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Ancient Chinese Political Systems
[edit]China is one of the oldest civilisations said to exist in the world. During its ancient era, China was ruled by a system known as the feudal monarchy. More specifically, ancient Chinese political systems can be categorised into central political system, local political system and officials selecting system. There were three major tendencies in the history of Chinese political system: the escalation of centralisation, the escalation of absolute monarchy, and the standardisation of officials selecting.[1] Moreover, there are ancient supervision systesm and political systems created by ethnic minorities as well as other critical political systems to be mentioned comparably.
| Dynasties of Ancient China | ||
|---|---|---|
| IMPERIAL | ||
| Qin 221–206 BCE | ||
| Han 202 BCE – 220 CE | ||
| Western Han | ||
| Xin | ||
| Eastern Han | ||
| Three Kingdoms 220–280 | ||
| Wei, Shu and Wu | ||
| Jin 265–420 | ||
| Western Jin | ||
| Eastern Jin | Sixteen Kingdoms | |
| Northern and Southern dynasties420–589 | ||
| Sui 581–618 | ||
| Tang 618–907 | ||
| (Second Zhou 690–705) | ||
| Five Dynasties andTen Kingdoms907–979 | Liao 907–1125 | |
| Song 960–1279 | ||
| Northern Song | Western Xia | |
| Southern Song | Jin | |
| Yuan 1271–1368 | ||
| Ming 1368–1644 | ||
| Qing 1636–1912 | ||
Fundamental system: Centralised feudal monarchy
[edit]The fundamental system throughout the history of ancient China is the centralised feudal monarchy.[2]
Rudiment
[edit]During the Warring States period, Han Feizi proposed to establish a centralised monarchy with feudal autocracy in theory.[3] In practice, during the same period, Shang Yang from the state of Qin carried out a political reform.
Establishment
[edit]The imperial system was established by the time of Qin, as well as the system of three lords and nine ministers, and the system of prefectures and counties. Weights, measures, currency, and writing were unified. Books and scholars were burned and buried as the ideological control strengthened. Whereas law is the law, officials are usually the teachers.[4]
Consolidation
[edit]To solve the problem of the kingdom, West Han carried out the system of historical assassination, promulgated the decree of mercy and the law of supplementary benefits, executed dethrone 100 schools of thought, while only respecting Confucianism.[5]
Complementation
[edit]By implementing the system of three provinces and six ministries, the feudal bureaucracy formed a complete and rigorous system, which weakened the prime minister's power and strengthened the imperial power. The establishment and improvement of the imperial civil examination expanded the source of young government officials.
Reinforcement
[edit]Centralised military power: which removed the military power of senior generals and local commanders in the central government, set up three government officials to command the imperial army and check each other with the privy council.[6] Centralised executive power: the political, military and financial powers of the chief ministers, the privy councillors and the three secretaries divided the prime minister's power. Centralised financial power: by setting up transshipment in each level to manage local finance. Centralised judicial power: by the central government sending civilian officials to serve as local judicial officials. Through the above measures, the emperor mastered the military, administrative, financial, and judicial powers from the central government to the local government, thus eradicated the foundation of feudal vassal separation.
Further development
[edit]In the central government, the executive system of central officials was improved during Yuan dynasty. It established the Xuanzheng Yuan (the bureau of Buddhist and Tibetan affairs) to direct religious affairs and to govern the region of Tibet. At the local level, the provincial system was practiced.[7]
Final shape
[edit]At the beginning of the Ming dynasty, the prime minister was abolished, and the power was divided into six departments. The local government implemented the division of power among the three functioning departments. The Qing dynasty followed the system of the Ming dynasty, set up more military offices, put up literary prisons, thus strengthened the centralisation of authoritarianism.
Central political systems
[edit]Three councilors of state and nine ministers system
[edit]The central administrative system in the autocratic centralization system established by the First Emperor of Qin was composed of the prime minister, the imperial historian and the Taiwei. The prime minister system lasted for more than one thousand years.[8]
Three departments and six ministries system
[edit]The system of three provinces and six ministries was a new central administrative system established by Emperor Wen of the Sui dynasty based on the official system since the Han and Wei dynasties.[9] The three departments were Shangshu, Zhongshu and Menxia. The central committee was responsible for drafting and issuing imperial edicts; Subordinate provinces shall be responsible for the examination and verification of administrative decrees; Shangshu was responsible for carrying out important state decrees, and the heads of the three provinces were all prime ministers. The six ministries were officials, households, rites, soldiers, punishments, and workers. The three provinces and six ministries had both divisions of labor and cooperation, and they supervised and contained each other, thus forming a strict and complete system of the feudal bureaucracy, effectively improving administrative efficiency and strengthening the ruling power of the central government. The separation of the three powers weakens the power of the prime minister and strengthens the imperial power. The officially adopted systems of Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties all changed a little on this basis.
Prime minister system
[edit]Qin established the system of three lords and nine ministers in the central government. Emperor Wu of the Western Han dynasty reformed the official system implemented the internal and external dynasties system and weakened the power of the prime minister. Emperor Guangwu of the Eastern Han dynasty expanded the power of the Shangshu department. Sui and Tang dynasties established the system of three provinces and six departments, dividing the power of the prime minister into three and containing each other, which reflected the strengthening of the imperial power. In the northern song dynasty, under the chancellors, the chief ministers were appointed as deputy ministers to divide the administrative power of the chancellors. There were privy secretaries to divide the military power and three divisions to divide the financial power.[10] The Yuan dynasty set up a Zhongshu province, with prime ministers on the right and left, exercising the functions and powers of prime ministers. The Ming dynasty abolished the prime minister and divided the power into six parts. Yongle dynasty set up a cabinet and implemented "draft vote." The military offices were set up in the Qing dynasty, and the remnants of the prime minister system disappeared, reflecting that the imperial power had reached its peak. From the changes, we can see that the emperor divided and weakened the power of the prime minister, gradually concentrated all kinds of power in his own hands, and thus effectively implemented the autocratic monarchy.
Local political systems
[edit]Enfeoffment system
[edit]To consolidate the power of slave owners, the rulers of the Western Zhou dynasty implemented the system of enfeoff vassals politically, which enabled the Zhou dynasty to consolidate its rule and expand its territory.[11] In the spring and autumn period, it gradually collapsed and was replaced by the system of prefectures and counties, which remained in some later dynasties.
Prefectures and counties system
[edit]During the Spring and Autumn period and the Warring States period, the Qin dynasty was carried out nationwide, thus replacing the feudal system nationwide, greatly weakening the independence of local authorities and strengthening the centralization of power. This was an epoch-making reform in China's local administrative system. The prefecture and county system was used for a long time in ancient China, with a very far-reaching influence.
Province-state system
[edit]At the beginning of the Western Han dynasty, the system of prefectures and counties was implemented in local areas, and at the same time, the system of enfeoffment was established. Counties and countries were parallel to each other, which was not conducive to the unified management of the country, with the risk of division.
Province system
[edit]The Yuan dynasty was a feudal country with a vast territory at that time. Its establishment consolidated the unification of the country and ensured the centralization of power in the system. The provincial system of the Yuan dynasty had a far-reaching influence on the political system of later generations. Since then, the provincial system has become the local administrative organ of China, which was followed in the Ming and Qing dynasties and has been retained until today.
Monk system
[edit]In the Ming dynasty, Tibet practiced the system of monks and officials. Because the Tibetan people believed in Tibetan Buddhism, the Ming government used religion to rule the Tibetan people which was later called the 'monk system'.
Eight banners system
[edit]The eight banners system was in the late Ming dynasty when Nuzhen rulers Nurhaci to create a system of eight banners system according to the military organization form the Jurchen establishment, controlled by the aristocrat, with military conquering three functions, administrative management, organize production, is a soldier and unity of social organization, is a military organization and administrative management system, promote the development of the Nuzhen society. The eight banners army played an important role in unifying China in the Qing dynasty.[12] However, with the invasion of western capitalism, the corruption of the eight banners army itself and the gradual decline of its combat effectiveness, the Hunan army and Huai army, which rose up in the process of suppressing the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, had a great impact on it.
Bureaucratisation of native officers
[edit]The Ming dynasty followed the rule of the Yuan dynasty in the southwest minority areas, where the chieftain system was implemented. These chieftain officials held by local minorities had autonomy over the administration of the areas under their jurisdiction, and they could be hereditary and had great power, which gradually evolved into a separatist force.
Officials selecting system
[edit]The evolution of the system of elected officials
[edit]The selection of official standards by family background gradually developed to the selection of talent, while the selection method by selection gradually developed to the form of public examination. The selecting mechanism based on talent later became institutionalised and much more rigorous.
Ancient supervision systems
[edit]Qin dynasty
[edit]The central government set up the imperial historian, whereas the local government set up the imperial supervisor.
Western Han dynasty
[edit]Emperor Wudi of the Han dynasty set 13 prefectures as the supervision area, and set the provincial history department for supervision.[13]
Eastern Han dynasty
[edit]The supervision power of the provincial governor was further strengthened, and the local administrative power and military power were gradually increased. At the end of the Eastern Han dynasty, the provincial governor evolved into the local highest military and political officer.[14]
Northern Song dynasty
[edit]There was a general court to supervise the prefectures, which could report directly to the emperor.
Ming dynasty
[edit]The local government set up the department of criminal investigation to administer local supervision and justice. In addition, the factory also set up a spying agency to monitor officials and civilians at all levels.[15]
Political systems created by ethnic minorities
[edit]Uniform land system, rent modulation, government military system, Fan-Han divide and rule system, fierce peace and restraint, provincial system, eight flag system are critical systems created by ethnic minorities to be mentioned in the history.[16]
Other critical political systems in ancient China
[edit]Abdication system
[edit]At the end of primitive society, the democratic election of tribal alliance leaders was carried out within the circle of the noble families. It is not only the reflection of primitive public ownership in politics, but also the signal of primitive society collapse.[17]
Hereditary system
[edit]It was the result of the development of productive forces, the product of class antagonism, and the inevitable trend of historical development. A hereditary system with its distinctive privatization embodied the significant progress of society.
Patriarchal system
[edit]Since the Western Zhou dynasty, the patriarchal clan system was a system in which the inheritance relationship and the title were determined by blood relationship and marital status. The patriarchal clan system and privilege system formed by the patriarchal system had a far-reaching influence on later generations.
Gentry system
[edit]The gentry was developed from the powerful landlords and belonged to the privileged stratum of the landlord class. The gentry system was formed in the Wei and Jin dynasties. It was a corrupt political system that selects officials according to the level of their family backgrounds.[18]
References
[edit]- ^ The Cambridge history of ancient China : from the origins of civilization to 221 B.C. Loewe, Michael., Shaughnessy, Edward L., 1952-. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. 1999. ISBN 0521470307. OCLC 37361770.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link) - ^ Hui, Victoria Tin-bor (2005). War and state formation in ancient China and early modern Europe. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
- ^ Dao companion to the philosophy of Han Fei. Goldin, Paul Rakita, 1972-. Dordrecht: Springer. 2013. ISBN 9789400743182. OCLC 811051672.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link) - ^ Sima, Qian, approximately 145 B.C.-approximately 86 B.C. (1993). Records of the Grand Historian. Qin dynasty. Watson, Burton, 1925-2017. Hong Kong: Research Centre for Translation, Chinese University of Hong Kong. ISBN 0231081693. OCLC 28322132.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ Skocpol, Theda. (1979). States and social revolutions : a comparative analysis of France, Russia, and China. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 052122439X. OCLC 4135856.
- ^ Qiu, Xigui,; 裘錫圭. Chinese writing. Mattos, Gilbert Louis, 1939-, Norman, Jerry, 1936-2012,, Qiu, Xigui,, 裘錫圭,. Berkeley, California. ISBN 1557290717. OCLC 43936866.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link) CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Bellezza, John Vincent. The dawn of Tibet : the ancient civilization on the roof of the world. Lanham, MD. ISBN 9781442234611. OCLC 870098261.
- ^ Zhou, Haiwen (April 2012). "Internal Rebellions and External Threats: A Model of Government Organizational Forms in Ancient China". Southern Economic Journal. 78 (4): 1120–1141. doi:10.4284/0038-4038-78.4.1120. ISSN 0038-4038.
- ^ Higham, Charles. (2004). Encyclopedia of ancient Asian civilizations. New York: Facts On File. ISBN 0816046409. OCLC 51978070.
- ^ Zeng, Jifen, 1852-1942. (1993). Testimony of a Confucian woman: the autobiography of Mrs. Nie Zeng Jifen, 1852-1942. Kennedy, Thomas L., 1930-2015., Kennedy, Micki. Athens, Ga.: University of Georgia Press. ISBN 0820315095. OCLC 26129546.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ The Cambridge history of China. Twitchett, Denis Crispin, 1925-2006., Fairbank, John King, 1907-1991. Cambridge [England]: Cambridge University Press. 1996. ISBN 9780521243278. OCLC 2424772.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link) - ^ Gyllenbok, Jan, 1963-. Encyclopaedia of historical metrology, weights, and measures. Volume 3. Cham. ISBN 9783319667126. OCLC 1031847554.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ The Cambridge history of China. Twitchett, Denis Crispin, 1925-2006., Fairbank, John King, 1907-1991. Cambridge [England]: Cambridge University Press. 1996. ISBN 9780521243278. OCLC 2424772.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link) - ^ Roberts, J. M. (John Morris), 1928-2003. A short history of the world. New York. ISBN 019511504X. OCLC 35990297.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ Su, Li, 1955-. The constitution of ancient China. Zhang, Yongle,, Bell, Daniel (Daniel A.), 1964-, Ryden, Edmund,. Princeton, New Jersey. ISBN 9781400889778. OCLC 1037945918.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link) CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ Pines, Yuri. (2012). The everlasting empire : the political culture of ancient China and its imperial legacy. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press. ISBN 9781400842278. OCLC 782923553.
- ^ The Ch'in and Han empires, 221 B.C. - A.D. 220. Twitchett, Denis Crispin, 1925-2006,, Loewe, Michael,. Cambridge [England]: Cambridge University Press. 1986. ISBN 9781139054737. OCLC 317592775.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link) CS1 maint: others (link) - ^ Tackett, Nicolas (2014). The destruction of the medieval Chinese aristocracy. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Asia Center.