As a special form of documents, imperial edicts in China feudal society announced subjects, appointed officials, awarded titles to imperial families, commended meritorious deeds and sued foreigners. They originated in Shang and Zhou Dynasties, standardized in Qin and Han Dynasties, developed in Tang and Song Dynasties, and finally improved in Ming and Qing Dynasties. At first, the orders issued by the emperor were not imperial edicts, but were called "destiny", "decree" and "government". It was not until the Song Dynasty that emperors and ministers called the imperial edict "imperial edict". In writing, some were written by the emperor himself, and some were written for the emperor by great calligraphers and university students at that time. Moreover, the writing is rigorous, almost to the point where it cannot be added or deleted, and most of the contents are of extremely precious historical value.
Speaking of imperial edict, I think everyone is familiar with it. In costume TV dramas, common court eunuchs are holding a roll of golden imperial silk in their hands. When reading the imperial edict, they often read out at the beginning: "It is enshrined in heaven and summoned by the emperor ..." However, are the real imperial edicts all golden? Did it all start with "Emperor Zhao Yue"? Yesterday, 36 Ming and Qing imperial edicts drove to Xi 'an Anzhong Drum Tower Museum. The reporter contacted Zhou Qingming, director of Xuzhou Imperial edict Museum, to reveal the story of the imperial edict.
& gt& gt& gt What are the materials of these 36 imperial edicts and which emperors are involved?
This exhibition is jointly sponsored by Xi Bell and Drum Tower Museum and Nanchang Tengwangge Management Office. There are 56 exhibits, including 36 imperial edicts. The exhibition will last until July 7, and it is located on the second and third floors of the bell tower. You can visit this exhibition without selling tickets separately.
Zhou, secretary of the Tengwangge Management Office, said that the imperial edicts on display mainly came from the Ming and Qing Dynasties, among which the earliest imperial edicts were issued on June 25th, the seventh year of the Ming Dynasty (1442), and the imperial edicts of Kangxi, Yongzheng, Qianlong and Guangxu in the Qing Dynasty. Judging from the materials used in the imperial edicts, especially the imperial edicts in the prosperous period of Kanggan, the materials are exquisite and colorful. At the end of the Qing Dynasty, the imperial edict issued by Emperor Guangxu lost its former gorgeous brocade and was replaced by coarse cloth.
& gt& gt& gt Why are the imperial edicts colorful?
In the imperial edicts on display, the reporter found that although the imperial edicts vary in length, the characters are dignified and beautiful, round and elegant, and the handwriting is washed and practiced, all of which are written vertically.
There was only one kind of Chinese in the imperial edicts of the Ming Dynasty, while Manchu and Chinese were used in the imperial edicts of the Qing Dynasty. Among the imperial edicts on display, nine were collected by the Zhang family from Chang 'an District.
Kong Zhengyi, director of the Western Han Dynasty Mausoleum Protection and Management Center, said that most of the imperial edicts in the Qing Dynasty were written for the emperor by scholars in imperial academy, and Lin Zexu also wrote imperial edicts. The imperial edict of the Qing Dynasty was written in Manchu and Chinese.
In people's impression, the imperial edict is golden, but the imperial edict on display is multicolored. An imperial edict is often woven in sections, and the color of each section is different. The words written on the imperial edict are colorful, such as red, black, blue and green.
It is understood that the imperial edicts of the Ming and Qing dynasties were generally awarded by officials of one to five products in the form of imperial edicts; Five or fewer projects will be awarded orders. Due to the different levels of officials awarded in those years, the colors of imperial edicts and imperial edicts are also different. Generally speaking, the imperial edicts obtained by officials with more than five grades are rich in colors, including three colors, five colors and seven colors. That is, it is woven by three colors, five colors or seven colors, which looks magnificent. The imperial edicts received by officials under five grades are generally Bering. In the late Qing Dynasty, due to political corruption and economic decline, the materials used in imperial edicts became poor.
Zhou Qingming said that the imperial edicts of the Ming and Qing Dynasties were generally 3 1.5 to 33 cm wide and 2 to 5 meters long brocade fabrics. There are shafts at both ends, which are connected with the bag head, the bag head is connected with the main body, and the two shafts are stored in pairs. When the announcement is made, the hand will tilt the axis 45 degrees flat, roll while putting it, and you can read it slowly. At present, they found that the most vivid imperial edict was the imperial edict of Daoguang 25th year1October15th, with colorful silk and seven-color characters.
& gt& gt& gt From which dynasty did the imperial edict of "Fengtian Carriage" begin?
In modern costume dramas, whether in the Ming and Qing Dynasties or the Han and Tang Dynasties, most of the imperial edicts were read by eunuchs, and the beginning was often "Feng Tian carries the imperial edict". In fact, this beginning is not accurate. In this exhibition, most of the imperial edicts are "to serve heaven with the help of the emperor", in which the word "to serve" is placed in the first line, "to support heaven" in the second line and "to order heaven with the help of the emperor" in the third line.
According to experts, the wording of the imperial edict will adopt different wording because of the specific content, such as "imperial edict, imperial edict and imperial edict", in which "imperial edict" is a call to the world. Where there are important political affairs that need to be announced to the people all over the world, "Fengtian carries, Emperor Zhao Yue" is used, such as the emperor's succession and the prince's succession. Its format: it begins with "Fengtian Shipping, Emperor Zhao Yue", then describes the reasons for the imperial edict, and ends with "Declaring the world and making salty things known" or "Declaring the world and making salty things known". At the end of the paper, write down the date of an imperial decree and stamp it with "the treasure of the emperor". And "Shi Yue" was issued by Dide, similar to a commendation order. "January" means warning. The emperor should warn you not to be arrogant while giving officials titles and titles.
So, did the imperial edict begin with "Feng Tian Yun"? Zhou Qingming said that the adoption of "Fengtianyun" as the imperial edict began in the Ming Dynasty. Before, the word "under the door" was often used in the imperial edicts of the Tang Dynasty, because the imperial edicts at that time were generally reviewed and issued by the province under the door. For example, the imperial edict of "The Crown Prince of Su Zong commands the country" begins with "Under the door, the world is the foundation ...". During the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, the word "obey the destiny" was often used at the beginning of the imperial edict to clarify the "orthodoxy" of the son of heaven. The highest god of the Mongols is the immortal heaven, so the beginning of the imperial edict in the Yuan Dynasty has always been "immortal heaven is powerful, blessed with great protection, imperial edict ..." The earliest person who used "Fengtian traffic" as the beginning of the imperial edict was Zhu Yuanzhang, the Ming Taizu. When Zhu Yuanzhang first became emperor, he liked to use "consider the Tang and Song Dynasties". He settled down after switching to "Fengtian Shipping" for more than ten years.
& gt& gt& gt What did the "imperial edict" promulgated by Empress Dowager Cixi say?
Among the cultural relics on display this time, there is also a copy of the imperial edict issued by Empress Dowager Cixi, which looks quite enlightened and says "treat all equally". The content of the imperial edict is that Manchu and Han officials or people will be exempted from the "ban" and allowed to get married. It is advocated that Han women should let go of their hands and feet, and it is clearly stated that this is a "habit accumulated over time" and should be gradually eliminated.
According to experts' research, the imperial edict was issued on November 22nd, the 27th year of Guangxu, namely 1902. At that time, the Qing government had just experienced the stimulation of the Xin Chou Treaty. The new situation of abolishing imperial examinations and running schools in China is on the rise, and a group of advanced intellectuals are awakening. Perhaps it is the entry of foreign forces, and the intensified external contradictions have become the main contradictions, and the internal contradictions have become the secondary contradictions; Perhaps the Manchu and Han nationalities under the rule of the Qing Dynasty experienced more than 200 years of integration, which made Empress Dowager Cixi suddenly in a good mood and made such an imperial decree.