China's First Emperor [2 Discs]

He commanded an army that shadowed that of Napoleon's, put Alexander the Great's conquests to shame, established a realm that thrived longer than the Roman Empire, and build the Great Wall of China, and although we know well his many accomplishments, we have little knowledge of the First Emperor of China as a man. His name was Chin Shi Huang Di, and he was a charismatic leader credited with unifying China. But he was also said to torment the country's citizens, making him as controversial as he was celebrated. In addition to standardizing such things as currencies, weights, and measures, Huang Di also unified languages both written and spoken, as well as establishing transportation systems and establishing what is widely believed to be one of the very first assembly lines - 2000 years before Henry Ford revolutionized the auto industry with that same, efficient method of manufacturing. But Huang Di wasn't turning out cars; he was more concerned with mass producing such precision crafter weapons as arrows and swords. From his revolutionary military practices to his ambitious plans for a wall that would stretch for hundreds of miles, this documentary explores Huang Di's remarkable legacy in vivid detail.