The Study On The Postal System In Qin And Han Dynasties

The postal system in Qin and Han dynasties, though inherited from the Spring and Autumn and Warring States Period, exhibited different characteristics compared with pre-Qin. Five Hegemons and Seven Warring States continued battles, keeping up frequent intelligence and correspondence, having a high demand for communication of timeliness and confidentiality, whereby all countries attached importance to the construction of post station. At this phase, the postal system had developed rapidly, but it showed different regulations and varieties of names because of splitting. The Qin Dynasty dominated the world and established a uniform system, which had the similar effect on the postal system. The extremely powerful unifying political force and execution of Qin prompted a complete postal system to prevail in the country. Thus, the central government decree could be conveyed to the most remote frontier fortress, at the same time, grass-roots’ information could also be understood in time. Postal system in Qin and Han dynasties formed basically and laid the foundation for the millennium postal system in China, which had been used and revised by later dynasties.Firstly, the postal institution in Qin and Han dynasties and related issues. The postal institutions in Qin and Han dynasties are focused on You, Chuan, Yi, Zhi and Ting. According to its size and function, it can be divided into three categories, one is You, one is Chuan, Yi and Zhi, another is Ting; according to its route, it can be divided into two, one is You and Ting, the other is Chuan, Yi and Zhi. Chuan, Yi and Zhi, generally located in the county, every ten miles a set, which delivered mainly by carriage and horse and had a larger scale than You and Ting. Ting generally located in rural, and only part of the Tings were responsible for postal thing. During four hundred years of Han dynasty, the institutional settings and functions of the postal system were not changeless. In Han dynasty, You was reformed into Zhi, which was a place to set up Chuan and Yi. The relations between Zhi and You, the status and development of Zhi in the postal system in Qin and Han dynasties, still need further study.Secondly, the delivery methods of the postal system in Qin and Han dynasties and related issues. According to this study, "delivered by You" "delivered by Ting" "delivered by Youting" "delivered by sequence" "delivered by sequence of county" "delivered by sequence of Dao" "delivered by sequence of Sui" "delivered by sequence of Ting" and other delivery methods, finally can be attributed to two forms:"delivered by You" and "delivered by sequence". The first three have something in common, and the last seven are similar in delivery methods. As to "delivered by You", the delivery methods are as follows:in accordance with a certain order, through specialized agencies "You", and delivered by full-time staff "Mailman". The delivery methods of "delivered by sequence" are:according to a certain order to circulate in the county, Dao, Sui and Ting, who are required to carefully review the contents of documents and promptly send down the next destination. In addition, according to the delivery tool, delivery methods can be divided into on foot, carriage driving, horse riding and by boat. On foot was slower, which was responsible for short-distance delivery. Carriage driving and horse riding are responsible for long-distance delivery. By boat was more common at the riverside, and often used both on water and land.Thirdly, postal administrator and postal management measures. Postal administrators are discussed from the levels of center, county, Ting, Zhi and so on. Postal limit had regional differences, and was associated with the usage of transportation, but Mailman’s examination were abnormal harsh, who made "no meet-range" and "delay" must be punished. Mailman who was underprivileged, often need round the clock to deliver documents. Mailman’s main duty was to ensure the timeliness, integrity and security of postal letters. Seal and signature, Youshuci, "send" "since" record-mail were all key measures of documents verification.Institutions of postal system in Qin and Han dynasties cooperated mutually and the delivery methods were diverse. There was a clear division of labor within administrators at all levels, who imposed supervision and inspection on different aspects of the delivery process of the documents, assessed Mailman according to the postal limit, and prompted the postal system in Qin and Han dynasties running smoothly and efficiently.