The content of this article comes from the Internet, if it is inconsistent with the actual situation or there is infringement, please contact to delete. This article is only published in today's headlines, please do not move.
There was a striking pattern in Chinese feudal society, and whenever a new dynasty emerged, the land issue became key. The equal distribution of land and the suppression of land annexation became policy priorities, as unequal land distribution threatened the stability of the regime. Although this law is without exception, every dynasty is no exception. This is because the ruling class is also human, and the selfish desires of human nature need to be controlled through institutions and regulations, otherwise they will run wild like wild horses and wealth will be concentrated in the hands of a few. However, in feudal society, there were few mechanisms to effectively restrain the selfish desires of the ruling class. This made the problem of land annexation widespread and serious, and was one of the reasons for the decline of many dynasties.
During the Western Han Dynasty, from Gaozu Liu Bang to Ping Emperor Liu Yin, after more than 200 years of rule, the problem of land annexation was already quite serious, which was one of the main reasons for the demise of the Western Han Dynasty. After Wang Mang came to power, he realized that he had to solve the problem of land annexation that had long been accumulated in the Western Han Dynasty, so he issued the "Wang Tian Private Ownership Order". Under this policy, land throughout the country was classified as "wangtian" (similar to modern state-owned land), slaves' estates were renamed "private," and the sale and purchase of land was prohibited. At the same time, he restored the "well field system" of the Xia Dynasty, stipulating that if a family had less than eight male members but had more than one well (about 900 acres) of land, the excess land must be distributed to relatives and neighbors to ensure that the difference in land owned by the people would not be too large. The core idea of this policy is to prevent land annexation and maintain the relatively equal distribution of land. This policy has been implemented relatively smoothly, and at the same time it has shown some "human rights" in the modern sense.
In the context of Confucianism, agriculture has always been regarded as the main industry, while handicrafts and commerce have been given a lower status, somewhat similar to the current "sacrifice to the end". The Confucian concept of "heavy agriculture suppresses commerce" is similar to the modern view of suppressing capital. However, during the Western Han Dynasty, the regulation of capital was relatively relaxed, and the Han Dynasty itself also had a social atmosphere of extravagance and extravagance, which made merchants not low in social status. Capital also has a certain impact on the political economy. Therefore, Wang Mang's economic reform measures with "controlling capital" as the guiding ideology came into being.
In terms of finance, taxation and economy, Wang Mang launched the "Six Virtues" policy, which aims to curb wealth disparities and achieve wealth equality in accordance with the requirements of Confucianism. These six measures include the monopoly on "salt, iron, and wine", the introduction of income tax generated by "Meiyama Ozawa", and the establishment of the "Wujunsi City Division" to control prices. In addition, he implemented the income tax generated by "Meiyama Ōzawa", which imposed taxes on individuals engaged in production and business. This measure embodies a "financial inclusion" characteristic, aimed at regulating business and finance and balancing income distribution.
In addition, Wang Mang also carried out currency reform, although the process was tortuous and complicated. He issued coins with insufficient copper content but large denominations, and collected gold from the nobility in exchange for coinage. However, this policy has caused some controversy, especially if the gold is not cashed in time after it has been collected. Wang Mang also made extremely complex adjustments to the monetary system, leading to chaos in the monetary system. Although the eventual currency reform failed, Wang Mang tried to harvest aristocratic gold through this policy, resulting in the treasury accumulating a large amount of gold.
In general, Wang Mang tried to solve the problem of land acquisition during the Western Han Dynasty through a series of policies, curb the wealth gap, regulate commerce and finance, and achieve wealth equality. Although some of his policies were relatively complex and unsuccessful at the time, his efforts demonstrated a spirit of reform, seeking to build a more egalitarian and just society. However, in the end, he failed to succeed, and the new dynasty perished, leaving behind the lessons of history.
The above content and materials are derived from the Internet, and the author of this article does not intend to target or allude to any real country, political system, organization, race, individual. The above does not mean that the author of this article endorses the laws, rules, opinions, behaviors in the article and is responsible for the authenticity of the relevant information. The author of this article is not responsible for any issues arising above or related to any of the above, nor does it assume any direct or indirect legal liability.