Whether in ancient film and television dramas, or in some literary works with ancient backgrounds, we can often see a kind of plot. For those who committed serious crimes, the imperial court did not necessarily sentence them to death, but they could also sentence them to exile in a certain place. In addition to some ordinary people, dignitaries who commit felonies may also be sentenced to exile.
The places of exile are not uniform, but most of them are desolate areas, so many times we will see the term "distribution frontier". So why are felons not sentenced to death, but instead "distributed to the frontier"? In fact, the ancients were also very wise in this way, and this penal system was not "stupid".
The history of exile is inherited
Exile is a punishment, i.e. exile. Exile has existed in China for a very long time, although in official accounts, it began in the Qin and Han dynasties, but in fact, as early as the time of China's clan society, this form of punishment has existed. There are already relevant records in the Yin Shang period, Yi Yin was exiled to the Tong Palace because he did not abide by the Shang Tang law.
During the Yao Shunyu period, there were also many people who were exiled, and even after some people were exiled, the incognito name changed and became the ancestor of a certain surname in China. However, the exile during this period was not explicitly stipulated, and was usually decided by the emperor himself. By the time of the Qin and Han dynasties, exile had become a legal punishment. But the scope of application is very narrow, and only specific people can be sentenced to exile.
During the Southern and Northern Dynasties, ordinary people also began to be sentenced to exile, and exile became a relatively common punishment, and during the Sui Dynasty, it became one of the five punishments. Exile in the Sui and Tang dynasties was very different from the Qin and Han dynasties, and the exile in the Qin and Han dynasties focused on the "hard labor" after the prisoners were assigned, rather than on the "long distance".
During the Sui and Tang dynasties, exile was the second most important punishment to the death penalty among the five punishments, which changed the essence of focusing on "labor forced labor" and began to focus on "flowing far", that is, the distribution distance was very far away. Later generations of exile were also basically the same as during the Sui and Tang dynasties, and continued to the Qing Dynasty.
Is exile better than the death penalty?
It may seem to many people that the death penalty is the highest punishment for a person, so it is very difficult to understand that some felons do not sentence the death penalty, but have to sentence the "distribution frontier", and do not understand why the ancients did this. In fact, exile is not an easier punishment than the death penalty, and even exile is more painful than the death penalty.
In ancient times, even many people would rather be sentenced to death than be sentenced to exile. Although there are many kinds of death penalties in ancient times, but in most cases, they are beheadings, this method of death is very crisp and clean, the executioners are very skilled, and the prisoners usually do not feel too much pain, so the death penalty is a "relaxed" punishment for some felons.
Although exile is not a direct sentence of death, in fact, many people sentenced to exile can not escape a "death" ending. Exile in the Qin and Han dynasties may have been just doing hard work, but after the Sui and Tang dynasties, exile focused on "flowing far", usually the exile distance was more than two thousand miles, and the heaviest was three thousand miles.
The road to exile is very desolate, the conditions are very difficult, and the prisoners have usually endured the punishment of cane and other punishments before the exile begins, and their health is already very unhealthy. Exile has to walk such a long distance on foot, coupled with the lack of food and water on the road, many exiles simply insist on an incomplete journey and will die in the middle of the road.
Exile is a "clever" punishment
The ancients sentenced some heavy criminals to exile, which is actually a very "smart" approach. The punishment of letting these exiles suffer in exile and eventually die a painful death is more painful than the direct death penalty. And even if there are some lucky people who can persist to the end, what awaits them is a year or so of "hard labor" life.
Exile will cause a lot of torture to the body and mind of prisoners, and the purpose of punishment is to punish the offenders, so that they can pay the price for their own crimes, so the felons will be sentenced to exile instead of the death penalty, this is not because the ancients were too "stupid", although the death penalty is the highest punishment, but the degree of pain of exile is much higher than the death penalty.
In addition to punishment, the imperial court sentenced some prisoners to exile for other reasons. The destinations of the exile are some very desolate and remote places, where the Han people are very small, and most of them live here are ethnic minorities, so those places are also called "barbaric" areas, and the imperial court exiled prisoners to such places for a certain purpose.
First of all, the prisoners are exiled here, increasing the number of local Han people, will not let the foreign forces dominate, after the Han people are more, they can also gradually assimilate these foreign people, driving the development of the frontier economy and culture. At the same time, these prisoners are also free laborers and can participate in the construction of desolate areas. Moreover, exile as a reduction in the death penalty can show the benevolence of the emperor who "forgives people and does not die".
epilogue:
Exile from the beginning of the emergence, has been followed to the end of China's feudal dynasty, it can be said that throughout the country's feudal history, since it can exist for so long, then there must be a reason for its existence, do not underestimate the wisdom of our ancient people. However, the exile of each dynasty will also be different, and the law must also adapt to the characteristics of each era.
References: "History of Yin Benji", "A Brief Discussion on the Criminal Law of Chinese Dynasties"