Research On The Shangshu Of The Ministry Of War In The Ming Dynasty

Bingbu is one of six departments of the Ming Dynasty and its major functions include both administrative and military duties.Since Ming Taizu abolished the prime minister in 1380,the political status of the Bingbu had been significantly improved.Bingbu Shangshu was the leader of Bingbu,and they were responsible for national military affairs,including Wu Xian,Zhifang,Chejia and Wuku,which resulted in their crucial and important roles in political field of Ming Dynasty.It is reported that the number of Bingbu Shangbu was 114 in total during the entire Ming Dynasty.As an important bureaucratic group in the Ming Dynasty,Bingbu Shangshu had its unique characteristics.Based on "Ming Shi Lu",Ming People's Anthology and Epitaph,this article aims to provide a brief,comprehensive and objective introduction on Bingbu Shangsu by carrying out research associated with their birthplaces,official duties,promotions and tenure as well as relationships with other politicians.Therefore,the purposes of this article are as follow:The first chapter gives a basic introduction on the institution and structure of Bingbu.In order to get better understanding of its organization structure and operations,this paper examines the history of Bingbu Shangshu System,analyzes the political duties of Shangshu and other four divisions,and studies the detailed employments and their terms of reference in four institutions,including Wuxuan,Zhifang,Chejia and Wuku.According to historical records of the Bingbu Shangshu,its major duties generally included the management of military staff,the defense affairs of border areas,political participation and temporary assignments.The roles of Bingbu Shangshu in political and military affairs were of significantly important since they both had to report military intelligence to the emperor and were in control of the four divisions of the Bingbu.The second chapter provides a structural research about Ming Bingbu staff mainly by examining the historical records,such as “Yan Shan Tang Bie Ji”,“Guo Chao Lie Qing Ji”,“Guo Que” and “Ming Shi”.In addition to the Bingbu Shangshu who was the leader of Bingbu,there were other officers who got nominated forShangbu in Bingbu,such as officers who were promoted to Shangbu because of the outstanding work on Governor Military Affairs,the Adjudication League and the Associated Bingbu Shangshu,they did not manage the military affairs.Thus,there are totally 114 members of Bingbu Shangshu who truly managed Bingbu's affairs by examining literature from different historical books.The third chapter focuses on studies associated with birthplaces of Ming Bingbu Shangshu.This paper reviews the literature,such as Emperor of the Ming Dynasty Record and examines the native places of all Bingbu Shangbu(114 in total).Based on the results of spatial distribution,North Zhili,Zhejiang,Shandong,Henan,and South Zhili were main Shangshu accumulation areas,indicating that most of Bingbu Shangshu came from political center or economically developed areas as compared to remote regions.Moreover,there was little difference in the number of Bingbu Shangbu between North areas and South areas.In the initial stage of Ming Dynasty,the South areas could provide much more Bingbu Shangbu candidates,while as history preceded there were significantly more Bingbu staff who came from North areas,especially in the middle and final stage of Ming Dynasty.A great deal of factors have essential effects on the emporal and spatial distribution of Bingbu Shangshu.The fourth chapter examines and studies the working experience of Bingbu Shangbu during the entire Ming Dynasty,which could explore how these ministers were selected and promoted.When it comes to the selection mechanism of Shangbu,several approaches were taken to select candidates in the earlier stage of Ming,but the majority of Shangshu candidates were selected from Jinshi in the middle and final Ming stage.Based on the studies on the curriculum vitae of Bingbu Shangshu,it is clear that the majority of these officers had working experience related to national defense or other military affairs,suggesting that the emperor of Ming attached great importance to officers' abilities of managing soldiers or army.The fifth chapter focuses on the research about promotion and tenure of the Ming Bingbu Shangshu.Most of Bingbu Shangbu were promoted from several positions,including other departments,Liubu Shilang,Duyushi and Zongdu.Specially,the proportion of Bingbu Shilang were the most in the middle stage of Ming Dynasty,whereas the number of Zongdu increases dramatically when entering the last stage of Ming Dynasty,which could indicate that the emperors paid much attention to the practical and military experience of Bingbu Shangshu due to the continual and frequent wars.When finishing the military services or employments,they were likely to be promoted,suggesting that the roles of these Bingbu Shangbu were significantly important in political affairs of Ming.On the other hand,some of Bingbu officers were fired or put in prision.This may be because of the turbulent political scence resulted from the decline of economic and social development of this country.In general,the duration of Shangbu's employments was stable,but it dramatically fell in the final stage of Ming Dynasty due to the political unrest.The sixth chapter aims to explore the relationships between Shangshu and the political affairs during the entire Ming Dynasty.The paper examines the function of Bingbu Shangbu in the central government and studies their relationships and social interactions with Emperors,Cabinet and Eunuchs in order to get better understanding of the their roles and functions in politics.As we can know,Emperors,Cabinet and Eunuchs were the most crucial parts in the Ming central government.In addition to their practical and personal abilities,Emperors,Cabinet and Eunuchs were likely to make contribution to the success or failure of Bingbu Shangbu.In conclusion,the Emperor's trust and the supports from Cabinet and Eunuchs could lead to the great roles and success of Bingbu Shangbu in politics.Otherwise,it was likely that they would be quitted or falied.