The prohibition policy of the Qin and Han dynasties played an important transitional role in the history of prohibition in ancient China. In the pre-Qin period, due to the limitation of productive forces, prohibition of alcohol was mainly aimed at the ruling class and upper class, out of political considerations, and there was a certain need for the maintenance of social security.
However, with the development of productivity and the increase of grain production during the Qin and Han dynasties, the winemaking industry received more material base and consumer support, and drinking activities became common, secular and commoner in daily life. However, as winemaking increased and the drinking community expanded, rulers gradually began to pay attention to the series of problems that this entailed, and accordingly introduced various types of prohibition laws.
The prohibition policy of the Qin and Han dynasties mainly included three types: prohibition of group drinking, prohibition of cool liquor and cool liquor, and the types and objects of prohibition in different periods were also different.
The prohibition of alcohol during the Qin Dynasty was imposed on specific groups of people at a specific time, and was not prohibited in the broad sense. In the early years of the Western Han Dynasty, a decree prohibiting group drinking was issued, stipulating a fine of four taels for three or more people gathering for drinking without reason, the main purpose of which was to maintain social order, but the punishment was relatively limited and mainly aimed at ordinary people.
The prohibition of alcohol during the Two Han Dynasty was a general prohibition measure, which in most cases was imposed temporarily in the face of the country's financial difficulties. The Western Han period was mainly to prevent potential financial difficulties, while the Eastern Han period was to deal with the financial difficulties that had already arisen. The prohibition of alcohol in the late Eastern Han Dynasty was mostly promulgated by various separatist forces within their rule.
The Emperor Wudi of Han and Wang Mang's reign aimed to increase government revenues and crack down on wealthy merchants, but their focus varied at different stages.
During the Qin and Han dynasties, there were various forms of prohibition, and the reasons for prohibition were relatively complex, which could be mainly divided into three aspects: maintaining social order, coping with financial difficulties, and increasing fiscal revenue.
The different types of alcohol prohibition measures basically correspond to their causes. The main purpose of banning group drinking is to maintain social order and prevent riots caused by drinking and feasting. The prohibition of alcohol is mainly a temporary prohibition measure to prevent or alleviate financial difficulties, while the ban on alcohol is a government measure implemented by the government to increase fiscal revenue and crack down on rich and powerful businessmen.
The counterpart to the prohibition of alcohol is the vinegar system, which is a gathering of people to drink through the township drinking ceremony, and its main purpose is also to promote education and maintain order at the grassroots level of society. Whether it is prohibition of alcohol or vinegar, it is a strong intervention by the ruling class to maintain rule and social order, and it is a reflection of authoritarian politics in the economic field.
The Qin and Han dynasties were an important stage of China's ancient social and economic development, and material culture and spiritual culture were greatly developed during this period. Wine and its derived wine culture played an important role in ancient society, but due to the peculiarities of alcohol, the ruling class had to take control measures and implement a prohibition policy.
(1) The characteristics of prohibition in the Qin and Han dynasties
The State of Qin has attached great importance to the control of alcohol since the Shang Martingale Reform Law. Zhu Shiying and Ji Jiahong's "Dictionary of Chinese Wine Culture" has the entry "wine ban", arguing that during the Warring States period, only the Qin State controlled alcohol, becoming the only country to implement alcohol prohibition at that time. The Qin Dynasty retained this tradition and also banned alcohol.
Zhu Baoyong and Zhang Kechang's "Chinese Wine Classic" believes that the Qin Dynasty's wine policy was to prohibit the people from making wine, impose heavy taxes on wine, and inherit the Qin system, and the early years of the Western Han Dynasty also inherited the Qin Dynasty's prohibition policy. Luo Qinggeng's book "Research on the Monopoly System in the Han Dynasty" believes that strict prohibition of alcohol is a consistent principle of the Western Han Dynasty, which is mainly manifested in the prohibition of drinking alcohol for nothing, prohibition of alcohol in natural disasters, strict prohibition of private brewing and private sales, and punishment for tax concealment.
Although both Qin and Han implemented a prohibition policy, their starting points were different. Wang Saishi's History of Chinese Wine argues that the Han Dynasty's prohibition intentions were significantly different from those of the previous dynasty, with most of the prohibition in the pre-Qin dynasty for political purposes, while the prohibition in the Han Dynasty was mostly economic.
In the practical effect of prohibition. Cai Feng's "General History of China's Handicraft Economy: Pre-Qin, Qin, and Han Scrolls" believes that the prohibition policy of alcohol in the Han Dynasty was only a ban on the people and officials, and the prohibition was not forbidden in the open and dark, and although the ban was strict, it was useless.
Fang Xiong, who summarized the characteristics of prohibition in Qin and Han into three points:
- First, prohibition legislation is often a temporary measure;
- Second, prohibition laws were often associated with the monarch's personal preferences;
- Third, prohibition laws are often closely linked to other government policies.
Han Shengbao's book "Finding the Roots of Chinese Wine Culture" includes a chapter on "Wine Administration Culture", in which the prohibition of alcohol issued by the imperial court is divided into different types such as absolute prohibition and local prohibition, and believes that since the advent of the prohibition law, it has been implemented in successive dynasties, but it cannot be carried out for a few years for the elder and a few months for the shorter, and the reasons are not expanded.
(2) The reasons for banning alcohol during the Qin and Han dynasties
Due to the development of the wine industry, winemaking consumes food and alcohol is prohibited. Yu Huaqing and Zhang Tinghao believed that the Han Dynasty drinking was prevalent, widely used in banquets, rewards, medical use, funerals and other occasions, and had become an indispensable part of people's daily lives.
Lin Jianming and others compiled "Qin and Han Social Civilization", in the section "Brewing Industry", arguing that the Qin and Han dynasties issued many prohibition laws on alcohol, indicating that the wine industry at that time had affected agricultural production or caused a large amount of food waste. Zhong Lifei believes that the reason for banning alcohol in the Two Han Dynasty changed from the previous moral problem to the food problem, which was a turning point in the ancient Chinese society's prohibition policy from moral reasons to people's food reasons.
The reasons for banning alcohol during the Qin and Han dynasties were complex, not only economic, but also political, social and natural. Cai Shangsi's "History of Chinese Wine Culture" summarizes three reasons for banning alcohol in previous dynasties:
- First, they are worried that drinking will lead to the corruption of the rule, and at the same time, they are afraid that the people will drink too much to cause trouble;
- Second, in the year of famine, the consumption of grain in winemaking will exacerbate political instability;
- The third is to prevent the people from making and selling wine to obtain huge profits.
The "Alcohol Prohibition" chapter in Li Hu's book "History of Han and Tang Food Culture" summarizes the reasons for banning alcohol in the Han and Tang Dynasties into five points:
- The first is the causes of natural disasters;
- The second is political reasons;
- The third is the cause of war;
- The fourth is the cause of the "ominous omen";
- The fifth is some temporary reasons;
Huang Xiuming also summarized the reasons for banning alcohol in successive dynasties: that is, the consumption of grain in the valley, the prohibition of alcohol in order to save food: the prohibition of alcohol to stabilize social order; Dissolve providence and ban alcohol in order to eliminate all kinds of natural disasters. Liang Yunhua summarized the reasons for prohibition from the harm of uncontrolled drinking:
- First, the waste of grain and grain;
- The second is a drunken gaffe:
- The third is drunkenness and unscrupulousness:
- Fourth, alcoholism and negligence;
Due to the dangers of drinking, Han rulers usually imposed alcohol prohibitions under special circumstances.
(3) The effectiveness of prohibition of alcohol during the Qin and Han dynasties
Although the Qin and Han dynasties implemented a prohibition policy, the effect of prohibition was very limited. Liu Jun and Mo Fushan's "Wine and Drinking in Ancient China" has a chapter on "Drinking Disasters and Prohibitions in Ancient China", which describes the prohibition of alcohol throughout the dynasties and argues that the prohibition of alcohol in ancient China was a failure for three reasons:
- First, the ruling class itself needs wine;
- Second, from the Han Dynasty, alcohol taxes became an important source of wealth for the imperial court;
- Third, wine is needed by society and the people, and it is irresistible.
Zhao Rongguang's book "The Dietary Life of the Common People in Ancient China" also believes that although alcohol has been strictly banned in successive dynasties, for residents far from the power institutions at all levels, the whip is beyond the reach of the rulers, and the rulers can only be lenient, and the failure of the prohibition is inevitable. Luo Qirong and He Wendan's "Grand View of Chinese Wine Culture" further summarizes the reasons for the ineffective prohibition of alcohol throughout the ages, mainly in three points:
- First, the scale of the winemaking industry is very large, and drinking customs are difficult to change;
- Second, the ruler's sacrifices, feasts, and festivals are inseparable from wine:
- Third, the wine tax gradually became an important source of income for the dynasty from the Han Dynasty.
In short, both prohibition and relaxation are closely related to official economic interests.
Jin Yun discussed the failure of prohibition in the Han Dynasty, and explained the reasons for the coexistence of prohibition policy and the current situation of chijiu from the perspective of etiquette and law. Lin Yongqiang's argument against the Han Dynasty's "ban on group drinking" argues that the Han Dynasty's prohibition of alcohol did exist, but it was written because of the self-indulgence of the ruling class and the influence of the will of the people and the social customs of the time.
Yang Yong believes that based on the positive and negative effects of alcohol, various anti-alcohol campaigns have been carried out in history, ranging from moral prohibition to prohibition from legislation, but the effect is not obvious, because drinking has traditional influence, cultural edification, and practical needs, so prohibition has failed in the end.
Ren Yuhua specifically discussed the management policy of the liquor industry in the Han Dynasty, and believed that the "fine of four taels" was relatively low in the sequence of fines and the punishment was relatively small, so this is also one of the reasons why the drinking style of the Han Dynasty was prevalent, and there were orders that did not work, and orders did not stop.
The research on prohibition in the Qin and Han dynasties has achieved relatively fruitful results, focusing on the characteristics, reasons and effects of prohibition in the Qin and Han dynasties, and there are many related works, but there are also certain limitations. At present, there are no works in the academic community that specifically study the prohibition of alcohol in the Qin and Han dynasties, and the relevant prohibition research is scattered in various works, and some specific problems of the prohibition of alcohol in the Qin and Han are still up for debate.
First of all, most of the prohibition problems related to alcohol prohibition in the Qin and Han dynasties come from some wine culture works, so the prohibition of alcohol in the Qin and Han dynasties is mostly a macro summary than a micro study, and the specific situation and specific reasons of prohibition need to be further systematically and deeply explored.
Secondly, further research on the prohibition of alcohol in the Qin and Han dynasties needs to be further deepened, such as the essence of prohibition, prohibition of alcohol and prices, social environment and prohibition of alcohol, etc. Finally, the overall situation and development and evolution of the research on the prohibition of alcohol in Qin and Han need to be discussed and analyzed in more detail and depth.