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Whether in ancient times or now, the military strength of a country is a political power, a vital foothold. It is worth noting that in the ancient days of feudal China, the system of military service had already emerged, which was also an important basis for the composition of the armed forces of the feudal state and the system of unified troops.
In other words, in the historical background of the time, the rulers not only exerted themselves to develop the country's economic strength, but also paid attention to the overall development of military strength. The tang dynasty's military prowess in Chinese history is second to none. The rulers of the Tang Dynasty also introduced the system of prefectural soldiers according to their own development.
The Song Dynasty has always been labeled as the Song Dynasty and the Tang Dynasty, which means to some extent that the series of systems promulgated by the Song Dynasty are closely related to the Tang Dynasty.
However, what is surprising is that after the establishment of the Song Dynasty, Zhao Kuangyin, the grandfather of the Song Dynasty, did not continue the system of prefectural soldiers used during the Tang Dynasty, but instead began to use the conscription system. This major reform of the military system has also left a strong mark in China's history.
First, the reasons for the Song Dynasty's use of the conscription system
First of all, after Tang Taizong Li Shimin succeeded to the throne, he created the first prosperous and prosperous Zhenguan rule in the history of the Tang Dynasty through hard work.
In the following period, the economic, political, and military culture of the Tang Dynasty grew day by day, and under the historical background at that time, the land annexation system was gradually formed, which promoted the rapid development of the land private ownership system and has shown an overwhelming strategic advantage.
In ancient times, agriculture was the most important thing to support the operation of a country, and land was the main source of livelihood for ordinary people. With the continuous development of time, the development trend of the Tang Dynasty has gradually become unbalanced, and one of the most obvious features is that most of the land has been transferred from the hands of the common people to the hands of one landlord, which has caused a large number of bankruptcies in the self-agricultural economy, resulting in the loss of the basic military resources of the Tang Dynasty military system.
In addition, during the Tang Dynasty, the main wanted to form a composite system of combining soldiers and farmers, and the rulers hoped that in this way, the soldiers could form a self-sufficient economic base, thereby reducing the important investment of the state in the military.
However, at that time, the land problem was too serious to be reconciled, so for various reasons, during the Northern Song Dynasty, if you wanted to continue the Tang Dynasty, the system of military service used was obviously unrealistic.
At the same time, after the disappearance of the Tang Dynasty from history, China was in a multi-pronged battle for a long time.
This means, in part, that China's agriculture has come to a standstill, with each regime recklessly developing its military might in order to gain greater benefits, thereby ignoring economic growth. In this way, the system of prefectural soldiers operated during the Tang Dynasty was completely destroyed.
Second, the important characteristics of the prefectural military system
At the beginning of the establishment of the Tang Dynasty, the rulers of the Tang Dynasty began to try various methods to form a relatively complete system of prefectural soldiers. First of all, the prefectural military system has many characteristics, and these characteristics are also in line with the development of the country and can help the country reduce the pressure of operation.
At the beginning of its establishment, the prefectural military system was a kind of merger of the separation of soldiers and farmers and the unity of soldiers and farmers, in times of war, soldiers can run on the battlefield to charge the front, and in the prosperous world or stable social environment, soldiers can help the country reduce the burden by resting and recuperating, doing some agricultural activities within their capabilities.
In addition, the state can also use the prefectural soldier system to control the landlords on one side, and under the continuous intervention of the government, it controls most of the land of the Central Plains Zhengquan, thus ensuring the privatization of the land. In addition, the existence of the prefectural military system also became one of the most solid bases of the Tang Dynasty.
On the surface, this is an indestructible army, but at a critical moment, it can become the ruler of the Tang Dynasty, maintain its own centralized national team, and this team will be completely controlled by the Tang rulers.
The most important thing is the existence of the prefectural military system, and the contribution to the Juntian system is also extremely important. It is precisely because of the existence of the prefectural soldier system that the Juntian system can be continued.
Third, the recruitment system introduced by the Song Dynasty
To some extent, the Song Dynasty no longer used the prefectural soldier system introduced during the Tang Dynasty, and began to use the conscription system, which is a change in the military system. This kind of change is similar to the country's financial change, and the two will form a more tacit cooperation because of the continuous change of the two sides.
The economic models of the Tang Dynasty and the Song Dynasty were very different, and the Song Dynasty also relied on a series of enlightened policies to make the country's economy change significantly in a short period of time, and all this also benefited from the conscription system.
In addition, during the Song Dynasty, Zhao Kuangyin, the grandfather of the Song Dynasty, promulgated a political policy of emphasizing literature over military force, and at the same time, improving the status of civilian officials in the imperial court and society in this way.
For various reasons, the Song Dynasty had to discourage the enthusiasm of its generals, and this also required corresponding changes in the military system to cooperate with it. After all, in the eyes of the rulers of the Song Dynasty, military strength is not worth mentioning compared with economic strength.
The prefectural soldier system was a special military system introduced by the rulers of the Tang Dynasty in accordance with the historical background of the time, and the peasants prepared their own weapons and grain.
The conscription system is a new system introduced according to the corresponding historical environment of the country and the king's plan. There are substantial differences between the two, and they will also bring different developments to the country, which may be an important reason for the gap in various aspects during the Tang and Song dynasties.
Reference: History of the Song Dynasty