Han dynasty, China · 141-87 BC

Emperor Wu and the Han golden age

Emperor Wu of Han ruled for 54 years. He trained officials in the Confucian classics, sent armies into the steppe and pushed the empire into Korea, Vietnam and Central Asia. Students map his expansion and ask whether his wars were worth their cost.

Teach it live New Open on the map
Length
50 minutes
Ages
12–15
On the map
3 steps, 100 BC
Live lesson
7 rounds, 3 on the map
Worksheet
Two A4 pages, with Classroom
You need
A projector; phones for live

Live lesson · new in Classroom

Teach it live. The class answers on their phones.

Put the board on the projector. Students join with a six-digit code, no account needed, and tap the map: where was the frontier, where did the grain come from. Their pins drop in together when you reveal, and the closest student takes the round.

€19 per month: every lesson live, every worksheet, cancel anytime. Rome at its height runs live for free.

A live lesson on the projector: the class's pins on the map around Alexandria, the closest students listed beside it A student's phone: the question and a map to tap
7 rounds
3 places to find on the map, quiz questions, a class vote and a one-line answer.
About 15 minutes
Run it as the map step, or to open the discussion. You move on with the space bar.
A report
Every answer, per student and per round, to read back or print after the lesson.
1

Introduction

5 min

Read aloud

Emperor Wu of Han ruled for 54 years. He trained officials in the Confucian classics, sent armies into the steppe and pushed the empire into Korea, Vietnam and Central Asia. Students map his expansion and ask whether his wars were worth their cost.

By the end of the lesson, students can

  • Locate the Han Empire, the Xiongnu and the Hexi Corridor on the map around 100 BC.
  • Explain how Emperor Wu used Confucian learning to run the empire.
  • Weigh the gains and the costs of Emperor Wu's wars of expansion.
2

Explore the map

15 min

Project the map, or let students follow on their own devices. Each step opens the map at the right year and place.

a

100 BC

Han and Xiongnu

Open the map in 100 BC. Find the Han Empire, then the Xiongnu to the north. Compare their size. Why were the Xiongnu such a threat to the Han?

Open this view on the map
b

100 BC

The Hexi Corridor

Fly to the narrow strip of land northwest of the empire, between high mountains and the Gobi Desert. Emperor Wu's armies won it in 121 BC. Why is a corridor like this so valuable?

Open this view on the map
c

100 BC

The road west

Turn on the Trade Routes layer. Follow the Silk Road west from Chang'an through the corridor. Which great desert lies south of the route between Hami and Kashgar?

Open this view on the map
3

Class discussion

15 min

Pick two or three. They run from what happened to why it mattered.

  1. Emperor Wu chose officials who knew the Confucian classics. Why would an emperor prefer educated officials to nobles?
  2. His wars against the Xiongnu lasted decades. Were they worth the cost in taxes and lives?
  3. The state took control of salt and iron to pay for the wars. Who gained and who lost?
  4. Han armies conquered lands in Korea, Vietnam and Central Asia. How might the people there have seen the Han?
  5. Most people in China today call themselves Han. Why might a dynasty give its name to a whole people?
4

Game round

10 min

Rule History has no Han emperor, so play Qin Shi Huang and compare. After each ruling, ask: would Emperor Wu have chosen the same? He kept the Qin system of officials, but filled it with men trained in Confucian learning.

Open Rule History
5

Worksheet

5 min

This worksheet comes with Classroom

€19 per month unlocks every worksheet, every live lesson and the class workspace. The free lesson prints without a subscription.