Zhao Kuangyin established the Song Dynasty, carried out reforms and innovations in political and military aspects, and established new systems and operational mechanisms. Under the suggestion of Zhao Pu and with the help of Zhao Guangyi, he implemented the three-point program of cutting off his power, controlling his money, and collecting his elite troops.
Establish a new relationship between central and local government, financial power, and military power, and strengthen the centralized power system. It fundamentally eliminated the situation that local military strength could not be lost, thus changing the drawbacks of the division of domains and towns and the high positions of military generals since the Anshi Rebellion, especially during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period.
The first is to rectify the forbidden army. Depriving military generals of their military power, using the high-ranking official Houlu as a quid pro quo, he implemented the strategy of releasing the right to release troops with a glass of wine, forcing his founding heroes Shi Shouxin, Gao Huaide, Wang Xunqi, Zhang Lingduo, Zhao Yanhui and others to surrender military power. The status of the commander of the forbidden army was lowered, the chief and deputy commanders were removed from inspection, and the lower ranking chief and deputy commanders were under the command, and the guards division was divided into the horse army division and the infantry army division, so that their status was lowered and their power was decentralized.
The authority of the commander-in-chief of the forbidden army was weakened, and the power of recruitment, cantonment, and transfer of pawns was vested in the Privy Council, and the prohibitory army only had the right to train troops. The system of restraint has been tightened, and military generals have often changed their defenses to various places to guard them, so that the generals will not specialize in troops and the generals will be impermanent. This greatly weakens the general's power position and strength, and does not form a threatening force with a high weight.
Zhao Kuangyin released the right to release the army with a cup of wine
The second is to weaken local military strength. The local elite troops were enriched and collected into the central forbidden army. The Song Dynasty army was divided into four types: the forbidden army was the central army, the box army was the local army, the township army was the militia, and the Fang army was the minority soldiers. The forbidden army is numerous and strong, and the treatment is generous, while the box army is poorly treated, not trained, and the troops are scattered and weak. Fundamentally changing the situation of the powerful clan and town, it is no longer possible for local military forces to impact and shake the central army. The Song Dynasty changed the conscription system to a conscription system, and the pawns of the troops were professional soldiers recruited by the government and controlled and managed by the government.
The third is to concentrate financial power. Local tax organs will be placed under the central control, local fiscal and tax revenues will be transferred to the central authorities, and local expenditures shall be allocated by the central authorities. Establish a system of transshipment envoys, set up various transshipment departments, specialize in financial and water transportation, as envoys and institutions dispatched by the central government, and later divide the country into 15 routes as new administrative divisions, and the transshipment department will be divided into the highest level of local administrative regions. Evolved to form the provincial system during the Yuan and Ming dynasties.
The fourth is to reform the prime minister system. Zhao Kuangyin divided the power of the prime minister. With the same Zhongshu Menxia Pingzhang, it is for the prime minister. The governor of the government is appointed as the deputy prime minister. The Privy Council divided its military powers, so that the Prime Minister and the Privy Council were divided between civil and military affairs. The Prime Minister's Hall of Government and the Privy Council are known as the Second House.
The financial power was then divided into three divisions, namely Yantie, Duzhi, and Hubu, known as the Minister, thus forming the Prime Minister in charge, the Privy Council in charge, the three divisions in charge of wealth, and the three powers were separated, all belonging to the emperor. Enhance the rights and status of inspection organs such as the Imperial History Observatory and the Procuratorate, and exercise their duties of supervision and impeachment.
Zhao Kuangyinxue visited Zhao Pu at night
Zhao Kuangyin was the second political system initiative since the first emperor of Qin. A series of political, financial and military reforms adopted by Emperor Taizu of Song and his successors formed a new political structure and institutional mechanism, thus changing the basic framework for the continuation, inheritance and development of a series of systems determined since Qin Shi Huang unified the six kingdoms.
First of all, it formed a civilian system that adhered to Confucianism as its dominant position, completely subverted the official system of the aristocratic group that had continued since the Qin Dynasty, and completely changed the situation in which military generals monopolized power, fully implemented the three principles and five permanent positions, and formed a thorough loyal monarchy system, so that after the Song Dynasty, there was no phenomenon of military generals and eunuchs usurping power, forming a solid monarchical absolute system.
Confucius travels
Second, reform and improve the military rank system, establish a stable relationship between the central and local governments, fundamentally eliminate the phenomenon that local political power cannot be eliminated, and establish the prototype of the provincial system in the county system. The third is to change the system of three princes and nine secretaries and three provinces and six ministries, determine the mechanism for separating political power, financial power, and military power from each other, and centralize power to the emperor, and further strengthen the centralized power and absolute monarchy system.
Image source network, invasion and deletion.