State of Qin, 361–338 BCE

Autocracy · Monarchy · East Asia · Classical Antiquity era

The Warring-States kingdom of Qin under the Legalist reforms of Shang Yang, a centralizing, militarized meritocracy engineered for war.

Under Duke Xiao and his minister Shang Yang, the state of Qin adopted a Legalist program that abolished hereditary privilege in favor of ranks earned by military merit and farming, standardized administration and imposed collective legal responsibility. The reforms turned Qin into the most centralized and militarily effective of the Warring States. This organizational template underlay its eventual unification of China.

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Dominant patterns

  • Militarization
  • External Expansion
  • Regime Stabilization
  • Authoritarian Shift
  • Imperial Decline

Political-science factor profile

Each factor 0–100; higher = stronger authoritarian / crisis pole (except institutional stability, where higher = stronger institutions).

Centralization of Power82
Media Control62
Repression72
Nationalism60
Militarization88
Economic Stress40
External Conflict80
Cult of Personality60
Elite Fragmentation40
Institutions65
Social Polarization50
Corruption & Patrimonialism40
Ideological Mobilization72
External Sovereignty90

Economy & society

GDP per capita$650 (intl-$)
Population4.0M people
Share of world population2.5%
Territory~300k km²
Capital population~60k

Closest historical twins

The country-eras whose structural profile most resembles State of Qin 361–338 BCE, by similarity score (0–100).

  1. Urartu, 850–800 BCE – similarity 95/100 · shared: Militarization, External Expansion, Regime Stabilization, Authoritarian Shift, Imperial Decline
  2. Sasanian Empire, 309–379 CE – similarity 95/100 · shared: Militarization, External Expansion, Regime Stabilization, Authoritarian Shift, Imperial Decline
  3. Russia, 1682–1725 CE – similarity 92/100 · shared: Militarization, External Expansion, Regime Stabilization, Authoritarian Shift, Imperial Decline
  4. Neo-Assyrian Empire, 883–824 BCE – similarity 91/100 · shared: Militarization, External Expansion, Regime Stabilization, Authoritarian Shift
  5. Aztec Empire, 1428–1519 CE – similarity 91/100 · shared: Militarization, External Expansion, Regime Stabilization, Authoritarian Shift, Imperial Decline
  6. Russia, 1762–1796 – similarity 91/100 · shared: Militarization, External Expansion, Regime Stabilization, Authoritarian Shift, Imperial Decline
  7. Byzantium, 527–565 – similarity 88/100 · shared: Militarization, External Expansion, Regime Stabilization, Authoritarian Shift, Imperial Decline
  8. Spain, 1479–1516 CE – similarity 87/100 · shared: Militarization, External Expansion, Authoritarian Shift, Imperial Decline

What followed

  • A reformed war machine driving eastward conquest.
  • A centralized bureaucratic-legalist order.