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Warring States period战国
ChinaHeartland today: 
China
Historians differ on the start year (481, 475 or 403 BCE all appear in the literature); the end, 221 BCE, when Qin destroyed the last rival state, is not in dispute.
Before and after
In the Central Plains of China:Came before: Spring and Autumn period Came after: Qin dynasty
Meanwhile…
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Africa · Oldest here (disputed dates)The Ptolemies' Alexandria, with its lighthouse and library, grew into a city of hundreds of thousands while Qin's First Emperor unified China in 221 BCE and Rome fought Carthage.
Compare - Chavín culture South America · Compare
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Seven major states, each with its own currency, script variants and standing army, fought for supremacy after the old Zhou order collapsed. Philosophers like Mencius and Han Feizi debated how to rule, while engineers built canals and crossbows, until Qin swallowed every rival state in turn.
Also alive at the same time
Key events
The Zhou king formally recognises the three-way partition of Jin into Han, Zhao and Wei
Sources
- Lewis, Mark Edward (1999). "Warring States Political History." In Loewe & Shaughnessy (eds), The Cambridge History of Ancient China, 587–650. Cambridge University Press.
- Lewis, Mark Edward (2007). The Early Chinese Empires: Qin and Han. Harvard University Press.
Also happening around
- Paracas cultureSouth America
- Maya civilizationMesoamerica
- Olmec civilizationMesoamerica
- Zapotec civilizationMesoamerica
- Etruscan civilizationEurope
- Ancient GreeceEurope
- Celtic Iron AgeEurope
- Ancient RomeEurope
- Ancient EgyptAfrica
- Chavín cultureSouth America (uncertain overlap)
- Mixtec civilizationMesoamerica (uncertain overlap)
– Mencius, Zhuangzi, Han Feizi and other philosophers debate human nature, government and war in rival schools of thought
Sources
- Lewis, Mark Edward (1999). "Warring States Political History." In Loewe & Shaughnessy (eds), The Cambridge History of Ancient China, 587–650. Cambridge University Press.
- Lewis, Mark Edward (2007). The Early Chinese Empires: Qin and Han. Harvard University Press.
Also happening around
– Shang Yang's legalist reforms in Qin reward farming and fighting with rank, and break the power of the old aristocracy
Sources
- Lewis, Mark Edward (2007). The Early Chinese Empires: Qin and Han. Harvard University Press.
- Lewis, Mark Edward (1999). "Warring States Political History." In Loewe & Shaughnessy (eds), The Cambridge History of Ancient China, 587–650. Cambridge University Press.
Also happening around
Qin crushes the army of Zhao at the Battle of Changping and, by later accounts, buries the surrendered soldiers aliveDisputed
The Records of the Grand Historian puts the dead at 400,000; the figure comes from a later history and is widely regarded as exaggerated.
Sources
- Lewis, Mark Edward (1999). "Warring States Political History." In Loewe & Shaughnessy (eds), The Cambridge History of Ancient China, 587–650. Cambridge University Press.
- Lewis, Mark Edward (2007). The Early Chinese Empires: Qin and Han. Harvard University Press.
Also happening around
Engineers complete the Dujiangyan irrigation system in Sichuan, still watering farmland today without a dam
Sources
Also happening around
Qin conquers the state of Qi, the last of its rivals, and unifies the Warring States under a single emperor
Sources
- Lewis, Mark Edward (2007). The Early Chinese Empires: Qin and Han. Harvard University Press.
- Lewis, Mark Edward (1999). "Warring States Political History." In Loewe & Shaughnessy (eds), The Cambridge History of Ancient China, 587–650. Cambridge University Press.
Also happening around
- Qin dynastyChina
- Paracas cultureSouth America
- Maya civilizationMesoamerica
- Zapotec civilizationMesoamerica
- Etruscan civilizationEurope
- Ancient GreeceEurope
- Celtic Iron AgeEurope
- Ancient RomeEurope
- Ancient EgyptAfrica
- Chavín cultureSouth America (uncertain overlap)
- Mixtec civilizationMesoamerica (uncertain overlap)
Wars
Qin's wars of unification The state of QinQin dynasty
againstThe six other Warring States, each fighting Qin on its ownHan, Zhao, and its successor state of Dai, Yan, Wei, Chu, and Qi
Qin ruled the lands of all seven states; Ying Zheng took the title Shi Huangdi, First Emperor, and divided the empire into 36 commanderies.