Town Legislation In The Background Of Urbanization In The Late Qing Dynasty And The Republic Of China

China’s ancient city developed with the integration of its countryside. And the feudal rulers were always indifferent to the urban commodity economy. When it comes to the end of Qing dynasty, with the invasion of the western states, those towns and cities, which raised under the background of bud of capitalism in the feudal society of the end of ancient China, got a new developmental opportunity. Particularly, those port cities, which opened as treaty ports in the economic action patten of port cities and their hinderland, economy and society got great progress, and all types of autonomous organization of guild had been created step by step, which bear some city autonomous function in a certain extent. Along with the Reform and Legislation Movement in China in the late1890s, combination of all laws patterns of Chinese legal system began to disintegrate, which at the same time means the approach of the modernization of Chinese legal system. There exists no doubt that city legislation played a significant role in the movement, and Chinese city autonomy initiated, which promoted formation of the domestic unified market economy. In the historical period of Republic of China, especially when the government set Nanjing as its capital after the victory of the Northern Expedition in July,1927, the legislative process accelerated, and the six-laws system basically established. In addition," the new life movement "the Republic of China government launched, also played a certain function of enlightening people. All those measures occupied an important position in the urbanization progress in China in Chinese contemporary history. At the same time, China’s city legislation reaching perfection, city government organization mode becoming more precision, and city autonomous authority being more clear, laid a basis of the further development for China’s urban society and economy.The historical period of the end of Qing dynasty and Republic of China is the important stage for China’s ancient cities shifting into modern ones, besides, it is also the beginning of actively introducing Western or Japanese advanced legislative techniques, shifting China’s city natural developmental mode with the integration of its countryside into the modern mode that regional planning dividing into two parts of city and its countryside, moderating China’s city natural management mechanism, and stepping towards city autonomy through authorized legislation. Generally speaking, the city legislation at that time in China indeed transcends temporal needs and applies the experience of foreign states mechanically. However, looking back and looking ahead, we should admit that it is difficult to use the city developmental mode which designed for the Planned economics system to suit the new situation. When we confront to the condition that "Reform and Opening up" deepen increasingly, economic and social development change rapidly, we have to search new solution. For instance, on May8th,2012, the village of Xixinzhuang in Puyang Shi, Henan Province became the first village-lever city in China, which reflects the desire of Chinese peasant to realize self management and self development. However it will face the difficulty of current administrative jurisprudence, current administrative division, and current legal system. In order to solve the problems and achieve better results of urban development, we need to pick up experience from the legislation in the historical period of the end of Qing dynasty and Republic of China, finding out the democratic element from it.This thesis includes the citation, the body, which divided into four parts, and the conclusion. Firstly, Citation part introduces the news that the village of Xixinzhuang became the first village-lever city in China, combined with the current city developmental situation in China to analyze the problems China’s city administration meets now. Secondly, to analyze the condition of China’s city legislation in the historical period of the end of Qing dynasty and Republic of China, when we introduce foreign experience of city legislation. Thirdly, through the introduction of some notes in Tianjin Local Records, which detailed record some examples of cases about Tianjin local legislation, to think over the condition of the city autonomy and city authorized legislation comprehensively. Fourthly, through the analysis of the traditional registration of the cities, combined with foreign experience of city autonomous legislation, the description of the theory of city zoning system status, and the institution of city autonomous legislation in the traditional meaning, compared with the registration of the cities in China and current condition of China’s city legislation to analyze the situation of China’s current city zoning system status, to find the available space to current practice of China’s city legislation. Finally, according to the notions of this thesis above, combined with the benefits that absorbed through the experience of city legislation in the historical period of the end of Qing dynasty and Republic of China, to gain some suggestions about current city zoning system and city autonomous legislation in China.