Is the cabinet system in the Ming Dynasty really as advanced as some people say?

It is generally believed that the cabinet system was established in the first year of Yongle in the Ming Dynasty, that is, after Emperor Chengzu of the Ming Dynasty ascended the throne, Jie Jin, Huanghuai, Hu Guang, Hu Yan, Yang Rong, Jin Youzi and Yang Shiqi were specially appointed to participate in the maintenance of Wenyuan Pavilion, which is the origin of the so-called cabinet system.

Having said that, the author would like to mention one thing. Jin Youzi here is the author's ancestral home, a native of Xingan (now Xiajiang County), Jiangxi Province. Like Yang Rong and Hu Guang, he is the top scholar in the same subject for two years, and both are from Luling (that is, Ji 'an).

Of course, the cabinet in the Ming Dynasty and the cabinet in the western political system are two different things, and the cabinet in the early Ming Dynasty is also very different from the cabinet in the middle and late Ming Dynasty. As for the cabinet of the Qing dynasty, it is completely different from the cabinet of the Ming dynasty in essence.

Here, let's take a look at the historical context and the logic behind the establishment of the cabinet. Since the establishment of the traditional imperial power system in China, a prime minister has been set up under the emperor. To put it bluntly, it is the emperor's deputy, assisting the emperor to govern the country.

Before the Ming Dynasty, the power of the prime minister was relatively large, and he could cultivate his own system and even counterbalance the power of the emperor. Especially when the emperor is young, incompetent or lazy, the prime minister is more likely to seize the power of the emperor and even usurp the throne. This kind of thing is also everywhere in history.

Therefore, after Zhu Yuanzhang in the Ming Dynasty, he abolished the prime minister through the Hu case, thus completely eradicating the infringement on the prime minister. But the result of this is that the emperor is responsible for everything, overwhelmed, and the distribution of power and work arrangements are unreasonable.

It is precisely because of this that the cabinet system was established after Ming Chengzu seized the big position. The cabinet is actually equivalent to the secretary team of the emperor. It has no position and power as a prime minister, but its functions are close to those of previous prime ministers and it also plays an auxiliary role.

Therefore, after the middle and late Ming Dynasty, the power of the cabinet, especially the cabinet records, became more and more powerful, and in fact, the previous prime minister system was restored in disguise. In essence, the record at this time is almost the same as that of previous prime ministers.

Due to the slow administration of emperors in the Ming Dynasty, especially Jiajing Emperor and Wanli Emperor, who had been in power for the longest time, several famous ministers such as Zhang and Yan Song appeared in the Ming Dynasty, giving people the illusion that the cabinet power was so great that it could even restrain the emperor.

Unfortunately, this is just an illusion. Because from the imperial power system, the emperor is the highest authority. As long as the emperor says a word, any cabinet and records are equal to zero. This is determined by the basic structure of China's traditional politics.

In this sense, it is absurd to compare the cabinet of the Ming Dynasty with that of the modern western political system, assuming that cabinet records can bind the emperor, especially daydreaming.

Very simple, the example of Chongzhen is proof. Cabinet or records, but the emperor a word.

By the Qing dynasty, the strength of the cabinet and its university students was even weaker. During the reign of Emperor Kangxi, Emperor Kangxi used the South Study instead of the Cabinet as his secretary team. After Yongzheng, the military department was directly established to completely replace the cabinet.

As the old saying goes, the staff is not long and does not fart. If a cabinet college student in the Qing dynasty could not enter the military department, it was basically equivalent to decoration and supply.

After Yongzheng, the chief military aircraft was actually equivalent to the cabinet records of the Ming Dynasty. To put it bluntly, it is still the former prime minister. Because of the operation of high-level politics, there is no deputy under the emperor. Can it be done? Just a different name.

Of course, in terms of status and power structure, the chief military aircraft or cabinet records are certainly not as good as those of previous prime ministers, which is also the reason why previous prime ministers may usurp the throne, while the records of Ming and Qing Dynasties and the chief military aircraft no longer have examples of usurpation.

In this sense, the Ming and Qing emperors really strengthened their imperial power by changing the prime minister system, not the other way around. In other words, the so-called cabinet of the Ming Dynasty, which many people are intoxicated with at present, is the sprout of China's democratic politics, and it is just an ignorant joke.

Even though my ancestor Jin Youzi was the first cabinet member of the Ming Dynasty, I must say that the cabinet system of the Ming Dynasty has nothing to do with any restrictions on imperial power or modern democratic system.