Vietnamese architecture in this period. Fiefs, feudal estates, and ladders are different manifestations of the state ownership regime over communal land. Rewarding and granting meritorious people land or peasant households was a popular form of feudalism during the Ly - Tran dynasties.
When the Ho Dynasty replaced the Tran Dynasty, Ho Quy Ly implemented the policy of land and slave limitation . In particular, the land and slave limitation policy issued in 1397 stipulated: "The King and the eldest princess are allowed to possess unlimited land, and the common people are allowed to possess no more than 10 acres. If they exceed the prescribed number, the court will confiscate them." In 1401, the Ho Dynasty continued to issue a slave limitation policy with the content: nobles, depending on their rank and title, are allowed to keep a certain number of slaves. If they exceed the prescribed number, the court will confiscate them and pay 5 quan if there is a will of inheritance for three generations. Thus, the land, fiefdoms, serfs and slaves were still legally recognized by the state. But with the two policies of land and slave limitation, most of the land, serfs and slaves were transferred from the hands of the Tran nobles to the state. This was a measure that Ho Quy Ly used to attack the economic and political power of the Tran nobles in order to consolidate the power of the Ho Dynasty. The policy of land and slave quotas deepened the socio-economic conflicts that arose from the end of the Tran Dynasty.
During the early Le Dynasty, the feudal state issued the "loi dien" policy (1477) which stipulated that only the king and officials of the fourth rank or higher could enjoy the "loi dien" (land of land). A part of the "loi dien" (land of land) was granted permanently, and the other part was granted for use only. The prince was granted 2,090 mau, of which 640 mau were granted permanently. "Loi dien" (land of land) was a type of land without farmers attached. Of which, the part of the land granted permanently by the state was not large, but this was a new phenomenon that promoted the development of private land ownership. The loi dien policy gave rise to the landlord-tenant relationship, replacing the previous serf-slave relationship.
Thus, it can be said that by the early Le Dynasty, the land and fief system had no basis for existence and had entered a period of disintegration. In this specific historical context, the land tenure policy during the early Le Dynasty was a progressive form of enfeoffment, contributing to changes in economic and social relations. Enfeoffed land was a privilege and benefit of the ruling class. It was especially
developed during the Ly - Tran period, by the early Le period, the content of the title change gave rise to the landlord - tenant relationship in society [Nguyen Tri Dinh & associates, 2013, 446].
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- Village communal land
Village communal land (also known as "quan dien", "quan dien ban xa") appeared since the dissolution of the primitive communal regime and existed for a long time in our country's history. The feudal state turned this type of land into its own property but assigned it to villages to manage and divide according to custom, organize cultivation and pay taxes to the state. This is the most important part of land, bringing the main source of income to the state. When farmers receive and cultivate this type of land, they must fulfill obligations to the state such as paying taxes, doing corvée labor, and military service. During the Ngo, Dinh, Tien Le, Ly, Tran, and Ho dynasties, the division of local public land was undertaken by villages and communes. In general, public land belongs to each village and commune and is cultivated by that village. This principle is respected by the central and local governments. Land is divided periodically (from 3 to 6 years). But during the early Le dynasty, the central government intervened in the division of communal land through the government.
"military field" book 1 .
"Military land" was a major policy on land division during the early Le Dynasty (Later Le Dynasty) originating from the country's situation after 20 years of fighting against the Ming. At that time, land was partly abandoned and partly seized, agriculture was devastated, farmers were scattered, and the insurgents had no land to live on when returning to their hometowns. Therefore, in 1428, Le Loi investigated the land situation and decided to reclaim land from the extinct nobles, from the fake mandarins; ownerless and abandoned land was confiscated and redistributed. However, the "military land" regime was not completed until the reign of Le Thanh Tong (1460-1497) and had the following basic content:
1) All villagers were given land. All social classes from third-rank mandarins down to soldiers and laborers
1 The military land system appeared in China in 485. In Vietnam, the first time "military land" was implemented was in 1429, under the reign of King Le Thai To (1428-1433).
The wives and children of dignitaries, military officials, and all classes of people serving the state, the elderly, orphans, widows, the disabled, the wives of criminals, and foreigners who had surrendered were all granted land. Only officials of the second rank or higher who had been granted large amounts of land and slaves were not granted land. In communes with private land, those with large amounts of private land were not granted land.
2) The land allocated (divided) by the military is the communal public land, including private land confiscated by the state and assigned to the communal land for management. The military land is implemented according to the principle that the communal public land of a village is divided among the people of that village. In cases where villages have a lot of land but few people and have left it fallow, it is allowed to be divided among the people of other communes that lack land.
3) The land divided among the people is called ration land (this type of land is not calculated by area but by ratio, so it is called ration). Third-rank officials are given 11 portions, fourth-rank officials 10 portions... until the lowest is the elderly from 60 years old and up, the wives of the laborers are given 3.5 portions. Depending on the amount of public land and the number of people divided, each portion as well as the ration land of each village is different.
4) The military grant period is every 6 years. When the military grant period comes, the district, prefecture, and commune officials must go down to the communes and villages to supervise the measurement and division of land. During the 6-year period between two military grant periods, there are adjustments such as taking back the land of the deceased when the mourning period ends, granting more to the men of age, adding or reducing the rations of officials and dignitaries who are promoted, demoted, or dismissed.
5) Those who were given land were only allowed to occupy it for cultivation, not to buy or sell it, meaning they had no ownership rights. Those who received military-issued land had to fulfill their obligations to the state: pay taxes, do corvee labor, military service...
The military land policy with the above content was implemented in practice from 1477. With the military land policy, the Le So dynasty gradually abolished the land autonomy of villages and communes, contributing to accelerating the process of feudalization of social structure. At the same time, the military land regime in the Le So dynasty also had the effect of
actively used in the restoration and development of agriculture, re-establishing social order, creating conditions for farmers to have land to cultivate with a stable military and tax regime. However, those who were given land had to bear all obligations to the state such as paying taxes, doing corvée labor, and military service. However, later, following the general trend before the strong development of the private land ownership regime, communal communal land was increasingly narrowed and the military land regime also gradually lost its effectiveness [Phan Huy Le, 2012].
Besides the communal land owned by the state, most villages in our country have some private land, called communal land. This type of land has many different origins. Communal land includes sacrificial land, grave land of people worshiped in the village, land donated by someone to the village, helping the village have public funds to solve common tasks.
* Privately owned land
This is the land of landlords or self-cultivated farmers, in which the land of landlords is the main land. In our country, private land appeared quite early (during the Northern domination period); but it was not until the Ly dynasty that it was legally recognized. The recognition of private land by state law represents a new positive trend, because it meets the objective requirements set by history in the process of land movement and differentiation in Vietnam [Nguyen Tri Dinh & associates, 2013, 447]. Private land has gone through a long process of emergence, formation, and development and is affected by many factors. That is social differentiation, due to "private appropriation" of land or due to the state selling public land as private land. Private land is called by the following names (terms): "dan dien" (people's land), "tu dien" (private land), "danh dien" (land with someone's name).
By the Ly - Tran dynasties, the private ownership of land had developed significantly. The state taxed private land less than public land. According to the book An Nam chi nguyen , if the tax on one mau of private land was three thang, then the tax on one mau of public land was 100 thang. The phenomena of buying, selling, offering, donating and litigation over land disputes were quite common in society. To resolve this situation, the feudal state issued
implemented many laws related to private land ownership. The Tran Dynasty also sold public land to private land, but if the state used private land, the owner would be compensated.
During this period, there were four main forms of private land ownership: small ownership by farmers, large ownership by landlords, ownership of noble estates, and ownership of land by temples (Buddhist land).
- Farmers' land
From the very beginning, the smallholder land ownership system of peasants occupied an important position in the economy. Private land of working peasants was formed from two sources: reclaiming wasteland and purchasing land from the state. In particular, reclaiming wasteland to expand the cultivated area or building new villages created conditions for this smallholder land ownership system to develop.
In addition, the feudal state's sale of public land to private individuals also contributed to the increase in private land of farmers. In 1254, the Tran Dynasty sold public land of villages and communes to people to buy as private land. The price of a acre of land sold by the feudal state at that time was 5 quan of money. There were many farming families who did handicrafts and were able to buy land. There were also small officials who pooled their salaries to buy land as a long-term living base and used it to make offerings to pagodas. This situation was partly reflected in local steles. Through the steles, it is shown that the majority of people who donated land were state officials. Thus, the ranks of officials and small officials during the Ly - Tran Dynasty held a significant position among small land owners [Truong Huu Quynh, 2009, 130-131]. Thus, it can be said that the small land ownership regime of working people under the Tran Dynasty was quite popular. It would be an important basis for the development of large land ownership in the 14th century, especially during the famine years.
During the Ho Dynasty, private land ownership generally did not have the conditions to develop because the feudal court seized land into the hands of the state. But during the early Le Dynasty, the state allowed the right to ownership to change.
long-term ownership. This has promoted the situation of "private appropriation" of land. This is the basis for the emergence and development of large-scale private ownership of land in the 14th century. And it is also the factor that causes communal land to decrease, while private land tends to increase.
- Landlord's land
The system of large land ownership appeared during the period of Chinese domination. Even during the period of Chinese domination, there were a number of wealthy landlords who used their money and land to build pagodas and send their children to school. When the country gained independence, they sent their children to the ranks of mandarins of the Ngo, Dinh, and Tien Le dynasties. During the Ly - Tran dynasties, the system of large private land ownership had a higher development than during the period of Chinese domination. Some high-ranking officials of the Ly dynasty were also landlords at that time. For example, the Imperial Censor Bui Quoc Khai, whose family had a lot of land, his two daughters donated 5 acres of land to Thien Nien pagoda (Quat Sai ward, Hanoi). Or the Grand Tutor Do The Nien, under the reign of Ly Anh Tong (1138-1175), built luxurious houses and donated a lot of land to pagodas. Over time, the number of landlords increased. Many landlords were meritorious mandarins, mandarins, princesses, concubines, and maids of the king. These people, thanks to the feudal land, accumulated and increased their wealth, bought private land and became landlords.
During the resistance war against the Yuan-Mongol invaders, Tran Hung Dao called on rich people (landlords) to pay rice to provide military provisions to fight the enemy. A rich woman in Phu Luong village (Thuy Nguyen, Hai Phong) gave money and rice to help Tran Hung Dao's military provisions, or another rich person in Noi village (Quy Xuyen commune, Thuy Nguyen, Hai Phong) also "became a private person to provide military provisions" for Tran Hung Dao when he passed through the area but the military provisions had not yet arrived. By the second half of the 14th century, the land of the landlords was quite large. However, the landlords at this time had not yet become a strong social force. When the Ho Dynasty replaced the Tran Dynasty, the state implemented a land restriction policy, causing private land, especially the land of the landlords, to have no conditions to develop, and even to seriously decline. In addition, the state also increased the land tax.
Private land was increased from 3 thang to 5 thang per mau. With the land limit policy, the Ho Dynasty inhibited the development of private land - a progressive economic form in agriculture.
Large land ownership under the early Le Dynasty had favorable conditions for development. To consolidate the social foundation and the supporting class foundation, the state at this time implemented the "land tenure" policy and issued many laws related to the existence and development of private land. The Hong Duc Law Code allowed the conversion of the right to occupy land for a long time into ownership. With this law, the state at the early Le Dynasty legalized many cases of land encroachment by landlords. Besides, this period also had regulations on the forms of selling and permanently selling land in society. In general, under the early Le Dynasty, private land became an important part of the country's land ownership structure. The landlord class was a powerful social force in terms of economy and politics. The development of private land and its economic relations reflected a positive trend. This trend contributed to promoting the rapid recovery and development of agriculture after the resistance war against the Ming.
- Noble estate
Estates were formed through many different paths, such as land reclamation, land purchase, encroachment on public land and land of the people. In China, estates appeared in the 5th-6th centuries. During its existence and development, it had different names. Especially around the middle of the 8th century, estates in China developed strongly and became a popular land phenomenon in the land ownership regime of the Tang Dynasty.
In Vietnam, the first estates were established under the Tang Dynasty and were influenced by the Chinese estate system. The phenomenon of land grabbing to establish estates appeared in our country from the end of the 9th century. During the Ly Dynasty, a number of great nobles occupied land to build their own estates 1 .
1 It should be noted that the concept of "trang" during the Ly - Tran dynasties was used to refer to the private lands of lords and nobles, and to refer to villages such as Dong Cuu village, Kien Lao village, Co Long village, Lac Dao village, and was also used to refer to newly established villages.
Land ownership was a prominent phenomenon during the Tran Dynasty. According to historical records, quite early, General Tran Pho Duyet (father of Tran Khanh Du) established Chi Linh land on the banks of Kinh Thay River; An Sinh Vuong Tran Lieu recruited people to reclaim wasteland and establish An Lac Hamlet... But it was not until 1266 onwards, when the Tran King allowed the princes, princesses and nobles to recruit farmers who had lost their land and wandered as slaves to reclaim wasteland and establish villages, that the movement to establish land really developed, and land ownership sprang up in many places. Historical records mentioned this event: "Previously, the royal families often ordered their slaves to build dikes on the beach to prevent salt water, and two years later, they reclaimed the fields, let them marry each other and live right there, establishing many private lands", or "previously, the princes and princesses had land on the banks of the river, and the newly deposited alluvial areas all belonged to the homeowners".
In general, estates originated mainly from the reclamation of wasteland, formed by the way that nobles sent slaves to coastal areas to build dikes to prevent salt water and establish estates, which after two or three years became cultivated fields. The area of an estate in our country is usually not large, ranging from 80 mau to 500 mau, or from 25 ha to 150 ha, equivalent to a hamlet or a village. Because estates are privately owned land, nobles and landowners have the right to buy, sell or transfer those estates. By the end of the 14th century, estates accounted for an important proportion of the total area of public and private land in the whole country. However, estates in our country are not like territories in the West. Estates developed strongly during the Tran Dynasty, but declined during the Ho and Le Dynasties.
- Temple land
Since the 7th and 8th centuries, Buddhism has developed strongly in our country, pagodas have sprung up everywhere. Among the monks, many came from wealthy families, spent money to buy land to build pagodas, invited great masters to preach Buddhism. To support the monks and maintain the incense in the pagodas, many Buddhists competed to spend money and donate fields to the pagodas. Among those who contributed to the strong development of pagodas, we must mention the kings of the Ly and Tran dynasties. During the Ly dynasty, the feudal state granted 1,371 hectares of fields in various places to the pagodas. During the Tran dynasty, King Tran