Civil Over Military Rule and the Examinations

To prevent the return of the overbearing generals with private armies seen since late Tang, Emperor Taizu deliberately gave civil officials control of military and government affairs. Emperor Taizong continued policies that held down generals and raised civil officials, and a pattern of civil officials commanding troops gradually formed. Civil officials held key posts at the center and in the localities, even ran military affairs, and had higher status and pay than generals. Generals were checked in many ways; commanders had to deploy according to “battle diagrams” issued by the court, which tightly bound their command and hurt the Song army's fighting strength. Song emphasized culture and education and greatly reformed the examination system. In early Song the number admitted was greatly increased; under Emperor Taizong several hundred jinshi and other degrees were granted in a single sitting, far more than Tang's twenty or thirty at a time. Song further perfected the palace examination, with the emperor presiding over the final round, and, to prevent cheating, adopted name-sealing and copying (a clerk copied each paper before it went to the examiners), making the examinations fairer. It raised the standing of jinshi, who received better posts and rose quickly. Admission did not depend on family background, and many scholars from humble families, such as Fan Zhongyan and Ouyang Xiu, entered office through the examinations, giving Song society a strong culture of study in which “those who excel in study become officials”.