宋朝限定沿海发舶港口问题新探

Regulations on Maritime Ports in the Song Dynasty

为便于对商船集中管理,有效获取市舶之利并加强海上禁防,宋朝从太宗时一度将发舶权限定在两浙市舶司,但行之未久。元丰三年八月起,始规定赴南蕃诸国贸易须从广州市舶司发舶,入日本高丽等国,则须从明州市舶司发舶,而回航住舶必须在原发舶州。这一制度,造成泉州等贸易港口发舶甚为不便。为适应海外贸易之形势,元祐编敕,亦将回航住舶港口须为原发舶港口之限,改为至合发舶州住舶。从此,发舶港口则以杭、明、泉、广诸州为主。南宋时,因两浙发舶渐集中于明州,发舶港口则为明、泉、广三州,后期则以泉、广二州为主。至于住舶港口,则因三市舶司争利,或为原发舶州,或为合发舶州,曾有变动,但最终当以原发舶州为制度,只是具体执行情况未尽如人意。对发舶和住舶港口之限定,表面上看似可集中管控市舶之利和海上禁防,但由此产生的对海上贸易之垄断,则又导致发舶港口萧条、舶利亏损,而商贾纷纷冲破政府对港口之限定,改入其它港口贸易。利弊交错,时好时坏,在矛盾中挣扎、维持,应是宋朝市舶之政的真实写照。

By the reign of Emperor Taizong of the Song Dynasty, the court had already established the Maritime Trade Supervisorate of Liangzhe, to oversee merchant vessels, collect custom duties, prevent the smuggling of illegal goods, and strengthen the defense of the maritime borders. Ships had to obtain permission from the Maritime Trade Supervisorate in order to go abroad. But this policy was in effect only for a brief period of time. In the eighth month of 1080, an edict stated that merchants heading for foreign countries in the south should depart from the Maritime Trade Supervisorate of Guangzhou, while those heading for Japan and Korea should depart from the Maritime Trade Supervisorate of Mingzhou. Moreover, when the ships returned, they were only allowed to enter through the departing port. This regulation made it extremely inconvenient for ships to depart from Quanzhou and other ports. During the Yuanyou reign, an edict mentioned that the returning ship should not necessarily come back to the departing port. Instead, it was allowed to enter any port that was qualified to be the departing place. Ever since then, the departing portsincluded Hangzhou, Mingzhou, Quanzhou and Guangzhou. In the Southern Song Dynasty, many ships came to Mingzhou to depart and departing ports included Mingzhou, Quanzhou, and Guangzhou. Towards the end of the Southern Song Dynasty, Quanzhou and Guangzhou were the main departing ports. As for the arriving port, sometimes it should be the same as the departing one, but in other times it could be any departing port, due to the competition between various Maritime Trade Supervisorates. Finally, the arriving port was set up as the departing one. But the implement of this regulation was never satisfying. On the one hand, the regulations on the departing and arriving ports made it convenient to collect custom duties and prevent smuggling. On the other hand, the regulations allowed a monopoly on maritime trade, which made fewer ships come to the departing ports, and consequently, custom duties decreased. Many merchants broke the regulations and entered other ports to trade. The regulations had shortcomings as well as benefits. Sometimes it worked well, but in other times it did not. The Song officials struggled, in contradiction, to maintain port policies.