The Study On The Regulation And Administration Of Xiang-Li In Qin-Han Period

In Qin-Han Dynasty, the smallest administrative unit was Li, where the people lived and engaged in production and activities. And Li was inferior to xiang, which served as a link between Li and the superior administrative area prefecture or county, in Chinese called Jun or Xian. There was a long historical evolvement before the Li and Xiang came into being. During the period of Xia Dynasty and Shang Dynasty, the lowermost unit for people to live in was called Yi, Qiu or Li. Under the governance of Western Zhou, the basic-level rural administrative organization got its name Xiangsui. Not until the Spring-Autumn Period, Xian and Jun didn't come into being. By the time of Warring States, the administrative system of Li and Xiang matured and was integrated into Xian and Jun, which eventually formed the tower structure of local government. The unification of Chinese territory accomplished by Qin Empire ushered in a new era for basic-level rural administration.Agriculture was the foundation on which the great empire was established. The land rent was levied upon Li and turned in Xiang without installment. Capitation was allowed to be received fully in several times during one year. Besides, the feeding stuff got taxed according to the requirement of county in the form of kain or currency. The escuage and corvee was endless in Qin Dynasty, but appropriate in Han Dynasty, which take into the consideration the practical condition of peasants and avoided deterring the agricultural productive activities.On the basis of Qin Dynasty, the census registers system in Han Dynasty kept going on, which contained five parts of contents. The chief and officials in Xiang and Li were performers of various institutions, who punished the regulation offenders strictly according their degree of violation. Therefore, the institutionalized census registers managed to maintain the social stability and had an extensive meaning for the Empires of Qin-Han.It was necessary for emperors to uniform ideology and culture when he had accomplished the political and economic unification. In the administrative unit of Xiang, three prestigious persons appointed to moralize the mass were called Sanlao, whose counterparts in Li were titled Lifulao. They made Xiang and Li the base for moralization and education of government orders, statutes, regulations observed by all villagers, Confucian comity and culture and techniques for agricultural production. As a result, the criminals and law decreased, the local villages became more stable and peaceful, and the relation between family members, neighbors and villages got improved greatly due to the generalization of filial piety culture.Local schooling was improved continuously from Qin Dynasty to Han Dynasty. During the whole period of Qin Dynasty and early days of Han Dynasty, the theory of Legalist School was preached in most local schools so as to bring up the talent ones proficient in laws. At the same time, the training on historian, wizard and diviner was carried out side by side. Under the governance of Han regime, governments at all levels put equal stress on the Confucian School and Legalist School. After the prince Liu Che ascended the throng, educational system of Confucian theory was established primarily, and the official selection system through investigating and recommending formed. By the end of Western Han Dynasty, a systematic educational institution from top to bottom had been erected up, and schooling gradually played a growing important role in selecting officials.Through Qin and Western Han Dynasty, the official titled as Youjiao and Tingzhang took charge of local public security, and the former was the higher-up of the latter. In the Xiang of different sizes, the number of Ting varied, which was in the charge of each Tingzhang. Nevertheless, in the process of founding Eastern Han Dynasty, Ting was no longer responsible for the local public security and evolved to be a basic-level administrative organization, whose previous function was assumed by the official titled as"Xunxing", a patrol policeman.The self-government in local administrative unit Xiang and Li of Qin-Han Dynasty was a notable feature in Chinese ancient political history. There were ubiquitous nongovernmental organizations served for self-government, mutual asistance and public affairs management. The great Empires of Qin-Han gave full play to the role of self-government in Xiang and Li, which was favorable to local stability and development but subordinate to local government's administration. Because this kind of self-government was derived from the limited permission of despotic state, we can't overestimate it.But it is safe to draw the conclusion that the economy, culture, education and public security consisted of the main contents of Xiang and Li management in Qin-Han Dynasty from different angles and the basic visage of local society was also reflected to some extent.