| Leniency in the Qing Dynasty took two forms, i.e., leniency outside the law and leniency according to law. Leniency outside the law in capital cases was a matter of uncertainty as well as a beneficial thing in the eyes of the monarch and his ministers, and both the monarch and ministers could take part in the trial of capital cases, thus leniency outside the law became the object of game playing between the monarch and his ministers. In the Qing Dynasty, the monarch and ministers played two rounds of games initiated respectively by ministers and by the monarch around leniency outside the law. The ministers either requested the monarch to grant the leniency in advance, or gave the leniency before asking the monarch to recognize it. The latter mainly appeared in the late Qing Dynasty. When the monarch took the initiative to show mercy outside the law, he often asked the ministers to publicize it. In addition, the monarch also promoted leniency outside the law with special cases and in legislation, so that the ministers had accepted the idea that the monarch was the only subject of giving leniency outside the law. The game played between the monarch and ministers had led to cautious leniency outside the law and the externalization of leniency according to the law, and aggravated the problems of not giving leniency in the cases that leniency should be given and giving leniency outside the law in favor of relatives, friends and officials and so on. The particularity of the Qing society had a certain impact on the practice of leniency outside the law. |
京公网安备11010102006664号 京ICP备2023015853号