The Administrative Division and Its Evolution in Qin and Han Dynasties

The administrative division of Qin Dynasty was a pure two-tier system of prefectures and counties,in which prefectures presided over counties.The feudal system in the time of Chu-Han War was on the principle of military merit rather than patriarchal kinship,which differed from the feudal system of Zhou Dynasty.The feudal system and the system of prefectures and counties coexisted from the beginning of Western Han Dynasty to the fifth year of Emperor Jing.The real bureaucratic political system of prefectures and counties in Han Dynasty was formally established after that.States in Han Dynasty had been supervisory area until the fifth year of Emperor Ling in Eastern Han Dynasty,when they became administrative divisions,and the system of prefectures and counties was replaced by the system of states,prefectures and counties.The system of administrative division pioneered in Qin and Han Dynasties had a far-reaching influence on later generations.