was an old province of Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

, which is today the northern part of Fukui Prefecture

Fukui Prefecture

is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region on Honshū island. The capital is the city of Fukui.- Prehistory :The Kitadani Dinosaur Quarry, on the Sugiyama River within the city limits of Katsuyama, has yielded the Fukuiraptor kitadaniensis and Fukuisaurus tetoriensis as well as an unnamed...

. It was sometimes called , with Etchū

Etchu Province

was an old province in central Honshū, on the Sea of Japan side. It was sometimes called , with Echizen and Echigo Provinces. It bordered Echigo, Shinano, Hida, Kaga, and Noto provinces...

 and Echigo

Echigo Province

was an old province in north-central Japan, on the shores of the Sea of Japan. It was sometimes called , with Echizen and Etchū Provinces. Today the area is part of Niigata Prefecture, which also includes the island which was the old Sado Province. This province was the northernmost part of the...

 Provinces.

Echizen is famous for washi

Washi

is a type of paper made in Japan. Washi is commonly made using fibers from the bark of the gampi tree, the mitsumata shrub , or the paper mulberry, but also can be made using bamboo, hemp, rice, and wheat...

 (traditionally-produced paper). A text dated AD 774 mentions the washi made in this area. Echizen-produced Washi is still the most commonly sold traditional paper in Japan today. Echizen is also well known for its ceramics

Ceramics (art)

In art history, ceramics and ceramic art mean art objects such as figures, tiles, and tableware made from clay and other raw materials by the process of pottery. Some ceramic products are regarded as fine art, while others are regarded as decorative, industrial or applied art objects, or as...

. It is one of the so called six old kiln

Kiln

A kiln is a thermally insulated chamber, or oven, in which a controlled temperature regime is produced. Uses include the hardening, burning or drying of materials...

 sites of Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

 (the others being Shigaraki, Bizen

Bizen, Okayama

is a city located in Okayama, Japan. The city is particularly famous for its Bizen-yaki pottery. It is also home to literary critic Hakuchō Masamune's birthplace, which is now a museum....

, Seto

Seto, Aichi

is a city located in Aichi, Japan. It is located about 35 minutes from Nagoya by way of the Meitetsu Seto Line.As of April 1, 2011, the city has an estimated population of 133,121, with a household number of 53,253, and the density of 1,192.63 persons per km². The total area is 111.62 km².-...

, Tamba

Tamba, Hyogo

is a city located in Hyōgo, Japan.The city was formed on November 1, 2004 from the merger of all six towns of the former Hikami District: Aogaki, Ichijima, Kaibara, Kasuga, Sannan and Hikami....

, and Tokoname) and as such it is highly revered in the Japanese and international ceramics community.

The ancient capital is believed to have been in Echizen

Echizen, Fukui

is a city in Fukui, Japan.Echizen took its present form on October 1, 2005, when the city of Takefu and the town of Imadate merged to form the new city, although the Echizen Basin has been an important regional center for over 1,500 years. It has many former castle sites and prehistoric...

, but by the Sengoku Period

Sengoku period

The or Warring States period in Japanese history was a time of social upheaval, political intrigue, and nearly constant military conflict that lasted roughly from the middle of the 15th century to the beginning of the 17th century. The name "Sengoku" was adopted by Japanese historians in reference...

 the province was divided among many fiefs. One of the most popular is Shibata Katsuie

Shibata Katsuie

or was a Japanese military commander during the Sengoku Period who served Oda Nobunaga.-Biography:Katsuie was born in the Shibata family, a branch of the Shiba clan . Note the differences between , , and the .Katsuie was the retainer of Oda Nobukatsu...

, who lived in Kitanosho Castle

Kitanosho Castle

was a hirashiro . Its remains are located in current-day Fukui, Fukui Prefecture, Japan. As the castle lasted merely eight years, few records survive about it. It is known, though that it was built by Shibata Katsuie in 1575...

 in Echizen. In the Edo Period

Edo period

The , or , is a division of Japanese history which was ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family, running from 1603 to 1868. The political entity of this period was the Tokugawa shogunate....

 the daimyo

Daimyo

is a generic term referring to the powerful territorial lords in pre-modern Japan who ruled most of the country from their vast, hereditary land holdings...

 (Fukui Domain

Fukui Domain

The was a feudal domain in Echizen Province of Japan during the Edo period. It is also sometimes called '. The family name of the heads of the domain is "Matsudaira".- List of heads :# Hideyasu# Tadanao...

) maintained their seat at Fukui

Fukui, Fukui

is the capital of Fukui Prefecture, Japan. The city is located in the north-central part of the prefecture on the coast of the Sea of Japan.-Demographics:...

 city.

Yamato period

Echizen Province was once part of a larger state, called Koshi Province

Koshi Province

was an ancient province or region of Japan in the area of Echigo, Etchū and Echizen provinces. Also encompassed are Noto and Kaga provinces which were once part of Echizen. It was sometimes called ....

. At this time, the capital of Koshi was located in the Ajimano area of Echizen City. In 507, during a succession crisis, the king of Koshi was chosen to become the 26th emperor of Japan

Emperor of Japan

The Emperor of Japan is, according to the 1947 Constitution of Japan, "the symbol of the state and of the unity of the people." He is a ceremonial figurehead under a form of constitutional monarchy and is head of the Japanese Imperial Family with functions as head of state. He is also the highest...

, Keitai-tennō.

Nara period

Koshi Provice was split into Echizen, Etchū

Etchu Province

was an old province in central Honshū, on the Sea of Japan side. It was sometimes called , with Echizen and Echigo Provinces. It bordered Echigo, Shinano, Hida, Kaga, and Noto provinces...

, and Echigo

Echigo Province

was an old province in north-central Japan, on the shores of the Sea of Japan. It was sometimes called , with Echizen and Etchū Provinces. Today the area is part of Niigata Prefecture, which also includes the island which was the old Sado Province. This province was the northernmost part of the...

 provinces (Etchū and Echigo were later further divided). The center of government was moved from the Ajimano area to central Echizen city (then known as Echizen-Futchū) and it grew into a powerful military and cultural center. Echizen became an important province, as the guardian of Kyoto to the North.

Nanboku-chō period

For most of the war between the Northern and Southern Courts, Echizen was under the control of the Ashikaga shogunate

Ashikaga shogunate

The , also known as the , was a Japanese feudal military regime, ruled by the shoguns of the Ashikaga clan.This period is also known as the Muromachi period and gets its name from Muromachi Street of Kyoto where the third shogun Ashikaga Yoshimitsu established his residence...

. The province was used as a launching point for much of the shogunate's attack against the capital, and Echizen became the stage for many decisive battles of the war.

Muromachi Period

Shiba Takatsune's

Shiba Takatsune

was the Constable of Echizen Province during the 14th century Nanboku-chō Wars in Japan. He acted to block the northward progress of Nitta Yoshisada, who supported the Emperor's Southern Court against the Shogun's Northern Court...

 victories during the Nanboku-chō war allowed him to become a powerful daimyō, independent of the appointed role given to him by the shogunate. He changed his name from Shiba to Kuratani, and control of Echizen Province became hereditary, remaining in his family for many generations. The capital of the province once again returned to the Ajimano area of Echizen city.

After control of the province passed to the Asakura clan

Asakura clan

The ' are descendants of Prince Kusakabe , son of Emperor Temmu .The family was a line of daimyō which, along with the Azai clan, opposed Oda Nobunaga in the late 16th century...

, the capital was relocated north to Ichijōdani

Ichijodani Asakura Family Historic Ruins

The are historic ruins located in the Kidonouchi section of Fukui, Fukui Prefecture, Japan. This area was controlled by the Asakura clan for 103 years during the Sengoku period....

.

Sengoku period

Under Asakura Yoshikage

Asakura Yoshikage

) was a Japanese daimyo of the Sengoku period, who ruled a part of Echizen Province.Born in Ichijodani Echizen, Yoshikage ascended to the head of the Asakura clan in 1548. He proved to be adept at political and diplomatic management, markedly demonstrated by the Asakura negotiations with the...

, Echizen enjoyed a peace and stability far greater than the rest of Japan during the chaotic Warring States period, thanks to his negotiations with the Ikkō-ikki

Ikko-ikki

', literally "Ikkoshū Uprising", were mobs of peasant farmers, Buddhist monks, Shinto priests and local nobles, who rose up against samurai rule in 15th to 16th century Japan. They followed the beliefs of the Jōdo Shinshū sect of Buddhism which taught that all believers are equally saved by Amida...

. As a result, Echizen became a refuge for people fleeing the violence to the south.

When Oda Nobunaga

Oda Nobunaga

was the initiator of the unification of Japan under the shogunate in the late 16th century, which ruled Japan until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was also a major daimyo during the Sengoku period of Japanese history. His opus was continued, completed and finalized by his successors Toyotomi...

 invaded Echizen, he completely defeated the Asakura clan, burning Ichijōdani to the ground and re-establishing the provincial capital at Echizen-Fūchu, divided among his generals Fuwa Mitsuharu

Fuwa Mitsuharu

was a Japanese samurai of the Sengoku through Azuchi-Momoyama period. Originally a retainer of Saitō Dōsan, Mitsuharu went on to serve Oda Nobunaga, receiving a landholding in Echizen Province.-Notes:...

, Sassa Narimasa

Sassa Narimasa

, also known as Kura-no-suke , was a Japanese samurai of the Sengoku through Azuchi-Momoyama period. He became a retainer of Oda Nobunaga in 1550 and was granted Etchū Province as a reward for helping Shibata Katsuie fight the Uesugi clan. After Nobunaga's death, in 1584 he joined Tokugawa Ieyasu...

, and Maeda Toshiie

Maeda Toshiie

was one of the leading generals of Oda Nobunaga following the Sengoku period of the 16th century extending to the Azuchi-Momoyama period. His father was Maeda Toshimasa. He was the fourth of seven brothers. His childhood name was "Inuchiyo" . His preferred weapon was a yari and he was known as...

. The province remained in their hands only for a short time, after which the three were granted larger fiefs of their own elsewhere. Control of Echizen Province passed on to Shibata Katsuie

Shibata Katsuie

or was a Japanese military commander during the Sengoku Period who served Oda Nobunaga.-Biography:Katsuie was born in the Shibata family, a branch of the Shiba clan . Note the differences between , , and the .Katsuie was the retainer of Oda Nobukatsu...

, who once again relocated the capital the north -- to Kitanosho Castle

Kitanosho Castle

was a hirashiro . Its remains are located in current-day Fukui, Fukui Prefecture, Japan. As the castle lasted merely eight years, few records survive about it. It is known, though that it was built by Shibata Katsuie in 1575...

 in Fukui city

Fukui, Fukui

is the capital of Fukui Prefecture, Japan. The city is located in the north-central part of the prefecture on the coast of the Sea of Japan.-Demographics:...

.

Edo period

Shibata himself only held Echizen Province for a few years, after which he was defeated by Toyotomi Hideyoshi's

Toyotomi Hideyoshi

was a daimyo warrior, general and politician of the Sengoku period. He unified the political factions of Japan. He succeeded his former liege lord, Oda Nobunaga, and brought an end to the Sengoku period. The period of his rule is often called the Momoyama period, named after Hideyoshi's castle...

 forces. He committed seppuku

Seppuku

is a form of Japanese ritual suicide by disembowelment. Seppuku was originally reserved only for samurai. Part of the samurai bushido honor code, seppuku was either used voluntarily by samurai to die with honor rather than fall into the hands of their enemies , or as a form of capital punishment...

 and burned Kitanosho Castle to the ground, with himself and his family inside of it. Yūki Hideyasu

Yuki Hideyasu

was a Japanese daimyo who lived during the Azuchi-Momoyama and early Edo periods. Born the second son of Tokugawa Ieyasu, he established the Echizen Fukui Domain.-Birth:...

 became the new daimyō of Echizen, and it remained in the control of the Matsudaira clan

Matsudaira clan

The was a Japanese samurai clan that claimed descent from the Minamoto clan. It first originated in and took its name from Matsudaira village, in Mikawa Province . Over the course of its history, the clan produced many branches, most of which also centered around Mikawa Province...

 until the Meiji Restoration

Meiji Restoration

The , also known as the Meiji Ishin, Revolution, Reform or Renewal, was a chain of events that restored imperial rule to Japan in 1868...

.

During the early years of the Tokugawa shogunate

Tokugawa shogunate

The Tokugawa shogunate, also known as the and the , was a feudal regime of Japan established by Tokugawa Ieyasu and ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family. This period is known as the Edo period and gets its name from the capital city, Edo, which is now called Tokyo, after the name was...

, many nobles and aristocrats

Kuge

The was a Japanese aristocratic class that dominated the Japanese imperial court in Kyoto until the rise of the Shogunate in the 12th century at which point it was eclipsed by the daimyo...

 moved to Fukui city in hopes to win the favor of Hideyasu, the 2nd son of Tokugawa Ieyasu

Tokugawa Ieyasu

 was the founder and first shogun of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan , which ruled from the Battle of Sekigahara  in 1600 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. Ieyasu seized power in 1600, received appointment as shogun in 1603, abdicated from office in 1605, but...

, who was widely expected to become the new shogun. There was great disappointment and resentment when the shogunate passed on to Ieyasu's third son, Tokugawa Hidetada

Tokugawa Hidetada

was the second shogun of the Tokugawa dynasty, who ruled from 1605 until his abdication in 1623. He was the third son of Tokugawa Ieyasu, the first shogun of the Tokugawa shogunate.-Early life :...

. However, Echizen remained a strategically important military and political base; the Tokugawa shoguns needed loyal daimyōs in the provinces surrounding the capital, and Echizen served as a powerful buffer between Kyōto and the Maeda clan

Maeda clan

The was a branch of the Sugawara clan who descended from Sugawara no Kiyotomo and Sugawara no Michizane in the eighth and ninth centuries. It was one of the most powerful samurai families in Japan and they were second only to the Tokugawa clan in rice production and fief size...

 of Kaga

Kaga Province

was an old province in the area that is today the southern part of Ishikawa Prefecture. It was sometimes called .Ruled by the Maeda clan, the capital of Kaga was Kanazawa. Kaga bordered on Echizen, Etchū, Hida, and Noto Provinces...

, who were hostile to the Tokugawas.

During the Edo period, the name Echizen was gradually supplanted by Fukui, as it had become known under the Matsudairas as Fukui Domain

Fukui Domain

The was a feudal domain in Echizen Province of Japan during the Edo period. It is also sometimes called '. The family name of the heads of the domain is "Matsudaira".- List of heads :# Hideyasu# Tadanao...

.

Meiji period

The power and prestige of Echizen, despite being a wealthy province (Fukui Domain was valued at 670,000 koku), gradually declined after the Meiji period. The province had prospered due to its proximity to the capital, and was strategically very important as the guardian of Kyōto

Kyoto

is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:...

 from the North. After the emperor was transferred from Kyōto to Tōkyō

Tokyo

, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...

, that point of prestige no longer existed.