Study On Courier Stations Of The Liaodong Area Of The Ming Dynasty

Stations of China ancient were equivalent to the modem traffic service area. The mainfunctions of them were entertaining the officials and envoys which were away on business,and supplying these people with places for eating and sleeping and the transportationequipment for transfer. The functions were expending with the change of dynasties. In theMing Dynasty, stations were not only the places for biding, but also for transmitting militaryintelligence, escorting the prisoners. Even stations could promote economic development andcultural exchange.Six land and water post roads and hundreds of stations were established in the LiaodongArea during the Ming Dynasty. Such a large-scale station resources connected the wholeLiaodong Area. It let Liaodong Area united and ruled by central government.There were fourroad traffic lines and two water traffic lines in Liaodong Area which is focused on the old cityof Liaoyang. Four road traffic lines were: Lvshun North-Liaodong Area; Beijing-Shanhaiguan-Liaodong Area; Liaodong Area-Nine Liancheng; Liaodong Area-Kaiyuanstation. Two water traffic lines were: Lvshun-Shandong; Kaiyuan Old Mi Bay-LiaoheEstuary-Dengzhou Shandong. Stations in Liaodong Area were east to North Korea, west tothe customs, north to Kaiyuan and Nurgan area, south to the Bohai Sea. Development ofstation traffic was very rapidly, and it turned to the station transportation network lead in alldirections.Management of stations was very strict in Ming Dynasty. There were a lot of differentappellations such as Huitongguan on the inside and Yizhan externally. Stations on each of thelocal were leaded by both commissioners and the provincial judges. Although Liaodong Areawas belong to Shandong due to there was no state set up under Liaodong Area, but stations inLiaodong Area were directly under the jurisdiction of Liaodong Area and subordinates of it.At the same time, according to the special circum stances of Liaodong Area, buildingbarbarian stations which received minorities was allowed bu Ming Dynasty. The operation ofstations need runners. Horses, cows, boatmen and sedan-chair bearers were needed dependingon circumstances.In short, the Ming government took the management of stations seriously. Conditions of the management effected the management and construction in Liaodong Area, it waspolitically strengthened of centralization and militarily consolidated by developed stationtransportation, militarily consolidated.At the same time, It guaranteed messages, broughtconveniences of trade, promoted economic development and enriched vast numbers ofpeople’s lives. But the function of stations was declined gradually in lat Ming Dynasty,because of that some sensible persons transformed them in all directions.