the first imperial period-qing dynasty
in 221 b.c， much of what came to constitute china proper was unified for the first time. in subjugating the six other major states of eastern zhou， the qin kings had relied heavily on legalist scholar-advisers.
centralization， achieved by ruthless methods， was focused on standardizing legal codes and bureaucratic procedures， the forms of writing and coinage， and the pattern of thought and scholarship. to silence criticism of imperial rule， the kings banished or put to death many dissenting confucian scholars and confiscated and burned their books . to fend off barbarian intrusion， the fortification walls built by the various warring states were connected to make a 5，000-kilometer-long great wall .
revolts broke out as soon as the first qin emperor died in 210 b.c. the imperial system initiated during the qin dynasty， however， set a pattern that was developed over the next two millennia.
帝国的时代 第一个国家-秦
公元前221年，一个真正的中国第一次统一了。秦朝皇帝在统治其他六国的过程中，大力度的采用了法学学者们的法制。
中央集权残酷无情，它主要包括严厉的法规、官僚体制、统一的文字和货币，甚至思想和学派。为了堵住反对统治的呼声，秦皇把反对孔子学术的学者流放、判处死刑、把他们的书籍烧毁。为了抵抗匈奴，秦皇建筑了防御工事-各诸侯国城墙连起来的万里长城。
公元前210年-秦始皇死的那年，起义爆发。由秦朝创立的皇权制持续了两千多年。