Metropolitan Police Station

Inspection bodies in the Ming and Qing dynasties of China. Since the Han dynasty, the inspection body known as the Imperial Censorship, which criticized government officials, has developed significantly in China. In 1382, the Ming Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang renamed the Imperial Censorship to the Metropolitan Censorship Office, and established various officials such as the Left and Right Metropolitan Censors, the Deputy Metropolitan Censor, the Second Metropolitan Censor, and the Supervisory Censor, and established a system of separation of powers with the Six Departments in charge of administration and the Five Military Commanderies in charge of military affairs. After the mid-Ming period, when the local high-ranking officials of the Governor-General and Superintendent were established, they all added officials such as the Metropolitan Censor and sought to unify government orders, which increased the authority of the Governor-General and Superintendent. The Qing dynasty inherited the Ming system, but in 1723, the Six Departments of Education, which had been an independent body responsible for inspecting central bureaucrats since the Ming dynasty, was transformed into a branch office of the Tocensorship, strengthening the Tocensorship's powers of inspection.

[Kawagoe Yasuhiro]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

中国、明(みん)・清(しん)時代の監察機関。漢代以来、中国では官吏を糾弾する御史台(ぎょしだい)という監察機関が著しく発達した。明の太祖朱元璋(しゅげんしょう)は1382年に御史台を都察院と改め、左右都御史以下、副都御史、僉都(せんと)御史、監察御史などの各官を置き、行政をつかさどる六部(りくぶ)、軍事をつかさどる五軍都督府とが並立する三権分立の体制を確立した。明の中期以後、総督、巡撫(じゅんぶ)の地方大官が設けられると、みな都御史などの官を加え、政令の統一を図ったので、総督、巡撫の権限は増大した。清朝は明制を受け継いだが、1723年に、明代以来独立機関として中央官僚の監察にあたった六科給事中を都察院所属の分局に改めて、都察院の監察権を強化した。

［川越泰博］

出典　小学館　日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)について　情報 | 凡例