晚明泰州的水患與地方紛爭 (1522-1644)

Abstract

泰州位於江蘇東部，是淮河、長江和東海的交匯處。江淮分水嶺自西向東穿過泰州，將長江水系和淮河水系分隔開來。在泰州，當地人習慣將流向長江的河流稱為「上河」，而將從高郵湖、邵伯湖流向下鄉的河流稱為「下河」。元代時，揚州路包括泰興、江都兩縣和真、滁、通、泰、崇明五州及高郵一府。明代承襲元制，設立揚州府，行政區劃沒有變化。泰州位於江淮平原，是傳統的農業耕作區，素有「海陵糧倉」的美稱。一條用於運鹽通商的運河穿州而過，這條運河始建于漢初吳王劉濞時期，因此也被稱為「運鹽河」。明代時，泰州淮中十鹽場的鹽就通過運鹽河銷往各地。 泰州是傳統的農耕區，擁有充足的水資源和豐富的鹽場，按理說地方民眾的生活應該相對富足。然而，自嘉靖三十四年（1555年）起，泰州開始頻繁遭受水患。水患導致禾苗被淹，糧食價格飛漲，農民紛紛棄農而逃，民生困苦。水患給泰州帶來了嚴重的農業損失，破壞了糧食生產，導致糧價飆升，農民不得不放棄耕作，甚至被迫遷徙。官方和地方士紳為瞭解決水患，採取了多種措施，如修築堤壩、疏浚河道等，試圖恢復農業生產。然而，效果往往不盡如人意，頻繁的水災依然困擾著當地。 在上述措施之外，地方士紳還積極推行了諸多民生改善舉措。例如，他們不斷申請將漕糧改折和鳳米蠲免，以減輕百姓的負擔。然而，這些請求卻常常難以獲得中央政府的支持。從晚明水患頻發開始，直至明朝結束，泰州始終未能徹底解決水患問題，也未能完全恢復地方經濟。

Taizhou, located in eastern Jiangsu, lies at the confluence of the Huai River(淮河), Yangtze River(長江), and East China Sea(東海). The Jianghuai watershed(江淮分水嶺) runs from west to east through Taizhou, separating the Yangtze River system from the Huai River system. Locals in Taizhou refer to rivers flowing into the Yangtze as "upper rivers"(上河) while those flowing from Gaoyou Lake(高郵湖) and Shaobo Lake(邵伯湖) into the countryside are called "lower rivers."(下河) During the Yuan Dynasty, Yangzhou Road included Taixing(泰興), Jiangdu(江都) counties, and the prefectures of Zhen(真), Chu(滁), Tong(通), Tai(泰), Chongming(崇明), and Gaoyou. The Ming Dynasty continued this administrative structure by establishing Yangzhou Prefecture without changes in jurisdiction. Taizhou, situated on the Jianghuai Plain, has been a traditional agricultural area, known as the "Hailing Granary."(海陵糧倉) A canal for salt transportation and commerce, known as the "Salt Transport Canal,"(運鹽河) runs through the region, having been established during the Han Dynasty under King Liu Pi of Wu. During the Ming Dynasty, salt from Taizhou's ten salt fields in Huai was distributed through this canal. Despite being a traditional agricultural zone with abundant water resources and rich salt fields, Taizhou began to suffer from frequent floods starting in the 34th year of the Jiajing(嘉靖) era (1555). These floods submerged crops, caused grain prices to soar, and forced farmers to abandon their fields, leading to widespread hardship. The floods resulted in significant agricultural losses, disrupted grain production, and caused many farmers to migrate. To address the floods, the government and local gentry(士紳) implemented various measures, such as building dikes and dredging rivers to restore agricultural productivity. However, these efforts often fell short, and recurring floods continued to plague the region. Additionally, the local gentry actively sought to improve the people's livelihood by continuously petitioning for the conversion of grain tributes to cash payments and exemptions from certain taxes(漕糧改折), such as the Fengmi tax(鳳米蠲免). Despite their efforts, these requests frequently struggled to gain central government approval. From the late Ming period until the dynasty's end, Taizhou never fully resolved its flood issues or restored its local economy.