《辛丑条约》谈判前后的中方“全权”问题

The Issue of the Chinese Side's “Plenipotentiary Powers” before and after the Negotiation of the Boxer Protocol

奕劻、李鸿章作为清政府授命的"全权大臣",是对议定《辛丑条约》直接负责的外交代表。"全权"并非义和团运动后产生的新问题,其产生过程与战争性质、战时交涉情势以及中枢和地方关系的变动密不可分。清朝议和代表的确认历时数月,列强凭借其军事实力及在华政治影响力,干预清朝内部人事安排,从侧面反映了列强之间的竞争关系。战后和谈不仅是清朝与列强的谈判,其内部也存在西安军机处、北京"全权"、东南督抚以及驻外公使等多种政治力量的博弈。因多元外交的特性,某些时候中枢与地方确可相互配合、争取利权,但清朝在国际权力格局中处于弱势,加上官僚政治、派系斗争等因素,外交权分散的状况反而导致大面积暴露传统交涉方式的局限。庚辛之际的"全权"问题,牵动清朝内政、外交多方面的变化,这些变化也影响到历史长远走势。

As Ministers Plenipotentiary appointed by the Qing government,Yi Kuang and Li Hongzhang were the diplomatic representatives directly responsible for the negotiation of the Boxer Protocol.The issue of plenipotentiary powers predated the end of the Boxer Rebellion;it was inseparable from the nature of the war,the situation of wartime negotiations,and changes in the relationship between the central and local governments.It took several months for the Qing court to confirm its representatives at the peace talks,because the Western powers used their military strength and political influence in China to intervene in the Qing court’s internal personnel arrangements.This provides an indirect reflection of the competitive relationships among the powers.The peace talks after the war involved not only negotiations between the Qing court and the Western powers,but also the games of various political forces including the Xi’an Grand Council,the plenipotentiary representatives in Peking,the governors of southern and eastern China and Ministers at legations abroad.In pluralist diplomacy,at times the central and local governments can act in concert,striving for economic rights.However,the Qing government then was in a weak position in the international power structure,and taken in conjunction with bureaucratic politics and factional conflict,this meant that the dispersal of diplomatic power actually revealed over a large canvas the limitations of traditional negotiating tactics.The issue of plenipotentiary powers during this period effected changes in the dynasty’s internal affairs,diplomacy and other areas,changes that influenced historical trends for a long time to come.