Ming dynasty postal relay system

Timeline

1. 1368–1398Nanjing · Southern ZhiliAfter Zhu Yuanzhang founded the Ming dynasty, he modeled the system on the Yuan system with reforms, establishing a nationwide transmission network centered on postal relay stations and courier posts. During the Hongwu era, stations were set up along the main national routes, with regulations on the number of horses, boats, and relay workers at each station, and relevant provisions issued in the Collected Statutes of the Great Ming to govern relay operations.
2. 1403–1487Beijing and the main relay routes nationwide · ChinaAfter the Yongle Emperor moved the capital to Beijing, relay roads connecting Beijing with Nanjing and the provinces were comprehensively expanded, and northern and northeastern frontier stations were greatly expanded to meet military needs. During Zheng He's voyages to the Western Ocean, coastal and inland relay services also supported extensive diplomatic and trade activities.
3. 1501–1600Throughout the Ming dynasty · ChinaIn the 16th century the total number of relay stations exceeded a thousand, with about 70,000 horses, and express courier posts spread across all counties, allowing official dispatches to reach the frontiers within days to a fortnight. However, officials' abuse of relay privileges and the burden of relay expenses apportioned onto peasants became increasingly prominent; Zhang Juzheng's reforms (1573–1582) attempted to rectify relay administration but with limited effect.
4. 1600–1644Throughout the Ming dynasty · ChinaThe Wanli Emperor's three great campaigns and the war in Liaodong sharply increased the military burden on the relay system; under fiscal pressure, large-scale cuts to relay stations were carried out in the early Chongzhen era (1629), leaving many relay workers unemployed. Li Zicheng had originally been a relay worker; after losing his job due to the station cuts, he joined the peasant uprising, becoming a landmark historical cause-and-effect in the fall of the Ming dynasty.