HUMANITY: The Iron, transforming Empires #4 [+DRAWING]

The most powerful man in the world travels to find the secret of eternal life, Qin Shi Huang.

He fought for his throne since he was 13, survived a coup and 3 attempted assassinations.

He has created an empire that he believes will last forever. Crucial to its success, a new type of iron, cast iron.

By overheating iron in a furnace, the Chinese blacksmiths build the foundations of mankind's industrial future.

Liquid iron is poured into molds to produce identical objects, thousands of them. 200 BC, the birth of mass production, a technological revolution driven by something that changes the history of humanity, war.

China 200 BC, the soldiers of the 1st Emperor of China change the face of war with a new type of weapon, the Crossbow.

The Chinese crossbow stretched up to 60cm, 5 times more than the European crossbow, the bow weighed the same but China is 5 times more powerful, 5 times the range and 5 times the blow, was the first weapon with interchangeable parts.

Iron bolts were thrown at a high speed with a range of 400m. Easy to use and with few days of training Chinese soldiers become killer machines.

They prepared in groups of 3 men, one of them was armed, another recharged it and the third was using it.

Armed with crossbows, the armies of the 1st Emperor, attacked 6 kingdoms in war, in only 9 years he conquered more than 2,500km2, 27 million people.

To defend its new empire, the Emperor begins what may be the most ambitious engineering project in the history of mankind, the Great Wall of China.

Designed to stop the nomadic crowds of Central Asia. It will extend for the next 1800 years, in its construction a million people die.

But after 11 years of government on a journey to find a Magical and Legendary Spring, which apparently had the secret of eternal life.

Qin Shi Huang, the most powerful man in the world gets sick. Mercury capsules prescribed by your doctors to make you immortal are destroying your brain and body. At age 49, Qin Shi Huang, the 1st Emperor of China, dies.

He will be buried in a 50km2 grave, but he does not go alone. With him are his wives who gave him children and hundreds of craftsmen buried alive to keep their secrets in their graves.

And protecting to his Emperor an extraordinary force of 8 thousand soldiers, the Warriors of Terracotta.

Each is unique, some believe that they are the model of real people.

While in China the Iron Age forges an Empire, on the coast of Africa they go on an expedition that undertakes the 1st great journey of humanity in the era of discoveries.

Hanon the King of Carthage, leads a fleet of 60 ships, he made one of the first voyages of the era of discoveries going into the unknown. The town of Hanon is that of the Phoenicians, a maritime empire and merchant with colonies throughout the Mediterranean, became the best manufacturers of ships in the world, their secret ... iron.

The iron tools allowed mankind to innovate like never before. A revolutionary invention appeared, the Keel.

Now the ships are stable in the worst waters, the key to the future of humanity at sea. Hanon sailed from the Mediterranean to unexplored waters, the Atlantic Ocean. With 30 thousand settlers he seeks to find new lands and new opportunities.

The explorers all they knew was that the world had a limit, it was a step to the unknown.

Hanon writes about his journey:
In the night we saw the earth covered with fire, in the center was a very high flame, higher than the others that reached the stars, a huge mountain called the chariot of the gods.

This was the first written description of Mount Cameroon, the largest volcano in West Africa.

Documented using a revolutionary form of writing, the alphabet.

The Phoenicians invented 22 symbols or letters that when combined represented almost any sound of any language, easy to learn the alphabet makes reading and writing available to everyone, one of the keys to the future of communication.

On the coast of what is nowadays Gabon, Hanon describes another extraordinary encounter.

He wrote: There was an island full of wild men and women, they had the hairy body, our interpreters called them gorillas.

The Phoenicians will create trade routes along the Mediterranean coast, spreading ideas, in Lebanon, Cyprus, Sicily and on the island of Ibiza.

As they expanded, so did the alphabet, and among a group of exiles in the city of Babylon becomes the key to creating a book, a book that will shape the history of mankind.

In Babylon, a great city known for its hanging gardens, here the spiritual revolution is under way.The Iron Age was a time of new people, new ideas, and destinies that still dominate the world of humanity today.

Throughout the world, local religions are thirsting for new and powerful beliefs spread through writing. Hinduism unites almost all India, from the foothills of the Himalayas the words of Buddha are spread throughout Asia and in China the writings of Confucius will help to order the lives of the 4th part of the world.

In the libraries of Babylon a group of exiled Jews use their own alphabet in Hebrew to write the history and beliefs of their people.

"We were sitting on the banks of the rivers of Babylon weeping remembering Zion." Psalm 132:1

2 generations ago Babylon conquered Jerusalem destroyed the temple of the God Yahweh and exile the Jews to Babylon. Now captives in a foreign land Jews write what will become the most influential book in the history of mankind, The Bible.

The Bible is the world's best-selling book, over 6 million copies sold in the last 500 years.

Babylon a city of different gods, but in this melting pot the Jews write about a revolutionary idea for humanity, Monotheism.

Monotheism, All life was created by a God.

But for the Jews of Babylon the word of God is threatened, the city is surrounded by the Persian Empire, if they fall, they burn the fragile scriptures.

But a man takes advantage of this moment he sees an opportunity, Zerubbabel, Prince exiled descended from kings Solomon and David.

He decides to remove the Jews from exile to return to the promised land, but many do not want to go, they already had a life in Babylon and the journey will be dangerous. Zerubbabel convinces hundreds of families, the departure of Babylon will become a new chapter in the history of mankind.

"Come out of Babylon, flee from the Chaldeans with a shout of joy, proclaim this, publish to the ends of the earth, say the Lord has redeemed his deer". Isaiah 48:20

An epic journey of 800km back to the holy city you have never seen, Jerusalem.

"Even if your exiles were in the farthest parts under the sky, the Lord your God will gather you from there and bring you back". Deuteronomy 30:4

They carried the words that will become the old testament of the Bible, the best-selling book on the planet.

Iron began a new era for humanity, transformed landscapes, forged new connections and changed our way of thinking. Now a new type of Empire will rise, mankind leaps forward with new pace of life.

And in a city within the Roman Empire the life and death of a man will transform the life of ALL OF US.

To be continued...

Do not miss my next Post where I will bring you more drawings and more history of humanity. I will publish the series-humanity weekly to dedicate more to the drawings.

We are born to survive in a world full of dangers, we have impossible dreams that we realize.

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I hope you liked it. Greetings friends..

Source:
1 [Prentice Hall Science Book]

If you have not seen the previous chapters I invite you to see them:
Humanity: The Origin #1
Humanity: The Origin #2
Humanity: The Iron, transforming Empires #3