Study On The Cautious Penalty In The Tang Dynasty

Several thousand years of Chinese history, formed its own unique social and cultural system, had a profound impact. On the development of neighboring countries and the evolution of world history .Ancient Chinese legal and cultural system has its own distinct characteristics, dynasty legal concepts and systems are advanced at that time. The law of stable period of Ancient China reflects the concern of the people, although the law in ancient China had the cruel side, the historical background on the human environment at that time, already advanced in the world. Cautious punishment thinking from the late Western Zhou in slave society, from the beginning throughout the process of Chinese legal history. The Tang Dynasty was the peak of China's feudal era, political, economic and cultural aspects are fully beyond the former generations and then other countries. Early Tang rulers carried out the thinking of Cautious Punishment and received a good rule of results. Tang Taizhong Li Shiming do anything must be thinking about the lesson of Sui Dynasty,executed the political ideology of the "pre-existing people". Be fair and simple to legislation Cautious Punishment shirt criminal justice, law-abiding draw one, creating a lot of careful system of punishment, far-reaching impact on future generations. Tang's legal reflected ancient China Cautious Punishment thinking, and became the ancient Cautious Punishment virtue of the model.This paper briefly describes the development of thought prudent punishment. Ancient China Cautious Punishment penalty and excessive punishment are relative concept, "Cautious Punishment" aspects should include social background, and better social effects light punishment, middle punishment, and some meet timely misdemeanors, in addition, including the cautious of judicial proceedings. If a penalty system during the development and implementation is reasonable, that is,"Cautious Punishment". "Cautious Punishment" is an important part of the Confucianism. Confucianism is largely a continuation and development of Western Zhou Dynasty."Cautious Punishment" principle is to implement sometimes carrying out leniency and sometimes strict criminal policy.The Tang Dynasty is the peak of China's feudal era, and Legal thinking is developed at that time. This article described the embodiment of "Cautious Punishment" from ideological and system .In ideological level, Tang Dynasty's ruling class is most of succession of the Confucian Ruling Ideology, benevolent ideology, particular Taizong Li Shimin, strongly esteem Confucianism, practiced Confucian Statecraft and legal ideological to Germany ceremony for the first, enlighten people, use penalty discreetly. At the same time, Tang Dynasty had many honest and upright officials. For example Zhangsu Wuji,Weizheng and so on .They are the initiators and practices of Cautious Punishment thinking .Adhering generally to the legal thought of Confucians from Emperor to all levels of officials. Adhering to rule the world Charity, avoiding to excessive punishment innocent. Comparison of clean political environment and Cautious punishment policy, making the social steady, the people living with security, and Tang Dynasty became a Strong state. In system level, from Legislative beginning, tang stressed the penalty to relief, Liyue waged a war in TaiYuan, announced the abolition of draconian laws. After Tang Taizong come to the throne, change many provisions of the law will as the living dead,and light weight change.The main activities of the Tang Dynasty amending the law largely reflected the importance of Cautious Punishment. Tang's penal system and its application also reflected Cautious Punishment from the principles of humane. Tang penalty system that is interface between the criminal kind and appropriate punishment will effectively protect the fine when incrimination. At the same time, Tang penalty reduced compared with the previous, for example, 113 articles on the death penalty in Tang law, 235 articles in Northern Wei, 116 articles in Sui Dynasty .Tang rulers is very careful in formulating the law, the thinking of Cautious Punishment is reflected in the most vividly.Tang's law carried out the criminal policy of Cautious Punishment. If there isn't the matched judicial system, no comprehensive law is only the written word on paper. Therefore, Tang established many safeguards which were match in Cautious Punishment. Tang emperor and minister adhered to"Guilty according to law", the emperor can not trample on the law, and he steed an example, the officials must follow the example. The principle of Cautious Punishment had been well implemented. Tang judiciary can avoid the occurrence of miscarriage of justice through checking and supervising between the judiciary. Torture system in ancient China is a very important position. Tang attached great importance to the tight control of torture and developed a rigorous torture procedures to avoid the wrong case occurred. The attitude of death penalty in Tang mostly displayed the thought of Cautious Punishment. Tang established perfect death penalty review and the review system of death sentence, which served to reduce wrongfully accused and insured maximum offender litigation procedural treated fairly.Tang "Cautious Punishment" factor is manifold. Firstly, ancient China legal Confucianism, through establishing in Han dynasty, deepening gradually in Wei and Jin dynasties, completed basically to tang dynasty. Tang law from the content to the system fully reflected the criteria in addition to Confucian thought, the basic spirit of the Confucian and the law eventually dissolved as a whole. Cautious Punishment in criminal law in the Tang Dynasty has been the most thorough implementation. Tang rulers adopted a slow wide criminal policy, which was affected by the Sui Dynasty, the economic and social factors.By the Tang Dynasty careful analysis of criminal, we will find that the appearance of the Lord is the key factor in feudal times, whether the implementation about Cautious Punishment. In ancient China the political and legal environment is specific, the sovereign right wasn't restricted, and his legal thinking and policy was essentially affected by the quality of the individuals. The development and practice activities of Cautious Punishment are often unstable, intermittent because of lack of institutional constraints and implementation of the rule of man. In Ancient China, the thinking of Cautious Punishment embodied the importance of human nature light, but careful punishment often stopped at the ideological level.