Legal Regulation Of Tributary Trade In Ming Dynasty

The tribute system is one of the forms of expression in the traditional Chinese foreign exchange system.The foreign exchange of Ming Dynasty is mainly reflected in the special tribute trade of Ming Dynasty.Different from the previous tributary system,the tributary system of Ming Dynasty is characterized by official monopoly,which came with the establishment of the sea ban policy in the early Ming Dynasty,forming a unique "only form of foreign trade monopolized by the official"-the tributary trade of Ming Dynasty.The key to the prosperity and decline of the tributary trade in Ming Dynasty is reflected in the legal regulation of the tributary trade.The legislation of tribute trade in Ming Dynasty was strict and rich,and the principle of rule by ceremony and differential treatment in Confucian culture ran through.From the perspective of regulatory subject,the content of legal regulation centers on the principle of differential treatment determined by the degree of political deference,and there are different legal provisions for different tribute countries,even for the same tribute country,there are different legal regulations in different periods.From the perspective of management organization,the management organization of tribute trade has formed an integrated,organic and efficient management organization system from the central to local system,independent authority,division of labor and cooperation.The Ministry of rites,which is the highest organ and the law enforcement agency of the central government,is in charge of the tributary trade from the perspective of its functions and powers.The principal and guest department,a subordinate organ of the Ministry of rites,holds the core functions and powers of the tributary trade,and is responsible for checking,verifying,verifying and counting the documents and objects.Huitong hall is not only the central reception organization of tribute trade,but also has some management authority.It has the authority to jointly enforce the law and check the legality of tribute envoys and tribute goods,to centrally host tribute trade,and to post notices of contraband goods before the opening of the market.The municipal shipping department is the local law enforcement agency in charge of the tribute trade.However,from the middle of Wanli to Chongzhen,the Ming Dynasty was in trouble and in danger.The state declined and reflected in the tribute trade.The functions and powers of the management organization overlapped.Because the eunuch controlled the government,the political atmosphere was destroyed.The functions and powers of the management organization were seized by the eunuch,especially the internal supervision and self stealing of the supervision organization.The supervision governor and the governor sent by the central government gradually changed from the Minister of supervision to the Minister of supervision The transformation of local officials,the failure of supervision functions and the confusion of management system.From the perspective of the system of exploration and cooperation,the Ming government had strict and detailed regulations on the tribute period,tribute way,scale,tribute,contraband and so on.Exploration and cooperation is equivalent to administrative license in the modern sense.Although the regulations are strict,the implementation situation is greatly reduced.Especially,the rulers often take the lead in "illegal procedures",which leads to different kinds of local officials and false legal restrictions.From the perspective of tax system,in the early Ming Dynasty,there was no tax on the regular tribute and attached tribute,and all of them were paid at a fixed price.In the late Ming Dynasty,they began to draw points.Until the opening of the sea in Longqing,the private overseas trade developed rapidly,the name of tribute trade survived,and the tax gradually changed from material tax to monetary tax.The change of tax directly reflected the change of financial and economic strength in Ming Dynasty.Generally speaking,the legal regulation of tribute trade in Ming Dynasty has both positive and negative effects.Although it is the order of the old era,it can also provide a valuable reference for China to deal with the relationship with its neighboring countries.