明初中書省の變遷

Abstract

Ming T'ai-tsu 明太祖, Chu Yuan-chang 朱元璋, became the King of Wu 呉王in 1364 CChih-cheng 至正24); and established a system following the Yuan 元which made the chung-shu-sheng the pivotal organ of state. Later, in 1376 (Hung-wu 洪武9), he abolished the positions of chung-shu-sheng-hei-chang-cheng-shih 中書省平章政事 and ts'an-shih-cheng-shis 參知政事；in 1380 (Hung-wu 13) he abolished the chung-shu-sheng itself. However, the chung-shu-sheng had in fact completed its internal transformation from the perspective both of its responsibilities and personnel structure already in 1371 (Hung-wu 4); the reform of 1376 confirmed it. I believe the reason that it took five years from the de facto transformation until the formal changeover was due to the need to wait for the maturation to a situation in which the formal change could be effected--stability both domestically and in foreign affairs as well as a satisfactory increase in the number of officials competent in government business. By the 1376 reform the chief 左 and subordinate 右 ch'eng-hsiang 丞相 of the chung-shu-sheng were clearly moving toward autocratic power, and the overall bureaucratic reform of 1380 centering on the abolition of the chung-shu-sheng was implemented so that chief cch'eng-hsiang Hu Wei-yung 胡惟庸could take a large measure of power. In this way I believe the Hung-wu emperor moved to accomplish his own distinctive administrative system.