明代 상품경제의 발달과 里甲制의 해체

Abstract

ABSTRACT

A Study on the Development of Commercial Economy and the Dissolution of Lijiazhi in the Ming Dynasty

Son, Kyoung-jun Advisor : Prof. Choe Chin-kyu, Ph.D. Major in History Education Graduate School of Education, Chosun University

The most marked thing in social and economic change in the Ming Dynasty was the development of a monetary economy with a silver standard. In the Song Dynasty, coins were usually used and paper money titled Jiao-chao(交鈔) was distributed. And In the Yuan Dynasty, paper money was also circulated. However, it returned to natural economy due to the peasants' revolt at the late Yuan Dynasty, and at the early Ming Dynasty, the principle that goods or labor force were paid for tax was created. In the early Ming Dynasty, coins and paper money were mainly used according to the currency policy. The paper money was called Da-ming-bao-chao(大明寶鈔) and the use of gold and silver for its circulation was strictly prohibited by law, but the price of Bao-chao(寶鈔) gradually decreased. Therefore, use of silver was expanded against the prohibition rule by the government. So, using the payment of wages of officials in silver as a chance in the first year Zheng-tong(正統元年,1436), the government respond-ed to the expansion of the silver economy, and finally authorized the payment of silver for tax and silver currency. However, silver payment of tax was an important economic change and big social problem for farmers. As silver was being circulated in Jiang-nan(江南) where the production of commercial goods was popular, silver could be easily secured, but in others areas, farmers had to be responsible for securing silver for themselves. Therefore, they had to develop new productive activities such as side-jobs and cultivation of commercial crops. The status of silver as a means of currency was established and its use was circulated, but as production of silver in China was not much, most of the silver needed had to be imported. Enormous amount of silver was imported through trades with many European countries from the middle 16th century. Nation-wide circulation of silver currency has a great influence on the labor system. That is, according to the Liang-shui-fa(兩稅法) which was being implemented from the Tang Dynasty, natural tax was paid through rice, barely and raw silk, but since the Xuan-de for a year(宣德年間, 1426-1435), all of it was paid in silver. For the labor system of the Ming Dynasty, as there were a few miscellaneous services in addition to Li-jia-zheng-yi(里甲正役) imposed on Li-jang-hu(里甲戶) and Jia-shou-hu(首甲戶), farmers had big burden, which was aggravated as time went. Labor tax(徭役), labor had to be provided in the beginning, but silver payment began as silver was circulated. As the circulation and penetration of silver economy was combined with the ruler's desire for silver, Yi-tiao-bian-fa(一條鞭法) that silver was used for tax was implemented, which reflected the change of social economy to tax system. Yi-tiao-bian-fa(一條鞭法) had a close relation with the circulative process of silver currency in Ming Dynasty. That is, the prototype of this system was found in Jia-jing for a year(嘉靖年間, 1522-1566), but as it began to consider the conditions of each region via the Long-qing for a year(隆慶年間, 1567~1572) and Wan-li for a year(萬曆年間, 1573∼1620), it was circulated nationwide. The Yi-tiao-bian-fa(一條鞭法) was a tax reform by which complex labor and tax system was reorganized for efficient taxation and less burden to the public. So, each item in Land tax(田賦) based on the ownership of land was incorporated with that of Labor tax(徭役) based on the number of people, which was the base of silver taxation. In particular, the Yi-tiao-bian-fa(一條鞭法) reflected new relations between landowners and laborers along with the development of grand landownership and commercial production, was changed into Di-ding-yin-zhi(地丁銀制) in the Qing Dynasty.