Aborigine Military Colonies System in Qing Taiwan: A Case Study of Tungshih in Central Taiwan (1784-1825)

乾隆五十三年（1788）林爽文事件結束後，清朝政府為了改革軍事上的疏漏，決定在臺施行番屯制度，從九十三社熟番中挑選四千人編成屯丁，並分撥界外荒埔作為養贍埔地，藉此鞏固臺灣邊區的社會秩序。這套制度除了預期軍事方面的效用，同時也是為了解決乾隆三十年代以來界外私墾的問題。因此，番屯制度影響的範圍不只熟番而已，界外地區的漢人、生番也受到衝擊。我們希望藉由番屯制度作為切入點，並以臺中東勢地區為中心，觀察乾隆晚期至道光初年臺灣界外社會的樣貌，以及制度推行後對當地社會造成的影響。 目前對於番屯制度的研究集中於章程條文的討論，在這個基礎之上，我們希望進一步瞭解番屯制度的決策過程與落實情形，尤其是地方社會如何介入並形塑這套制度。在決策過程的討論方面，番屯制度雖然一開始是希望移植四川屯墾的經驗，不過因應臺灣本身的特殊情況，最終制定出一套與四川迥然有別的條文內容。在決策的過程中，可以清楚地觀察到官員間對番屯制度不同的態度，以及地方社會各群體為了維護自身利益的行動。最終，番屯制度條文是在各個群體妥協之下而產生，它的內容同時包含了中央官員的期望以及地方社會的利益。 探討番屯制度的落實也有助於瞭解清代制度的運作。番屯制度條文雖是理想與現實妥協下的產物，但要施行於地方社會仍有部分阻礙。因此，乾隆五十五年（1790）番屯制度通過以後，並不完全遵照章程條文運作，而是由地方社會逐步形塑出一套配合現實環境的辦法。不過，這並不代表制度本身沒有效用，地方社會在追求利益的同時，也受到制度的約束。因此，地方社會往往利用制度的彈性空間，為自我創造出一套合理的說詞，以配合制度的規範。對於官員來說，他們最大的目的是維繫臺灣社會的安定，而不在於制度是否遵照條文施行，因此，在每次的屯政改革之中，官員總是追認地方社會協調出來的秩序。可以說，制度的運作並不僅僅是經由官方執行、民間遵守，而是雙方在彼此的目標之間尋求一個均衡點。After the Lin Shuang-wen incident was pacified in 1788, the aborigine military colonies system was introduced to Taiwan by the Qing government, in order to strengthen the peace and order of this overseas frontier. This system involved selecting 4,000 aborigine military colonists (t''un tin 屯丁) from 93 civilized aborigine (shu fan 熟番) tribes, to whom the land beyond boundary was given to cultivate. In addition to military functions, the system also served to solve the unlicensed cultivation beyond boundary, which had widely emerged since 1765. Therefore, the system affected not only the civilized aborigines, but also raw aborigines (sheng fan 生番) and the Chinese (漢人). In this thesis, in order to investigate the effects of implementing the aborigine military colonies system on a society beyond boundary, I will take Tungshih(東勢) region in central Taiwan, from 1784 to 1820, as my major case for discussion. Most research on the aborigine military colonies system has focused on the content of official legislation. I, however, intend to shift from legal words to social realities by concentrating on another two aspects: the formation of legislation and the actual condition of operation, especially how the system was refashioned by local society. The legislation of the system was originally inspired by the experience of Sicuan (四川); however, a different version, which better suited to the situation in Taiwan, was approved by the officials. In this process, diverse concerns of this policy were voiced: while the officials held divergent opinions, the local groups also negotiated for their own benefits. Finally, the legislation reached a compromise between different groups, and took into account both the expectations of central government and the benefits of local society. The operation of the system, on the other hand, can also expand our views on the workings of other systems in the Qing dynasty. Although the legislation was issued in 1790, the system did not function in the ways which it was instructed in the articles. In fact, the system was adjusted to fulfilling the practical need and to sustaining the profits of local society. In later reforms of the system, the adjustments made by local people were usually confirmed by the officials. This does not mean, however, that the system malfunctioned: it was still a norm which people could manipulate but not violate. For the local people, the goal was to ensure their expectable profit in the cultivation by circumventing the restriction of the original legislation. For officials, the goal was to maintain the peace and stability of Taiwan society rather than enforce the legislation literally. In conclusion, the implementation of a system should not be simply viewed as “government command, people obey,” but a dynamic process of finding the equilibrium of bilateral goals