Abstract: Henan was not only a Superior Prefecture but also the Western Capital of the Northern Song Dynasty, which resulted in its dual functions in the Superior Prefecture administrative management and the imperial palace administration. This specific property led to a unique operation mode by combining the management of auxiliary capital and Superior Prefecture which was different from the general management system of the Superior Prefecture and was under the jurisdiction of the Circuits. On one hand, some administrations such as the Regency and the Branch Office were established with the corresponded personnel system; on the other hand, the governmental body of Henan Superior Prefecture remained. The paper comprises of the following elements. First, the history of the Western Capital, the Henan Superior Prefecture and the organizational system of the Western Capital which was first auxiliary capital in the Northern Song Dynasty. Second, the official system of the Henan Superior Prefecture. When making a study of the establishment of the senior officials such as the Governor, the Vice Governor,the Prefect and the attached officials such as the Assistant Prefect, the Judge and the left and right Police Office, it is clear that the government titles of the Henan Superior Prefecture and Kaifeng Superior Prefecture were roughly equal while the government body of the former was much smaller than the latter. Third, the organization structure and the affiliated institutions of the Western Capital Regency. The Regency was established due to the existence of an imperial palace which was a transit accommodation of the emperor inside the Henan Superior Prefecture. One of the differences in the regulations between the Western Capital and the Eastern Capital was that even though the emperor did not go on an expedition, the Western Capital Regency remained at ordinary times while the responsibility in guarding and constructing of which was replaced by arranging demoted or retired officers. The dual functions of Henan Superior Prefecture were caused by a special situation that the Prefect of Henan Superior Prefecture also served as Regent. The Auxiliary Censorate of the Western Capital and the Directorate of Education attached to the Western Capital Regency and assigned to both real jobs and fake jobs did undertake some tasks to arrange the dissident officers and the officers resigned from leading posts. Forth, the Western Capital Branch Official turned into a general term of the officers rather than officers sent by the central government. To be set up for the demoted officials or the officials of merit who were unable to take on the responsibilities due to their illness, the Western Capital Branch Official was a freeloading sinecure with indeterminate stuff number. The Western Capital Regency and Branch Office were among the factors of official redundancy; meanwhile, they also resolved political conflicts of the Northern Song government more or less.

Key words: Henan Superior Prefecture of the Northern Song Dynasty, the Western Capital, official system, dual functions