After the Qing Dynasty entered the customs, under the influence of changes in the general environment, the Qing rulers began to gradually accept the Han culture in the Central Plains, summarizing the achievements of the imperial legislation of successive feudal dynasties in history, and gradually fading the barbaric deficiencies of their own people. After the effective rule of kang Yongqian's three generations of Qing emperors, the middle of the Qing Dynasty became the most prosperous period of the Qing Dynasty, and it was also the most important link in the legal history of the Qing Dynasty.
There was unprecedented progress in many aspects of politics, economy, culture and so on during this period. As a political product, the law also developed greatly in the middle of the Qing Dynasty with the solid economic foundation. With the strengthening of feudalism's centralized power, the legislation of the middle of the Qing Dynasty fully reflected its strong feudal characteristics.
First, a special way of disposing of it, "discussing relatives"
Before entering the customs, the members of the clan committed crimes, and the emperor always reduced his criminal law, but there was still little difference with the time when the people committed crimes. The judicial process is basically the same when hearing the cases of the members of the clan and the cases of ordinary people. This situation gradually changed after customs clearance.
In the ninth year of Shunzhi (1652), Li Ke gave Liu Yumo a suggestion that if the members of the clan committed criminal acts, they should adopt the principle of "discussing relatives" in the Eight Discussions. Liu Yumo said: "Zhou Li eight discussions, the first to discuss relatives." Xiang saw that there was a crime in the clan room, and it was no different from the people. The law of subjects cannot be lenient, but the body cannot be humiliated. From now on, except for those who have committed grave sins, please consider the severity of the matter and never remove the whiplash, so as to show the favor of the mutant clan. ”
In order to show the noble status of the clan clique, when dealing with the problem of clan relatives committing crimes, the "discussion of relatives" in the Eight Proposals should be used to show the emperor's grace.
Therefore, after clearing the customs, special treatment was often adopted for the crimes of members of the Clan Jueluo. The so-called special treatment was most prominent in the Shunzhi and Kangxi dynasties. It is stipulated that the members of the clan below the prince's counties shall either take away the people to whom they belong or impose a fine. However, whipping is not punishable. If the crime committed is not a felony such as rebellion, the death penalty is not imposed, and the Punishment Department cannot be sentenced to imprisonment.
There are many similar provisions, although there is no explicit "eight proposals", but the essence of "discussing relatives" is already in place.
After entering the customs, everything was wasted to be revived, and appeasing the clan clique was also the top priority of the Qing Emperor, and in this regard, the Qing Emperor gave special treatment to the crime of Zong Mu Jueluo, and his punishment was mitigated or his crime was forgiven.
For example, in the forty-sixth year of Qianlong (1781), a member of the clan family, Feng'en General Yi Chong, beat his hired workers to death, and the Zongren Government, together with the Punishment Department, decided to impose a captivity of 70 days and release after completing the sentence. Qianlong also considered the punishment too lenient. He also held that although it was customary to ask for the crime and propose punishment, but the life of a person was closed to heaven, beating the hired worker to death, although it would not be atone for the crime with his life, according to the law, he would be sentenced to a cane sentence, which would be reduced to a captivity for dozens of days, which would be too light and not enough to punish. Qianlong then ordered that the punishment be changed to a one-year captivity, and that he be released after completing his sentence, and ordered that his title be checked to see whether his title was a meritorious title or a grace seal. If it is a meritorious seal, it will choose to inherit the near branch, and if it is true, it will stop attacking the knight.
From this example, it can be seen that in the middle of the Qing Dynasty, the punishment for crimes committed by members of the clan was very light.
Second, the laws regulating the members of the clan should also arise from time to time
During the Qing Dynasty and Emperor Taizong, the clan law began to take shape, and it was not very mature, the content was limited, and the punishment of the clan was often based on the law of sin. The middle of the Qing Dynasty had already entered the stage of prosperity. Various laws and regulations have also tended to be perfected, and laws regulating the members of the clan should also emerge from time to time.
The promulgation of relevant laws and regulations such as the "Laws and Regulations of the Great Qing Dynasty", the "Great Qing Huidian", and the "Rules of the Emperor's House" during the Kang Yongqian period marked the gradual shift of the punishment of clan crimes from the law of crime to the stage of conviction according to the law.
For example, in the thirtieth year of Qianlong (1766), he decreed: "Subsequently, if the Emperor Jueluo is beaten with a yellow belt and a red belt, he will still be handled as usual, and he will not be beaten, and the person who is beaten will be handled according to the practice of beating a flat person." "In the forty years of Qianlong (1776), the clan member Mu Teng'e, without wearing a yellow belt, encountered the slave Qi'er and others of the Shi clan of zhenglanqi, and were mistaken for acquaintances who invited him to drink. When Qianlong learned of this, he said that Mu Teng's forehead was not wearing a yellow belt, so that people could not distinguish between themselves as pure "humiliation by themselves, and it is advisable to increase punishment."
The promulgation of this series of regulations has enabled the qingzong group to initially form a relatively complete system of legal norms, restricting the behavior of the members of the clan from all aspects and strengthening the management of the clan by the Qing emperor.
3. Loopholes in the legal norms of the Qing Sect Chamber in terms of non-main members
Before the clearance, in its political and military aspects, the princes in the clan group played a decisive role, so the legal norms of this period were mostly set for the main members of the clan such as the prince, the baylor or the shell. However, after other members of the clan were listed as Erxuan, Fujin, Gege, etc., after committing crimes, they were mostly in a state of inability to rely on them in the case of imperfect legal norms.
In the tenth year of the Mandate of Heaven (1625), several of the Qing Taizu Nurhaci were sentenced to a penalty of silver for dereliction of duty, and after consideration, Taizu was relieved of their convictions.
As can be seen from the above, there was no precise law for ordinary members of the clan at that time to regulate their behavior. If a perpetrator is encountered, the case is often discussed on an ad hoc basis, so sometimes the punishment for similar cases will have different results. In the middle of the Qing Dynasty, with the gradual introduction of various legal systems, the legal system of the clan has been able to cover all the members of the clan, rather than just regulating the main clan members. The promulgation of laws such as the "Rules and Regulations of the ZongrenFu" and the "Cases of the Great Qing Society" have made clear provisions on the punishment of crimes committed by non-main members of the clan.
The Qianlong Emperor once decreed that if a person who committed a crime and was dismissed from his post because of his misconduct, he should not only remove the grade of Erchi itself, but also remove his grade from it, so as to exempt him from his rank. If Erchi is demoted at the time of his appointment, his grade will also be demoted, and his rank will also be demoted with the grade of Erchi, and if he encounters the lowest grade and cannot be demoted, he will remove the grade of Erchi Gege. Vice versa, if Gege is demoted for a crime, Erchi is also demoted, but Erchi's own official position can still be retained. Legal norms such as these have been formulated one after another, filling the loopholes in the legal norms of the Qing Dynasty in terms of non-main members.