中國皇帝制度下，用人權柄厥在於君相與吏部，故吏部地位凌駕政府諸部，權重自不待言。綜觀唐代吏部組織置有四司（吏部、司封、司勳、考功），其首長吏部尚書總其政，秩正三品，唐初文武百官朝謁之班序，吏部尚書班在宰相中書令與門下侍中上，玄宗頒《開元令》始移下，仍居尚書省六部之冠。其副貳吏部侍郎，階正四品上，與吏部尚書同列清望官，為尚書省諸司侍郎之首，乃衣冠之華選，玄宗開元末始聽表讓。在唐初，吏部尚書之人選，皆為高祖、太宗之心膂，不易真除或常以他官尚書及侍郎權知五品以下選事；其權位榮美，有政治上的重要性與指標性。 唐代吏部之權責有四：舉才、任官、考核、黜落。且唐行貢舉取士，依銓選擇官；以公平、考選分立的考試制度，來建立基層文官的選授制度，開宋世以降「科考擇官」之奠基者。其唐初吏部知貢舉，掌握天下六品以下基層官吏之選授，彰顯中央集權政府的正統性與君權統御天下，支使吏部舉才與授官；其吏部權責之重，衡鑑之有司，干係天下選人之政治前途與國家人才之消長，可影響一國之治亂。

In the imperial system of China, the power of appointment rested upon the zaixiang (宰相) and the Libu (吏部), and the Libu therefore enjoyed superior status to other departments within the imperial government. It goes without saying that it held significant sway in the polity. In the development of organization and power structure of the libu during the Tang (唐) Dynasty, the Zuo- and Youpuye (左右僕射) were the officials with the full authority of the zaixiang in the early Tang Dynasty. The Shangshusheng (尚書省) was then the department under the zaixiang and an executive department. The holders of shangshu (尚書) of the Libu were all trusted men of the Emperor Gaozu (高祖). It was difficult for a deputy shangshu of the Libu or other inferior Shangshusheng officials lower than the fifth class to be promoted to this position. As a result, this office was highly prestigious. In addition, the shangshu of the Libu was, politically speaking, both significant and indicative. Moreover, the Tang Dynasty saw the practice of appointing civil servants through examination. A fair and independent system of examination was established for entry level positions of civil service. This laid the foundation of the civil servant examination system of the Song (宋) Dynasty and beyond. In the early Tang Dynasty, the civil servant examination, which awarded employments to officials below the sixth class, was managed by the Libu. This system manifested the legitimacy of a centralized government and the power of the emperor. Therefore the Libu carried a weighty responsibility, which was not only highly pertinent to the political career of every candidate in the nation, but it was also significant in the orderliness of the country’s governance.