Yunnan Salt Theory, And Socio-economic State, The Ming And Qing Yunnan

Salt mines , which are widely distributed over Yunnan Province , are composed of solidified salt and liquid bittern, and the latter was mainly exploited in history. The first record about well - salt in Yunnan was discovered in the book, A General History of the Han Dynasty (Geography volume). The exploitation of salt at Yunnan , which lasted for several dynasties, made a remarkable progress in the Ming and Qing dynasty. During the two dynasties, the royal courts sent official and soldiers to Yunnan , whose duties were in charge of the safeguard the fedual rule with the help of other local officials. On the base of historical books concered and the Marxism historical methods, this paper investigates the gains and losses of the management on salt industry, the levy and financial significance of salt taxation in the Ming and Qing Dynasty. And then, the wirter tries to make a special study on the contraband salt at Yunnan in the Ming and Qing Dynasty and "Salt Coin" existed in Yunnan history.The thesis consists of four parts:The first part discusses the cause and performance of the development of salt production at Yunnan in the Ming and Qing Dynasty. After analyzing the drawbacks of the official management on the production , transportation, sale of common salt, the writer advances a new opinion that the development of salt production should be the root cause of some regions' implementation of "Power Shift Policy".The second part analyzes the situation of "Chang Ke" (tax from salt production spot) and "yin ke" (tax from salt after production) which existed at Yunnan in the Ming and Qing Dynasty, points out the outstanding position of salt tax in Yunnan' s finance.The third section narrates and makes comment on the types contraband salt and the means employed to suppress contraband salt during the Ming and Qing Dynasty in Yunnan. The fourth section expounds the circulation and abolition of "salt coin" after the Nanzhao local regime, provides the theory that the use of "salt coin " should be objectively beneficial to the goods circulation at backward areas. The paper aims at stressing the interaction between the development of well - salt production and the fields of society , economy and so on in Yunnan Province. The writer thinks that during the Ming and Qing Dynasty , the development of salt production contributed to the prosperity of border economy and was helpful to the central authorities' control over Yunnan.