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Legalist Statecraft System

Type Object Region China Time c. -400–-200

A Warring States-to-Qin system of governance centered on laws, rewards and punishments, officialdom, and monarchical centralization, exemplified by S…

Timeline

  1. c. -400–-356State of Wei · Central PlainsLi Kui, Wu Qi, and others implemented rule-of-law and administrative reforms in Wei; Han Fei, Shang Yang, and others synthesized ideas of law, power, and technique, and Legalism gradually took shape as an independent school amid the wave of reforms across the states.
  2. c. -356–-221State of Qin · GuanzhongShang Yang implemented in Qin the group-based mutual responsibility system, ranks for military merit, and the abolition of well-fields and opening of field boundaries, reshaping social mobilization and administrative control through written law and official evaluation, establishing the practical model of the Legalist statecraft system.
  3. c. -221–-200Xianyang · GuanzhongQin Shi Huang adopted Li Si's proposals to burn books and ban private learning, unify writing and measures, and implement the commandery-county system, constructing the empire's ideology and administrative unity on Legalist principles, becoming an important reference for later dynasties' governance.

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