Why did Han rulers create civil service examinations?
1 Answer
China has always functioned better with a strong civil service, but after creating China by force, Han rulers had to look for new ways to select regional administrators.
Explanation:
China's heartland has long been along the banks of the Yellow and Yangtze Rivers; but the lower reaches of both rivers are broad alluvial plains that are easily subjected to severe flooding. This is particularly true of the Yellow River, which has been long contrained by levees and dikes to such an extent that the bottom of the river is now above much of the surrounding farmland.
Keeping order in the densely populated areas of China has always been a difficult task, especially as flood control is so important. The other problem (even going back to the Zhou, and perhaps even the semi-mythical Yao dynasties) is the need for central control when society was ruled over by aristocratic families through their fiefdoms.
Trying to create a bureaucratic elite of educated persons demanded an exam system as alternative to resort to aristocrats; but ultimately the system confirmed the importance of education to the upper class families and cemented many younger sons and lesser nobles in place as supporters of various rulers.
The Han Dynasty had arisen through civil war (and a most complex one at that), after the Qin had forcefully united China a generation earlier. The wars had shattered much of the earlier structure; but competive exams quickly created a badly needed class of bureaucrats, and bound many aspiring young nobles to a study of scholarship rather than warfare.
Theoretically competive exams also allowed for the appearance of social mobility (always necessary for social stability), but still gave well-off families the inside track at getting members into the civil service. Moreover, a stable administrative class also meant for stable revenues and fewer devastating floods.
