<Note>A Consideration of Imperial Edicts Issued to the Imperial Secretary during the Han Dynasty, Focusing on their Meanings and the Period of their Demise

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  • <研究ノート>漢代「制詔御史」考 --語義と消失時期を中心に--
  • 漢代「制詔御史」考 : 語義と消失時期を中心に
  • カンダイ 「 セイ ショウ ギョシ 」 コウ : ゴギ ト ショウシツ ジキ オ チュウシン ニ

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Abstract

In regard to the standardized term Yushi 御史 found in Han-dynasty imperial edicts 制詔 known as zhizhao yushi 制詔御史, it has generally been interpreted as referring to the Imperial Secretary 御史大夫. However, in recent years, with the increasing discovery of historical source materials, studies have appeared that understand the Yushi of the zhizhao yushi as referring to the Clerks of the Censorate 御史 or Secretaries of the Censorate 侍御史. In this study, I used the following research methods. In the first section, I collected all instances of the word imperial edict combined with a government office that are found in written and excavated sources. I then analyzed their characteristics. As a result, I confirmed that all the official titles that followed the word imperial edict were for officials whose remuneration was over 2, 000 bushels. In the second section, I criticized the studies that relied on sources that found the Yushi in zhizhao yushi referred to clerks of the censorate or secretaries of the censorate and confirmed that the Yushi in zhizhao yushi referred in fact to the Imperial Secretary 御史大夫. In the third section, I proved that the disappearance of the zhizhao yushi during the reign of Cheng Di of the Former Han dynasty was closely related to the reform of the system of the three highest minsters 三公 that occurred late in his reign. As a result, the standard form of imperial edicts issued to the three highest ministers was completed during the reign of Guang Wu Di of the Later Han after the three-ministers system had been reformed in the Former Han.

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  • 史林

    史林 106 (4), 534-555, 2023-07-31

    THE SHIGAKU KENKYUKAI (The Society of Historical Research), Kyoto University

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