Tang Central Government. The central government of the Tang dynasty (618-907) had four main sections: Department of State Affairs, which performed the essential tasks of administration and included six ministries (personnel, revenue, rites, war, justice, and public works); Imperial Chancellery, which acted as a center for the transmission of imperial edicts; Imperial Grand Secretariat, which was responsible for the drafting of official decrees; and the Council of State, which comprised the emperor, great dignitaries, and the civil chiefs of the six ministries. There were also several services with more limited functions, the most important of which was the censorate, a separate branch of government. It acted as an inspector general of the administration, hearing complaints from the general public and preventing officials from engaging in corruption, extortion, and fraud.

Song Central Government. Many features of Tang administration were revived in a...