Ritsuryo system

Japanese: 律令制 - りつりょうせい

A political system that took place in the East Asian world, centered around China. Ritsuryo was a collection of criminal law and ryo other administratively necessary laws, and the various national systems were arranged around this legal system, forming a system of political rule; this system is called the Ritsuryo system. In China, successive dynasties from the Northern and Southern Dynasties to the Qing Dynasty had Ritsuryo codes, but in ancient Japan, this legal system inherited from China played a unique role as the basis for political rule, and so the period from the latter half of the 7th century to around the 10th century is specifically referred to as the period of the Ritsuryo system, or the Ritsuryo period.

[Haruo Sasayama]

Established

China's Ritsuryo Code was compiled as a legal code from the Jin dynasty through the Northern and Southern Dynasties, and was compiled during the Sui and Tang dynasties. The Tang Ritsuryo Code became the standard for subsequent Chinese dynasties, and influenced Asian countries such as Japan, Korea, and Vietnam, and Ritsuryo law came to have a status in East Asia comparable to that of Roman law in Europe. The Tang Dynasty turned powerful clans into bureaucrats, established a well-organized government system centered on the three ministries of Shangshu, Zhongshu, and Monka, and created a powerful centralized system that controlled the people through various systems such as the tax system of Zuchouyong, the equal-field system, and the Fuhei system.

Japan's Ritsuryo system was established in the second half of the 7th century, based on the legal systems of the Sui and Tang dynasties. The Imperial family and the powerful clans of the central government, who made up the ruling class in Japan at the time, felt the urgent need to centralize power within the country in response to the changes in the East Asian situation that accompanied the Sui and Tang Empires, and imported the existing ruling system from China in order to overcome the old clan-based political system and the control of private land and people by each powerful clan, and to realize control over the people under a powerful authority. Moves towards centralization of power can be seen from the Taika Reforms of 645 (Taika 1), but it was not until the reign of Emperor Tenchi following the defeat at Hakusukinoe in 663 (Emperor Tenchi 2) that the idea of a centralized state based on the Ritsuryo system of the Sui and Tang dynasties became clear, and the foundations of the system were solidified during the reigns of Emperor Tenmu and Empress Jito after the Jinshin War in 672 (Emperor Kobun 1). During this time, systems such as the creation of a registry and distribution of land every six years, the 1-ri system of 50 households, the local administrative organization of provinces and hyō (later called counties), and the military and soldier systems were put in place, and when the Taiho Ritsuryo Code was enacted and enforced in 701 (Taiho 1), a central government system centered on the eight provinces was also established, and Japan's Ritsuryo system was almost complete.

[Haruo Sasayama]

Status and rank

Japan inherited the Chinese Ritsuryo Code, but Japanese society has many differences, such as the kinship system, and the Ritsuryo Code was modified accordingly.

The Ritsuryo state of Japan was a state in which the Emperor was at the center and the ruling class was made up of powerful clans. The Emperor's will was conveyed by imperial decree, but important matters of state affairs were discussed by the Daijokan (Great Councillors), such as the Ministers of the Left and Right and the Grand Minister, who were made up of representatives of the powerful clans, and were implemented with the Emperor's approval. The Japanese Emperor did not hold as much autocratic power as the Chinese Emperor, but the power to appoint and dismiss high-ranking officials, to activate the military, and to punish were ultimately vested in the Emperor. The Ritsuryo state of Japan was formed by the central clans that had existed before the Taika Reforms, who had united under the Emperor to make their rule more certain, and formed the ruling class, and the traditional authority of the Emperor was the basis for their existence. In exchange for losing their private land and private people, they were able to control the people more powerfully and centrally through the state apparatus as bureaucrats, and by receiving requisitions from the people as wages, they were able to develop their social and economic foundations.

Official ranks were a sign of ruling status in the Ritsuryo state. Those with ranks were appointed to positions corresponding to their ranks through the official rank equivalence system, and after a certain number of years, their ranks were advanced according to their meritorious service, and they were transferred to higher official positions. Officials were given food allowances, stipends, rice fields, and personnel allowances according to their rank and official position, and were also exempt from paying taxes. However, there was a significant difference in treatment between high-ranking officials of the first to fifth ranks and low-ranking officials of the sixth to first ranks, and those of the fifth rank or higher were given preferential treatment, known as the on'i system, even when their descendants took up official positions, so high-ranking officials solidified their status as aristocrats.

The people who were ruled were divided into two groups: good and low. The low class included the publicly owned Kanko, Ryoko, and Kannuhi, as well as privately owned Kenin and Shinuhi. In addition, some of the Shinabe (high ranking) in the pre-Taika period were given a special status called Shinabe and Zakko, and served the Imperial Court with their skills. However, the proportion of low class to the total population is thought to be less than 10%, and they were concentrated in the possession of temples, central and local powerful clans, and powerful farmers. Therefore, the main bearers of agricultural production at that time were ordinary farmers who were good citizens. Farmers were given land to share with the people and looked like free people who cultivated it, but they were not allowed to freely expand their farmland, and the state controlled the seed rice and water facilities necessary for reproduction, and they were also obliged to do harsh labor to the state. For this reason, the prevailing view is that society under the Ritsuryo system was a society of total slavery that was established on the basis of what Marx called the Asian community.

[Haruo Sasayama]

Administrative Organization

The Ritsuryo government system consisted of two offices at the center, the Jingi Office, which was in charge of religious rites, and the Daijo Office, which administered national affairs. Under the Daijokan were eight ministries: Nakatsukasa, Shikibu, Jibu, Minbu, Hyobu, Gyobu, Okura, and Kunai. Each ministry had many subordinate lower-ranking government offices (hikan), each of which shared government affairs. In addition to these, there was the Danjodai Office, which supervised the discipline of government officials, and the Goefu, which was the imperial guard. Each of these offices had four ranks of officials: Chief Secretary (kami), Vice Chief Secretary (suke), Magistrate (jo), and Chief Secretary (sakan), along with many other officials such as Toneri, Shisho, Tomobe, and Tsukaibe. The system before the Taika Reforms, in which the Tomo no Miyatsuko led the Shinabe and inherited court duties, was reorganized and absorbed into this bureaucratic system, but some Tomo no Miyatsuko continued to be Tomobe, and certain clans (those with bad names) inherited their duties, and some engineers within the Shinabe continued to be subordinate to the Imperial Court as Shinabe and Zatsudo. Local areas were generally organized into provinces, counties, and villages (go), and were headed by kokushi (provincial governors), gunji (provincial governors), and satocho (village governors). While kokushi were rotated by government officials from the central government, local ruling families such as kuni no miyatsuko, who were traditional local rulers, were appointed as gunji. Ekima and denma were placed along major transportation routes, and local government affairs were constantly reported to the central government through the many documents brought by Yodo no tsukai and others. In addition, specific regions were established with the Kyoshoku (Kyoto office) in the capital, the Settsushoku (Settsu office) which managed the port of Naniwa, and the Dazaifu (Dazaifu) which was responsible for administration, border defense, and diplomatic affairs in the Kyushu region. In addition, military corps were established throughout the country as standing armies, and adult males were conscripted at a rate of one in three per household.

There were five types of punishment: flogging, caning, execution, exile, and death, which were further divided into 20 categories. The Japanese Code followed the provisions of the Tang Code almost entirely, except that the punishments were generally lighter, and crimes that disrupted the order of the state and clans were considered to be the eight most severe. In addition, each government office had the power to decide on punishments below the flogging, and in the provinces, the county governor had the power to decide on flogging.

[Haruo Sasayama]

Control of land and peasants

The core of the land system under the Ritsuryo Code was the Handan Shuju system, which was modeled on the Tang Dynasty's Equal Field System. Rice fields throughout the country were placed under the unified control of the state, and were allocated to men and women over the age of six according to set standards for cultivation. Every six years, the land of those who had died was collected based on the family register, and newly allocated to those who had reached a certain age. Other public fields (Norita) were lent to farmers for cultivation, and land taxes were collected (rent). In addition to these, there were Shikiden, Iden, Koden, Kanda, Teraden, etc. As for mountain forests and wilderness, they were forbidden to be possessed as they were for public and private use, but private use of farmers' gardens and residential land was permitted, and mulberry trees and lacquer trees were cultivated in the gardens.

The people of the country were organized into households, and five households formed a ho (guard) to take joint responsibility for public order and tax payment. According to household censuses from the 8th century, the average number of people in a household was around 25, and in rare cases, households could have more than 100 people. A household census was created every six years, and served as proof of the people's status and as a ledger for land allocations. In addition, a tax ledger was created every year, and taxes were collected based on this. Of the items collected from farmers, the zu tax levied on fields was paid in rice, and was kept at the local provincial government offices to become a source of revenue. Cho and Yo tax were levied on men, and were paid mainly in textile products, which were transported to the central government by peasants' foot traffic, and became a source of revenue for the central government. The suiko system, in which official rice was loaned to peasants and returned in the fall with interest, was also a type of tax, and later became an important source of revenue for local provincial government offices. The conscription of laborers included peasants who were forced to work on road and levee construction within each province for a limited period of 60 days a year as "zoyo," transporters of tax revenues, paid laborers, servants, and military service, and military service included not only service in military corps but also eji, who guarded the palace in the center, and sakimori, who defended the borders of the Kyushu region. In fact, it is believed that the allocation of land, creation of registries, taxation, and conscription of soldiers were largely dependent on the communal control of local powerful clans such as gunji, who were subordinate to the peasants.

[Haruo Sasayama]

decline

In the first half of the 8th century (Nara period), centralization under the Ritsuryo system was strongly promoted, and a glamorous aristocratic culture flourished, reflecting the social and economic development of the aristocracy. However, the contradiction between the Ritsuryo system, which was introduced with the aim of quickly centralizing power, and the actual state of land and people's existence quickly became apparent in politics, as an increase in vagrants and the flight of civil servants. In 743 (Tenpyo 15), the government issued the Reclaimed Land Permanent Private Property Law, officially recognizing the ownership of peasant land. At the end of the 8th century, stratification in rural areas progressed, and impoverished and weak peasants were unable to pay their tax, putting pressure on the central government's finances. As a result, a series of policies were implemented, mainly under the rule of Kanmu, including the abolition of conscription to reduce the labor burden on peasants, the reduction and reorganization of the government system, and the strengthening of supervision over kokushi. Entering the 9th century, powerful members of the imperial family and aristocracy (Innomiya no Shinke) formed alliances with powerful local peasants to expand their private control over land and people. The Ritsuryo-style framework of control gradually became a mere formality, the enforcement of land allotment became difficult, and false entries in family registers became prominent. The central government's officials and officials also began to seek their own economic bases in addition to the Kyoto treasury. In response to these social changes, from the 10th century onwards, land levies such as Shokoto Kanbutsu were implemented to replace the personal levies of the Ritsuryo system, and the land throughout the country was divided into manors owned by the imperial family, aristocracy, temples and shrines, and public lands (kokugaryo), and the national control by the central imperial family and aristocracy shifted to a new system. In terms of politics, from the 10th to the 11th century, the Fujiwara clan succeeded in excluding other clans and realizing the regent system of a single clan dictatorship, but its governing structure and social foundation were already far removed from the Ritsuryo system. In addition, in the provinces, the traditional powerful clans such as gunji declined from the 9th century onwards, while kokuga became the base of control by the central power, and from the 11th century onwards, the newly emerging local lords, known as samurai, took control of real power. The Ritsuryo legal system and the Confucian political and moral ideas behind it had a major influence on subsequent court noble and samurai laws, as well as on Japanese thought.

[Haruo Sasayama]

"Ishimoda Tadashi's 'Ancient Japanese State' (1971, Iwanami Shoten)" ▽ "Aoki Kazuo (ed.), 'Symposium on Japanese History 4: Theory of the Ritsuryo State' (1972, Gakuseisha)" ▽ "Yoshida Takashi's 'Ritsuryo State and Ancient Society' (1983, Iwanami Shoten)" ▽ "Hayakawa Shohachi's 'Study of Ancient Japanese Bureaucracy' (1986, Iwanami Shoten)"

[Reference] | Ritsuryo Code

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

Japanese:

中国を中心とする東アジア世界で行われた政治制度。律は刑法、令はそれ以外の行政上必要な諸法規の集成で、この法体系を機軸に国家の諸制度が整えられ、政治支配の体制が形成されたので、その体制を律令制とよぶ。中国では南北朝以後清(しん)朝に至るまで歴代王朝が律令をもったが、日本では古代において、中国から継承したこの法体系が政治支配の基本として独自の役割を担ったので、7世紀後半から10世紀ごろまでを、とくに律令制の時代、もしくは律令時代とよんでいる。

［笹山晴生］

成立

中国の律令は、晋(しん)代から南北朝にかけて法典として整備され、隋(ずい)・唐代に集大成された。唐の律令は以後の中国歴代王朝の律令の規範となり、日本、朝鮮、ベトナムなどのアジア諸国にも影響を与え、律令法はヨーロッパにおけるローマ法に匹敵する地位を東アジア世界においてもつことになった。唐は、豪族を官僚化し、尚書(しょうしょ)、中書(ちゅうしょ)、門下(もんか)の三省を中心とする整然たる官制をもち、祖調庸(そちょうよう)の税制、均田(きんでん)制、府兵(ふへい)制などの諸制度によって人民を把握する強力な中央集権の体制をつくりあげた。

　日本の律令制は、隋・唐の律令の法体系を移入し、それをもとに形成されたもので、7世紀後半に成立した。当時日本の支配層を構成していた皇室・中央豪族は、隋・唐帝国の形式に伴う東アジア情勢の変化に対応して国内における早急な権力集中の必要に迫られており、旧来の族制的な政治体制、各豪族による私有地・私有民支配を克服し、強力な権力機構のもとでの人民支配を実現するために、中国での既成の支配体制を移入したのである。権力集中化への動きは645年（大化1）の大化改新からみられるが、隋・唐の律令制を基軸とした中央集権国家の構想が明確となるのは、663年（天智天皇2）の白村江(はくすきのえ)の敗戦後の天智(てんじ)朝以後といってよく、ことに672年（弘文天皇1）の壬申(じんしん)の乱後の天武(てんむ)・持統(じとう)朝においてその体制の基礎は固められた。6年に一度の造籍・班田収授、50戸1里の里制、国・評（のちに郡）の地方行政組織、軍団・兵士制などがこの間に整備され、701年（大宝1）に大宝(たいほう)律令が制定施行されると、八省を中心とする中央官制も整い、日本の律令制はほぼその完成をみた。

［笹山晴生］

身分と階級

日本は中国の律令法を継受したが、日本社会は親族制度など異質な点が多く、律令にもそれに応じた改変が加えられている。

　日本の律令制国家は、天皇を中心に、中央豪族が支配層を構成する国家である。天皇の意志は詔勅によって伝えられるが、国政の重要事項は、有力豪族の代表者によって構成される左右大臣、大納言(だいなごん)などの大政官(だいじょうかん)によって議せられ、天皇の裁可を得て実施された。日本の天皇は、中国の皇帝ほどには専制的な権力を握っていないが、上級官吏の任免権、軍隊の発動権、刑罰権などは最終的には天皇に帰属している。日本の律令制国家は、大化改新以前からの中央豪族が、自己の支配をより確実なものとするために、天皇のもとに団結し、その支配層を構成したもので、天皇の伝統的権威が彼らの存立のよりどころであった。彼らは私地・私民を失ったかわりに、官僚として国家機構を通じ、一元的により強力に人民を支配し、人民からの徴発物を給与として取得することによって、その社会的・経済的基盤を発展させることができた。

　律令制国家の支配身分を標示するものが官位である。有位者は官位相当制によって位階に相応する官職に任ぜられ、一定年数ごとに功労に応じて官位を進められ、上級の官職に遷任した。官人はその位階・官職に応じて食封(じきふ)、禄(ろく)、田、資人(しじん)などを支給され、また課役を免除された。しかし一位～五位の上級官人と六位～初位(そい)の下級官人との間には待遇に著しい差があり、五位以上の者は子孫が官途につく場合にも蔭位(おんい)制という優遇措置があったから、上級官人は貴族として身分を固めていくことになった。

　被支配者である人民は、良・賤(せん)に二大別される。賤民には公有の官戸(かんこ)・陵戸(りょうこ)・官奴婢(かんぬひ)、民間所有の家人(けにん)、私奴婢(しぬひ)があった。このほか、大化前代の品部(しなべ)の一部が品部・雑戸(ざっこ)という特殊な身分とされ、技能をもって宮廷に奉仕した。しかし賤民の全人口に対する比率は10％以下と思われ、寺院や中央・地方の豪族、有力農民に集中的に所有されていた。したがって当時の農業生産の主たる担い手は良民である一般農民であった。農民は、口分田(くぶんでん)を与えられ、それを耕作する自由民のようにみえるが、耕地の自由な拡大を認められず、再生産に必要な種籾(たねもみ)や用水施設の管理権などを国家に掌握され、そのうえ過酷な労役を国家に対して負っていた。このため、マルクスのいうアジア的共同体を基礎として成立した総体的奴隷制の社会として律令制下の社会をとらえる見解が有力である。

［笹山晴生］

行政機構

律令の官制は、中央に祭祀(さいし)をつかさどる神祇(じんぎ)、国政を行う太政(だいじょう)の二官、太政官のもとに中務(なかつかさ)・式部(しきぶ)・治部(じぶ)・民部(みんぶ)・兵部(ひょうぶ)・刑部(ぎょうぶ)・大蔵(おおくら)・宮内(くない)の八省があり、各省にはさらに多数の下級官司（被官(ひかん)）が従属し、それぞれ政務を分担した。これとは別に、官吏の綱紀を監督する弾正台(だんじょうだい)、親衛軍である五衛府(ごえふ)があった。これらの各官司には、それぞれ長官(かみ)・次官(すけ)・判官(じょう)・主典(さかん)のいわゆる四等官(しとうかん)が置かれ、ほかに舎人(とねり)、史生(ししょう)、伴部(ともべ)、使部(つかいべ)などの多くの役職者が所属した。大化改新前の、伴造(とものみやつこ)が品部を率いて朝廷の職務を世襲する体制は、このような官僚機構に改編、吸収されたが、一部の伴造はなお伴部として、特定の氏族（負名(なおい)の氏）がその職務を世襲し、品部のうちの一部の技術者も、品部・雑戸として依然として朝廷に隷属するものとされた。地方は一般に国・郡・里（郷）に編成され、国司・郡司・里長がおかれた。国司は中央の官人が交替で赴任するのに対し、郡司には伝統的な在地支配者である国造(くにのみやつこ)などの地方豪族が任命された。主要交通路には駅馬・伝馬が置かれ、地方の政務は四度使(よどのつかい)などがもたらす多くの文書によって絶えず中央に報告された。このほか特定の地域には、都の京職(きょうしき)、難波(なにわ)の津を管理する摂津職(せっつしき)、九州地方の行政と辺防、外交事務にあたる大宰府(だざいふ)などが置かれた。また常備軍として全国に軍団が置かれ、成年男子を1戸につき3人に1人の割で徴兵した。

　刑罰には笞(ち)・杖(じょう)・徒(ず)・流(る)・死(し)の五刑があり、さらに20等に細分される。日本律は、量刑が一般に軽減されているほかは、ほぼ唐律の規定を踏襲しており、国家および宗族(そうぞく)の秩序を乱す罪は八虐(はちぎゃく)として重いものとされた。また杖罪以下の断決権は各官司が握り、地方では郡司が笞罪の断決権を握っていた。

［笹山晴生］

土地と農民の支配

律令の土地制度の基幹は、唐の均田制に倣った班田収受制である。全国の田を国家の一元的支配のもとに置き、6歳以上の男女に一定基準で班給して耕作させ、6年に一度、戸籍に基づいて死亡者の分を収公し、新しく規定の年齢に達した者に班給する。これ以外の公田（乗田）は、農民に貸与し耕作させて地子(じし)をとった（賃租）。このほかに職田(しきでん)、位田、功田、神田、寺田などがあった。山林原野については、公私の利用のためその占有が禁じられたが、農民の園地、宅地については私用が認められ、園地には桑、漆が栽培された。

　全国の人民は戸に編成され、5戸は保(ほ)を結んで治安、納税上の連帯責任を負った。8世紀の戸籍によれば、1戸の平均は25人前後で、まれに100人を超える戸も存在する。戸籍は6年に一度つくられ、人民の身分の証明となり、また班田の台帳ともなる。さらに毎年計帳がつくられ、これに基づいて徴税が行われた。農民からの徴発物のうち、田地に課せられる祖は、稲をもって納められ、地方国衙(こくが)にとどめられてその財源となった。調と庸は男子に課せられ、主として繊維製品をもって納められ、農民の運脚(うんきゃく)を使って中央に運ばれ、中央政府の財源となった。官稲を農民に貸与し、秋に利息をつけて返却させる出挙(すいこ)の制度も租税の一種であり、のちには地方国衙の重要な財源となった。労働力の徴発としては、年間60日を限って諸国内の道路・堤防工事などに農民を使役する雑徭(ぞうよう)、調庸の運脚、有償の労役としての雇役(こえき)、仕丁(しちょう)、兵役などがあり、兵役には軍団への勤務のほか、中央の宮城の警備にあたる衛士(えじ)、九州地方の辺防にあたる防人(さきもり)があった。これら班田、造籍、徴税、徴兵にあたっては、実際には郡司などの地方豪族の農民に体する共同体的支配に依拠する面が強かったものと考えられる。

［笹山晴生］

衰退

8世紀（奈良時代）の前半には、律令制による中央集権が強力に推進され、貴族層の社会的・経済的発展を反映して、華やかな貴族文化が栄えた。しかし、早急な権力集中化を目ざして導入された律令制と、現実の土地や人民の存在形態との矛盾も、浮浪人の増加、役民の逃亡などの形で、早くも政治の表面に現れた。743年（天平15）には、政府は墾田永年私財法を発し、農民の墾田について、その所有を公認した。8世紀末になると、農村における階層分化が振興し、疲弊した弱小農民による調庸の滞納が中央財政を圧迫したので、桓武(かんむ)朝を中心に、徴兵制の廃止など農民の労役負担の軽減、官制の縮小再編、国司に対する監督の強化などの一連の政策がとられた。9世紀に入ると、有力な皇族・貴族（院宮王臣家）は、在地の有力農民層と結んで私的な土地・人民支配を拡大するようになり、律令制的な支配の枠組みはしだいに形骸(けいがい)化して、班田の励行は困難となり、戸籍にも虚偽の記載が著しくなった。中央政府の官司・官人も、それぞれ独自の経済的基盤を京庫のほかに求めるようになった。10世紀以降には、このような社会の変化に応じて律令制の人身賦課にかわる所当官物などの土地賦課の賦役が行われ、全国の土地は、皇族・貴族・寺社の領有する荘園(しょうえん)と公領（国衙領）とに二分されるようになり、中央の皇族・貴族による全国支配は新しい体制に移行した。政治の面では、10世紀から11世紀にかけて藤原氏が他氏排斥を果たし、一氏専制の摂関政治を実現させたが、その支配機構や社会的基盤はすでに律令制からは大きく隔たっていた。また地方では9世紀以降、郡司などの伝統的な豪族層が衰退し、国衙が中央勢力による支配の拠点となり、11世紀以降には、新たに成長してきた在地領主＝武士がその実権を掌握した。律令の法体系や、背景にある儒教的な政治・道徳思想は、以後の公家(くげ)法・武家法や日本人の思想に大きな影響を及ぼしている。

［笹山晴生］

『石母田正著『日本の古代国家』（1971・岩波書店）』▽『青木和夫編『シンポジウム日本歴史4　律令国家論』（1972・学生社）』▽『吉田孝著『律令国家と古代の社会』（1983・岩波書店）』▽『早川庄八著『日本古代官僚制の研究』（1986・岩波書店）』

[参照項目] | 律令格式

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

<<: Ritsuryo Law - Ritsuryo Law

>>: Ritsuryo ge-shi (Lü-ling ge-shi)