Abstract:

In late Qing Dynasty, different levels of judicial bureaus were founded throughout China. To avoid duty conflict and to raise required funds, Jiangsu Province took the lead in cutting and merging administrative units at the level of Zhou (prefecture) and Xian (county). The saved funds and redundant government officers were utilized to set up judicial bureaus elsewhere. There was another administrative level called Fu, which was comparable to Zhou and one level higher than Xian. In most cases, the Xian administration was cancelled and merged with that of the Fu, or merged into another same-level Xian. After the Xinhai Revolution in 1911, the measure continued in the southern provinces, but the methods changed. After Hua Yi Ling was promulgated, the Fu was either downgraded to Xian or cancelled while its subsidiary Xian remained. Measures were also taken to set both Zhou/Fu and Xian governments in a same city. From late Qing Dynasty to early Republic of China, the scale and range of such adjustments for local governments kept expanding and were extended beyond Jiangsu Province to the whole country.

Key words: late Qing Dynasty and early Republic of China, different-level administrative units in a same city, Fuguoxian, local autonomy