Research On Exiles In The Tang Dynasty

Recent years, achievements gotten in the researching on exiles are more, while what in the Tang Dynasty is less. But the law system in the Tang Dynasty was so perfected that successive dynasties regarded it as their original erasing. Because of perfection in the law system (especially the punishment of banishment) and scramble for power and profit inside the ruling class, large quantities of criminals and political opponents were banished. And the amount of exiles in the Tang Dynasty reached a new height in the history of feudal society. Accordingly, on the basis of histories materials, writer makes a preliminary research on the exiles in the Tang Dynasty.In the first part, writer redefines the concept of exiles, which always was obscure in the Tang Dynasty. Today, some scholars widen it, too. Actually, exiles were those who violated the criminal law (the punishment of banishment); those, such as the vagrant, the relegated official and prisoners of war, weren't exiles.In the second part, according to statistics, writer researches exiles' dispersing and reasons forming that. Combing with economical, political and military circumstances, we find: in the north, exiles' dispersing was connected .with military situations closely; in the south, they scattered in several circuits, such as Ling Nan, Jiannan, Qianzhong.In the third part, writer discusses reasons why exiles were banished. Political reasons were the most important, such as rebellions, struggles for power and profit, punishments to taken bribes. Of course, defending feudal ethics and the punishment to breaking military discipline were important reasons.In the last part, write uses historical documents to reconstruct the management system, probes into exiles' lives and generalizes their contributions when living in border areas.