Secretariat-Chancellery | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Chinese name | |||||||||
Traditional Chinese | 中 書 門 下 省 | ||||||||
Simplified Chinese | 中 书 门 下 省 | ||||||||
| |||||||||
Alternative Chinese name | |||||||||
Chinese | 两 省 | ||||||||
Literal meaning | Two Departments | ||||||||
| |||||||||
Korean name | |||||||||
Hangul | 중서문하성 | ||||||||
Hanja | 中 書 門 下 省 | ||||||||
|
Secretariat-Chancellery was a central government department in several dynasties in imperial China and Korea. It was created in the Tang dynasty by combining the Secretariat and the Chancellery. It was a particularly important office in late Tang,the Song dynasty,and Goryeo.
The Tang dynasty,or the Tang Empire,was an imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907,with an interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. Historians generally regard the Tang as a high point in Chinese civilization,and a golden age of cosmopolitan culture. Tang territory,acquired through the military campaigns of its early rulers,rivaled that of the Han dynasty.
Throughout Chinese history,"Emperor" was the superlative title held by the monarchs who ruled various imperial dynasties or Chinese empires. In traditional Chinese political theory,the emperor was the "Son of Heaven",an autocrat with the divine mandate right to rule all under Heaven. Emperors were worshiped posthumously under an imperial cult. The lineage of emperors descended from a paternal family line constituted a dynasty,and succession in most cases theoretically followed agnatic primogeniture.
Pax Sinica is a historiographical term referring to periods of peace and stability in East Asia,Northeast Asia,Southeast Asia,and Central Asia led by China. A study on the Sinocentric world system reveals that the multiple periods of Pax Sinica,when taken together,amounted to a length of approximately two thousand years.
The foreign relations of Imperial China from the Qin dynasty until the Qing dynasty encompassed many situations as the fortunes of dynasties rose and fell. Chinese culture had influenced neighboring and distant countries,while being transformed by outside influences as well as being conquered. During the Western Han dynasty,the Silk Road trade routes were established and brought Hellenistic Central Asia,Persia under the Parthian Empire,and South Asia into contact with the Chinese empire. During the 2nd century BC,Zhang Qian became the first known Chinese diplomat to venture deep into Central Asia in search of allies against the Mongolic Xiongnu confederation. Han Chinese attempts were made at reaching the Roman Empire and although the mission led by Gan Ying in 97 AD was a failure,Chinese historical records nevertheless maintain that the Romans traveled to southern China and Vietnam via the Indian Ocean. Buddhism from India was introduced to China during the Eastern Han period and would spread to neighboring Vietnam,Korea,and Japan,all of which would adopt similar Confucian cultures based on the Chinese model.
Wu,also referred to as Huainan (淮南),Hongnong (弘農),Southern Wu (南吳),or Yang Wu (楊吳),was a dynastic state of China and one of the Ten Kingdoms during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. It existed from 907 to 937 with capital at Jiangdu Municipality.
The grand chancellor,also translated as counselor-in-chief,chancellor,chief councillor,chief minister,imperial chancellor,lieutenant chancellor and prime minister,was the highest-ranking executive official in the imperial Chinese government. The term was known by many different names throughout Chinese history,and the exact extent of the powers associated with the position fluctuated greatly,even during a particular dynasty.
The Censorate was a high-level supervisory agency in Imperial China,first established during the Qin dynasty. It was a highly effective agency during the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty (1271–1368). During the Ming dynasty (1368–1644),the Censorate was a branch of the centralized bureaucracy,paralleling the Six Ministries and the five Chief Military Commissions,and was directly responsible to the emperor. The investigating censors were "the eyes and ears" of the emperor and checked administrators at each level to prevent corruption and malfeasance,a common feature of that period. Popular stories told of righteous censors revealing corruption as well as censors who accepted bribes. Generally speaking,they were feared and disliked,and had to move around constantly to perform their duties.
The Zhongshu Sheng,also known as the Palace Secretariat or Central Secretariat,was one of the departments of the Three Departments and Six Ministries government structure in imperial China from the Cao Wei (220–266) until the early Ming dynasty. As one of the Three Departments,the Zhongshu Sheng was primarily a policy-formulating agency responsible for proposing and drafting all imperial decrees,but its actual function varied at different times. The department traces its origins back to the Han dynasty.
The Three Departments and Six Ministries system was the primary administrative structure in imperial China from the Sui dynasty (581–618) to the Yuan dynasty (1271–1368). It was also used by Balhae (698–926) and Goryeo (918–1392) and various other kingdoms in Manchuria,Korea and Vietnam.
The Khitan people were a historical nomadic people from Northeast Asia who,from the 4th century,inhabited an area corresponding to parts of modern Mongolia,Northeast China and the Russian Far East.
East Asia is a geographical and cultural region of Asia including the countries of China,Japan,Mongolia,North Korea,South Korea,and Taiwan. Additionally,Hong Kong and Macau are two coastal cities located in the south of China with autonomous status under Chinese sovereignty. The economies of China,Japan,South Korea,and Taiwan are among the world's largest and most prosperous. East Asia borders Siberia and the Russian Far East to the north,Southeast Asia to the south,South Asia to the southwest,and Central Asia to the west. To its east is the Pacific Ocean.
The Daming Palace was the imperial palace complex of the Tang dynasty,located in its capital Chang'an. It served as the imperial residence of the Tang emperors for more than 220 years. Today,it is designated as a national heritage site of China,and part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site "Silk Roads:the Routes Network of Chang'an-Tianshan Corridor". The area is located northeast of present-day Xi'an,Shaanxi Province.
The Yuan dynasty was a Mongol-led imperial Chinese dynasty. During its existence,its territory was divided into the Central Region (腹裏) governed by the Central Secretariat and places under control of various provinces (行省) or Branch Secretariats (行中書省),as well as the region under the Bureau of Buddhist and Tibetan Affairs. In addition,the Yuan emperors held nominal suzerainty over the western Mongol khanates,but in reality none of them were governed by the Yuan dynasty due to the division of the Mongol Empire.
The Shangshu Sheng,sometimes translated as the Department of State Affairs or the Imperial Secretariat,was one of the departments of the Three Departments and Six Ministries government structure. It was the primary executive institution of imperial China,head of the Six Ministries,the Nine Courts,and the Three Directorates. The Six Ministries consisted of the Ministry of Personnel,the Ministry of Revenue,the Ministry of Rites,the Ministry of War,the Ministry of Justice,and the Ministry of Works. The Department of State of Affairs existed in one form or another from the Han dynasty until the Yuan dynasty (1271–1368),but was never re-established in the following Ming dynasty.
The Menxia Sheng,sometimes translated as the Chancellery,was one of the departments of the Three Departments and Six Ministries government structure of imperial China. It advised the emperor and the Zhongshu Sheng,and reviewed edicts and commands. As the least important of the three departments,it existed in name only by the Song dynasty while its functions were delegated to the other two departments. In 1129,the Chancellery was merged with the Central Secretariat.
The Palace Library was a central government agency in Imperial and monarchical China,Korea,and Vietnam generally in charge of maintaining and archiving the collection of the monarch's documents.
The Ministry or Board of Revenue was one of the Six Ministries under the Department of State Affairs in imperial China.
The Three Bureaus traditionally refer to the Bureau of Salt and Iron Monopoly,Tax Bureau,and Census bureau that originated during the Song dynasty. However the Three Bureaus have been used to refer to different institutions at different points in Chinese history. In the Eastern Han (25-220),it included posts such as Defender-in-Chief (taiwei),Minister of Education (situ),and Minister of Works (sikong). In the Tang dynasty (618-907),it referred to the Censorate (yushitai),the Chancellery,and the Palace Secretariat. During the Ming dynasty,it referred to three provincial level institutions:the regional military commission,the Provincial Administration Commission,and the Provincial Surveillance Commission.
Longping Ji is a Chinese history book detailing the history of the Song dynasty under its first 5 emperors,or the period from 960 to 1067. The book was published in 1142 and attributed to the famous writer Zeng Gong (1019–1083),but modern historians believe it's more likely an anonymous author simply borrowed Zeng Gong's famous name for marketing purposes.
Protectorate,also known as Duhu Fu,was a type of administrative division of the Chinese Empire,especially during the Han and Tang dynasties,established in frontier regions. During the Han and Tang dynasties,a protectorate was the highest government agency in frontier areas and was directly responsible to the imperial court. The protectorate governor was called duhu,who needed to take charge in military operations when necessary,and provide instructions to minority tribes and small dependent states within the region. This is different from the Jiedushi position. During rebellion and wartime,the two position can be held by the same person.