System Of Inquisition By Torture In The Tang Dynasty

The system of torture in ancient China is an important part of China’s traditional judicial system.Its emergence and development is not only the result of the general law of the evolution of human legal civilization,but also the product of traditional China’s specific social and historical conditions and unique legal culture.The system of torture had sprouted initially in the pre-qin period,grew rapidly in the qin and han dynasties,and matured in the tang dynasty.It played a pivotal role in the history of the Chinese legal system as a link between the past and the future.The causes of the torture system in the Tang Dynasty include not only the legislative intention of the rulers in the specific era background of the Tang Dynasty,but also the common factors of traditional Chinese society.From the perspective of institutional factors,the millennial monarchical autocracy has provided an incomparable institutional environment for the legalization of torture.The "paternal official" system formed under the joint action of the autocratic system and the Confucian ethical code enables torture to further discipline the people.At the same time,the traditional Chinese social collective consciousness formed under the high-pressure rule of the feudal era has made people more receptive to torture.From the perspective of legal and ideological factors,the rulers of the early Tang Dynasty pursued the idea of "cautious punishment" and rested with the people,so as to restore the people’s livelihood and stabilize the order as soon as possible due to the long-term turmoil in the late Sui Dynasty,which formed the basic path of restricting torture.The legalization of Confucianism was also completed at this time.The idea of combining etiquette with law provided an ideological basis for the formation and development of the torture system in the Tang Dynasty.From the perspective of judicial factors,the traditional principle of presumption of guilt and supremacy of confession further encourages the use of torture.Under the combined effect of the above factors,a complete torture system was formed in the Tang Dynasty-detailed provisions were made on the necessary conditions,procedures,execution rules,anti torture provisions,as well as restrictions on the object,limit,subject and circumstances where torture was not required,and the judicial responsibility of judicial officials for violating these provisions was clarified.However,the judicial practice of the torture system in the Tang Dynasty ran counter to the legislative provisions.It is mainly reflected that the operation of torture system depends on the emperor and feudal officials;Illegal torture existed in various periods of the Tang Dynasty;The restriction mechanism of torture system is weakened.Therefore,it also resulted in three practical effects of the torture system in the Tang Dynasty.In terms of judicial effect,torture can solve some cases,but the failure of the supervision mechanism has also led to the proliferation of illegal torture and the consequences of unjust,false and wrong cases.In terms of social effects,the fierce practice of torture has played a role in maintaining social stability and feudal social ethics,but at the same time,it also made people afraid and aggravated social conflicts.In terms of political effect,torture maintains the autocratic ruling order by fighting against crime and suppressing the opposition forces,but bureaucrats use this method to fight against political enemies,which also alienates it as a tool for court politics.