The little-examined genre of legal case narratives is represented
in this fascinating volume, the first collection translated into
English of criminal cases - most involving homicide - from late
imperial China. These true stories of crimes of passion, family
conflict, neighborhood feuds, gang violence, and sedition are a
treasure trove of information about social relations and legal
procedure. Each narrative describes circumstances leading up to a
crime and its discovery, the appearance of the crime scene and the
body, the apparent cause of death, speculation about motives and
premeditation, and whether self-defense was involved. Detailed
testimony is included from the accused and from witnesses, family
members, and neighbors, as well as summaries and opinions from
local magistrates, their coroners, and other officials higher up
the chain of judicial review. Officials explain which law in the
Qing dynasty legal code was violated, which corresponding
punishment was appropriate, and whether the sentence was eligible
for reduction. These records began as reports from magistrates on
homicide cases within their jurisdiction that were required by law
to be tried first at the county level, then reviewed by judicial
officials at the prefectural, provincial, and national levels, with
each administrator adding his own observations to the file. Each
case was decided finally in Beijing, in the name of the emperor if
not by the monarch himself, before sentences could be carried out
and the records permanently filed. All of the cases translated here
are from the Qing imperial copies, most of which are now housed in
the First Historical Archives, Beijing.
General
Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate?
Let us know about it.
Does this product have an incorrect or missing image?
Send us a new image.
Is this product missing categories?
Add more categories.
Review This Product
No reviews yet - be the first to create one!
Welcome to Loot.co.za!
Sign in / Register |Wishlists & Gift Vouchers |Help | Advanced search
