Tang Dynasty Postal Relay System

Timeline

1. 627–741Relay roads between the two capitals (Chang'an–Luoyang) · Guanzhong–Central PlainsFrom Emperor Taizong to Xuanzong, relay statutes were progressively reformed; the Tang Liudian and Tang Lü Shuyi record station spacing of about thirty li and over 1,600 relay stations empire-wide; the main roads between the two capitals and the routes through Hexi, Jiangnan, and Lingnan formed a network covering the empire, supporting military-administrative dispatch and tributary trade.
2. 801–820Ministry of War of the Department of State Affairs in Chang'an and relay stations across the circuits · Chang'anDuring Emperor Xianzong's Yuanhe reign, statutes such as the Yuanhe Gechi were promulgated, setting detailed rules on post-horse quotas, travel tallies and tallies, station provisioning, and penalties for violations; the center could still convey edicts to the regional governors and dispatch officials through the courier system, and the institutional texts remained complete.
3. 850–900Relay roads of the Heshuo regional governors · Heshuo regionAfter the Huang Chao uprising, central authority collapsed; regional governors seized post horses and set up private checkpoints, sharply reducing the efficiency of the court's courier system; some military commissioners built their own postal systems, and the unified Tang courier system existed in name only, though relay stations continued in local administration as transport nodes.