Studies On The Land Politics Of Land System Of Taiping Heavenly Kingdom

Taiping Heavenly Kingdom has been a long-term research hotspot for historians studying peasant uprisings. The "Land System of the Heavenly Dynasty"(proclaimed in1853by the peasant power regime) serves not only as a land distribution manual, but also the policy and system prototype to be observed as the kingdom established its capital in Tianjing (now Nanjing). The document thus assumed the function of cementing the new-born regime. Peruses on the actual implementation of the "Land System of the Heavenly Dynasty"(hereafter abbreviated as the "Land System"), therefore, will be more revealing on the lifecycle of the Dynasty and the land distribution practices in a specific time frame.The paper investigates the "Land System" from a perspective of Chinese agricultural history and boils down the analysis into the analytical investigations on the implementations of the "Land System", a real sense reflection of the guiding ideology of the decree. The progresses and lessons crystallized in the rolls of history books will somehow be inspiring and illuminating to the generations to come.About the historical background describes Philosophy origin of Hong Xiuquan, the father of the "Land System", in articulating the decree, is verified to be tinged with the primitive doctrines of western Christianity and be grafted upon the root of Utopian-like Social belief in Confucianism. Besides, the formation and evolution of this historical document is also closely bonded with the arduous life Mr. Hong Xiuquan weathered in his youth age.Being an essential component in studying the "Land System", its historical backdrop includes the land ownership situations and feudal exploitation before the peasant uprising.Describes the main provisions and actual implementation of the "Land System", from which the major discussions elaborated on aspects including land policy, social, religion, education and legal structures. Implementation of the "Land System" spans from the official proclamation of its prototype---"Policy Treatment for Common People"(hereafter abbreviated as the "Treatment"), all the way to its evolution in the later stage. The equalitarian thoughts advocated in the "Treatment" unchained the farmers from paying rents to the landowners. However, the proclamation of the decree was quenched and heavily blunted by the wars and food crisis caused thereafter.we focuse on the effect turnout from implementing the "Land System", including the provisions’impacts on real life and also "ripple effect" stirred by the revamped land ownership. The author believes that a complete negation shall be avoided as to the whether the articles were effectively executed. There indeed were some systems actually implemented:such as Civil Service Guaranteed Recommendation System and Rural Official System. Among those fail to be implemented were the educational and legislative rules, shelved by the wars but not by its feasibilities. Even the equalitarian land distribution system, aborted on its conceptual designing stage, shall not be simply blamed for lacking feasibility.Aticle elaborates not only the efficacy of land distribution practices, but also the evolvement threaded all the way from "Same Tax Grain and Duty", to "Tenants Tax Grain" and "Land to the Tillers" in the end. These three forms of system tinkering weathered through, along with the "Equalitarian Ideology" of the "Land System", the entire ruling span of the regime. It will be the primary investigation subject of the passage to sort out the actual implementations of the above-mentioned three land policies throughout the ancient China.