The imperial examination system is the ancient Chinese system of selecting officials through examinations, and it is also a far-reaching reform in Chinese history. This system not only changed the way talents were selected, but also broke the original bloodline hereditary and clan monopoly, lowered the threshold for becoming an official, and gave the children of commoners without a bureaucratic family background the opportunity to go to the court.
Examination is the main way to select talents in the examination system, similar to today's college entrance examination, as long as you register to take the examination, those who pass the examination can obtain official positions. This is fundamentally different from the previous "hereditary system" and "inspection system", which is a system upgrade, and even Japan has imitated China's imperial examination system.
In ancient times, Japan sent envoys to China many times to study, and after that, many Chinese cultures and systems were introduced to Japan, including the Imperial Examination System of the Tang Dynasty. For Japan at that time, the imperial examination system was a relatively advanced talent selection system. Because, in the Middle Ages, Japan's bureaucracy was extremely dark, power was monopolized in the hands of imperial nobles and clan scholars, ordinary people did not have the hope of breaking the shackles of class, and the mobility of talents was restricted.
Therefore, after seeing China's examination system, Japan seemed to see hope, so it quickly "introduced" it into China. In 701 AD, Japan promulgated the Great Treasure Law Decree to implement the "tribute" system. Those who are recommended by the local government to take the examination at the central government become "tribute people", and those who are born in the central government or in local universities or traditional Chinese studies become "people who lift people", so this talent selection system is called the "tribute system".
Although the specific implementation methods and operations are different from the imperial examination system, the basic principles are the same as those of the Tang Dynasty. However, the imperial examination system was not implemented in Japan for a long time, and after entering the Two Song Dynasties, Japan abolished the "tribute system". Why? Opinions vary. However, there is no doubt about one thing: the "birth defect" of the examination system itself.
Although the examination system created by China has largely solved the problem of selecting officials, lowered the threshold for civilians to enter the official field, and played a role of "fairness, justice, and openness" to a certain extent, it has not fundamentally solved the biggest "privilege monopoly" - imperial power.
The power of the emperor is greater than everything, the imperial power can influence the selection system, the examination questions, the appointment and dismissal of officials, etc., the biggest monopoly and injustice in a country has existed for a long time, so although the imperial examination system has its rationality, it cannot really solve these injustices. On the other hand, the examination system has gradually become rigid over time.
Especially in the Qing Dynasty, the content of the examination was limited to the Four Books and Five Classics, and in order to get rich, the readers only knew how to immerse themselves in the study of the "Eight Strands of Literature", and the talents selected by the examination had become one "rigid product of thinking" produced by the "Confucian industry", which was undoubtedly the most fatal for the development of a country.
After the Japanese abandoned the imperial examination system, they were bound to find a system suitable for their own talent selection, so they set their sights on more advanced Western countries.
In the 19th century, China was bullied by Western powers, and the military was completely destroyed, exposing the corruption and backwardness of the Qing system and culture. Japan is a country that is extremely good at learning, and it sees all the encounters of China in its eyes, so it decisively abandons China's backward examination system and chooses the advanced election system in the West.
It can be said that in the 19th century, the electoral system in Western countries was far more advanced than the examination system in the late Qing Dynasty in China, and the electoral system stipulated that except for those who had not reached the legal age or were deprived of political rights, the citizens of the country had one vote per person, and everyone had the right to vote. The power to select officials was delegated from the emperor to the common people, and even the "prime minister" and "president" with the highest power had to be elected by voters.
As a result, Japan immediately carried out imitation learning.
In 1868, the Tokugawa shogunate was overthrown, and Japan ended feudal shogunate politics and formally established a restoration government headed by Emperor Meiji. In 1885, Emperor Meiji established a cabinet system, and since then, a constitutional monarchy has been implemented. In 1889, the Meiji Constitution was officially promulgated, followed by a series of decrees such as the House of Representatives Act and the House of Nobles.
According to the Constitution of the Empire of Japan, the members of the House of Representatives are elected by the people, and according to the regulations, any man who is over 25 years old and pays a direct tax of 15 yuan or more has the right to vote. At that time, after the promulgation of the Constitution, the people cheered and enthusiastically celebrated the promulgation of the Constitution. In the hearts of the Japanese people, the establishment of the Constitution is an important step toward liberal democracy in Japan.
In 1890, Japan held its first Diet, the "first" diet in Asian history. In the end, the innovation of the political system, the role of the economy, culture, military aspects should not be underestimated, after more than 20 years of development, Japan's national strength has become increasingly strong, has abolished a series of unequal treaties signed with Western countries during the shogunate era, regained national sovereignty, and finally, Japan's modernization process began.
However, it should be pointed out that although Japan's "Meiji Restoration" was very advanced in Asia at that time, its reform was not thorough, and a large number of feudal remnants of ideas were still preserved. Eventually, through the Meiji Restoration, Japan's comprehensive national strength increased rapidly and it joined the ranks of imperialist powers. A large number of social and cultural symbols full of militarism and national honor, such as the Imperial Japanese Navy and the Imperial University, have emerged. Japan eventually embarked on the militaristic path of foreign aggression and expansion.
Resources:
【The Imperial Examination System and Japanese Culture", "The Meiji Restoration in Japan"】