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Speaking of the ancient central official positions, in addition to the prime minister (prime minister) and Shangshu, the three "divisions" with the highest sense of existence are Situ, Sima, and Sikong, especially Sikong, who not only occupies a place in the official position, but is also widely known for its derived idiom "commonplace" (you can refer to the previous issue of the Guoli monarch who was scolded for a poem into an idiom: who is Sikong in "commonplace"?). And "Sima" has become one of the most famous compound surnames in Chinese history. After the three divisions, many official positions and institutions named after "divisions" also appeared in the imperial court. So what exactly does this "division" mean, and why did it become one of the most important official names in ancient times?
"Chuzhong Sima" copper seal. Source/Xuzhou Museum
Where does the name "Three Divisions" come from?
To explore the meaning of "division", it is natural to look for the answer from the ancient bureaucracy. Looking at the historical classics, we can find that the name "Sansi" roughly originated from the late Spring and Autumn period to the early Warring States period. According to records, the official system during the Yin Shang period was:
"Yin system, the Son of Heaven built a heavenly official, the first six Tai, said Dazai, Taizong, Taishi, Taizhu, Taishi, Taibu, and the six canons. The five senses of the Son of Heaven are called Situ, Sima, Sikong, Sishi, Sikou, and the five congregations. The six mansions of the Son of Heaven are said to be the soil, the wood, the water, the grass, the utensils, the goods, and the six positions. ”
Bronze Lord, Shang. Source: National Museum of China
The word "Noriji" is mentioned here. "Zuo Chuan: The Fourteenth Year of Zhuang Gong" recorded: "I ordered my ancestors, Dian Si Zongyi." The meaning of the Diansi is to be in charge and preside, so the "Five Officials" can be understood as the "five officials" who manage the "apprentices (land and people)", "horses (military)", "air (engineering and water conservancy)", "Shi (pickets hundred officials)" and "Kou (prison)". The "six duties of the pawn" can be understood as the management of "soil (divided into land types, fixed tax levels, and later equivalent to "apprentices"), "wood (forest trees)", "water (river and lake management)", "grass (planting and weeding)", "utensils" and "goods (transportation of commodities)". After "Division", add the state affairs under management, and collectively refer to the "Division" as the chief official in charge of a certain affairs. Because he is the "Beijing official" next to the Son of Heaven, he is in a high position.
Although there were already various "divisions" in the Yin Shang period, the formal "three divisions" (Situ, Sima, and Sikong) system was not established so early. The Eastern Han Dynasty historian Ban Gu recorded in the "List of Hundred Officials and Ministers" in the "Book of Han": "Xia and Yin died and heard about it, and Zhou officials were prepared. ...... Or say that Sima is the main heaven, Situ is the master, and Sikong is the main land, which is for the three princes. However, in the "Zhou Li" written during the Warring States Period, the statement that "Tianguan Tsukazai, Diguan Situ, Chunguan Zongbo, Xia Guan Sima, Autumn Guan Sikou, and Winter Guan Sikong" is not equal to the status of the three dukes in the "Book of Han". From this, it can be considered that at least in the Western Zhou Dynasty, there was no such thing as the so-called "Three Divisions" in later generations. After all, as a first-hand historical material detailing the various state systems of the Western Zhou Dynasty, the authority of "Zhou Li" is higher than that of the historical books born in later generations.
Warring States Qi State copper nose button "Sima 敀鉩" 鉨. Source: The Palace Museum
When was the formal "three divisions" system established? Without worry, let's first take a look at the establishment of the "three publics" system. "Shangshu Zhou Guan" says:
"Litaishi, Taifu, Taibao. There are only three dukes, on the Tao through the state, Xie Li Yin and Yang, officials are not necessary, but they are people. ”
During this period, the Three Princes were mainly in the role of advisers to the Son of Heaven, and they were not in the position of real power. In the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, with the need for hegemony and law change in various countries, the prime minister, as the head of the administration, became the first person under the monarch and was in charge of almost all state affairs, in fact, it played the effect of "one person tops three dukes".
Qin Shi Huang unified the six countries to establish the Qin Dynasty, and formally established the system of three princes and nine secretaries, with the prime minister (leading hundreds of officials and assisting the emperor in handling national government affairs), Taiwei (in charge of the military), and Yushi Dafu (responsible for supervising and helping the prime minister to handle government affairs) as the "three princes". The "Three Princes" seem to be at the same level, but looking at their responsibilities, we can find that the system design at this time is not fundamentally different from that of the Warring States Period. The prime minister is "in charge of the assistant to the emperor of heaven", that is, to help the emperor deal with the national government affairs, and the imperial historian is responsible for helping the prime minister to deal with government affairs. Under such a system design, the prime minister is the deputy of the Son of Heaven, and the imperial historian is the deputy of the prime minister, so naturally the two cannot be equal. Although Taiwei was the highest military supervisor in the country, no one took office in the Qin Dynasty, so Cheng got along with each other in a dominant position.
The "Three Princes" of the Qin Dynasty. Source/Screenshot of the documentary "From Qin Shi Huang to Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty".
It is recorded in the "Historical Records: The Biography of Lislie":
"The messenger repressed the three rivers and gave Si a little to the three public positions, how to make the thief so. ”
It can be seen that people at that time believed that Li Si, as the prime minister, was equivalent to the "three princes". The Qin Dynasty's "Three Publics" system was in fact a prime minister's system.
The formal establishment of the "three divisions (three publics)" system
In the early years of the Western Han Dynasty, the imperial court continued the Qin Dynasty's system of three princes and nine secretaries. However, unlike the reign of Qin Shi Huang, the prime ministers and imperial historians in the early Han Dynasty were mostly served by the noble liehous, and the Taiwei also played their due role, forming a pattern of one article and one military force with the prime minister, which together constituted an effective supervision and restraint mechanism for the imperial power.
After Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty ascended the throne, in order to strengthen the centralization of the monarch's power and achieve his goal of governing the country, he began to find another way, bypassing the prime minister and gathering a group of people from humble backgrounds but with real talents and learning as attendants, and gradually formed the "Inner Dynasty" (equivalent to the emperor's private secretary group. The members of the inner dynasty are similar to the cabinet members of the later Ming Dynasty, and have a certain degree of discussion and decision-making power over military affairs), and stand side by side with the "outer dynasty" represented by the prime minister, which basically deprives the prime minister and the imperial historian of the decision-making power, so that the "outer court" represented by the prime minister becomes the executor of the inner court's orders, and to a certain extent, the prime minister is stripped of the power of the prime minister. After the victory of the Battle of Mobei in the fourth year of Yuanzhan (119 BC), Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty set up the post of General Sima for Wei Qing, with the right to assist the government, and could freely enter and leave the palace to handle government affairs, and further decentralize the power of the prime minister. In his later years, Emperor Wu also set up a lieutenant to inspect hundreds of officials and nobles. Officials in these positions were free to enter and leave the palace and serve the emperor as attendants and advisors.
Wei Qing's film and television drama image. Source/Screenshot of the TV series "Wei Zifu".
In the first year of Suihe (8 BC), Emperor Cheng of the Han Dynasty, according to the suggestion of He Wu, the imperial commander, changed the imperial historian to the great Sima, and changed the great Sima general to the great Sima, forming the three metric systems of the great Sima, the prime minister, and the great Sikong. He Wu believed that the imperial court "had a lot of political troubles", but "the prime minister's material could not be as good as the ancient", and the three-metric system was more conducive to dealing with complicated state affairs than the simple prime minister system, and it could also restore the system of the secretary and doctor, and establish a new examination system.
He Wu's ideas are positive for the governance of the country, but not for the centralization of power by the monarchy. During the Western Han Dynasty, the great Sima was often a foreign relative, presiding over the affairs of the inner dynasty, which was conducive to the emperor's centralization of power. However, after the reform of Suihe, the power of Da Sima was weakened, and the imperial power was also affected. So in the second year of Jianping (5 BC), Emperor Han Ai, according to Zhu Bo's suggestion, changed Dasikong back to Yushi Dafu and restored the old system. However, four years later, in order to improve the status of his favored minister Dong Xian, Emperor Ai of Han ordered that:
"The three public officials are divided. The general Dong Xian of the Great Sima Wei is the Great Sima, the Prime Minister Kong Guang is the Great Situ, the Imperial Historian Peng Xuan is the Great Sikong, and the Marquis of Changping. is upright, subordinate, and makes a division. ”
On the one hand, Da Situ (Prime Minister) and Da Sikong (Imperial Historian) can take charge of the affairs of the Inner Dynasty, and the Great Sima can participate in the affairs of the Foreign Dynasty by wearing seals and scarves and setting up subordinate officials. On the other hand, the functions and powers of Si Zhi (also known as Cheng Xiang Si Zhi, who is responsible for assisting the Prime Minister in reporting illegal matters) and Si Li (i.e., Si Li's school captain) were clarified, and the "ancient" official position of Si Kou was restored (see above).
Han "Jun Sima Yin" copper seal. Source/Nanjing Museum
Wang Mang, who has the nickname of "Traverser", created the Eleven Public System on the basis of the "Three Publics" system. The "Three Princes" completely became foreign officials. In addition to the 11 dukes set up by the central government, the local government also has 25 officials who are "courteous as the three dukes", which leads to a great depreciation of the title of "gong".
The Xuanhan regime of the first emperor re-implemented the three-metric system, and the "Biography of Liu Xuan" in the Book of the Later Han Dynasty recorded:
"Xi Bai placed all the generals, with the clan father Liang as the three elders of the country, Wang Kuang as the prince of Dingguo, Wang Fengcheng as the prince of the country, Zhu Kun Da Sima, Bo Sheng Da Situ, Chen Mu Da Sikong, Yu Jiuqing and generals. ”
The three dukes became the three "lords" here, above the original "three dukes".
Bronze turtle button "Master General Sima Yin", this is the official seal of Wang Kuang in the new mang. Source: The Palace Museum
After Liu Xiu established the Eastern Han Dynasty, he announced the full restoration of the old system of the Western Han Dynasty, with Da Sima, Da Situ, and Da Sikong as the three dukes. In the thirteenth year of Jianwu (37), Liu Xiu imitated the Zhou system, demoted many princes and kings with the same surname to dukes and marquises, and made the honorary titles of the descendants of the Shang and Zhou dynasties real. In the twenty-seventh year of Jianwu (51), Liu Xiu announced that he would remove the unprecedented "big" character of Da Situ and Da Si, and change Da Sima to Tai Lieutenant. So far, the "three divisions" system in the true sense has been established.
After that, Sikong was no longer in charge of supervision, but was in charge of his original Yushi Zhongcheng. In the Imperial History, there were two people who were responsible for interpreting the legal provisions, and 15 people who were responsible for inspecting officials who violated the law and accepting the work of hundreds of officials. During the state ceremony or the pilgrimage of officials, the Imperial Historian or Imperial Historian is responsible for supervising the prestige. The Imperial Historian's Office is often called the Imperial Historical Observatory or Lantai, so it is called the "Taiwan Official". The lower-ranking Imperial Historian served as a supervisor, which made it easier for the emperor to control him. At the same time, Emperor Guangwu expanded the authority of the commander of the school, and ordered him to inspect the hundred officials of the Beijing division and annex a state to maintain the imperial power. Liu Xiu also set up Shangshutai, with Shangshuling as the core of the inner dynasty.
Since Emperor Zhang of the Han Dynasty, the Eastern Han Dynasty emperors often succeeded to the throne at an early age, usually by the Taifu Lu Shang Shu Shi ("Lu Shang Shushi" is not an independent official position, often held by other officials, responsible for the affairs of the province of Shangshu as the general consul). A "taifu" is an official position that is primarily responsible for teaching the crown prince or young monarch. "Taifu Lu Shangshu Affairs" means that Taifu concurrently serves or participates in the affairs of Shangshu Province) to preside over the government, called "Shanggong", or together with the three dukes called "Sifu". After the emperor came to power, he often crossed the three dukes and issued orders directly through Shangshutai. For example, in the Book of the Later Han Dynasty, Wang Chong, Wang Fu Zhongchang, and the Biography of the Emperor, it says:
"Although the three princes are placed, the matter will be returned to the cabinet. Since then, the three public servants have only been in reserve. ”
The Three Princes were gradually marginalized by the Inner Dynasty represented by Shang Shutai, but they still had an extraordinary status.
The more famous Taiwei (Da Sima) in the Eastern Han Dynasty was Wu Han of the Guangwu Emperor Dynasty, and Dong Zhuo and Cao Song of the Xiandi Dynasty. Among the Situ in the Eastern Han Dynasty, the more famous ones were Deng Yu of the Guangwu Emperor Dynasty, Qiao Xuan and Yuan Kui of the Ling Emperor Dynasty and Yang Biao and Wang Yun of the Xiandi Dynasty. The more famous Sikong in the Eastern Han Dynasty were Li Tong, Ma Cheng and Dou Rong of the Guangwu Emperor Dynasty, Yuan An and Ren Kui of the Zhang Emperor Dynasty, Qiao Xuan, Yuan Feng and Dong Zhuo of the Ling Emperor and Shaodi Dynasties, and Yang Biao and Cao Cao of the Xiandi Dynasty. It can be seen from this that in addition to the heroes of the founding group, the three princes of the Eastern Han Dynasty are basically the heroes of the scholar clan and their followers. Among them, the most famous is the "Four Worlds and Three Princes" of the Yuan family in Runan, and four generations have members who hold the position of three princes, which is rare in the Eastern Han Dynasty.
Where have all those "divisions" gone?
In the sixth year of Zhongping (189), Dong Zhuo entered Beijing to control the government and appointed himself as the prime minister, and the power of the three dukes was elevated. After Cao Cao served as prime minister, in order to monopolize the government, he directly abolished the three-metric system. As an official position with real power, the "Three Divisions (Three Publics)" officially withdrew from the stage of history. During the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, the Three Princes became the honorary title of meritorious ministers.
Han, Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, "Position to the Three Dukes" straight line inscription bronze mirror. Source/Jin Ancestral Hall
As one of the oldest official names in China, "Si" is still used until modern times, such as the division of modern ministries and commissions. In addition to the official position, there are many nouns with "division", such as "driver" means the person who masters the "machine", "master of ceremonies" means the person who presides over the ceremonial activities, "company" means the profit-making organization that presides over and manages together, and "judicial" means in charge of the law in ancient times, and now means the application and implementation of the law. The commander is in charge of giving orders.
From these modern words, we can also see that the meaning of "division" has not changed through the ages, and it is the meaning of responsibility and hosting.
Bibliography:
Written by Ban Gu, [Tang] Yan Shigu's Note: Hanshu, Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company, 1962.
[Song] Fan Ye, [Tang] Li Xian's Note: Book of the Later Han Dynasty, Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company, 1965.
Bu Xianqun, The Bureaucracy of the Qin and Han Dynasties, Beijing: Social Sciences Academic Press, 2002.
Yan Buke, Taste and Position: A Study of the Official Rank System of the Qin, Han, Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company, 2009.
Wang Su and Chen Zhong'an, A Study on the Han and Tang Dynasty Official System, Shanghai: Zhongxi Book Company, 2018.
Bu Xianqun, "On the Origin of the Three Public Systems of the Qin and Han Dynasties", Anhui Historiography, No. 4, 1994.
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