In history, there are many emperors who have made achievements in the same period, in our eyes, the Southern Song Dynasty is a weak dynasty, in fact, there was also an emperor with achievements during the Southern Song Dynasty, and a series of reforms were also carried out. This emperor was Song Xiaozong, who was a descendant of Zhao Kuangyin and was given to him by Zhao Zhaochan as emperor.
The rule of dryness
After Zhao Zhao continued his life for the Song Dynasty, it was a pity that his son did not live long, and there were no heirs to pass on the throne. Therefore, Zhao Zhuo chose Zhao Xuan as crown prince, and in 1162, Zhao Zhuo declared himself Emperor Taishang and ceded the throne to Zhao Xuan, which was Song Xiaozong.
In history, the overall evaluation of Song Xiaozong is not bad, believing that he is an emperor with achievements. But this measurement is only a comparison during the Southern Song Dynasty.
After Emperor Xiaozong of Song succeeded to the throne, he began a series of reforms, believing that Qin Ju had been in the position for a long time, forming an entangled force, so he ordered the shortening of the term of office of the prime minister to prevent the formation of friends to threaten the imperial power.
Song Xiaozong followed the principle that foreign relatives did not interfere in politics to prevent the problem of monopoly of power by foreign relatives. Emperor Xiaozong of Song strengthened the supervisory function of the counselors, took power in his hands, and severed the collusion between the chancellor and the counselors.
Song Xiaozong was a very diligent student, and he himself commented that he "did not dare to be idle at night, and there was no one who did not have a single self-affair in the daily spiritual hour. Then think about three or two things repeatedly, lest you make a mistake. "Although he is a diligent emperor who has experienced everything himself, he is an emperor who does not trust the hundred officials.
The greatest achievement of Song Xiaozong during his reign was to rehabilitate Yue Fei's unjust case and conform to the will of the people. In 1162, as soon as Emperor Xiaozong of Song ascended the throne, he issued an edict under the banner of Zhao Shuo: "Pursue Yue Fei's original official, change his burial with ceremonies, visit him later, and hire him." Soon after, he issued an edict posthumously awarding Yue Fei: "Shaobao, Wusheng DingguoJun Jiedushi, Wuchang County's Founding Duke, 6,100 households, and 2,600 households."
In 1163, at the request of Yue Fei's family, Emperor Xiaozong of Song returned Yue Fei's mansion to his descendants. In 1178, he also returned the "Imperial Pen" and "Hand Commandment" written by Zhao Zhao to Yue Fei to Yue Fei's son Yue Lin.
Emperor Xiaozong of Song also standardized the laws of the Southern Song Dynasty, promulgated the "Qiandao Edict Format", and compiled it into the "Chunxi Article Legal Affairs Category", which also served as the legal basis for the Dali Temple and the Punishment Department to handle cases.
In 1186, Lin'an Province deposed more than 300 officials and eliminated more than 700 redundant officials in two years. Emperor Xiaozong of Song severely limited the number of shades and reduced the number of shades for officials at all levels.
In addition, Song Xiaozong also carried out military reforms, developed the economy, built water conservancy, issued paper money, and reduced the taxes of the people, and the culture of the Song Dynasty achieved great development.
King of the same period
In 1066, William, Duke of Normandy, crossed the English Channel, conquered the Anglo-Saxon nation, occupied England, and thus began the history of the Normandy family ruling England.
After William's death, he was succeeded by his son Henry, henry I. In 1120, Prince Aitlin, Henry I's only male heir, died in a shipwreck, and he had to promise to pass the throne to his daughter, Queen Matilda of Germany.
In order to consolidate his daughter's position, Henry I chose Joofroy Plantagenet, the eldest son of Count Fulk V of the Family of Francianjo, as his son-in-law, and the plantagenet referred to here refers to the fact that he likes to wear planted planted planted on his hat, hence the name.
Matilda and her husband had been living in Anjou, and the two had a son named Henry, who was very happy and baptized his grandson and pinned his hopes on him. But two years later, Henry I died suddenly, England suddenly appeared in a state of nobody, so Henry I's nephew Stephen immediately crossed the sea to London, and was quickly proclaimed king, although Henry I asked the ministers to be loyal to his daughter, but the ministers preferred a man to succeed to the throne, so Henry I's nephew arrived and was solemnly welcomed.
Knowing that Stephen had succeeded to the throne, Matilda and his wife fought with him and fought a 13-year war. In 1148, the two royal regimes of England temporarily ceased hostilities. Since the son of the Matilda couple, Henry the Younger, was raised by his uncle from an early age, he was well educated. He did not return to his father until he was 11 years old. Because he was a good fighter from an early age, he was knighted by his uncle at the age of 16 and his father at the age of 17.
Little Henry grew up in political struggles, and he understood a truth: political survival is a game, which requires preemptive strikes, and quickly control complex and changeable enemy relations, and also ask friends for help at the right time. Henry Jr. is a precocious politician. In 1152, at the age of 19, he married Ellenore, Duchess of Aquitaine, who was 9 years older than himself, and at this time she had just divorced Louis VII of France, so that the little Henry had a lot of wealth and land as soon as he married, and his political capital was also strong.
Later, after coordination, Henry became the heir of King Stephen, and in 1154 he was crowned King of England at Westminster Abbey, which is the famous Plantagenet dynasty in English history, but 8 years before The Song Xiaozong of Shisi.
A darling
Henry the Younger was crowned the titular Henry II of history. During the reign of Henry II, he had a favorite, Thomas Beckett, the child of a wine merchant who grew up well educated in monasteries and grammar schools and was familiar with canon law and civil law. Beckett graduated as a member of the church, and because of his intelligence and ability, he became the archdeacon of Canterbury Church. It was in this position that Henry II and Becket met and quickly became close friends.
For Henry' part, although he became king of England, he was not familiar with the English court system, so Henry II urgently needed to find a familiar person to handle some affairs for himself. At this time, Beckett was more in line with Henry II's requirements. Henry II was also an important position in the Church of England and was able to handle the relationship between the royal family and the Holy See. In 1155, in order to show his trust in his friend, Henry II also appointed Becket as a judge. Although Beckett is 13 years older than Henry, the two work well together.
According to historical records, Henry II and Beckett were very closely related, and the two often went in and out of the court together, because Beckett was tall and Henry II was short, so it formed a contrast and complementarity. At this time, everyone knew that Beckett was the darling. And it was very beautiful, with a mansion, and many powerful people sent their sons to his house for education.
But to the tall Becket, Henry II sometimes teased him with the king's majesty. It is said that the two went to the street one day in winter and met a beggar who was shivering with cold, so Henry Erli pulled Beckett's cloak and prepared to give it to the beggar, when Beckett did not expect it, he hugged his cloak tightly and did not let go, and finally obeyed Henry II and donated the cloak.
In fact, although it was a joke, it was a manifestation of Henry's oath of imperial power to the world. If Beckett had seen that, he might not have been killed. Unfortunately, Beckett was not as mentally as Henry II.
The two powers are at odds
Since the emergence of religion in European countries, there has been a struggle between ecclesiastical power and royal power. In particular, in the 4th century AD, Christianity relied on the edict of Milan issued by the ancient Roman Emperor Constantine the Great, thus becoming the orthodox seat, and many religious systems also emerged, and even classes within religions emerged. And the last is the pope, and at the bottom is the clergy, but this system of clerical power is very stable. Because secular kingship is subject to the Church, it can only be considered orthodox if it is recognized by the Church.
Christianity did not enter England for a long time, but its power was very stable. During the reign of Henry II, the Church controlled the subjects of England and had great wealth, because every Christian at that time had to pay taxes to the Pope. There was an independent judiciary in the church, not controlled by the king, and even if the priests sinned, they became refuge whenever they ran to the church.
If the ecclesiastical power and the royal power want to balance, unless the king is incompetent, but Henry II is a king who wants to be the lord, he does not want to be constrained by the church, so the kingship and the ecclesiastical power are contradictory. In 1161, the Archbishop of Canterbury died, and Henry II saw the opportunity to appoint Becket as his candidate for archbishopship.
Some archbishops at Canterbury Cathedral considered Becket ineligible to be bishop, believing him to be a layman, neither a theologian nor a jurist. But Beckett was the archdeacon of the church and defended the king's power at every turn. Finally, at the suggestion of Henry II, the power of the archbishop was given to Becket. But Henry did not expect that after Beckett became archbishop, he began to oppose the royal family.
Beckett resigned as a justice, and immediately lived a simple life, and he immediately became like a Christian. Moreover, Becket and Henry II began to drift apart, defending the rights of the church at every turn and resisting some of the royal practices.
The people did not understand the change in Beckett, believing that it was "the hand of God" that made it change. Becket staunchly blocked Henry II's tax and judicial reforms, and the two became sworn enemies.
The church has great power and plays a role in maintaining social order. Because the church asked the local sheriff to pay a gratuity as a security fee, Henry II wanted to take a portion of the gratuity as a tax to show the king's power.
The tax had no effect on the church, but Beckett was adamantly opposed. Henry II was furious at Becket's opposition, and the relationship between the two reached the brink of the worst.
At that time, the church had the power to punish crimes, so some priests who committed crimes were disposed of, and they could use the church to survive and continue to enjoy freedom. But by the time of Henry II, this privilege was gone.
In October 1163, Henry II summoned the nation's ecclesiastical magnates to Westminster Abbey, where he demanded that the bishops and magnates accept the law and punish clergy for crimes before being tried in secular courts. Everyone knows the consequences of handing it over to Henry II.
The proposal was opposed by Becket, and some church members disagreed, and Henry II left in anger. He then asked Becket to return the castle during his tenure as a justice and take his son under Beckett's discipline. Since then, the two friends have truly turned against each other.
In January 1164, Henry II reformed the crown and drafted and promulgated a written law, the Clarendon Constitution, which separated the church from the power of the king. It also includes provisions for the transfer of priests who have committed crimes to secular authorities. Beckett received a copy of the Constitution. He was forced by Henry II to recognize the Constitution, leaving the Church in a state of subordination to the crown.
Although Henry II defeated Becket, he prepared to pursue Henry II, and in 1164 he convened a meeting of the magnates. Beckett was accused of corruption. In this case, Beckett had to leave for France and let them try it again.
Upon his return to England, Becket began contacting an Archbishop of England to denigrate Henry II, but the two met in 1170, but soon a conflict arose. Because of This Christmas, Henry II decided to reform the religion.
Murder compromise
On Christmas Day 1170, Henry II celebrated in Normandy, when he heard that Becket was also celebrating in England, and that Beckett had also engaged in some sabotage. Henry was furious: "What a pathetic and despicable slacker and traitor in my court, who allowed their lord to be so shamefully despised by a priest of lowly origin!" Henry's words served as a declaration of war, and some thought he meant: "Hasn't anyone helped me get rid of this abominable priest?" ”
Four of Henry II's soldiers ran to Camberley Cathedral, where Becket was located, and killed him on the spot. After this case, it immediately caused anger on the church side, and Henry II became an enemy of Christianity.
And the pope knew about the case and was ready to expel Henry II. If Henry II did not have a canon, the consequences would be very serious, and he would become an enemy of the church, and he would be in danger of sexual fame at any time. Emperor Henry IV was killed for this incident, and he stood in the snow for three days and three nights before being spared by the Pope.
Henry II, knowing the seriousness, immediately told the Pope that he was not involved in the matter, killed four soldiers, confessed his mistake to the Pope, and also revoked the terms of the violation of the priests, and the Pope forgave Henry II.
However, Beckett's death and Henry II's submission to ecclesiastical power brought about a temporary balance between ecclesiastical and royal power. In 1172, Henry II signed a non-interfering treaty with the church, and the struggle between the king and the church came to an end.