Description

Da Ming lü (The great Ming code) was first compiled in 1373 and reached its final form in 1397. This dynastic legal code represented a break with the past and also served as a model for the Qing code. The code regulated all the major aspects of social affairs, attempting to harmonize political, economic, military, familial, ritual, international, and legal relations in the empire. It is an encyclopedic document, one that provides rich material on Ming history. The basic value system and social norms that the code imposed became so ...