The Research On Liu Xiu's "Dismissing Meritorious Military Officials And Introducing Civilian Officials"

Liu Xiu's "dismissing meritorious military officials and introducing civilian officials" is an important object of study, no matter from the perspective of history or politics. Looking back at the studies on Liu Xiu's "dismissing meritorious military officials and introducing civilian officials" by other scholars, most of them are involved in the discussion of Liu Xiu's strategy of ruling the country, but few of them take Liu Xiu's "dismissing meritorious military officials and introducing civilian officials" as a single event to study in a comprehensive and systematic way. In the early years of Eastern Han Dynasty, Liu Xiu's ruling strategy of "dismissing meritorious military officials and introducing civilian officials" not only helps to stabilize the political situation by preserving the meritorious military officials but also avails the civilian officials to take the charge of Eastern Han's regime from the hand of the military officials in less than30years and thus to consolidate his rule.The forming of the meritorious military officials in the early Eastern Han Dynasty:with the vassal wars in the Spring and Autumn and the Warring States Periods, the enfeoffment system based on military feats arose and reached its peak in Qin Dynasty and early Western Han Dynasty. After that, it started to wane, but the wars between Eastern and Western Dynasties provided this kind of enfeoffment system a history stage to demonstrate its value again. After the establishment of Eastern Han Dynasty, Liu Xiu allocated territories to the meritorious military officials according to the enfeoffment system based on military feats and gave them rewards of both wealth and reputation. In the early years of Eastern Han Dynasty, the class of meritorious military officials formed who possessed strong political power and economic foundation and bore high social status and privileges, with the meritorious military officials as its main force. Although meritorious military officials supported Liu Xiu as the emperor, with the strengthening of power and influence of the class of meritorious military officials, they posed a threat to the imperial power anyway.The study of "dismissing the meritorious military officials ":the meritorious military officials in Liu Xiu's "dismissing the meritorious military officials" refers to the primary meritorious military officials represented by "Yuntai28Military Officials" only in the study or exposition about Liu Xiu's "dismissing meritorious military officials and introducing civilian officials" according to other historians and relating historical materials. However, the meritorious military officials in Liu Xiu's "dismissing the meritorious officials" refers to all the meritorious military officials in the levels of canton, prefecture and county, not just the meritorious military officials in central organization represented by "Yuntai28Military Officials". In the early years of Eastern Han Dynasty, focusing on the lasting political stability, Liu Xiu succeeded in depriving the titles of the meritorious military officials finally through three phases by means of a series of measures like consolidating military and political power and so on.The study of "dismissing meritorious military officials and introducing civilian officials":the system of civilian officials in ancient China had occurred in Xia-Shang-Zhou Period, kept developing in the Spring and Autumn and the Warring States Periods, its frame began to take shape in Qin Dynasty and formed initially in Emperor Wu of Western Han Dynasty period. The system of civil officials has an important ruling function that it facilitates not only the centralization of feudal regime but also the administration of feudal regime and uncorrupted official management. After the establishment of Eastern Han Dynasty, from the perspective of ruling strategy, Liu Xiu's "dismissing meritorious military officials and introducing civilian officials" aims to consolidate and develop the system of civilian officials and thus to ensure the long-term peace and order. In the early years of Eastern Han Dynasty, the "civilian officials" introduced by Liu Xiu include Confucian scholars, civilian officials and scholars excel in Confucianism and Legalists. By means of restoring the selection system since Western Han Dynasty and introducing the officials of the former dynasty and training reserve officials, Liu Xiu brought a large amount of civilian officials, which not only helps to fill the gap of "dismissing the meritorious military officials" but also avails the regime of Eastern Han Dynasty to come to run as soon as possible. However, Liu Xiu's "dismissing meritorious military officials and introducing civilian officials" leaves some positive impacts, although it facilitates the consolidation and development of the system of civilian officials and the maintenance of the regime of Eastern Han Dynasty.