The Principles of the Constitution of 1908 (), also known as the Outline of Imperial Constitution or the Outline of the Constitution Compiled by Imperial Order,
was an attempt by the
Qing dynasty
The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-spea ...
of China to establish a
constitutional monarchy
A constitutional monarchy, parliamentary monarchy, or democratic monarchy is a form of monarchy in which the monarch exercises their authority in accordance with a constitution and is not alone in decision making. Constitutional monarchies dif ...
at the beginning of the 20th century. It established a constitutional monarchy and confirmed some basic rights of citizens, while imposing some limitations on the power of the monarch.
Since this outline of the constitution was not democratically formulated, but was promulgated in the name of the
Guangxu Emperor
The Guangxu Emperor (14 August 1871 – 14 November 1908), personal name Zaitian, was the tenth Emperor of the Qing dynasty, and the ninth Qing emperor to rule over China proper. His reign lasted from 1875 to 1908, but in practice he ruled, w ...
by the
Empress Dowager Cixi
Empress Dowager Cixi ( ; mnc, Tsysi taiheo; formerly romanised as Empress Dowager T'zu-hsi; 29 November 1835 – 15 November 1908), of the Manchu Yehe Nara clan, was a Chinese noblewoman, concubine and later regent who effectively controlled ...
, it was called the "Outline of Imperial Constitution".
Main contents
Outline of Imperial Constitution was based on the "Constitution of the Empire of Japan", and consists of 23 articles, including the
body text
__NOTOC__
The body text or body copy is the text forming the main content of a book, magazine, web page, or any other printed or digital work. This is as a contrast to both additional components such as headings, images, charts, footnotes etc. on ...
"Powers of the Monarch" (君上大权) and the
appendix "Rights and Duties of Subjects" (臣民权利义务).
Impact and evaluation
Although the Outline of Imperial Constitution was modelled on the Japanese
Meiji Constitution
The Constitution of the Empire of Japan (Kyūjitai: ; Shinjitai: , ), known informally as the Meiji Constitution (, ''Meiji Kenpō''), was the constitution of the Empire of Japan which was proclaimed on February 11, 1889, and remained in for ...
,
it is the first constitutional document in
Chinese history.
See also
*
Late Qing reforms
Late Qing reforms (), commonly known as New Policies of the late Qing dynasty (), or New Deal of the late Qing dynasty, simply referred to as New Policies, were a series of cultural, economic, educational, military, and political reforms implemen ...
*
Preparative Constitutionalism
Preparative Constitutionalism or Preparatory Constitutionalism (), also known as Preparation of Constitutionalism, refers to attempts by the imperial government of the Qing dynasty of China at implementing top-down constitutional reforms.
The Qin ...
References
Further reading
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ResearchGateHereh1>
External links
(in Chinese).
Law in Qing dynasty
Defunct constitutions
Constitution of China
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