Tribute Trade between Japan and the Ming Dynasty

The tribute trade was a strictly controlled exchange activity expressed by the terms "tribute" and "reward," and it existed in its full sense only during the Ming Dynasty, when a sea ban was imposed. Since the Ming-Japanese tribute trade was intertwined with the sea ban policy and the Japanese invasion, this paper focuses on the development of the Sino-Japanese tribute trade in the early Ming Dynasty during the Hongwu, Yongle, and Xuande periods, as well as in the mid-to-late Ming Dynasty. From the first establishment of the tribute trade system during the Hongwu and Jianwen years, to the flourishing of the tribute trade during the Yongle years, to the decline during the Xuande years, and finally to the shrinking of the tribute trade in the mid- to late-Ming period, the maritime advantages formed in the Tang, Song, and Yuan dynasties were finally lost to the Western powers.

The tribute trade is a kind of exchange activities indicated by "tribute" and "reward", the full sense of the tribute trade only existed in the Ming Dynasty. That is, the government sent to the overseas countries (mainly Southeast Asian countries) to award the Ming dynasty, invited into the Ming dynasty tribute, the Ming government of the tribute to the country of the tribute back to the gift, with the goods by the official price of the purchase or by the tributary to the sale of their own policy. Tribute trade was established in the Hongwu years, Yongle Dynasty reached its peak, Xuande years to maintain a stable, after the decline of the middle of the Ming Dynasty.1 Ming dynasty early and mid-day tribute trade

The ruling group of the early Ming Dynasty was committed to the establishment of the Ming empire as the center of the "ten thousand countries towards the clan" tribute system, mainly by the tribute trade system, tribute trade, in fact, became the Ming Dynasty, the "softening of the distant people, the people's favor", and the "softening of the distant people". The tribute trade in fact became a tool to "soften the distant people", and the traditional political and diplomatic function of the official overseas trade was played to the extreme.

1.1 Soon after Zhu Yuanzhang became emperor in the Hongwu period, he set up the Department of Shipbuilding in the provinces of Zhejiang, Fujian and Guangdong, and in the second year of the Hongwu period (1369), he compiled the "Emperor's Ancestral Traditions", which listed fifteen overseas countries, including Japan, as "non-conscripted countries".

In the first year of Hongwu (1368) and in the second year of Hongwu (1369), Zhu Yuanzhang sent ambassadors to Japan twice, but both failed.

Hongwu three years (1370 years) in March, Zhu Yuanzhang again sent Laizhou Province, Zhao Chichi mission to Japan, Japan's king of Huai Liang to understand that the envoys are not Mongols, and at that time the situation of the South Dynasty deteriorating, so the king of Huai Liang changed his attitude, received Zhao Chichi. In the following year, he "sent his monk Zu Lai to present his official statement, pay tribute to the horses and other goods, and return more than seventy people who were plundered in Ming and Taizhou". Zhu Yuanzhang was overjoyed and rewarded Zulai and the others generously. From then on, the diplomatic exchanges between China and Japan began.

Relations between China and Japan improved on the surface, and both sides began to send emissaries to each other, but the problem of the Japanese invaders, instead of being solved, became more and more intense. Starting from the second year of Hongwu (1369), Japanese invaders continued to harass the coasts of Shandong and Zhejiang, and the Ming dynasty adopted two measures, namely, the suppression of Japanese invaders by force and the prohibition of the sea. The "sea ban" policy was first enacted in December 1371, the fourth year of Emperor Hongwu's reign, which prohibited people from going out to the sea privately, but at this time, the sea ban policy was not yet strictly enforced. Hongwu early years of the frequent tribute trade to the Ming dynasty brought a heavy financial burden, when the tribute back to the gifts by the central government, along the route of the local government to be responsible for "tribute to" the transportation, food and lodging and the transfer of goods, coupled with some of the "tribute to" also wantonly extortion, so that the local government, the people are overwhelmed. The local government, the people are overwhelmed. Hongwu five years (1372), the Ming Emperor ordered to limit the tribute period and the number of tributes; and then limit the tribute road, Japan from Ningbo.

Hongwu four years (1371), Zhu Yuanzhang realized that Prince Huai Liang is not the king of Japan, Japan's Kyoto has another court and the emperor, so in Hongwu five years (1372), sent monks as a national history of the state to Japan, to the seven years of Hongwu (1374), the north and south sides of Japan and the Ming occurred in the relationship of diplomatic relations. After that, however, the Ming court refused to accept all tributes that were not sent by the Japanese court. For example, in the seventh year of Hongwu (1374), the monk Xuan Wenxi sent by Kikuchi Muzheng, the queen of Japan, and the monk Michiyuki sent by Shimazu Shikyu, the guardian of Osumi, Japan. What's more, due to some local magnates and Japanese merchants, often fake Japan's national history to the Ming tribute trade, so the Ming history since the eighth year of Hongwu (1375), there are often Ashikaga Shogunate and Wailea repeatedly sent tribute to the record, but no national history was rejected.

In the fourteenth year of Hongwu (1381), Prince Huai Liang sent Ruyao to the Ming tribute to the square, Zhu Yuanzhang to no state but tribute, and made a book to question the king and the general, "wanton insults to the neighboring countries, and indulge in the people as a pirate," the faults. However, Prince Huai Liang in his reply letter to Ming Taizu openly challenged and confronted the intimidation of military conquest by the Ming government, and the program of Ming Taizu to cut off the political and trade relations between Ming and Japan was gradually formed. Zhu Yuanzhang, the first Ming emperor, believed that "the overseas barbarians are deceitful" and should be "cut off from their contacts", and began to change his foreign policy by strictly enforcing the policy of "prohibition of the sea", and reaffirmed that the "prohibition of the people living near the sea" should not be applied to the people living near the sea. "Prohibit the people on the coast of the sea to communicate with overseas countries".

Hongwu sixteen years (1383), the Ming government implemented the survey system. "Kanhe" two copies, half for the Kanhe, half for the base book, is the "tribute trade" license. At that time, the Ming court made the day-size kanhap one hundred ways, this name kanhap one hundred ways, the day-size kanhap bottom book two fans, this name kanhap bottom book two fans.

Hongwu twenty years (1387), Hu Weiyong with the help of Japan's power to usurp the country's affairs were exposed, the Ming Emperor decided to cut off the political and trade relations between the Ming and Japan. He made the Ancestral Tradition, which listed Japan as a "country of no court" and forbade Japan to trade with China forever. At the same time, he strengthened the sea defense, and abolished the three shipping departments of Ningbo, Guangzhou, and Quanzhou by enforcing the sea ban. In the 23rd year of the Hongwu reign (1390), a ban on private trade at sea was formally introduced. Hongwu thirty years (1397), Ming Taizu again "ban people, no trespassing to go to sea and foreign markets", and the "sea ban" policy in the form of a law enacted throughout the country.

In 1392, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu united Japan by force, and saw that it was very easy to gain huge profits from the Ming-Japanese trade, and in order to maintain his political and economic advantages by means of the power of the Ming Dynasty, he was determined to restore diplomatic relations with the Ming Dynasty, and was willing to serve the Ming Dynasty as the right ruler, but the trade relations between the two sides were not fully restored in the last years of the reign of the Hongwu Dynasty and the reign of the Jianwen Emperor.

1.2 The Ming-Japanese tribute trade during the Yongle period was most vigorous in the early part of the reign of Emperor Chengzu (1402-1424). After succeeding to the throne of Ming Dynasty, in order to obtain the recognition of his orthodox status *** with the Chinese and foreign countries, on the one hand, to continue the sea ban, on the other hand, to overseas countries to implement tie-up policy, he sent Japan in the first year of Yongle (1403), and resumed the setting up of the three major city hubs of Zhejiang, Fujian, and Guangdong. In the first year of Yongle(1403), Yoshimitsu sent Jianzhong Guimi to pay tribute to Ming Dynasty, and there was the words of "Japan King Chen Yuan" in the national document, which indicated the subordination relationship demanded by Ming Dynasty. In the second year of Yongle (1404), Emperor Chengzu of Ming Dynasty also ordered Zhao Juren, the left minister, to go to Japan and gave Yoshimitsu a golden seal with a tortoise knob and a hundred kanho. From then on, China and Japan resumed their tribute trade relations. With the conclusion of the Yongle Kankaku Trade Treaty between Ming and Japan, the Ming Dynasty received Japan's formal title of vassal and Shoshuo, while Japan received much-needed Chinese goods and Ming coins. The Ming Dynasty's aim was to solve the problem of Japanese invaders on its borders, but Japan, in order to conduct trade more smoothly, destroyed the Japanese nests on the islands of Tsushima and Taiki, and brought the captured Japanese as a token of its sincerity. During the period of Yoshimitsu's rule over Japan, there were frequent exchanges between China and Japan, and Japan sent Kanko ships to the Ming Dynasty six times, and the Ming envoys came to Japan **** seven times. But the day should be allowed fifteen years (1408) Ashikaga Yoshimitsu died, his son Yoshitake immediately changed the policy of trade with Ming's title, determined to interrupt the relationship between Ming and Japan, indulge the people for the invasion, and constantly harass the Ming Dynasty.

1.3 Ashikaga Yoshinobu interrupted diplomatic and trade relations with the Ming Dynasty during the reign of Xuande, cutting off the financial resources of the Shogunate

Source of the Shogunate, Yoshinobu, after he was appointed as the new Shogun of the Shogunate in 1428, began to work on the resumption of trade relations with the Ming Dynasty. In the eighth year of the reign of Emperor Xuande (1433), a Japanese envoy, Ryumuro Dobuchi, came to the Ming Dynasty and offered gifts and letters of state. Emperor Xuanzong was extremely pleased to see the Japanese envoy's tribute and, believing that the problem of Japanese invasion could be solved in the future, he hosted a banquet with generous gifts. The Treaty of Xuande was signed between Japan and Ming Dynasty, which started the second phase of Sino-Japanese trade, and since then, the official trade between Ming Dynasty and Japan had been carried out normally. But the Japanese side in pursuit of huge profits, constantly violating the number of people and the number of ships into the tribute limit, the tribute personnel is becoming more and more complex, no longer crusade Japanese invaders sent to the Ming Dynasty, and even the Japanese emissaries harassment of the people of the Ming Dynasty.2 Ming Dynasty in the middle and late Sino-Japanese Tribute Trade to the Hongzhi years of Emperor Xiaozong of the Ming Dynasty, the cost-neutral, uncontrolled tributary trade is finally difficult to sustain. Emperor Xiaozong began to restrict the trade activities of the tribute envoys in China, canceled the tax exemption for the envoys to carry personal goods, and simplified the reception procedures for the envoys. In the ninth year of Hongzhi's reign (1496), when the Japanese envoys left the capital to return to China, there was no one to carry their goods for them, and there was no free food supply along the way. Jiajing six years (1527) emphasized: "Where the tribute is not on time, and people more than a hundred, ship more than three, more hostage weapons, are blocked back

."

Ming Dynasty on the tribute trade restrictions, far from meeting the requirements of Japan. Jiajing two years (1523), the Japanese samurai Ouchi clan and Hosokawa clan in Ningbo, Zhejiang Province for the eligibility of tribute disputes, eventually evolved into a large number of China's Jiangsu and Zhejiang coast of the burning and looting of the "battle for the tribute". After the Battle of Tribute, the Ming rulers "closed the tribute road" to Japan, and in the fourth year of the Jiajing period (1525), they enacted an unprecedentedly severe sea ban. Jiajing eighteen years (1539), Japan's king source of Yoshiharu again sent tribute envoys such as Shuo Ding into the Ming Dynasty, the Ming Dynasty, although reluctantly to be received, feasts and rewards as usual, but still emphasize that "tribute to ten years, tribute to no more than one hundred envoys, the tribute ship no more than three, violators of the obstruction of the return". Jiajing 27 years (1548), the Ming Dynasty rejected the request of Japan to issue a new Kanko, China and Japan Kanko trade came to an end.

But after the strike of the market, the Japanese invasion did not end, but more and more intense, and finally became shocked at home and abroad "Jiajing Japanese". To Jiajing 45 years (1566), China's coastal Japanese basically cleaned up, but the Ming Dynasty's policy of sea ban did not change. In the first year of the Longqing period (1567), the opening of the port of Haichengyue in Zhangzhou, Fujian Province, was announced, but trade with Japan was still strictly prohibited.

The Ming Dynasty's prohibition of trade with Japan existed in name only until the 38th year of the Wanli reign (1610). But the Ming Dynasty, due to the change of dynasties, has no time to change the trade with Japan. Therefore, the trade with Japan was still prohibited in the Ming Dynasty.3 Summary

The tie-up policy of Ming Dynasty to Japan for suppressing the Japanese invasion had paid a huge economic cost, in the tribute trade of "thick and thin", Japan was expecting economic benefits, and Ming Dynasty was expecting political benefits. Each tribute is accompanied by a large trade, the tribute to be higher than the value of several times to be rewarded, the tribute to the capital along the way to and from the car, boat, food and lodging are provided by the government. At that time, Yun Peng line of tribute up to more than a thousand people, the total amount of food supply is estimated to be more than six hundred stone.

Ming dynasty in China's feudal society in the late Ming dynasty, the trade system and tribute system combined, the tribute trade political and diplomatic function to the point of overriding, the beginning of the Ming dynasty sea commercial relations, has been perverted. Tribute trade and sea ban maximized the "standardization" of the Ming Dynasty's foreign exchanges, with the decline of the Ming Dynasty's national strength, the rampant Japanese pirates, the Western powers to come, the Tang, Song and Yuan Dynasties formed the marine advantage lost to the hands of the Western powers.

Source: China Market