[Reading History] Interpretation of Fire Regulations in Tang Dynasty

Abstract : "The Law of Tang Dynasty" is a masterpiece of China's Chinese legal civilization . Its "Miscellaneous Law" includes six fire regulations. Separately stipulated fires in their own homes, burned fields from time to time, caused fire, burned on the street, caused fire, and burned private houses, sentencing punishments , and burning palaces, temples, official sites, and warehouses. Sentencing penalty at special places. In addition, it is also stipulated that a person who has seen a fire is not responsible for the crime of salvation , so that all generations of the Tang Dynasty are obliged to see the fire happen and to have the company tell and participate in the fire. These laws apply legislative technical skill, set of penalties was also more appropriate for the prevention and punishment of Tang Dynasty fire-related crimes provides an important safeguard, but also provides an important reference for the fire legal system we are building socialism with Chinese characteristics today And enlightenment.

Key words : "Disciplinary discussion of Tang Dynasty" ; fire regulations ; arson ; fire

According to the statistics of the “Chinese Fire Ceremony” published at the end of the last century , there were 238 fires in the Tang Dynasty . Of course , due to the scarcity of historical data , the above data does not completely explain the problem . However, as a whole , the Tang dynasty said that except for the destruction of war , very serious fires are rare. This is inseparable from its more perfect fire management system, new construction technology and application of building materials, and transformation of urban planning and layout. In addition , perfect fire protection legislation also provides an important guarantee for the prevention and punishment of fire-related crimes. The Fire Regulations of the Tang Dynasty were mainly concentrated in the " Disciplinary Law of Tang Dynasty," and its "Miscellaneous Laws" included six articles on crimes related to fire. The author uses the legal interests of fire crimes as clues to try to analyze and evaluate.

one

Fire-related offenses under "TangLuShuYi", according to their behavior violated legal interests can be divided into two categories: one is the ordinary people of personal and property safety; the other is the feudal monarchy and the feudal state Personal, property and majesty. The following points are described.

(A) ordinary fire with fire behavior According to "China Fire ceremony" records, Tang fires occur most places are cities, including Yangzhou documented, there were two major fires.

Together with Tang Wenzong in October and October , “the fire in Yangzhou City and thousands of districts of the people” . Another together that is open to Tang Wenzong December 2004 Landmarks dark, "Yangzhou fire, burnt homes thousands of people." In addition , there have been a few fires that have occurred in villages and farmlands. In this regard , Tang Law made detailed provisions in the following four aspects :

First, there is a fire in your home. That is due to their own careless use of fire and the fire, bamboo cane fifty; the spread of fire, burn and others Shezhai and property, eighty stick under normal circumstances; severe loss of up to only a year and a half; therefore caused casualties The penalty is heavier and the maximum is three years.

Second, when it was not fired in the fields, it caused fire. In ancient China, there was a long-term practice of burning waste . Therefore , there has long been a sense of prevention of fire caused by the burning of wasteland. Do not make time burning, is "non-time", whether or not a fire hazard, should be punished bamboo cane fifty; when as a result of the non-burning caused property and personal injury or death, and in the former "house of fire has The penalty for burning is the same , and the maximum is three years. Of course , the limitation of the burning time in the Tang Dynasty was also based on local conditions , and did not force local regulations to be unified.

Third, the street is burning with fire. Refers to pedestrians on the way to use the fire , after leaving without completely extinguishing the fire source, resulting in delaying the burning of other people's forests, houses or property , under normal circumstances, the stick 70 ; cause serious property damage , only one year ; cause other people disabled or dead , Only two and a half years.

Fourth, it burns private houses. Unlike the first three kinds of crimes , this is an act of deliberately arson, and its punishment is obviously heavier than the first three cases. Where on private residential homes, no matter how many homes the size and loss of property, as long as the subjective is deliberately set on fire, only to impose a penalty of three years, from the criminal point is high; if property damage is serious, the maximum penalty of death by hanging; as a means to fire , intentional homicide, shall be liable to the death penalty --- First cut the statutory punishment.

( b ) Special fire and fire behavior

First , regarding the crime of endangering the personal, property, and authority of the emperor with fire , Tang Law mainly provides protection for two types of special locations :

One is the palace, temple, club. In Tang law, there was a special stipulation that fires were caused by the imperfections of the palaces, the Taimiao and the Taishes. About the punishment palace, temple, community fire of sin, according to actual harm caused by the fire divided into three classes, did not cause serious consequences, only three years; casualties, exile three thousand miles; where the fire caused by the spread of fire, burning The palace and the temple of the temple were hanged , and those who burned the shrine were exiled for three thousand miles.

Another special place is "mountain tomb, trillion domains . " "Mountain Tombs, Territory" is the imperial mausoleum , and there are people who defend them . If there is a fire in this area , it will take only two years , but it will flow to two thousand miles ; if it causes death , it will flow three thousand miles.

These two types of crime special place, its subjective aspect is just negligence. If it is deliberately set on fire to burn palaces, temples, communities, or “mountain tombs,” it should belong to the “great rebellion” among “ten evils” in the “Law of Examples” , which is second only to “rebellion”. Big felony. As long as the perpetrator dares to have a premeditated plan to destroy the above location , he will be hanged ; if committed , the offender will be desecrated , the family members will sit down , the assets will not be official , and they will be executed immediately and will never be forgiven. It shows the severe punishment.

Second , Tang Law also paid special attention to national property and economic security. Those who use fire to property and endanger national economic security, will be subject to heavy penalties. The objects that such crimes infringe can be divided into the following two categories in the fire regulations :

One is the official government. They are not only a symbol of state power and majesty, but also an important part of state property. In the feudal code , Bing must be given special protection. Among them, the fault of the penalties for official shrine buildings on fire, can be divided into the following three: did not cause serious consequences, only two years; causing serious losses of state property, only three years; casualties, the most important may exile three Thousands of miles. But if it is deliberately burned the official shrine Yu, though not to the crime of "Wicked", the punishment is quite severe, from the criminal point is only three years; as causing serious property losses, the heaviest to death by hanging; casualties and to cut the heaviest punishment.

The other is a warehouse. The warehouse here refers to the official warehouse. The Tang Dynasty's warehouses can be divided into three types: weapons warehouses, warehouses, and grain warehouses , and all of them are national economic or military materials. Central agencies "Nine Temple" in the "too palace temple" in charge of "nations and goods," which consists of left and right Tibet Tibetan Department Agency. Which left left Tibet Tibetan Department established order, the direct management of the treasury, including East Library, West Library, Chodo libraries are libraries and East, its role as: "Where a Tibetan hospital, the lights the fire and ban people for no reason hospitalized; the day outside They often use the sticks for defense ; at night, they kill and divide them into patrolmen.” The Tibetan Nationalist Party has set up the right Tibetan dungeons and is in charge of the national treasures . Its duties are the same as those of Zang. Under the above provisions , the “Tang Law Review” stipulated criminal sanctions for “violation of the law” in violation of the administrative duties. That official positions in the government library, where there were lights the fire, whether or causing a fire, are only a year; if they inadvertently causing a fire is only two years; as a serious property damage, sin only only three years; causing Casualties , the most important exile three thousand miles. However, if it is deliberately set fire to the official warehouse warehouse , Tang Law has no express provisions , according to the " Legislative Law" in the analogy principle , according to other fire regulations to punish.

two

In addition to the above-mentioned several fire-related crimes , there is one that should draw our attention . That is, Article 433 reads "Seeing the fire begin without warning of salvation" . In ancient China, there was no special organization for fire control management , and no professional fire brigade was responsible for fire fighting. However , relative to previous generations , the fire-fighting results of the Tang dynasty were still very significant , because the “Tang Law Reconsidered” stipulated : Seeing the fire started , everyone had the obligation to tell and participate in fighting fires. In case of private fire, do not sue those who do not save, bamboo cane thirty; in case of official shrine warehouse fire, do not sue those who do not save, only a year; in case palace, temple, community fire, do not sue those who do not save, only two years. This shows that due to the different importance of the objects of fire in the Tang Dynasty , the level of responsibility imposed on the people to inform and save the fire is not the same , thus organizing the ranks of the national fire fighting team. This case is not complicated fire, fire equipment and technology is not developed in ancient times, it should be the best choice for the work of the fire. But Tang law also provides that the palace guards, warehouse and prison officers, although see the fire, but can not go AWOL tell Yuji or participate in fighting, otherwise staff one hundred first, because it is a major responsibility of their own. Its consideration of comprehensive legislation, worthy of praise, said Liu Yuan "Zhou Ji under cover, heritage instrument Zhang, Tang Mo prepare for."

Through the above analysis , we can see that the fire laws in Tang Dynasty have the following characteristics :

( I ) The use of legislative techniques is more familiar

Since the advent of the first feudal law, the "Law of Law" , in the history of the Chinese legal system civilization and the representative work of the Chinese legal system, "The Tang Dynasty Dispatch" has been written . After more than a thousand years , the ruler has used the "law" as a ruling device. More skilled. Tang law only in respect of these types of fire-related crime point of view, from the content of the statutes speaking, it can be described as "wide" for the protection of legal interests that include the feudal emperors and feudal state, but also noted the use of fire safety of ordinary people ; carving its provisions can be described as "fine", such as "non-burn fields when" taking into account the different seasonal solar terms of the country, and if "do not see the fire from the report save", taking into account other persons with special responsibilities. In order to increase the degree of concise legal provisions, while avoiding the inconvenience legislative gap to the judicial cause, which made the "name examples Law": "The various Conviction without regular article, it should be a crime who is lifting weights to clear light ; judicial practice which should incriminate who give light to the next heavy "so, while Tang Laws fire-related crime only set up six, but can vary in unpredictable with ease. In addition, Tang law after the above six, and a single set, the fourth of Article 134, states: "all fire and water damage has been defeated, Gufan who levy compensation, a missed does not compensate." This article solve a after the issue after the criminal sanctions bear civil liability listed in various charges, standard clear, concise language.

( b ) Penalty setting is more appropriate

The punishment system of the Tang Dynasty belonged to the feudal system of five penalties , and was divided into twenty grades , namely, imprisonment punishment, etc., the penalties and punishments, the imprisonment penalty, etc., the imprisonment penalty , and the death penalty . These were ordered from light to heavy. Tang Dynasty penalties for intentional arson for example, the minimum is only three years, affecting the property, up to the death penalty in the twisted, affecting personnel, cut up to the death penalty. For the general fire that endangers public safety , the culprit is the 50th , and because of inadvertent use of the fire and causing casualties , the culprit is punished for three years. For the related fire crimes that endanger the personal, property, and feudal theocracy of the emperor , the penalty is the lightest and it is only two years . The most important thing is to hang the punishment . The setting of this penalty range obviously takes into account the following factors : different subjective factors, different consequences of crimes , and differences in the legal interests protected by the Tang Dynasty, which are infringed by crimes . It can be said that the arrangement is reasonable and the penalty is appropriate.

However , according to historical records , Xue Huaiyi fell out of favor and burned Mingtang . According to the law, he should at least be sentenced to be hanged . Wu Zetian not only refrained from penalties but also reused. In the four years of Yuan and Yu Shi , the Yu Shi Tai Buddhist temple lost its fire , and the chief officer complied with the law for two years , while the celebrity officer Li Ying only had a fine of one month. Therefore , we should see that although the Tang dynasty was the culmination of the development of the feudal legal system in China , it is still essentially a feudal country with an absolute monarchy. Fine legal provisions must not be equated with uncompromising implementation of equality in practice . This is also something we should pay special attention to when we study the fire regulations in the Tang Dynasty.

In summary , fire and fire are very old propositions. In all kinds of natural disasters , a fire is a kind of disaster that is not subject to time, space, and high frequency. This kind of disaster is accompanied by the history of human fire. The firefighting work , which uses laws as a means to prevent and control fires , came into being and formed a bond with humanity. The ancients said : "To know the road , we must first be history." History is the origin of reality, and it is now the development of history. Studying the fire regulations of the Tang Dynasty , expropriating ancient rewards and paying attention to the present , for the past and present use , will undoubtedly have important reference value and enlightening effect for today's construction of the socialist fire protection legal system with Chinese characteristics .

This article comes from the "Journal of Hebei Youth Management Cadre College."