The Qin were militarily superior and used cavalry for the first time. Government was Legalist, which held that the power of the state and its monarch's interests were paramount. This policy led to a strain on the treasury and ultimately the end of the dynasty.
The Qin is described as a police state with the government having absolute power. Private weapons were confiscated. The nobles were transported to the capital. The Qin standardized weights, measures, coinage -- the bronze round coin with a square hole in the center, writing, and chariot axle widths. The Great Wall (868 km) was built to keep out northern invaders. In the tomb of Shi Huangdi an army of 6000 terra cotta soldiers was put in place for protection of the dead emperor who had ruled for 37 years.
Shi Huangdi's son replaced him, but was overthrown and replaced by the Han Dynasty in 206.
Sources: Minnesota State University Qin Dynasty
Sarah Milledge Nelson, Brian M. Fagan, Adam Kessler, Julie M. Segraves "China" The Oxford Companion to Archaeology. Brian M. Fagan, ed., Oxford University Press 1996.
