ABSTRACT
Moving in the same direction as the tide of history, Chfin Shih-huang speedily completed the enterprise of the unification of a multinational feudal state in Chinese history. But there still remained the difficult and immense task of the consolida tion of this newly established and unified feudal state. There were several reasons for this. First, the declining nobility in the six states was still quite strong; not content to accept its failure and constantly attempting to make a comeback, it still possessed the potential to generate a new separatist force to resist the central political power of the Chfin dynasty. Second, under the ruthless exploitation and oppression of the landlord class, it was inevitable that the broad peasant masses would rise up in resistance and struggle. Third, the newly established unified state, with its extensive territory and a multitude of na tionalities, was still quite unstable. Fourth, since the previous situation of separatism had lasted over a long period of time, economic development in various localities within the country was uneven, and the political system and cultural institutions also varied from place to place. Such a situation was an
Hung Shih-ti, "K’ai-ch ’uang le kung-ku t’ung-i ti hsin chihtu." Chapter Four of Hung Shih-ti, Ch'in Shih-huang (Shanghai: People’s Press, 1972), pp. 39-54.
