#元朝开创的行省制延续至今已经近800年, how did this succeed? #
After the establishment of the Yuan Dynasty, 10 provinces were established throughout the country, changing the road system since the Tang and Song dynasties. The impact of this move by the Yuan Dynasty was very great in the administrative division of China. Since then, the provincial system has evolved to become today's provincial system, which means that the provincial system has lasted in China for nearly 800 years. Why was the provincial system of the Yuan Dynasty successful?
First, the provinces have improved efficiency under the premise of centralization
Before the Yuan Dynasty, China's local system was the county system or the prefecture system. In 221 BC, the Qin Dynasty unified the six kingdoms and implemented the county system throughout the country, marking the formal formation of the centralized system. Since then, China's local system has evolved on the basis of the Qin Dynasty. However, successive dynasties have struggled to resolve the basic contradiction of local division, that is, the contradiction between centralization and efficiency.
When the centralization of power is excessive, then the local administrative enthusiasm will be reduced, and the administrative efficiency will be greatly reduced. At the same time, the number of local officials will increase significantly, and the local bureaucracy will be cumbersome, which will increase the burden on the country's finances. Excessive centralization will also lead to a decline in the ability of local governments to cope with external troubles, and it will be difficult to resist the invasion of neighboring ethnic groups. The Northern Song Dynasty is an example of excessive centralization. At the end of the dynasty, in order to suppress the peasant uprising, the imperial court would delegate power to the local government, but it would make the local separatist forces grow, leading to the collapse of the country, as was the case with the Eastern Han Dynasty and the Tang Dynasty.
Therefore, how to improve administrative efficiency under the condition of ensuring centralization has become a thorny issue. Jinguo, which comes from the northeast, offers a new way of thinking. At the beginning of the Jin State destroying the Northern Song Dynasty, Xingtai Shangshu Province was set up in Yanjing as a branch of Shangshu Province. Xingtai Shangshu Province was dispatched by Shangshu Province and had greater military and political autonomy in the localities, which was conducive to the control of the Central Plains by the Jin State. After King Hailing moved the capital to Yanjing, Xingtai Shangshu Province was abolished, but this model survived.
At the end of the Jin Kingdom, in order to resist the Mongol invasion, the localities were given greater autonomy and Xingshangshu Province was set up throughout the country. After the Mongols conquered the Central Plains, they began to learn the political system of the Central Plains. During the Wokotai period, Mongolia established Zhongshu Province in the central government as the highest administrative body in the country. In 1251, Meng Ge established Xingshangshu Province in Yanjing as the highest authority in Mongolia to run the Han Dynasty. In addition, Mongo also set up Amu Darya and other provinces in Western Asia. Xingshangshu Province is the germ of the Yuan Dynasty's province system.
Provinces often held local administrative, military, financial and other powers, and had strong autonomy, which adapted to the needs of the expansion of the Mongol Empire. Compared with the road of the Song Dynasty, the jurisdiction of the province is very large, the power is also increased, and the administrative enthusiasm is improved. At the same time, provinces are dispatched by central agencies, and their main officials come from the central government, not from the local level. Qian Mu said: "Xingzhongshu Province is a central government that acts, the police station of the Prime Minister's Office. Assigned to this place to take care of things. "Thus the power of the province comes from the central government, which is subject to the control of the highest administrative body of the center. From this point of view, the provincial system solves the contradiction between centralization and efficiency.
Second, the provincial system breaks the traditional division based on mountains and rivers
After Kublai Khan established the Yuan Dynasty, he upgraded the original Xingshangshu Province to Zhongshu Province, becoming the highest administrative institution in the country. In order to adapt to the change of form, Kublai Khan set up the Ten Roads Xuanfu Division in the Central Plains, and at the same time set up Xingzhongshu Province in Hedong, Xixia, Sichuan, Henan, Tokyo (Liaodong), Yunnan and other regions as the dispatch agency of Zhongshu Province. These provincial governors are all officials of the central government, such as the Pingzhang government, and are of a temporary nature.
After the Yuan Dynasty destroyed the Southern Song Dynasty, it set up the four provinces of Zhundong, Hunan, Longxing, and Fujian and the eleventh Xuanwei Division in the south. In order to conquer Japan, Champa, Burma, etc., the provinces of Zhengdong, Champa and Burma were established. In the first 10 years of the establishment of the Yuan Dynasty, the provinces were basically set up for military conquest, and the changes were very large. In 1286, it was stipulated that the governor of the province was no longer a capital province (Zhongshu Province), but only a certain province, which marked the beginning of the transformation of the province into a local administrative body. By the middle of the Yuan Dynasty, the number and area of provinces were also fixed, forming ten provinces: Lingbei, Liaoyang, Henan Jiangbei, Shaanxi, Sichuan, Gansu, Yunnan, Jiangsu and Zhejiang Provinces, Jiangxi, and Huguang.
The main purpose of the Yuan Dynasty in setting up the provinces was also different. Among them, Lingbei Province was to control the "land of Taizu Zhaoji" and prevent the Mongol clan king from rebelling; The three provinces of Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Huguang and Jiangxi were mainly used to suppress the rebels in Jiangnan and collect taxes at the same time; The four provinces of Shaanxi, Sichuan, Yunnan, Henan and Jiangbei served as the throat of the world, so a large number of troops were stationed. The provinces of the early Yuan Dynasty were similar to the current military districts.
Because the establishment of the provinces of the Yuan Dynasty was closely related to military conquests, the provinces generally formed a pattern of "north to south". The capital of a province is generally located at the northern end of the province or at the throat of waterway traffic. For example, the Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces set up by the Yuan Dynasty controlled Fujian, Jiangxi provinces controlled Guangdong, and Huguang provinces controlled Guangxi. In this way, the gateway to the Lingnan region was opened to the north, which was conducive to the military control of the Yuan Dynasty over the Lingnan region.
Since ancient times, China's administrative divisions have been divided according to the geographical situation of mountains and rivers, which is conducive to local economic and cultural exchanges, but also allows local warlords to stand in danger. The Yuan Dynasty implemented the north to control the south, breaking the pattern of the mountain situation and making it difficult for local warlords to gain a foothold. For example, the Hanzhong region of Sichuan was assigned to Shaanxi Province, leaving Sichuan Province without a northern barrier.
Third, the development and regulation of the provincial system
The provincial system of the Yuan Dynasty ensured the centralization of power, improved the efficiency of local administration, and helped prevent local separation, using the needs of the great unification of the Yuan Dynasty. However, the provincial system of the Yuan Dynasty also had several important shortcomings, one was that the jurisdiction of the province was too large; Second, excessive breaking of mountains and rivers is not conducive to the development of local economy; The third is to deprive Lufu Prefecture and County of their power too much, resulting in a decline in local administrative functions. Therefore, the provincial system must be continuously improved to continue to maintain its vitality.
After the establishment of the Ming Dynasty, it inherited the provincial system of the Yuan Dynasty and transformed it. First, the Ming Dynasty increased the number of provinces and reduced the jurisdiction of the provinces, eventually forming a situation of two Beijing and thirteen provinces; Second, the provinces were divided into three parts: the Department of Political Envoys, the Department of Command of Governors, and the Department of Punishment and Prosecution, collectively known as the "Three Divisions", which respectively control the administrative, military, and judicial powers of a province. In this way, the power of the provinces was weakened; Third, adjust the boundaries of the provinces, and the period is more in line with the shape of mountains and rivers.
However, the excessive decentralization of power in the Ming Dynasty once again reappeared the problems that arose in the Northern Song Dynasty, that is, the inefficiency of local administration and the increase in financial burden. In order to solve this problem, the Ming Dynasty gradually set up governors or governors in the provinces in the later period to control local financial, military, administrative and other powers. In the Qing Dynasty, it continued to develop on this basis, making the governor the highest local governor. Therefore, the provincial system evolved back to centralization through the decentralization of power in the Ming Dynasty.
In the process of the evolution of the Ming Dynasty, the provincial system was constantly tried and optimized, and finally formed a stable system. In the Qing Dynasty, the interior was divided into 18 provinces, and later provinces were set up in Xinjiang, Northeast China, Taiwan and other places, basically laying the map of today's administrative divisions. In the process of evolution, the province has continuously adapted to the development of society, and finally continued to this day.
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