The Palace Library (; in Vietnam: 秘書所, ''Bí thư sở'') was a central government agency in monarchical China, Korea, and Vietnam generally in charge of maintaining and archiving the collection of the monarch's documents.
China
The office was in existence for the most part from the mid-200s CE (
Ming dynasty
The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last ort ...
). Over the millennia there were 5 names for this office:
*Directorate of the Palace Library (秘書監): during the
Three Kingdoms
The Three Kingdoms () from 220 to 280 AD was the tripartite division of China among the dynastic states of Cao Wei, Shu Han, and Eastern Wu. The Three Kingdoms period was preceded by the Han dynasty#Eastern Han, Eastern Han dynasty and wa ...
, the
Liao dynasty
The Liao dynasty (; Khitan: ''Mos Jælud''; ), also known as the Khitan Empire (Khitan: ''Mos diau-d kitai huldʒi gur''), officially the Great Liao (), was an imperial dynasty of China that existed between 916 and 1125, ruled by the Yelü ...
, the
Jin dynasty (1115–1234)
The Jin dynasty (,
; ) or Jin State (; Jurchen: Anchun Gurun), officially known as the Great Jin (), was an imperial dynasty of China that existed between 1115 and 1234. Its name is sometimes written as Kin, Jurchen Jin, Jinn, or Chin
in ...
and the
Yuan dynasty
The Yuan dynasty (), officially the Great Yuan (; xng, , , literally "Great Yuan State"), was a Mongol-led imperial dynasty of China and a successor state to the Mongol Empire after its division. It was established by Kublai, the fifth ...
*Court of the Palace Library (秘書寺): between 300 to 464 (
Jin dynasty (266–420)
The Jin dynasty (; ) or the Jin Empire, sometimes distinguished as the (司馬晉) or the (兩晉), was an imperial dynasty of China that existed from 266 to 420. It was founded by Sima Yan (Emperor Wu), eldest son of Sima Zhao, who had pr ...
,
Northern Wei
Wei (), known in historiography as the Northern Wei (), Tuoba Wei (), Yuan Wei () and Later Wei (), was founded by the Tuoba (Tabgach) clan of the Xianbei. The first of the Northern and Southern dynasties#Northern dynasties, Northern dynasties ...
,
Liu Song
Song, known as Liu Song (), Former Song (前宋) or Song of (the) Southern Dynasty (南朝宋) in historiography, was an imperial dynasty of China and the first of the four Southern dynasties during the Northern and Southern dynasties period. ...
, etc.)
*Department of the Palace Library (秘書省): during the
Northern and Southern dynasties
The Northern and Southern dynasties () was a period of political division in the history of China that lasted from 420 to 589, following the tumultuous era of the Sixteen Kingdoms and the Eastern Jin dynasty. It is sometimes considered as ...
, the
Sui dynasty
The Sui dynasty (, ) was a short-lived imperial dynasty of China that lasted from 581 to 618. The Sui unified the Northern and Southern dynasties, thus ending the long period of division following the fall of the Western Jin dynasty, and layi ...
, most of the
Tang dynasty
The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an Zhou dynasty (690–705), interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dyn ...
, the
Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms
The Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period (), from 907 to 979, was an era of political upheaval and division in 10th-century Imperial China. Five dynastic states quickly succeeded one another in the Central Plain, and more than a dozen concu ...
, the
Song dynasty
The Song dynasty (; ; 960–1279) was an imperial dynasty of China that began in 960 and lasted until 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song following his usurpation of the throne of the Later Zhou. The Song conquered the rest ...
and the Ming dynasty
*Orchid Pavilion (蘭臺; "Lantai"): used during the Tang dynasty between 662 and 670
*Unicorn Pavilion (麟臺; "Lintai"): used during the Tang dynasty and the
Wu Zhou
Wu may refer to:
States and regions on modern China's territory
*Wu (state) (; och, *, italic=yes, links=no), a kingdom during the Spring and Autumn Period 771–476 BCE
** Suzhou or Wu (), its eponymous capital
** Wu County (), a former county ...
between 684 and 712
In addition to preserving the
emperor
An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereignty, sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), ...
's official documents, the agency was sometimes also tasked to compile or edit historical records and state calendars. Before the Sui dynasty, it also handled documents flowing into and out of the imperial palace, making it interchangeable with the
Secretariat
Secretariat may refer to:
* Secretariat (administrative office)
* Secretariat (horse)
Secretariat (March 30, 1970 – October 4, 1989), also known as Big Red, was a champion American thoroughbred racehorse who is the ninth winner of the Ame ...
. During the late Tang dynasty (after early 700s) and the Song dynasty, the office was largely non-functional and staffed by eminent officials for sinecure purposes.
The office during the Tang dynasty was headed by one director (秘書監) and two vice directors (秘書少監), and during the Song dynasty by one director and one vice director. The office was also staffed with assistant directors (秘書丞) and assistants (秘書郎 or 秘書郎中). During the Yuan dynasty, the office was headed by four chief ministers (秘書卿), two directors (秘書太監), two vice directors, and two assistant directors (秘書丞 or 秘書監丞), all
eunuch
A eunuch ( ) is a male who has been castrated. Throughout history, castration often served a specific social function.
The earliest records for intentional castration to produce eunuchs are from the Sumerian city of Lagash in the 2nd millennium ...
s.
Korea
Modeled after the Chinese institution, the office also existed in
Goryeo dynasty
Goryeo (; ) was a Korean kingdom founded in 918, during a time of national division called the Later Three Kingdoms period, that unified and ruled the Korean Peninsula until 1392. Goryeo achieved what has been called a "true national unificati ...
under several names:
*As Department of the Inner Library (內書省; "Naeseo Seong"): from 918 to 995
*As Department of the Palace Library: from 995 to 1298
*As Directorate of the Palace Library: from 1298 to 1308 and from 1356 to 1362
*As Office of Proofreading Documents (典校署; "Jeongyo Seo"): from 1308 to 1356
*As Court of Proofreading Documents (典校寺; "Jeongyo Sa"): from 1362 to 1392
In general, the office was staffed by 1 supervisor (判事; "pansa"), 1 director (監 or 令), 1 vice director (少監 or 副令), 2 assistant directors (丞) and 1 assistant (郎).
Vietnam
The Palace Library Office ( Hán-Nôm: 秘書所, ''Bí thư sở'') of the
Nguyễn dynasty
The Nguyễn dynasty (chữ Nôm: 茹阮, vi, Nhà Nguyễn; chữ Hán: 阮朝, vi, Nguyễn triều) was the last Vietnamese dynasty, which ruled the unified Vietnamese state largely independently from 1802 to 1883. During its existence, ...
Minh Mạng
Minh Mạng () or Minh Mệnh (, vi-hantu, 明 命, lit. "the bright favour of Heaven"; 25 May 1791 – 20 January 1841; born Nguyễn Phúc Đảm, also known as Nguyễn Phúc Kiểu) was the second emperor of the Nguyễn dynasty of V ...
Emperor and would retain its final form during the reign of the
Thiệu Trị
Thiệu Trị (, vi-hantu, 紹 治, lit. "inheritance of prosperity"; 6 June 1807 – 4 November 1847), personal name Nguyễn Phúc Miên Tông or Nguyễn Phúc Tuyền, was the third emperor of the Nguyễn dynasty. He was the eldest son of Em ...
Emperor. The Palace Library Office of the
Southern Court
The were a set of four emperors (Emperor Go-Daigo and his line) whose claims to sovereignty during the Nanboku-chō period spanning from 1336 through 1392 were usurped by the Northern Court. This period ended with the Southern Court definitively ...
took care of the copying of poems and documents, preserving important documents such as official correspondence with other countries, national maps, and public bibliographies.