A study on the first attempt at restoring the Yellow River's lower course from 1048 to 1057 = 北宋第一次回河之爭研究 (1048-1057)

Abstract

Most scholars agree that the Yellow River’s flooding record during the Northern Song Dynasty exceeded the preceding period. However, previous studies focused mainly on the major perspectives of historical geography and the foundation of river management institutions. Recently, some scholars adopted the environmental history paradigm to analyse the “environmental drama” during this period. In this thesis, the details of the first attempt at restoring the Yellow River’s lower course from 1048 to 1057 will be deconstructed to study the interactions between various groups of officials and analyse the contribution of the political culture of the Song Dynasty during the event. This will contribute significantly to our understanding of the three attempts at restoring the Yellow River’s lower course, a critical historical event that occurred throughout the mid-to-late Northern Song period. The first attempt at restoring the Yellow River’s lower course occurred during the Renzong reign. In this thesis, the details of the whole event will be examined—including the interactions between various groups within the Song court—in order to discuss the political games between civil servants, eunuchs and the emperor and to analyse how the interactions between Emperor Renzong and the bureaucrats contributed to the development of the first attempt. The Song government was trying to select the most suitable officials with interrelated experience to participate in river management projects when the court encountered the flooding. Although there were insufficient scholar-officials with expertise in river management, the court selected officials who had worked in the area adjacent to the Yellow River’s channels in the lower course, and who had even closely observed the Yellow River, to participate in the first attempt. The later scholar-officials praised the “good governance” of the Jiayou period during the Renzong reign in the later Song period as the ideal governance format, but their imaginations and constructions were inevitably at variance with reality. Emperor Renzong never abandoned the use of consort kins and eunuchs as a counterweight to the scholar-officials. He adopted 12 eunuchs during the first attempt. The emperor was hoping to utilise the eunuchs’ experience in river management to compensate for the lack of experience in the technical work of the scholar-officials. However, he was also trying to monitor the action of scholar-officials as much as possible. The biographies of these 12 eunuchs also provide a comprehensive image of the political involvement of eunuchs in the Song Dynasty. Interpersonal relationships also played a part in the human interaction in the first attempt, and the first attempt also led to a variety of different forms of interaction and relationships between officials. The interpersonal relationships contributed significant impacts on officials such as Fu Bi, Ouyang Xiu and Wen Yanbo. The study of the first attempt in the Northern Song Dynasty demonstrates that this event had environmental and political elements and the interaction between various groups and political factors played an indelible role in the development of the event.

北宋的黃河水患遠超前代已是學界共識，然而歷來學界對宋代黃河的研究主題仍以歷史地理和治河制度的建設為主，較少見到通過政治視角，又或者是通過朝廷内部官員群體互動的視角研究宋代黃河的作品。近年來，亦有學者通過環境史範式分析這一時期的「環境戲劇」。解構第一次回河之爭事件的來龍去脈以便剖析各個官員群體之間的互動和了解宋代政治文化在事件過程中起到的作用，如此才能更全面地認識「三易回河」——這一件貫穿了北宋中後期的重要歷史事件。 本文選取了發生在仁宗朝的第一次回河之爭作為研究對象，該事件是貫穿了整個北宋中後期的三易回河事件的起點。本文將會考證研究這一次規模甚大的「河議」，探討「河論」過程中宋廷內部的各個群體之間的互動方式，從而論述文臣、宦官和皇帝之間的政治博弈，以及分析仁宗和官僚之間的互動如何推動了第一次回河之爭的發展。 宋人並非胡亂選用官員治河。儘管懂得治水的文臣極為稀缺，但朝廷仍嘗試盡可能地選任曾在河北路，京東路這兩塊毗鄰黃河故道的區域任職，甚至是曾近距離接觸過黃河的官員參與到這次大型「河議」之中。 仁宗朝的嘉祐之治被後來的宋代士大夫視為理想的聖政津津樂道，但他們的想像和構建與事實必然有出入。仁宗從未放棄重用外戚和宦官制衡士大夫群體。在第一次回河之爭事件就有十二位宦官通過各種各樣的方式參與到治河事務之中。仁宗同時派遣宦官和士大夫參與治河，除了冀望利用宦官的治河經驗彌補文臣在技術性工作上的經驗不足，更重要的是利用宦官緊密監視士大夫的行動。通過對這十二位宦官的生平考證，亦能對宋代宦官的政治參與有更清晰的認識。 人際關係對第一次回河之爭的人與人互動也起到了一定影響，但同時第一次回河之爭也使得官員之間的互動形式和關係有了各種的不同和變化。富弼支持李仲昌的六塔河方案，韓絳和胡宿幫助歐陽修彈劾李仲昌，以及二人之後與歐陽修友誼的加深，文彥博和富弼，乃至於文彥博與賈昌朝的交好，背後都有人際關係的因素在發揮作用。 北宋第一次回河之爭事件的研究證明了這是一件有環境史元素，同時政治性質也極為濃厚的事件，各個群體之間的互動和政治因素對事件的發展始終發揮着不可磨滅的作用。