Land Rights And National Sovereignty:the Research Of Land-related Cases Of Churches In The Early 20th Century In Zhejiang

In late Qing Dynasty, over thirty land-related cases of churches had taken place in Zhejiang Province, which can roughly be divided into two categories. One is caused by renting or purchasing private properties, and the other by renting or purchasing public lands, of which specifically, the latter can be further subdivided into three classes, renting or buying family lands, state-owned lands and public-service lands respectively. The thesis has selected three public lands cases occurred in the following cities Hangzhou, Ningbo, Taizhou of Zhejiang Province as the references for the research below.Mountain Gem Case happened in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, which implicated the gentry and the local government in its process. Although thwarted by the British side, delegated by Mei Tenggeng and the British consul, the land of Mountain Gem had finally been repossessed at the insistence of the gentry and our local government, firmly vindicating the national sovereignty. "Rights of Baishui County" case in Ningbo was another typical case in which the local government played a leading role in resuming the lost public lands encroached by the Catholic Church in the north of the Yangtze River. By a concerted effort, the municipal government of Ningbo and the local government of Yin County successfully restored the rights of Baishui County. However, as for the case that the French Catholic Church in Haimen demolished and squatted on private homes without permission, differed slightly from the former two.Taken place in Taizhou, and also resulted by public-service case, this case had been initiated by an ordinary people, Pan Daojian. While in the process, Pan sought mainly for his economic interests, and he took the traditional measure of "people suing the Church". But finally, this case disappeared of its own accord for the distance of years and absence of evidence.Along with the nationalism gradually emerging and the awareness of national sovereignty slowly penetrating, these three public-lands cases happened in Zhejiang Province between the late Qing Dynasty and the early Republic of China, exhibited different characteristics. The most visible feature was to safeguard nationalsovereignty by fighting for land rights. The gentry and the local government, who held out in their effort to dispute their land rights, guaranteed the state sovereignty. Especially the local government, inclined to deal with the public-lands cases in accordance with the treaties and laws. The masses as well, began to change their violent and spontaneous actions into conscious behavior, and realized their responsibilities of safeguarding the national sovereignty as an individual countryman. With regard to the mechanisms, there were also some differences. Compared to the traditional "people suing the Church", resorting to laws to solve the problem was more effective for protecting the state sovereignty. Nevertheless, influenced by those unequal treaties, this behavior could not be free to achieve.