First of all, exile? It refers to the punishment of deporting criminals to remote areas for punishment, and is also an important part of the ancient legal system. In traditional Chinese society, it is also a very unique political phenomenon, which is usually praised by the ruler as a kind of disguised benevolent punishment, to put it bluntly, "can't bear to kill, flow far away",
As for, exile? There are also two functions, one is to reflect the benevolent government and prudent punishment of the ruler, and at the same time to interpret the "cherishing talent as fate" vividly. The second is to put those who can't bear to be tortured and killed far away, that is, to reflect the meaning of punishment, but also to leave room, to know that Chinese has always been relocated to the land, exile means disguised psychological deterrence,
Actually, exile? Dating back to the Three Emperors and Five Emperors period, according to the Book of Shang, Yao exiled gonggong to the area of Youzhou (present-day Beijing). However, in the pre-Qin period, most of them appeared sporadically, and it was not until the Qin and Han dynasties that the system of flogging, staff, discipleship, streaming, and death was formally established during the Sui and Tang dynasties, and it continued and affected the abolition of the last years of the Qing Dynasty.
After knowing the ins and outs, return to the main topic: the unknown history of exile and change in ancient times
First of all, let me state this: what is the so-called history of ancient exile here? It refers more to the penal colony, which is also the history of the change of exile destination,
In ancient times, prisoner penal colonies (destinations) consisted mainly of three regions and two annexes:
1. The land of smoke and miasma in the south
Including: Shudi, Yunnan-Guizhou, Liangguang, Hainan, as well as the Two Lakes section and Lingnan;
2. The barren land of the northwest
Including: sparsely populated and desolate lands such as Xinjiang, Gansu, Ningxia and Tibet;
3. The bitter cold land of the northeast
Including: mainly covering the three northeastern provinces and the vast outer northeast;
1. Cross Toe (Vietnam)
During the Han Dynasty, the imperial court began to exile criminals to Jiaozhi County and Nichinan County in Vietnam;
2. The Korean Peninsula
Also starting from the Han Dynasty, the Korean Peninsula was directly administered by the Han Dynasty during the Han Dynasty;
Zhu Yuanzhang exiled Ming Yuzhen's son and Chen Youyi's son to the peninsula
Now, let's talk specifically about the history of the changes in the exile destinations of prisoners in successive dynasties
Qin, before the unification of the Six Kingdoms, the ideal place of exile for prisoners was mainly in the Sichuan-Shu area, where Lü Buwei's entire family was exiled. After the unification of the Six Kingdoms, the exile area was changed to the area south of the Yangtze River and further south to Lingnan;
The Han Dynasty, in the early period, mainly followed the resettlement of the Qin Dynasty, and then with the expansion of the territory of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, Liangguang became less remote, and was exiled to Jiaozhi County and Nichinan County (present-day northern Vietnam) and exiled to the northwest region and the Korean Peninsula;
The Wei and Jin Dynasties, as we all know, was a period of intricate and war-going periods, so the place of exile was not as wide as it was in the Han Dynasty, mainly according to the jurisdiction of the rulers at that time;
It was not until the Tang and Song dynasties that the scope of the prisoners' penal colonies was expanded again, especially the scope and choice of the Tang Dynasty were only comparable to those of the Qiang Han Dynasty. As for the Song Dynasty? Mainly exiled in the south, Hainan Island suddenly became popular at this time,
According to documentary records, in the 319-year history of the Song Dynasty, more than 80 people with names and surnames were exiled to Hainan Island, such as su shi (Su Dongpo), a great scholar at that time, as well as Ding Guo, Li Gang and other important ministers who were exiled here.
Exile in Hainan began in the middle of the Tang Dynasty and reached its peak during the Song Dynasty
During the Yuan Dynasty, with the vast territory and the Area around Lingnan, it was already very developed, and it was no longer a poor countryside, so the Lingnan area was no longer a "hot place" and the first choice for exile, of course, Hainan Island was an exception;
Emperor Yuanwenzong was briefly exiled to Hainan
It was not until the Ming Dynasty that Hainan Island was valued, and at this time, for the "prisoners" exiled to Hainan, it was no longer a barren "ghost island". During the Ming Dynasty, the places of exile were mainly at the northern and southern ends, and the northeast did not stop exile until the rise of the Later Jin Dynasty;
During the Qing Dynasty, with the unification of the Qing Dynasty and the location of the northeast as the root of the Manchus, the place of exile became a bitter cold place (northeast), especially the area around Ningguta became the preferred place. Perhaps, there are other intentions such as publicity.
In summary, it can be seen that:
Qin Dynasty and Early Han Dynasty? The place of exile of prisoners is more of a place of southern smoke;
The Tang Dynasty? The penal colony of prisoners is so wide and so varied! Of course, at most, it is the Great Northwest and Lingnan area;
As for the Song and Yuan dynasties? The Yuan Dynasty was more extensive and more selective, the Song Dynasty was not much choice, and Hainan Island became the first choice;
Come back to the Ming and Qing dynasties? All of them are invariably more bitter and cold places that are biased towards the northeast;
Finally, be realistic: in ancient times, where were the "prisoners" most afraid of being exiled?
First of all, in ancient times, the most frightening and difficult to walk? There are no more than two, one is the bitter cold land of the White Mountains and Black Water (northeast), and the other is the land of smoke and miasma of the tropical rain forest (Hainan). As for the Great Northwest? Much better at the time, in terms of development? Hainan is also more primitive, so the most feared at that time should be Hainan Island.