武舉常科創自武曌（則天），長安二年（702）始設。歷後各朝，除元代不開武科，宋、金、明三代偶有停罷，武科相沿一千二百年，幾與文科相埒。職是之故，近世中國之造士與選士，於文科、儒學、儒經、文廟一系之外，另有武科、武學、武經、武廟一系。兩系雖各有輕重，然並駕駢行千餘載，交互制衡，以保政治之平穩暢達。 / 入關伊始，清廷即詔令因襲前明舊制，開設文武科考。自順治二年（1645）開科鄉試，至光緒二十七年（1901）正式廢除，清代武科持續運作二百五十餘年，幾與王朝相伴始終。清代武科之主要層級同於文科，皆始於童試，繼而鄉試、會試，終於殿試。各級武考中式者，亦相應得授武生員、武舉人、武進士出身。武科各級考試，均分別外場、內場進行，以外場試武藝，內場試文藝。錄取權衡時外場重於內場，外場技藝之中，馬、步箭及開弓又重於舞刀、掇石。 / 清代武科之制度設計及考試內容，延續中國歷代選士「文武合一」之一貫理想，然現實中卻文武殊途。清代武科之設計與運作，既體現旗民之別，八旗內部又有滿蒙與漢軍之別、京旗與駐防之別。武科之正面影響遠不及文科，然文武科考皆為常規掄才途徑，兩者所揭櫫清代政局大勢與掄才需求之變化，實際異曲同工。通過文武兩途考選，清代科考人才之宏觀佈局，呈現南方文風熾盛、北方技勇突出之特徵。武進士之初始授職，以皇宮侍衛及地方營、衛守備為主，然武科選途清初即病壅滯，實授遷轉甚難。 / 清廷之復武科，宣稱旨在遴選「干城之才」，以為「腹心之寄」。然武科內場考試，自乾隆朝廢止《四書》，嘉慶朝盡廢論、策之試，改為默寫《武經》，日漸形同虛設。武科士子之文化素養，亦日益下降。武科外場所試技藝，係屬展示表演，而非對抗實戰。而且，自乾隆間改試鳥槍之議被禁，外場各項冷兵器技藝考核陳陳相因，與實際戰局日漸疏離。職是之故，清代中期以降，武科越益頹化為授予功名之儀式與恩榮，而非掄才要徑、晉身要途。武進士初始授職之品級，雖遠較文進士為高，然武科出身之仕途前景與政治影響遠不及文科。更有甚者，武科內、外場不僅弊情嚴重，不少武科士子更危害一方，成為地方社會亂源，大悖設科初衷。 / 清代武科出身雖有功勳卓著、官居高位者，然究屬鳳毛麟角，且集中於清代初中期。整體而論，這套幾乎橫貫全國、縱跨全清之掄才制度，得材甚少。其對帝國整體軍事力量，亦鮮少實質促進。然武科之存續，仍有平衡文武、調劑滿漢之功用，清廷既可藉此驅策雙方、維持動態均勢，又可以之宣示恩典威權、籠絡地方。因此，清代武科雖然實效不彰，卻又相沿不輟。必至清末內憂外患之鉅變衝擊，始與文科相繼停廢。復因武科之影響遠不及文科，故廢除武科所致近代中國社會之震盪，亦不可與停廢文科同日而語。 / Established by Empress Wu in 702, the imperial military examination system lasted, albeit having been suspended in the entire Yuan dynasty and in part of the Song, Jin and Ming dynasties occasionally, for 1200 years, which was nearly as long as the period of existence of the imperial civil examination system. In effect, the military examination system, associated with military schools, military classics and military temples, functioned as a mechanism parallel to the civil examination and its related institutions (i.e., Confucian schools, Confucian classics and Confucian temples) for cultivating and recruiting talents in late imperial China. Although the two systems exerted influence in different degrees on the Chinese empire, they co-existed and managed to keep a balance between them for more than a millennium so as to contribute to the stable and smooth governance of traditional China. / The Manchu court, immediately after entering Beijing, decreed to resume the civil and military examinations by adopting the former Ming institutions. Since its restoration in 1645, the military examination system ran consecutively for more than 250 years until it was eventually abolished in 1901. The vertical levels of the military examination, which were the same as those for its civil counterpart, included Tongshi (examination for junior students), Xiangshi (provincial examination), Huishi (metropolitan examination), and Dianshi (palace examination). Candidates who passed examinations at different levels were conferred the corresponding status of Wushengyuan (military government students), Wujuren (military provincial graduates) and Wujinshi (military metropolitan graduates). At each level, the military examination consisted of the outer session for tests of martial arts and physical strengths and the inner session on military classics and literary abilities. As for selection criteria, the outer session often carried greater weight. Among the examination items for the outer session, mounted archery, standing archery and bow-drawing were more important than long-handled sword-brandishing and stone-lifting. / To integrate literary and martial competence, the long-standing ideal of talent-recruitment in traditional China, was also materialized in the Qing military examination. In reality, however, the civil and military tracks diverged remarkably from each other. The design and implementation of the military examination system evinced a clear distinction between banner people and commoners. Even within the Eight Banners, there were different arrangements for Manchus, Mongols and Han military bannermen, and for capital banners and provincial garrison banners as well. In terms of positive influence, the military examination system could not compare with the civil one. However, the vicissitudes of both the civil and military examination systems, as components of the mechanism for the recruitment of talents, reflected almost similarly the changes in political development and the correspondent needs for helps from social elites in Qing times. Under these two systems, the macro-spatial distribution of talented candidates in the Qing demonstrated that those from the south were versed in literary skills, whilst those from the north were excellent in martial arts. The initial position for a newly admitted military Jinshi was usually the imperial guard or mid-ranking officer in the local Green Standard Army. But the career prospects of the military degree holders started to dim as early as the beginning of the dynasty. The situation became increasingly difficult afterwards when promising appointments with promotion prospects were hard to come by. / The Qing court constantly claimed that the restoration of military examination aimed at nurturing able military talents to serve as reliable defenders of the empire. Yet after Emperor Qianlong cancelled the test on The Four Books and Emperor Jiaqing further replaced discourse essay composition with short paragraph writing of the military classics from memory, the inner session of the examination was gradually turned into something in name only. The result was an increasing decline of the overall literary level of the candidates. More problematically, the test of martial skills in the outer session of the examination was more on individual demonstrative performance than actual confrontational combat. And since Emperor Qianlong had banned the inclusion of musket as an item of examination in the outer session, the use of traditional cold weapons and relevant skills were tested repeatedly without substantial reform, making the examination further and further irrelevant to actual warfare. Thus after the mid-Qing era, the military examination degenerated gradually into something ceremonial and honour-endowing, rather than a key mechanism of talent recruitment. Despite the superior rankings of initial appointments, the subsequent career prospects and political influences of the military Jinshi were far less favorable than those of their literary peers. What further worsened the situation was the phenomenon that, apart from severe malpractice and corruption in the examination, many military degree holders even committed infamous deeds and thus became the source of unrests in local society, starkly betraying the original intention of the institution of imperial examination. / Cases of military degree holders who performed meritoriously in military and political realms did exist. They were nevertheless rare and mainly appeared during the first half of the dynasty. A holistic evaluation of the military examination system, which was operated spatially all over the empire and temporally nearly throughout the entire dynasty, nurtured few serviceable military talents. It could therefore hardly make significant contribution to the empire’s overall military strengths. Paradoxically, the military examination system did continue to function as an institution to balance the civil and military sectors, and Manchus and the Han, in terms of interest and power. In adopting it, the Manchu court could manipulate both sides and keep a dynamic balance between them, meanwhile bestowing favours on, declaring authority over, and winning the support of society. Therefore, the military examination system remained in operation although it did not work effectively as a due talent-recruiting institution. It was officially abrogated, shortly before the abolition of its civil counterpart, in the very late period of the Qing under the impact of a series of social upheavals and tremendous political changes, amid external military threats. As the influence of the military examination system could nowhere match that of the civil examination system, the abolition of the latter seemed to have brought a much bigger shock to Chinese society in transition to the modern era. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / 李林. / Thesis (Ph.D.) Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2014. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 345-360). / Abstracts also in English. / Li Lin.