<論説>咸寧侯仇鸞の周辺 : 十六世紀の商業化時代における明朝政治考察の一助として

Abstract

「北虜南倭」の外圧がつよまる明の嘉靖年間(一五二二－一五六六) のなかば、中央政界で重きをなした咸寧侯仇鸞は、北辺防衛軍の武官からのしあがり、嘉靖三十年(一五五一) の明蒙間馬市を主導するなど、十六世紀東アジアをおおった商業化の影響により流動化する辺境のありようを象徴する人物として知られる。本稿は、そうした仇鸞という人物の周辺に新安商人の故郷として知られる徽州歙県との関係が存在したこと、かつそうした関係がどのようにあらわれてくるのかということについて、安徽省図書館蔵『舊寫本王充仇氏家乘』や天啓・順治の両『歙懸志』などの諸史料をもちいてあきらかにする。こうした作業をつうじて、仇鸞というひとりの政治人物の背景にさまざまな要素が存在したことを具体例に即して示すことにより、多様な関係性の上に展開する明朝政治のひろがりやその展開過程を立体的に把握するための一助となることをめざす。

Qiu Luan 仇鸞, titled the Marquis of Xian-ning 咸寧侯, was an influential figure during the reign of the Jialing Emperor of the Ming. During this period the Ming dynasty suffered external pressures from foreign peoples in both the north and south, the beilu nanwo 北虜南倭, and a major cause of this problem was the commercialization of East Asia in the 16th century. Increasing demand by the Mongols in the trade with China and military expenses issued by the central government promoted the commercialization of the defense forces on the northern borders. Given this situation as a background, Qiu Luan worked his way up from a military post as an officer in the army for northern border defenses to the point of finally wielding authority in the central government. In the 30th year of the reign of Jiajing (1551), the Ming court accepted Qiu Luan's proposal and lifted the prohibition on the horse trade, mashi 馬市, with the Mongols. Trade in the Ming system took the form of tribute, but the reality of the mashi trade had the character of international commerce divorced from the tribute system, and Qiu Luan was a consistent advocate of such. As can be understood from this example, Qiu Luan was a person who symbolizes the fluid state of the border regions that were influenced by commercialization. This paper elucidates the many relationships that surrounded Qiu Luan. A special focus is his relationship with Shexian 歙県 in Huizhou 徽州. From the late Ming onward, Xin'an 新安 merchants developed commercial operations on a nation-wide basis, and Shexian was their home base. The earliest county history of Shexian, the She-zhi 歙志, published in the 37th year of the reign of Wanli (1609), contains a biography of Qiu Luan. The aim of this paper to obtain clues for grasping of Ming politics in the age of commercialization by clarifying the relationship between Shexian, the home of the Xin'an merchants, and Qiu Luan, a symbol of the commercialization of the 16th century. Qiu Luan had inherited his official rank and posts from his grandfather Qiu Yue 仇鉞. There are various theories about the ancestral home of Qiu Yue, but by contrasting them, the following facts have become clear. Qiu Yue rose from the position of private soldier, jiading 家丁, who had been a protege of the regional commander of Ningxia 寧夏. Despite the fact that he was not from a family who could inherit military posts of wei 衛 and suo所, he was appointed a military officer on the order of the regional commander. It was probably at this time that Qiu Yue created the relationship with Wangchong 王充 of Shexian as the place of origin of his family through the Qiu clan of Jiangdu 江都 in Yangzhou 揚州. As with other source materials, the biography of Qiu Luan in the Wanli-era She-zhi presents a critical assessment of Qiu Luan. However, there is a letter written by Qiu Luan's descendant Qiu Mengtai 仇夢台 included in the Jiuxieben Wangchong Qiushi jiacheng 旧写本王充仇氏家乗, found in the Anhui Provincial Library. That letter contains a powerful refutation and criticism of the biography of Qiu Luan in the Wanli She-zhi and other records. Researching the background to this letter, I was able to clarify that the local gentry in Shexian were strongly discontent with Xie Bi 謝陛, a scholar without an official post, who had compiled the Wanli-era She-zhi and this was the impetus for a recompiled Shexianzlzi 歙県志 in the Tianqi period. According to the Lianghuai yanfa zhi 両淮塩法志, Qiu Mengtai rose from the post of licentiate in the salt distribution commission of Lianghuai to take the provincial examination and become a presented scholar. That is evidence that although his ancestral residence was listed as Shexian, he was actually from a merchant family that resided in Lianghuai. Moreover, Qiu Mengtai stated that Qiu Yiqing 仇一卿, a member of his own family, had had friendly ties with Qiu Luan, and that Qiu Yiqing also became a provincial graduate on the basis of the exams. It is on the basis of his existence that we can confirm the there was a circle of Xin'an merchants close to Qiu Luan in his lifetime.