Eight hundred Li Tang Dynasty's Urgent Military Intelligence "Express"

In costume movies and TV plays, many people often hear that 600 Li is urgent and 800 Li is urgent. So, what was the express delivery in the Tang Dynasty like? How urgent is it to rush 800 miles? With the following questions, follow me to have a good understanding!

In ancient times, the delivery of documents depended on post stations. Generally speaking, there is a post office every 20 miles. Once the official document to be transmitted is marked "fly immediately", it is required to fly 300 miles a day. In an emergency, it can travel 400 miles or 600 miles a day, and the fastest can reach 800 miles. Every post office uses a fast horse when delivering urgent documents. In this way, although not a swift horse, every horse runs very hard and can walk thousands of miles a day.

"600 Li is urgent, 800 Li is urgent" is used to indicate an emergency. (Ji Ming Post Station is the most complete existing ancient post station city) The poet Cen Can wrote in the poem "Judge on the way to Longshan for the first time" that "the post stations are one after another, and the post stations ride like stars; Pingming sent Xianyang, the curtain and the top of the mountain. " Here, he compares the post horse to a meteor. According to the official regulations of the Tang Dynasty, fast horses need to travel for about 180 Ali days, and faster horses need to travel for 300 Ali days. The fastest requirement is 500 miles.

On November 9th, 14th year of Tianbao, he rebelled in Fanyang. At that time, Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty was in Huaqing Palace, three thousand miles apart. Within six days, Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty learned the news, and the spread speed reached 500 Li a day. According to reports, during the Southern and Northern Dynasties, Xuan Di of the Northern Zhou Dynasty marched in Luoyang, riding a post horse in person and marching 300 miles every day. It seems that the most urgent communication in the Tang dynasty has to travel 500 miles a day, which is undoubtedly the royal horse class. No wonder it's so fast.

In the Tang Dynasty, one foot is now 0.303 meters, and one mile is 454.2 meters. Even from the present point of view, it will take two days to accelerate 800 Li Chong. According to the Six Codes of the Great Tang Dynasty, at its peak, there were 1 639 post stations in China, with more than 20,000 people specializing in postal services, including 1.7 million post soldiers. The post is divided into three types: land post, water post and waterway merger. Each station is equipped with a station house, a post horse, a post donkey, a post boat and a post yard. People who hold posts in various positions are generally called "post men" and "post men", or "post men" and "post servants". Judging from their names, their status is relatively low.

Postal workers on land are also suffering. In the hot sun, in the cold winter and in the downpour, they all rushed down the post road with paper bags on their backs. There is a mural in Dunhuang in the late Tang Dynasty, Mrs. Guo Song's Travel Map, which depicts the image of a courier carrying a cloth bag at that time. Their daily tasks are very heavy, besides running on the road and delivering documents, they are also responsible for cleaning the post office and other things.

In the laws of the Tang Dynasty, there were detailed provisions on the punishment of various mistakes in the postal process. The slightest mistake will be dealt with severely. According to the regulations of the Tang Dynasty, the postman should bear certain responsibilities. First, he must report the death of Yima and the loss of fertile land every year, and report the expenses. If the postal horse dies, the postman is responsible for compensation; Minus the staff and horses of the post station privately, and you get "one hundred staff". Yi Ding's punishment is more severe. According to the regulations of the Tang Dynasty, when Yi Ding arrived at the post station, he had to change horses. If he didn't change horses, he would have 80 aides. "Tang Law" also stipulates that whoever delays the trip on the post road will be sent instead of sent, with staff 100; If a document arrives late, it will be eighty times a day, double in two days, and so on. The heaviest punishment is two years' imprisonment.

Someone asked: "What should I do if I am robbed by the enemy or robbers on the way to such an important task as 800-mile express delivery?" The Law of the Tang Dynasty stipulates that if it is an emergency military order document that is delayed, the crime will be increased by three. If a letter is delayed and the war fails, it will be hanged. Tang Shi Supplement once recorded an official of Yuan Wailang who was responsible for issuing official documents. He handled a prisoner's certificate sent from Hebei to Lingnan, which should be sent to Hebei and Lingnan. Due to negligence in the evening, he only sent them to Lingnan, but not to Hebei.

After the incident, the foreign minister was removed from office. Those who reveal important secrets are hanged. Judging from such a strict law, ordinary robbers will not touch these important documents, so as not to provoke the official to kill people desperately. When fighting, we should expect that the enemy may ambush and intercept information. At least many people will carry their certificates in multiple ways just in case.

Although the 800-mile express military service in the Tang Dynasty was also very fast, I deeply felt that the punishment for Yi Ding was too severe. In case the horse is in trouble, weather and other reasons, it will inevitably not delay the time. So in comparison, the courier now is really happy!