, allowing those in China to share their cultures, bonding them as one. Further, Shi Huangdi relocated hundreds of thousands of influential families to the capital city to keep them in view (“Qin Shi Huang”). With feudalism being the enemy of legalist unity, Shi Huangdi worked to centralize China. By herding influential families to the capital, he watched over them, never allowing any to build up the strength to revolt while also drastically decreasing the chances of feudal state uprisings. Thus, by lowering the chances of a coup by centralizing China, Shi Huangdi strengthened his grasp over his empire and maintained his rule. Shi Huangdi’s construction, standardization, and centralization of China, backed by his legalistic views, were the reasons for his maintaining control over his empire. Yet, with Shi Huangdi at peak power, his rule grew oppressive, causing tensions to build between him and his people. Oppression in China began not as violent acts, but simply deeds that pressed a lower quality of life onto its