Hirosaki Domain
Encyclopedia
Han (Japan)
The or domain was the name of the estate belonging to a warrior in Japan after the 17th century. The fiefs of the daimyos of the samurai class of Japan during the Edo period were called han.-Edo period:...
of 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....
, located in northern Mutsu Province
Mutsu Province
was an old province of Japan in the area of Fukushima, Miyagi, Iwate and Aomori prefecture and the municipalities of Kazuno and Kosaka in Akita Prefecture...
(modern-day Hirosaki, Aomori
Hirosaki, Aomori
is a city located in southwest Aomori Prefecture, Japan. It is a castle town and was the Tsugaru clan ruled the 100,000 koku tozama han Hirosaki Domain from Hirosaki Castle during the Edo period. The city is currently a regional commercial center and the largest producer of apples in Japan...
). It was ruled by the Tsugaru clan
Tsugaru clan
The was a Japanese samurai clan originating in northern Japan, specifically Mutsu Province . A branch of the local Nanbu clan, the Tsugaru rose to power during the Azuchi-Momoyama period. It was on the winning side of the Battle of Sekigahara, and entered the Edo period as a family of lords ...
. A branch of the family ruled the adjoining Kuroishi Domain.
Background
Foundation
The domain was headquartered at Hirosaki CastleHirosaki Castle
is a hirayama-style Japanese castle constructed in 1611. It was the seat of the Tsugaru clan, a 47,000 koku tozama daimyō clan who ruled over Hirosaki Domain, Mutsu Province, in what is now central Hirosaki, Aomori Prefecture, Japan. It was also referred to as .-Background:Hirosaki Castle measures...
.
The domain's karō
KARO
KARO is a radio station licensed to serve Nyssa, Oregon, USA. The station is owned by the Educational Media Foundation.It broadcasts a Contemporary Christian music format as part of the Air 1 network.-History:...
was Daidōji Naohide; the position of karō remained hereditary in his family.
The Tsugaru clan sided with 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...
's Eastern Army during the Battle of Sekigahara
Battle of Sekigahara
The , popularly known as the , was a decisive battle on October 21, 1600 which cleared the path to the Shogunate for Tokugawa Ieyasu...
in 1600. Its immediate neighbors also all supported the Eastern Army. After the Tokugawa victory at Sekigahara, the Tsugaru clan was granted an increase in territory, along with permission to keep its existing domain of Hirosaki (named for the family's castle town). The domain started out small at 45,000 koku
Koku
The is a Japanese unit of volume, equal to ten cubic shaku. In this definition, 3.5937 koku equal one cubic metre, i.e. 1 koku is approximately 278.3 litres. The koku was originally defined as a quantity of rice, historically defined as enough rice to feed one person for one year...
, before being increased in size to 100,000 koku. Tamenobu remained politically active in the early years of the Edo era, mainly in the Kansai
Kansai
The or the lies in the southern-central region of Japan's main island Honshū. The region includes the prefectures of Mie, Nara, Wakayama, Kyoto, Osaka, Hyōgo, and Shiga. Depending on who makes the distinction, Fukui, Tokushima and even Tottori Prefecture are also included...
area; he died in Kyoto
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:...
in 1608.
The early years of the Edo era were marked by a series of major O-Ie Sōdō
O-Ie Sodo
O-Ie Sōdō were noble family disputes within the samurai and aristocratic classes of Japan, particularly during the early Edo period...
disturbances that shook the Tsugaru family: the of 1607, of 1612, the of 1634, and the of 1647. In 1821, there was a foiled plot by Sōma Daisaku, a former retainer of the Nanbu clan, to assassinate the Tsugaru lord; this stemmed from the old enmity between the two clans.
A major branch of the Tsugaru clan was founded in 1656, which was first given hatamoto
Hatamoto
A was a samurai in the direct service of the Tokugawa shogunate of feudal Japan. While all three of the shogunates in Japanese history had official retainers, in the two preceding ones, they were referred to as gokenin. However, in the Edo period, hatamoto were the upper vassals of the Tokugawa...
rank, before being promoted to 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...
status in 1809; this became the ruling family of the Kuroishi Domain
Kuroishi Domain
' was a tozama feudal domain of Edo period Japan, located in northwestern Mutsu Province, Honshū.Its territory included 2000 koku in the area around present-day city of Kuroishi, 1000 koku in present day Hiranani, and 2000 koku in what is now part of Ōta, Gunma...
, which immediately bordered its parent family's domain. A lesser branch was founded by Tsugaru Nobuzumi, the son of the first Kuroishi-Tsugaru family head; this branch remained hatamoto through the end of the Edo period. The main Tsugaru family's funerary temple in Hirosaki was located at Chōshō-ji. Though neither Tsugaru daimyo family ever held shogunate office, the Tsugaru of Hirosaki (together with many of the other domains of northern Honshū
Honshu
is the largest island of Japan. The nation's main island, it is south of Hokkaido across the Tsugaru Strait, north of Shikoku across the Inland Sea, and northeast of Kyushu across the Kanmon Strait...
) assisted the shogunate in policing the frontier region of Ezochi (now Hokkaido
Hokkaido
, formerly known as Ezo, Yezo, Yeso, or Yesso, is Japan's second largest island; it is also the largest and northernmost of Japan's 47 prefectural-level subdivisions. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaido from Honshu, although the two islands are connected by the underwater railway Seikan Tunnel...
). In the late Edo period, during the headship of Tsugaru Tsuguakira
Tsugaru Tsuguakira
was the 12th and final daimyō of Hirosaki Domain in northern Mutsu Province, Honshū, Japan . His courtesy title was Tosa-no-kami.-Biography:...
, the Hirosaki domain's forces were modernized along western lines.
Disturbances
The early years of the Edo era were marked by a series of major O-Ie SōdōO-Ie Sodo
O-Ie Sōdō were noble family disputes within the samurai and aristocratic classes of Japan, particularly during the early Edo period...
disturbances that shook the Tsugaru family: the of 1607, of 1612, the of 1634, and the of 1647. In 1821, there was a foiled plot by Sōma Daisaku, a former retainer of the Nanbu clan, to assassinate the Tsugaru lord; this stemmed from the old enmity between the two clans.
Boshin War and dissolution
The Hirosaki domain ceased to existAbolition of the han system
The was an act, in 1871, of the new Meiji government of the Empire of Japan to replace the traditional feudal domain system and to introduce centralized government authority . This process marked the culmination of the Meiji Restoration in that all daimyo were required to return their authority...
in 1871. Its territory is now part of Aomori Prefecture
Aomori Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku Region. The capital is the city of Aomori.- History :Until the Meiji Restoration, the area of Aomori prefecture was known as Mutsu Province....
.
List of lords
- Tsugaru clanTsugaru clanThe was a Japanese samurai clan originating in northern Japan, specifically Mutsu Province . A branch of the local Nanbu clan, the Tsugaru rose to power during the Azuchi-Momoyama period. It was on the winning side of the Battle of Sekigahara, and entered the Edo period as a family of lords ...
(TozamaTozamaA ' was a daimyo who was considered an outsider by the rulers of Japan. The term came into use in the Kamakura period and continued until the end of the Edo period.-Edo period:...
; 47,000->46,000->70,000->100,000 kokuKokuThe is a Japanese unit of volume, equal to ten cubic shaku. In this definition, 3.5937 koku equal one cubic metre, i.e. 1 koku is approximately 278.3 litres. The koku was originally defined as a quantity of rice, historically defined as enough rice to feed one person for one year...
)
- Tsugaru TamenobuTsugaru Tamenobuwas a Japanese daimyo of the late Sengoku through early Edo period. He was known as Ōura Tamenobu earlier on in his life. Tamenobu had at one time battled against Nanbu Nobunao. Following this, Tamenobu submitted to Toyotomi Hideyoshi and fought against the Hōjō during the siege of Odawara. It was...
- Tsugaru NobuhiraTsugaru Nobuhirawas the 2nd daimyō of Hirosaki Domain in northern Mutsu Province, Honshū, Japan . His courtesy title was Etchū-no-kami.-Biography:Tsugaru Noruhira was born as the 3rd son of Tsugaru Tamenobu, head of the Tsugaru clan...
- Tsugaru NobuyoshiTsugaru Nobuyoshiwas the 3rd daimyō of Hirosaki Domain in northern Mutsu Province, Honshū, Japan . His courtesy title was Tosa-no-kami.-Biography:...
- Tsugaru NobumasaTsugaru Nobumasawas the 4th daimyō of Hirosaki Domain in northern Mutsu Province, Honshū, Japan . His courtesy title was Etchū-no-kami.-Biography:...
- Tsugaru NobuhisaTsugaru Nobuhisawas the 5th daimyō of Hirosaki Domain in northern Mutsu Province, Honshū, Japan . His courtesy title was Tosa-no-kami.-Biography:...
- Tsugaru NobuakiTsugaru Nobuakiwas the 6th daimyō of Hirosaki Domain in northern Mutsu Province, Honshū, Japan . His courtesy title was Dewa-no-kami.-Biography:...
- Tsugaru NobuyasuTsugaru Nobuyasuwas the 7th daimyō of Hirosaki Domain in northern Mutsu Province, Honshū, Japan . His courtesy title was Etchū-no-kami.-Biography:...
- Tsugaru NobuakiraTsugaru Nobuakirawas the 8th daimyō of Hirosaki Domain in northern Mutsu Province, Honshū, Japan . His courtesy title was Tosa-no-kami.-Biography:...
(also known as Nobuharu) - Tsugaru YasuchikaTsugaru Yasuchikawas the 9th daimyō of Hirosaki Domain in northern Mutsu Province, Honshū, Japan . His courtesy title, initially Dewa-no-kami, was later raised to Saikyo Daiyu.-Biography:...
- Tsugaru NobuyukiTsugaru Nobuyukiwas the 10th daimyō of Hirosaki Domain in northern Mutsu Province, Honshū, Japan . His courtesy title was Dewa-no-kami.-Biography:...
- Tsugaru YukitsuguTsugaru Yukitsuguwas the 2nd daimyō of Kuroishi Domain, and later the 11th daimyō of Hirosaki Domain in northern Mutsu Province, Honshū, Japan . His courtesy title was Ōsumi-no-kami.-Biography:...
- Tsugaru TsuguakiraTsugaru Tsuguakirawas the 12th and final daimyō of Hirosaki Domain in northern Mutsu Province, Honshū, Japan . His courtesy title was Tosa-no-kami.-Biography:...
In Japanese
- Kurotaki, Jūjirō (1984). Tsugaru-han no hanzai to keibatsu 津軽藩の犯罪と刑罰. Hirosaki: Hoppō shinsha.
In English
- Dazai, Osamu (1985). Return to Tsugaru: travels of a purple tramp. Tokyo: Kodansha International.