When it comes to the reform movement in Japanese society, many people may think of the Meiji Restoration and the Daehwa Reform, but before the Daehwa Reform, there was another huge reform movement, that is, the Reform of prince Shengde. Prince Shengde implemented a series of reform measures to save the social crisis through reform. So in what historical context did the Prince of Shengde's reforms take place? Let's take a look at the background of the reform of the Prince of Saint Virtue.
The image comes from the Internet
First of all, at that time, there were many domestic contradictions, aristocratic landlords annexed a large amount of land, and the people at the bottom could not be guaranteed. The contradiction between the aristocratic landlords and the common people has reached an irreconcilable point. Second, the decline of imperial power, the monopoly of the officialdom by the hereditary nobility, the inability of the government to select truly useful talents, and the wars between the major nobles in the past for the sake of competing for interests.
Third, there were frequent changes in power, and in 587 AD, after the death of Emperor Ming, in order to compete for the succession of imperial power, Su I Mazi, the son of Su I Rice, and Theobe Shouya, the son of Monobe Omi, engaged in a deadly struggle. In July of the same year, Mazi won the battle, and the Monobe clan was destroyed. Later, Mazi manipulated the imperial family and monopolized the government, and at the same time installed Prince Bobu as emperor, that is, the emperor of Japanese history, which was actually Mazi's desire to further monopolize power by manipulating puppets. Emperor Chongjun gradually became dissatisfied with Mazi's dictatorship, but in 592 he was assassinated by Mazi. In the same year, Emperor Tuigu succeeded to the throne, after which the Emperor appointed Emperor Ming's widow, Crown Prince Mangto, as crown prince and put him in charge of administrative affairs, which is what we call Prince Shengde. Prince Shengde experienced these changes first-hand, was well aware of the dangers of frequent regime changes, and was determined to carry out reforms and strengthen imperial power.
The above is the background of the reform of prince Shengde, because the reform measures tend to be moral, do not involve the fundamental problems of society, and are very incomplete, so it ended in failure.
Whether the Reformation of the Prince of Saint Virtue was successful
At the beginning of the seventh century, the famous Shōtoku Prince Reform broke out in Japanese society, and Prince Sōtoku wanted to save the social crisis through reform and achieve the purpose of strengthening the authority of the emperor, so he implemented a series of reform measures for this purpose.
The answer to the question of whether the Prince of Saint Virtue Reform was successful was none, because the Prince saint reform ultimately failed.
In 603 AD, Prince Shengde carried out reforms, first formulating a political system of the twelfth rank of the crown, mainly rectifying the monopoly of the aristocratic bureaucracy on the official field and strengthening the discipline of the imperial court. At the same time, he also vigorously advocated the belief in Buddhism, and wanted to better control people's thoughts through people's belief in Buddhism, so many temples were built in the country. In addition, Prince Shengde also actively absorbed Chinese culture and sent emissaries and students to the Sui Dynasty, hoping to learn from China's advanced culture and systems and apply them to his own country. Of course, he also formulated 17 constitutions, once to provide legal protection for reform. Although this series of reform measures implemented by Prince Shengde temporarily reduced the pressure on the rulers and had a subtle easing effect on the social crisis, all the measures of Prince Shengde's reform were more on the level of moral concepts and did not prescribe the right medicine according to the fundamental social problems at that time. This was undoubtedly a drop in the bucket for the serious social crisis at that time, and the results were also very small, so the reform of prince Shengde could only be declared a failure in the end.
Although the reform of Prince Shengde failed, it improved the international status of Japan at that time, established friendly relations with the Sui Dynasty, and sent students to cultivate a number of outstanding talents for the country. The most important impact is to lay the foundation for the subsequent Dahua reform and provide experience to learn from.
Contents of the reform of prince shengde
At the beginning of the seventh century, the internal contradictions in Japanese society intensified, the social crisis was very serious, in order to save the danger, Prince Shengde implemented a series of reform measures in an attempt to save the crisis, known in history as the "Shengde Prince Reform". Let's take a look at the contents of the reform of the Prince of Saint Virtue.
The content of the reform of prince Shengde mainly includes the following points: First, the twelve orders of the crown are demarcated. There is no limit to the number of crowns, and there is no actual power, just honors awarded to the nobility. Crowns are awarded only on the basis of merit and merit and cannot be hereditary. To a certain extent, the crown system broke the monopoly of the hereditary nobility on the political power, and could select talents through multiple channels, and promoted the formation of a bureaucratic system headed by the emperor.
Second, the 17-article Constitution is formulated. The explicit promulgation of 17 constitutional provisions provides legal guarantees for reform. Third, advocate the revitalization of Buddhism. Prince Shengde attempted to weaken the power of the nobility by reviving Buddhism and making the people have a high degree of faith at one time, so as to increase the power of the emperor.
Fourth, restore Sino-Japanese diplomatic relations. Recognizing the strength of China's national strength and the profundity of its culture, Prince Shengde actively absorbed China's advanced cultural ideas, sent emissaries to make good friends with the Sui Dynasty, and restored Sino-Japanese diplomatic relations that had been interrupted for more than a hundred years.
Fifth, compile history books. The main historical books compiled by prince Shengde's reform are: "The Emperor's Record", "The National Record" and "The 180 Books of Subjects, Companies, Companions, National Creations, and Citizens", hoping that through these historical books, the majesty of the imperial family will be strengthened, so as to enhance people's concept of the state.
The above is the main content of the reform of Prince Shengde, who to a certain extent alleviated the social crisis at that time, but because the reform was very incomplete and did not represent the interests of emerging forces, it ended in failure. To a large extent, the reform of prince Shengde can only be regarded as an attempt to save society from danger.