Transition Of Financial System In The Early And Middle Northern Song Dynasty

This paper plans to analyze transition of financial system of early and middle centuries of Northern Song dynasty with the breach of Wang Anshi financial reform under the guidance of theories of Finance and the New Institutional Economics.The first chapter firstly introduces phenomena of financial crisis and poverty accumulation in early and middle centuries of Northern Song dynasty. Through these phenomena we can find that in fact financial crisis and poverty accumulation in early and middle centuries of Northern Song dynasty are just financial deficiency of central financial ministry, not financial deficiency of emperor and local government. Secondly and furthermore we will notice that these phenomena were mostly caused by irrationalization of financial system of early and middle centuries of Northern Song dynasty.The third chapter furthermore analyzes deep reasons which caused the irrationalization of financial system of early and middle centuries of Northern Song dynasty. It was due to the objective request of changes of the state and the governmental responsibility, which asked the corresponding changes to strengthen the autocratic monarchy and centralization.The fourth chapter depicts Wang Anshi reform in Northern Song dynasty, which was the result of path dependence of financial system reform mentioned above. Wang Anshi not only helped Song shenzong strengthen control on the financial system and more wealth in Neicang Warehouse, but also created another financial system called prime minister finance which made reform on financial system from emperor and Sansi finance to emperor,Sansi(or Hubu after Yuanfeng period) and prim minister finance, and also made local wealth divided by central government more extensively and deeply.In the end my paper comes to the conclusion that Wang Anshi reform in Song shenzong period had been the deepest and most extensive adjustment of financial system since Song dynasty was set up. From then on the path of autocratic monarchy and centralization in financial system was strengthened by itself and made long deep influences in history.