THE POLITICAL FUNCTIONS OF THE SOUTHERN CAPITAL IN THE MING DYNASTY

Abstract

INTRODUCTIONDuring the long period from the eleventh century BCE to the fall of the Qing dynasty (1644–1911) in the early twentieth century, most of the major Chinese dynasties maintained more than one national capital. Among the various dual- or multi-capital systems practiced in classical and imperial China, the two-capital system of the Ming dynasty was the most elaborate. Unlike the auxiliary capitals of the other dynasties, whose bureaucratic apparatuses were incomparable with those of the primary capitals, the auxiliary Southern Capital (Nanjing <inline-graphic xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xlink:href="splitsection5_in1.tif"/>) of the Ming had an identical administration with the same structure of power and bureaucratic agencies, as that possessed by the primary Northern Capital (Beijing <inline-graphic xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xlink:href="splitsection5_in2.tif"/>). The similarities in the governmental apparatuses between Beijing and Nanjing were displayed not only in the civil and military agencies, but also in the eunuch household departments. Almost all the government departments in Beijing—civil, military, and eunuch—had their counterparts in Nanjing. Furthermore, the ranks and emoluments of the Nanjing officials were identical to those of Beijing bureaucrats.