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Chūnagon
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Chūnagon (中納言) was a counselor of the second rank in the Imperial court of Japan.[1] The role dates from the 7th century.
The role was eliminated from the Imperial hierarchy in 701, but it was re-established in 705. This advisory position remained a part of the Imperial court from the 8th century until the Meiji period in the 19th century.[2]
This became a Taihō Code office in the early feudal Japanese government or daijō-kan.
In the ranks of the Imperial bureaucracy, the Chūnagon came between the Dainagon (major counselors) and the Shōnagon (minor counselors).[3] Imperial honors included the sometimes creation of a temporary or "acting middle counselor" (権中納言, gon-chūnagon).[4]
The number of Chūnagon has varied, from three in 705 to four in 756. There were eight in 1015; and in later years, there were up to ten Chūnagon at one time.[2]
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Chūnagon in context
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Perspective
Any exercise of meaningful powers of court officials in the pre-Meiji period reached its nadir during the years of the Tokugawa shogunate, and yet the core structures of ritsuryō government did manage to endure for centuries.[5]
In order to appreciate the office of Chūnagon, it is necessary to evaluate its role in the traditional Japanese context of a durable yet flexible framework. This was a bureaucratic network and a hierarchy of functionaries. The role of Chūnagon was an important element in the Daijō-kan (Council of State). The Daijō-kan schema proved to be adaptable in the creation of constitutional government in the modern period.[6]
Highest Daijō-kan officials
The highest positions in the court hierarchy can be cataloged.[7] A dry list provides a superficial glimpse inside the complexity and inter-connected relationships of the Imperial court structure.
- Daijō-daijin (Chancellor of the Realm or Chief Minister).[8]
- Sadaijin (Minister of the Left).[8]
- Udaijin (Minister of the Right).[8]
- Naidaijin (Minister of the Center).[8]
The next highest tier of officials were:
- Dainagon (Major counselor, chief counselor of state[9]). There are commonly three Dainagon;[8] sometimes more.[10]
- Chūnagon (Middle counselor).[11]
- Shōnagon (Minor counselor); there are commonly three Shōnagon.[8]
Other high-ranking bureaucrats who function somewhat flexibly within the Daijō-kan were;
The Eight Ministries
The government ministries were eight semi-independent bureaucracies. A list alone cannot reveal much about the actual functioning of the Daijō-kan, but the broad hierarchical categories do suggest the way in which governmental functions were parsed:
Left
- Ministry of the Center.[13]
- Ministry of Civil Services; also known as the "Ministry of Legislative Direction and Public Instruction".[13]
- Ministry of Ceremonies; also known as the "Ministry of the Interior".[14]
- Ministry of Taxation.[15]
Right
- Ministry of the Military.[15]
- Ministry of Justice.[16]
- Ministry of the Treasury.[17]
- Ministry of the Imperial Household.[18]
The specific ministries above are not grouped arbitrarily. The two court officials below had responsibility for them as follows:
- Major Controller of the Left (左大弁, Sadaiben)[19] This administrator was charged or tasked with supervising four ministries: Center, Civil Services, Ceremonies, and Taxation.[3]
- Major Controller of the Right (右大弁, Udaiben)[19] This administrator was charged or tasked with supervising four ministries: Military, Justice, Treasury and Imperial Household.[3]
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See also
Notes
References
Further reading
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