Zhu Yuanzhang was actually a very suspicious and vigilant emperor. After he proclaimed himself emperor, he still felt uneasy about the people around him. I believe everyone knows how Zhu Yuanzhang treated the founding heroes. Later, Zhu Yuanzhang set up a Royal Guards to collect information. Royal Guards are directly responsible to the emperor and have the highest power. Even royal relatives can arrest and interrogate them. However, Royal Guards are also a double-edged sword. If not handled properly, it will stab itself. For hundreds of years, Royal Guards had a certain negative influence on the Ming Dynasty.
The Royal Guards existed until 166 1. The Royal Guards of Li Yong, Emperor of the Southern Ming Dynasty, ordered Ma Jixiang to take charge of the Royal Guards and kill them because it was difficult to curse water. Therefore, it can be said that the 290-year history of the Royal Guard is officially over. After the Qing dynasty entered the customs, according to the system of the Ming dynasty, the Royal Guards were still set up. Shunzhi two years, renamed Luan Yiwei. The Royal Guards of the Qing Dynasty only existed for one year.
As many people know, as soon as the Ming Dynasty ended, the Royal Guards were like a rope tied to the head of a bureaucrat. They are always trembling. To be honest, they dare not be unfaithful to the emperor. But the secret service of the Ming Dynasty was not only the Royal Guards, but also the East and West Second Factory.
However, many people actually don't understand the relationship between Royal Guards and eastern and western factories, and even confuse them.
In fact, Royal Guards is a government organization established by Zhu Yuanzhang himself. It was then called the Ministry of Public Health. Mainly responsible for the emperor's ceremonial phoenix, and later responsible for the emperor's bodyguard. In the fifteenth year of Wu Hong, Zhu Yuanzhang carried out major reforms on the Royal Guards and the pro-army, and established the Royal Guards.
At this time, Royal Guards, as a means for Zhu Yuanzhang to strengthen centralization, had great power. They have the power of criminal imprisonment, patrol and arrest, and can even interrogate and investigate officials. In fact, the main purpose of setting up the Royal Guards is to clean up the court ministers.
As a result, people who have made meritorious deeds have gradually become their most hated officials. Like the dignitaries of the Yuan Dynasty, they hooked up with ordinary people. In addition, their growing strength affected the security of imperial power. Therefore, Zhu Yuanzhang decided to punish them severely.
In this case, Zhu Yuanzhang used the accusation of a security guard, Luo Zhi, to kill all the former heroes. Since then, many Hu cases, Hu cases and 0 seal cases in the school have been ordered to continue their activities.
However, when these things were completed, Zhu Yuanzhang ordered the complete abolition of the Royal Guards. He also knows that the Royal Guard actually has a bad influence on this country. The Royal Guards are so powerful that they can easily become monsters that future generations can't cope with. At this time, the instruments of torture of the Royal Guard were burned. At the same time, Zhu Yuanzhang ordered all internal and external prisons to be tried by three courts. Obviously, Zhu Yuanzhang made up his mind.
But security was too convenient for the emperor, so Judy restored the security system. As a usurped emperor, Judy really needed such a secret institution to consolidate her rule. But from then on, Royal Guards became a defect that could not be completely eliminated in the Ming Dynasty.
As the Royal Guards were directly under the jurisdiction of the emperor, other officials could not interfere in the court. Therefore, the Royal Guard can handle major cases involving officials in court and submit them directly to the emperor. Therefore, court officials were afraid of the Royal Guard.
The first members of the Royal Guard are the emperor's guards and soldiers, and there are also talents specially selected from the honor guards. These people are strong, brave and powerful. Later, they expanded their ranks and chose healthy men with no criminal record. Therefore, Royal Guards is still a department that attaches great importance to appearance and physique. Ugly, I'm afraid I can't get in.
In other words, the security guards at this time are all normal people. No eunuchs. Even eunuchs didn't have a chance to give orders to them.
In fact, Wei Jinyi and Dongchang are two completely different departments. In contrast, the original status of Wei Jinyi is the same as that of the factories in the East and the West. They are all directly loyal to the emperor's organs, and the Royal Guard, who was born as an honorary guard, is also responsible for the emperor's ceremonial work.
The entrance examination in Jin Yiwei is also very strict. Generally speaking, the leaders of the Royal Guards are the emperor's confidants. Most of the time, the status of the Royal Guard is inherited by tradition. In addition, ordinary people who want to enter the Royal Guards need to pass the military juren examination to have a chance. Generals transferred from the border may also be assigned to the Royal Guards.
In short, the assessment standard of Royal Guards is very strict.
But in fact, the situation of Royal Guards is also very embarrassing. Although it is not the order of the eunuch directly under the second factory, it is necessary to help the eunuch of the second factory to work together when there is a shortage of people. In addition, with the increasing power of eunuchs, the status of the Royal Guards is also declining. Later, he became a vassal of eastern and western factories.
In addition, we must be clear about the fact that eastern and western plants do not exist at the same time most of the time. The west factory only existed during Chenghua and Zhengde years, and there was no west factory at the rest of the time. As for Dongchang, it is the earliest state secret intelligence agency in the history of the world. Its branch is as far away as the Korean peninsula. Generally speaking, eunuchs are leaders, and factory officials are also big eunuchs in Lisi prison. It is very powerful.
However, there are few eunuchs under his command. They are basically normal people. Because eunuchs can't leave the palace, these operatives are the real strength of Dongchang. Because of the decline of the Royal Guards, Dongchang often ordered the Royal Guards to accompany him when handling affairs. Therefore, many people regard the Royal Guards as an accessory of the East Factory, and even confuse the two.
In the middle and late Ming Dynasty, Royal Guards had close contact with factories in the East and the West, with frequent activities. They are usually called "factory guards". The power of the factory belongs to the security guard and is only responsible to the emperor. Without the approval of the judicial organs, they can supervise and arrest their subjects at will, thus opening the door for the eunuchs in the Ming Dynasty to take power. But to tell the truth, both the Royal Guards and the East and West Factories are the products of excessive concentration of imperial power, and they are deformed in themselves.
It can be said that even if they are really different, ordinary people will not be too clear about these two homologous institutions. After all, they are all servants of the emperor himself.