A Study of the Ming Gong Fang

• Main Authors: Wai-KeongMui, 梅偉強
• Other Authors: Yong-Chang Zheng
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2014
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/72c2bh

碩士 === 國立成功大學 === 歷史學系 === 102 === A Study of the Ming Gong Fang Wai Keong-Mui Yong Chang-Zheng Department of History ＆ College of Liberal Arts SUMMARY When Yongle Emperor reestablished the capital of the Ming dynasty in Beijing, he also built a new palace for his family. The life of Royal family expended a large number of goods every day. For this reason the government needed to ship many goods from the former national capital Nanjing. Yellow ship , Horse ship and Fast ship were ordered to take this mission. Then, these ships developed into Gong Fang. Government had set up a variety of systems and regulations , it allowed the transport fleet worked regularly. Gong Fang was a huge transport fleet which was combined with hundreds of ships and thousands of people. A list of issues was created after long running operations. In Nanjing, many families worked for Gong Fang and they suffered a lot . Government changed the system and regulations to solve the issues. Government reduced the size of the transport fleet too. These changes made Gong Fang could work longer until the end of the Ming dynasty. In this paper, Gong Fang was the center. On one hand this paper would describe the the development of Gong Fang, the other hand the paper would explore the operation and impact of this transport fleet. According to the old books, this paper would restore the true face of Gong Fang. INTRODUCTION After Song dynasty and Yuan dynasty, the shipbuilding of the Ming Dynasty has developed into very high level in the history of Chinese shipbuilding. There were so many shipyards around the country. Such as Yellow ships, Horse ships and Fast ships were built In Nanjing to meet the needs of the empire. When Yongle Emperor re-established the capital of the Ming dynasty in Beijing, he also built a new palace for his family. The life of Royal family spent many goods every day. The government needed to ship many goods from the former national capital Nanjing to meet the royal demand. For this reason, Yellow ship, Horse ship and Fast ship were ordered to take this mission. When Wanli Emperor ruled the empire, officers used the word Gong Fang to call these ships. Gong Fang was a great transport fleet which was combined Yellow ship, Horse ship and Fast ship. These ships came from different departments. Government had set up a variety of systems and regulations , it allowed the transport fleet would work regularly. The management of Gong Fang could be divided into ship and freight. First, the government would hold the fleet. In the fleet, Government handled the ships and the people separately. Shipwrights built and repaired the ships in the shipyards around Nanjing. Many families lived in Nanjing worked for the fleet. When the mission was confirmed , the list of the goods would be issued. Gong Fang would be well prepared and the workers would freight the ships with goods. After the officers had checked the ships, Gong Fang would be allowed to leave. The goods on board were transported to Beijing. In the Ming Dynasty, Gong Fang shipped a lot of goods to Beijing every year. In this paper, Gong Fang was the center. On the one hand , the researcher would show the readers the development of Gong Fang. On the other hand the researcher would explore the operation and the management of this fleet. MATERIALS AND METHODS Though Yongle Emperor relocated the capital to Beijing, Nanjing was demoted to a secondary capital and many departments keep working. Many officers lived in Nanjing and they paid attention to the operation of the government. Gong Fang was a large and complex system of vessels, the ships came from different government departments. Government established many institutions and constitution. The operation of Gong Fang was assured. The institutions and constitutions were written into the books and these books were retained. After Gong Fang had been worked for many years , there were a lot of problems emerged from the public. Many officers recorded the painful life of the families that worked for Gong Fang. Some officers suggested that government should change the institutions and constitutions. The suggestions were written into the officers' works. Whether the management of Gong Fang, or the operation of Fang Gong, Ming officers left a lot of information in their books. Such as Da Ming Hui Dian, Longjiang shipyard Chi and Nanjing Censorate Chi are available nowadays. Thanks to these books the researchers could study the history of Gong Fang. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION In the Ming Dynasty, Gong Fang shipped a lot of goods every year. Gong Fang was a great transport fleet which was combined with thousands of ships. In this fleet , small ships played the most important role. The small ships could sail faster and they could go through the shallow river. Government sent a lot of small ships to transport goods to Beijing. In the history of Gong Fang, the secondary capital Nanjing played a important role. Nanjing was the home port of Gong Fang. Many families lived in Nanjing worked for this fleet. Many departments managed the fleet around the city. Hundreds of Gong Fang transported a large number of goods from Nanjing to Beijing. Nanjing was a important port. Ming government built Gong Fang on a series of systems and regulations. The government established a complete process for the operation of Gong Fang, so officials and soldiers were complied with. The process made Gong Fang could work regularly. The ships could be well prepared and government could keep enough ships to run. When the government ordered Gong Fang to transport the goods, unscrupulous officials transported their properties in the same time. They forced the sailors to give the money. These illegal acts made sailors suffered a lot. Many sailors left their posts. The government formulated some regulations to combat with the officials' illegal acts. The officials of Ming government tried their best to make the transport fleet could run longer. The methods of management was effective in keeping Gong Fang run until the end of the Ming Dynasty. CONCLUSION In the Ming Dynasty, Gong Fang became a huge transport fleet under the support of government. This fleet held an important position in the history of Ming shipbuilding industry. Gong Fang transported a lot of goods to meet the needs of royal family. Through the list of goods, the researchers could explore the life of the Ming royal family. Unfortunately the paper was too short, the researchers could not show the readers all the things. More researches about Gong fang should be finished in the future.