The Qin Dynasty (221 BC - 207 BC) was the first unified feudal empire in Chinese history, and its establishment marked China's transition from the princely division of the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period to a new era of centralized power. Qin Shi Huang Yingzheng annexed the six countries by force, unified writing, weights and measures, and rails, and implemented a series of political reforms with far-reaching historical impact, the most important of which was the construction of a centralized system with the emperor as the core.
The territory of the Qin Dynasty. To a large extent, the Qin Dynasty's centralized system was based on the innovation and strengthening of Legalist thought, especially the practice of the Shang Dynasty's reform. The core features of the system are reflected in the following aspects:
Emperor systemQin Shi Huang founded the supreme title of "emperor" and established the status of "emperor alone", he is the supreme ruler of the country, with absolute authority, set administrative, military, legislative, judicial and other powers in one, opened the monarchy system of more than 2,000 years in ancient China.
The First Emperor. Three Princes and Nine Secretaries System: The Qin Dynasty set up three official positions in **, the prime minister, the imperial lieutenant, and the imperial historian, collectively known as the "three dukes", which were responsible for assisting the emperor in handling government affairs, military affairs, and supervising hundreds of officials;At the same time, Jiuqing was set up to be in charge of various specific affairs, such as Zongzheng managing the affairs of the imperial family, and the court lieutenant was in charge of punishment, etc., forming a relatively complete set of ** bureaucratic system to ensure the implementation of government decrees from top to bottom.
Three Princes and Nine Secretaries System.
The county system: The Qin Dynasty abolished the traditional feudal system and changed to the county system, and the country was divided into several counties, with counties under the counties, which were directly appointed and governed by **, which realized effective control over the locality, greatly weakened the local separatist forces, and strengthened the centralization of power.
Forty-eight counties of Qin.
Building the legal systemThe Qin Dynasty formulated strict laws, implemented the rule of law, and strived to achieve "everything is decided by the law", and through the promulgation of a series of legal provisions such as the "Qin Law", the national governance was put into the standardized track, and the foundation of the centralized system was further consolidated.
Qin Law. Economic and cultural integrationThe Qin Dynasty's unification of currency, weights and measures, and writing not only promoted economic exchanges and development in various places, but also strengthened the sense of cultural identity, which was essential for maintaining national unity.
First, it is important to strengthen the authority.
Uniform weights and measures.
Although the Qin Dynasty's centralized system helped to achieve the reconstruction of social order and the development of productive forces in the early days, the excessively harsh policies and highly centralized power structure also laid the groundwork for the rapid demise of the Qin Dynasty. However, this institutional model pioneered by the Qin Dynasty was inherited and developed by successive dynasties, and became the basic framework of China's ancient political system, which had a profound impact on Chinese history.