Ancient China

Ancient China was ruled by kings and then emperors.  Ancient China was made up of seven Chinese states.  Each state was ruled by a king.  Prince Zheng's father was king of the Qin state.  His father died when he was only 13 years old, making him the king. As King Zheng conquered the other Chinese states he became the first Emperor of China, Emperor Qin.

Emperor Qin was a harsh leader.  He made most religions illegal and demanded that people give their loyalty to the government.  Most books were burned because he wanted Chinese history to begin with his leadership.  

He began construction of the Great Wall of China.  The wall was built to protect China from invading armies from the north.  Many people died building the wall.  The wall took over 1,000 years to build and was close to 5,500 miles long.