Study On The Constitutional Compilation Bureau During The Preliminary Stage Of Constitutional Monarchy In The Late Qing Dynasty

The Constitutional Reform of the late Qing Dynasty is an attempt to study, import, emulate the west political institutions in order to rescue and strengthen itself through the political institutional reform. The Constitutional Compilation Bureau was an important organization founded in the course of constitutional reform. As the core of the constitutional reform, the Constitutional Compilation Bureau took the functions of compiling laws and regulations and engaging in the statistics of political affairs. Its' main responsibilities were to conduct the constitutional reform, to draw up the draft of constitution and to check the new laws and regulations. It was also responsible to investigate into, to make statistics of, and to examine the preparation of the constitutional reform all over the country. Through the study of the Bureau's establishment, functions, personnel administration, and some other actions, this thesis attempts to explore the Bureau's historic influence on and functions in promoting and developing the political systems, the establishment of laws and regulations, the dissemination of the democratic and legal thoughts and the influence on the decision-making authorities. The purpose of this thesis is to draw some experience and inspiration from the study of the constitutional reform of the late Qing Dynasty and to inspire the current political reform and legal system construction.The body of this thesis consists of three parts.In the first part, the author analyses the background of setting up the Bureau.In the second part, the author fully investigates into the Bureau's establishment and its' actions in the political reform of the late Qing Dynasty. (1) The establishment and responsibilities of the Constitutional Compilation Bureau. (2) the main actions of the Bureau in the reform and the study of its' conducting the constitutional reform, drawing up the draft of constitution, checking the laws and regulations, presiding over the investigation and statistics, examining the preparation of the constitutional reform,and publishing the official newspaper and so on.In the third part, the author objectively evaluates the Bureau and its' influence on the modern history. The Constitutional Compilation Bureau, which was the chief organization to carry out the constitutional reform, played an important role in the political reform. It took charge of the factual work of drawing up the constitutional laws, regulations and measures. It checked and compiled the laws and regulations, which embodied the thought and will of bourgeoisie, urged the development of the constitutional system in modern China, promoted the modernization process of Chinese legalization and played an active role in the establishment and spread of the western bourgeois-democratic system and democratic consciousness in China, but it also had its' limitations.The last part is the summary of the whole thesis. The author comments on the influence of the Constitutional Compilation Bureau, which shows the historic significance and realistic value of studying this subject.