A Study On The Treatment Of The Surrendering Kings In The Early Song Dynasty And Their Relatives

After more than ten years of efforts of the monarchs of Song Taizu and Song Taizong,the Song Dynasty ended the chaotic situation of Five Dynasties and Ten kingdoms and completed the unification of most of the country.In the family of surrendering king,except Li Yu,who was killed by Emperor Taizong of the Song Dynasty because of his personal words and deeds,all the others had a good end.The surrendering king and his relatives were asked by the Song Dynasty to leave their homeland and go to Kaifeng,the capital.After the surrendering king came to the capital,the emperor made arrangements according to the specific situation.Except that the relatives of the surrendering king were not allowed to serve as officials in their homeland,their personal freedom was no different from that of ordinary officials.During the reign of Emperor Zhenzong of the Song Dynasty,the regional avoidance system of the relatives of the surrendering king no longer existed.The surrendering king’s family just came to the court,and the Song Dynasty granted them official positions.The level of official position is affected by such factors as the way of submission and the time of coming to the court.In addition to the collective conferment of officials at the time of submission,the emperor has consecrated the descendants of the surrendering king many times,and the special conferment has been almost throughout the dynasty.In the early Song Dynasty,although there were restrictions on the appointment of the surrendering king and his relatives,the overall "appointment" was greater than "prevention".In the two dynasties of Song Zhenzong and Song Renzong,the descendants of the surrendering king were no longer restricted from holding positions.In the Song Dynasty,the relatives of the surrendering king were allowed to take the imperial examination,which was an important way for the descendants of the surrendering king to win high officials and maintain family prestige.The original property of the surrendering king’s family includes the public property in the Treasury and the private property stored by individuals.When the surrendering king and his relatives came to the court,the public property was transferred to the state,and the amount of private property retained mainly depended on the way of submission.Before and after the collapse of the local government,the emperor gave a large amount of property to the surrendering king’s family as a consolation.In addition to the regular rewards,the surrendering king and his relatives also received special rewards and house rewards from the emperor.In terms of salary distribution,the emperor gave preferential treatment to the family members of the surrendering king.The surrendering king’s family can marry nobles and ministers.The Song Dynasty basically did not interfere in the interpersonal communication of the family members of the surrendering king.When the surrendering king and his relatives violated the law,the emperor occasionally mitigated or directly pardoned their crimes.In most cases,the family members of the surrendering king are bound by the law and are responsible for their own words and deeds.When the surrendering king died,the emperor often raised the burial standards,such as increasing the number of days not to go to the court,raising the level of gifts to the deceased,and issuing special orders for burial.When the relatives of the surrendering king died,the court generally handled funeral matters according to the regulations of ordinary officials,and only a small number of the relatives of the surrendering king received additional preferential treatment.The Song Dynasty gave the surrendering king and his relatives good treatment,which is a manifestation of political civilization and rationality,showing the generous social atmosphere of the Song Dynasty.