Censorate

Censorate Imperial China

The Chinese censorate was a bureaucratic body established during the Qin dynasty. The Censorate was generally effective during the Yuan dynasty. Still, during the Ming dynasty, the Censorate functioned as a branch of the government, with its members directly responsible for reporting to the emperor.

Censorate Definition

The Chinese censorate was a bureaucratic office investigating corruption and other misbehavior.

Fig. 2: Song Dynasty Banknote.

Censorate Facts

The censorate was operated by censors, who were government officials who examined the conduct of other government officials.

• The censorate began in the Qin dynasty. The Qin and Han dynasties used the censorate to examine and even evaluate the actions and performance of the emperor.
• An emperor led the Han dynasty. Three branches of government supported him, one of which was the censorate. At this point, the censorate consisted of low-level officials who acted as auditors.
• However, as the emperor became more critical, the censorate spent less time evaluating him and more time evaluating other government officials.
• Eventually, the censorate evolved to a point where the emperor used it to investigate other government officials for corruption.
• Under the Tang dynasty, the censorate was a full-fledged branch of the government. It continued to expand under the Song and Ming dynasties.
• The officials that made up the censorate, the censors, were usually young, low-ranking government employees. They held the position for a maximum of nine years before moving to a different government position.

• Some of these men gained power simply due to the amount of access they had to the emperor. Some censors got into trouble because they ignored complaints about imperial policies they liked. Others did the opposite, often looking the other way to ignore misbehavior. Fear of the censors often prevented officials from crafting innovative approaches.

Censorate Song Dynasty

• The golden age of the Chinese censorate happened during the Song dynasty. The Song dynasty was generally a time of prosperity and advancement, marked by a commercial revolution. It was a time of advances in agriculture and technology but also a time in which many women lost the rights that they had one had. The favorable characteristics of this era led to the Song dynasty being the golden age of the censorate.

There were three departments of the censorate during the Song dynasty. The censorate was responsible for evaluating the behavior of the emperor and other bureaucrats, advising the emperor, and looking for signs of wrongdoing.

The censorate of the Song dynasty had some positive effects, such as leading toward political balance. This was achieved through the censorate's constant battle against corruption. The censorate prevented the emperor from becoming corrupt and abusing his power.

Censorate Qing Dynasty

Under the Qing dynasty, the censorate evolved into a powerful Chinese government branch responsible for investigating and exposing corruption.

The Qing dynasty's censorate had six branches, each responsible for evaluating a different aspect of life.

Some censors were responsible for monitoring communication between the emperor and public offices. Others were responsible for investigating alleged improper conduct, advising the emperor, and even impeaching officials.

Fig. 3: Qing Paper of Imperial Exam.

Modern Censorate

The office of the censorate came to an end with the ending of the Qing dynasty in 1911. Both the Chinese Nationalist and Chinese Communist governments maintained some form of a censorate in their governments.

The Censorate: Summary

The Chinese censorate was a bureaucratic body established during the Qin dynasty. It was a branch of the imperial government responsible for investigating corruption and other misbehavior.

The censorate was operated by censors, who were government officials who examined the conduct of other government officials. What once began as a government branch dedicated to evaluating the emperor's actions eventually evolved into a full-fledged government office that considered the emperor, government officials, government offices, and policy.

The golden age of the Chinese censorate happened during the Song dynasty. Under the Qing dynasty, the censorate evolved into a powerful Chinese government branch responsible for investigating and exposing corruption. The office of the censorate came to an end with the ending of the Qing dynasty in 1911.

The censorate was responsible for investigating corruption claims and other misbehavior government officials committed. The censorate was also responsible for checking documents, supervising construction, reviewing court cases, and maintaining state property.

Why was the censorate so important to imperial China? The censorate had many responsibilities.

Historically, three branches made up the censorate. One unit was responsible for monitoring officials in the imperial palace. A second branch was responsible for evaluating the emperor himself. A third branch was responsible for monitoring the behavior of local officials.