Lead:
What was the greatest threat to the imperial power of the Ming Dynasty? Is it really a family family? Of course not. The contradiction between the family and the imperial power mainly occurred during the Wei and Jin Dynasties, and by the Ming Dynasty, there was no such problem.
The influence of the family clan on China is at least a thousand years old, so it is an indelible mark on history. Mr. Chen Yinke uses the concept of door valve to vividly display the Guanlong Group in the Sui and Tang Dynasties in front of us, in fact, it is to illustrate a truth, the early Sui and Tang Dynasties, is an important period in the history of the disappearance of the family family.
01 The Wei and Jin Dynasties, the Southern and Northern Dynasties, was the peak period of the family clan.
In fact, as early as the Han Dynasty, the family clan has existed and has a long history. Especially in the Eastern Han Dynasty, because of the loopholes in the official selection system, filial piety and honesty became an important means for the aristocratic class to monopolize the official field, and the importance of the family clan in the official field was reflected.
Because all the power of filial piety fell into the hands of officials. Of course, officials want their children and grandchildren to become officials, so they began to use the mode of exchange to select officials.
Huan Wen, the general of the Western Expedition, asked to be Sima and sent a new pavilion to the emperor, and gao song was sent to the emperor: "Qing Tired violated the will of the dynasty, lying high on the Eastern Mountain, everyone talked to each other, An Shi refused to come out, and it would be like Cangsheng He!" The heavens will be like this! "Ann is ashamed. When it arrives, Wen is very happy, his words are alive, and he laughs day after day. Having come out, Wen asked, "Have you seen me have such a guest?" "Wen Hou Yi'an, worth his haircut." The nature is slow, and over time, it is stopped, so that it can be taken. Wen Saw, Liu Zhi said: "Let Sima enter with a hat." That's what it looks like. --- Book of Jin
Since you cannot choose your own son, then I choose your son, you choose his son, and he chooses my son. This solves the problem perfectly.
Therefore, several generations of officials and lords have come down, and this family has become a family family. For example, the Yuan family where Yuan Shao's brother Yuan Shu of the fourth and third dukes is located is a typical family family.
The family clans of the Wei and Jin dynasties became the mainstream of the DPRK
During the Wei dynasty, it was fine, but it only grasped the power to elect officials, using the Nine Pins Zhongzheng system to control the descendants of the aristocratic group to enter the dynasty as officials.
By the time of the Eastern Jin Dynasty, all the power of the imperial court basically fell into the hands of the family clan.
In the old days, the Wang family and the Xie family in the former Yan of Wang Xie Tang were typical family clans in the Eastern Jin Dynasty. Among them, Wang Dao, Xie An and others are the representatives of the family clan, who have always firmly controlled the power of the DPRK and China, and the imperial power has suffered unprecedented harm. This is when the dispute between the imperial power and the family clan is the greatest.
It was not until Liu Yu ended the rule of the Eastern Jin Dynasty that it was a temporary end to the rule of the shijia clan in China.
However, this is not the end of the family's power. Although the family clans during the Southern and Northern Dynasties were no longer as rampant as they were during the Wei and Jin dynasties, they were still active in politics.
In particular, the Guanlong clique in the Northern Zhou Dynasty became the leader of the country. Yang Jian and Li Yuan, who established the Sui Dynasty and tang dynasty, are actually the representatives of the Guanlong clique, and they are the typical representatives of the family clan. However, during the Tang Dynasty, after Wu Zetian destroyed the Eldest Sun Wuji faction, the history of the confrontation between the family clan and the imperial power was thus ended.
02The imperial power of the Ming Dynasty has always been in an invincible position.
During the Qin and Han dynasties, there were princes who struggled with imperial power, there were clans fighting against imperial power during the Wei and Jin dynasties, and there were local tyrants who struggled with imperial power during the Tang and Song dynasties.
When the Ming Dynasty first founded the country, Zhu Yuanzhang used Hu Weiyong's case to completely depose the position of prime minister, and since then the prime minister has become a term in history and has no longer had practical significance.
Because phase power will always become an important factor hindering imperial power, it is necessary to solve the phase power
In disguise, it also elevated the supremacy of imperial power. Zhu Yuanzhang was an extremely selfish person, and he did this so that his children and grandchildren could take sole power.
But he also left behind a curse, that is, the affairs of the princes.
Dividing up the princes became a very failed move by Zhu Yuanzhang. Because Zhu Yuanzhang wanted his sons to enjoy the treatment of emperors in the local areas, it caused Zhu Di to rebel.
After Zhu Di's successful rebellion, he completely weakened the power of the princes
From then on, the imperial power of the Ming Dynasty lost the shackles of any other power and truly became the supreme power.
The emperors of the Ming Dynasty appointed cabinet ministers to handle the affairs of the DPRK and China for them, and appointed eunuchs to supervise the ministers of the DPRK and the CENTRAL For them, constantly improving and changing the form, and the ultimate purpose was only one, that is, to maintain the imperial power.
Obviously, this policy of the Ming Dynasty was indeed very successful, and with the efforts of Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Di's father and son, the imperial power was finally protected by them as the most sacred and inviolable power.
But when yong is dead, his opposite is still not revealed. By the eighteenth year, Li Cunyi was the first to be told, to avoid death, and to resettle Chongming. In October of the nineteenth year, Lin Xian's imprisonment was completed, and the only thing that happened to Yong Tong began. Twenty-one years later, Blue Jade marched into the desert, was awarded the title, and was good at not playing. By May of the twenty-third year, the incident occurred, and the officials who had been arrested were arrested, and the information was informed, and the conspiracy was great. Lu Zhongqian, the head of the Huishan family slave Lu Zhongqian, had a relationship with Wei Yong, and Lu Zhongheng's slave Timur also made The first Zhongheng and tang Shengzong, Fei Ju, and Zhao Yong conspired with Wei Yong. The emperor became angry and purged the rebellious party, and more than 30,000 people sat on the curse. It is for the "Record of revealing the traitorous party", which is announced to the world. The strains have been introduced for several years. --- History of the Ming Dynasty
If we look closely, we will find that all the emperors of the Ming Dynasty were emperors with real power. Even if Jiajing and Wanli did not go to the dprk for decades, the overall situation in the DPRK and China was always in their hands.
The implementation of the 03 imperial examination system has become an important barrier for the family to hold power.
Why was Wu Zetian able to completely eliminate the interference of the family clan with the imperial power? In fact, the predecessors have made all the preparations for her, that is, the imperial examination system.
As early as the sui wen emperor period, the imperial examination system has begun to see the beginning. In the sui dynasty, the imperial examination system was even more carried forward. After the establishment of the Tang Dynasty, the imperial examination system became an important channel for selecting officials.
Until the time of Wu Zetian, the imperial examination system became the magic weapon for Wu Zetian to govern the country.
Because Wu Zetian constantly enriched the content of the imperial examination system and unswervingly implemented this system, he won the respect of the readers.
In the autumn and July, Ren Yin, ordered Li Ji, Xu Jingzong, and Xin Mao to join Ren Yaxiang and Lu Chengqing in the same way. Xu Jingzong also sent Yuan Gongyu (袁公瑜) and others from Zhongshu She, and then forced Wu Jie to hang himself. Zhao Liuyi and Han Yi were dueled. There are no three families, and close relatives are all slaves in Lingnan. --- "Zizhi Tongjian"
At the same time, Wu Zetian also offended those clans.
In the past, during the period of Li Yuan and Li Shimin, although the imperial examination system had also begun to be implemented, the nobles were basically recognized as officials.
But Wu Zetian was very disgusted with this, so the imperial examination system became an important tool for her to deal with the family clan. During the Ming Dynasty, the imperial examination system followed the importance of the Song Dynasty, so like the Song Dynasty, the status of the literati of the Ming Dynasty was relatively high.
They became imperial court officials through study, rather than inheriting the official titles by virtue of the merits of their fathers. Therefore, in the Ming Dynasty, the family clan was basically not in power, and no one could drive back the wheel of history.
Summary: Whoever is in power is actually insignificant to the people.
During the Wei and Jin Dynasties, the family clan gradually overshadowed the imperial power, must it be a bad thing? Not necessarily. Imperial power and phase power are actually no different for ordinary people.
Whoever can govern the country well, who can make the people live a good life, in fact, they can come to power.
The emperor is a hereditary system, so it is not guaranteed that every emperor is wise and divine, and the prime minister basically climbs up by his own efforts, although there is inevitably the existence of adultery, but most people are capable.
In contrast, it is perhaps better for the common people to have the family in power than for the emperor to be in power alone. Because there is more than one family in the family, there is competition between each other, in order to compete for the upper position, they must work harder than each other, so that the light may be the common people.
For example, during the Eastern Jin Dynasty, the struggle between the Xie family and the Huan family won a certain period of peace for the common people to a certain extent. Because of the Constraints of the Xie Family, Huan Wen did not dare to usurp the throne without authorization, because of the hegemony of the Huan Family, Xie An had to work harder than anyone to maintain balance.
Resources:
Book of Jin
History of the Ming Dynasty
Zizhi Tongjian