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15 August 2010, Volume 0 Issue 3 Previous Issue    Next Issue

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A Study of the Qing Dynasty’s Rules of Civil Litigation DENG Jian-Peng 2010, 0(3): 1-12.  Abstract ( )   PDF (512KB) ( )   The Rules for Civil Litigation (Zhuangshi Tiaoli) were the most important set of rules for local litigation in the Qing dynasty. These rules，which had been printed on petition forms，were meant to control the procedures by which litigants filed complaints. The Qing Code was positive law mainly regarding crime and punishment，and litigation rules based on tradition and government's interests were not part of the Code. The rules were the most significant laws on litigation at the local level and were mostly uniform across Qing China. The Rules for Civil Litigation focused on limiting behavior of litigants before the yamen heard cases. Although The Rules for Civil Litigation contained important procedural rules，it actually served to facilitate acceptance of petitions and was aimed at keeping judicial order in the empire. Related Articles | Metrics

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The Board of Punishment and the Adjudication of Minor Cases Originating in the Capital during the Qing Dynasty HU Xiang-Yu 2010, 0(3): 13-20.  Abstract ( )   PDF (344KB) ( )   This article explores the reasons why the Board of Punishment，as the judicial and legal center“Under Heaven，”adjudicated numerous minor cases during the Qing dynasty. The Board of Punishment adjudicated minor cases because of the special jurisdiction over bannermen，especially the imperial clansman and because of the inherent contradiction of the juridical system in the Capital. At the beginning of the Qing dynasty，because of the special jurisdiction over bannermen，the Imperial Household Department and the Eight Banners had to send cases involving both bannermen and civilians to the Board of Punishment. Censors of the Five Wards also had to send cases involving only bannermen to the Board. Since the mid-Qing，cases involving imperial clansmen，regardless of their possible punishments，had to be co-adjudicated by both the Imperial Clan Court and either the Board of Revenue or the Board of Punishment. There was not“a system of adjudicating，transmitting，and confirming level by level”in the Capital，and each yamen did not offer recommended punishments when they sent cases to the Board of Punishment. Therefore，the Board adjudicated numerous minor cases in order to avoid delay. Related Articles | Metrics

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Private Remarriage and Sale of Wives in the Qing Dynasty as Seen from the Nanbu Archives WU Pei-Lin 2010, 0(3): 21-33.  Abstract ( )   PDF (523KB) ( )   Although traditional mainstream society had abandoned the practices of remarriage or wife-selling，due to the widespread poverty it remained a common folk custom and for those a means to perpetuate the generations and carry on the family name. In Nanbu county，Sichuan，remarriage or wife-selling was not officially regarded as an“evil custom”because it did not involve a son-in-law moving into the wife's home，or a“household transfer”marriage，customs and thus could not undermine the existing inheritance and settlement practices. As for cases of remarriage and wife-selling that reached the yamen，there were numerous reasons for settling disputes. Interestingly，magistrates' decisions were based on the different motivations of the villagers in litigation，not strictly in accordance with the statutes，and magistrates made flexible judgments for both sides. The pattern of official settlements coincided with the living conditions of the lower classes. Related Articles | Metrics

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Young Dai Zhen as An Outsider of Polite Society of Eighteen-century China HU Ming-Hui, DONG Jian-Zhong 2010, 0(3): 34-50.  Abstract ( )   PDF (689KB) ( )   In this paper I reconsider young Dai Zhen as outsider of Eighteenth-century China and provide a revisionist account for the dynamics of mid-Qing Confucianism. The first section，“Merchant and Examination”，introduces the avenues of social mobility for Huizhou merchants in the system of elementary education and civil service examinations. Dai Zhen was cast as an outsider to this largely exclusive system and appeared to be incapable of succeeding in it. In the second section， “Overcoming Classical Literacy”， I describe how Dai Zhen chose to pursue， against overwhelming odds，elites status and knowledge，and how he acquired classical literacy by his own efforts. In the third section， “Engaging Literati Sociability”，I describe in detail the politics and sociability of Shi Jing (1693- 1769)，who embodied a residual form of Ming dynasty Donglin Activism. Here I will show how Dai Zhen attempted to take part in the unpredictable dynamics of sociability among members of the national elite. In the forth and final section，“Technical Methodology for Classical Studies”，I identify the intellectual proposal that emerged from Dai Zhen's engagement with Shi Jing. The proposal，embodied in this epistolary document，proves to be the key for understanding what had propelled Dai Zhen to this point in 1750 and what he would continue pursue afterwards. Related Articles | Metrics

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The Establishment of Dai Zhen’s Academic Status and the Theory of Chinese Origins of Western Learning XU Dao-Bin 2010, 0(3): 51-65.  Abstract ( )   PDF (165KB) ( )   Dai Zhen was the leading scholar of Qian-Jia learning in the Qing Dynasty. Though he was an obscure Confucian intellectual in simple and unadorned apparel after his arrival in the capital of Qing Dynasty from the countryside， Huizhou，he became famous in a short time and was a person that people of high social ranks eagerly wanted to meet. His academic viewpoint was quickly acknowledged and accepted. Why it was so is an unsolved puzzle in academia. Based on examinations into Western learning made by Mei Wending，Mei Juecheng，Jiang Yong，Dai Zhen and others，this paper tries to explain the unique and refreshing approach adopted by Dai Zhen to substitute“Western learning”with“Chinese learning”on the basis of his predecessors' research. Dai Zhen's timely academic viewpoints conformed to the cultural mentality of the Qing imperial government during this period of the dissemination of Western culture and ensured the quick establishment of his academic status. Dai Zhen's experience also revealed the harsh difficulties of the traditional scholar-bureaucrat in achieving the balance between politics and learning. Related Articles | Metrics

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Proposed Imperial Reading Materials in the Qianlong Period CHEN Dong 2010, 0(3): 66-74.  Abstract ( )   PDF (163KB) ( )   The system for educating emperors was comprised of three main forms，official expositions of the classics，daily lectures，and proposed imperial reading materials. The implementation of the proposed imperial reading materials lasted for twelve years during the Qianlong reign，and，with more than three hundreds officials involved，it cast a deep influence upon the political，economical，cultural and academic realms in the Qing Dynasty. The purpose of the proposed imperial reading materials lies not only in the education of the emperors but also in the assessment and differentiation of the officials. The content of these compilations also exhibited different features at different times. After the Qianlong reign Imperial Reading Materials (Yulan jingshi jiangyi) was fragmentary and contained many omissions. Related Articles | Metrics

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The Origin of the Taiping Bible ZHAO Xiao-Yang 2010, 0(3): 75-82+137.  Abstract ( )   PDF (177KB) ( )   The Taiping Kingdom printed the Bible on a large scale in 1853 and 1860. Scholars have held two views regarding which Chinese version of the Bible translation it was based on. The debate has been based on a great deal of literature， but it remains inconclusive. By analyzing and researching both the original Chinese and foreign-language literature，as well as a variety of Chinese versions of the Bible，the article reveals that the published Bible of the Taiping Kingdom was based on the Gutzlaff's Version. This translation also played a considerable role in future Chinese translations of the Bible. Related Articles | Metrics

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Research on the Status of"Commercial Household Registration"for Salt Merchants in the Qing Dynasty Imperial Examination from the Perspective of Institutional history LIU Xi-Wei 2010, 0(3): 83-89.  Abstract ( )   PDF (139KB) ( )   In Qing dynasty a special household registration for salt merchants and their offspring was used in the Imperial Examination. However，this registration category also had other implications. This special status was a product of the“marriage”of the salt industries and the Imperial Examination and also the product of beneficial exchange between the salt merchants and the government. The Qing government set a special quota in many provinces. Because the salt merchants and their offspring could not return to their original home regions to participate in the Imperial Examination，it was a necessary condition for the special household registration. But，this provision was flexible in some cases，and it was not always employed. Thus，many examinees who did not meet this provision often took the special tests. Thus there were many instances of fraud due to this phenomena in the history of Imperial Examination in Qing dynasty. Related Articles | Metrics

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Formation and Significance of Local Alliances in Local Society at the Late Qing: A Case Study of Xunzhou District in Guangxi Province TANG Xiao-Tao 2010, 0(3): 90-105.  Abstract ( )   PDF (1022KB) ( )   Taking Xunzhou District，which was the base of the Society of God-Worshipers，as an example，this thesis argues the formation and significance of alliances in local society in the late Qing. During the evolution of the social order in local society in Xunzhou，new local alliances，which were geographic organizations，ultra-lineages and multi-villages，were established based on religious activities in the Ming-Qing dynasty. The local alliance was a significant means of village integration in Xunzhou in the late Qing. With the development of this political system，it became the most important social structure and legalized by virtue of official terms. This social structure influenced the evolution of local society in Xunzhou as well as in south China. Related Articles | Metrics

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The Annual Pilgrimages and the Tribute System of External Vassal States in the Qing Dynasty ZHANG Shuang-Zhi 2010, 0(3): 106-115.  Abstract ( )   PDF (435KB) ( )   The Qing dynasty distinguished the Mongolia，Xinjiang，Tibet frontier ethnic areas from the foreign countries beyond it borders viewing them as two different categories of internal and external suzerains. The Qing dynasty establishes the annual pilgrimage system for the internal suzerains and continued the previously established tributary system for the external suzerains. This was the essential difference between the two systems. Related Articles | Metrics