is an old province of Japan in the area of Tochigi Prefecture

Tochigi Prefecture

is a prefecture located in the Kantō region on the island of Honshū, Japan. The capital is the city of Utsunomiya.Nikkō, whose ancient Shintō shrines and Buddhist temples UNESCO has recognized by naming them a World Heritage Site, is in this prefecture...

 in the Kanto region. It was sometimes called or .

The ancient capital of the province was near the city of Tochigi

Tochigi, Tochigi

is a city located in Tochigi Prefecture, Japan. Despite its name, it is not the capital of Tochigi Prefecture; the capital is Utsunomiya.The city took its current form on March 29, 2010 when the old city of Tochigi merged with the towns of Fujioka, Ōhira and Tsuga from Shimotsuga District to form...

, but in feudal times the main center of the province was near the modern capital, Utsunomiya

Utsunomiya, Tochigi

is the capital and most populous city of Tochigi Prefecture, Japan. In October 2010 the city had an estimated population of 510,416 and a population density of 1,224.49 people per square kilometer. The total area is 416.84 km². had a population of 888,005 in the 2000 Census...

.

History

Different parts of Shimotsuke were held by a variety of small 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...

 during 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...

.

• 1150 (Kyūan
  Kyuan
  , also romanized as Kyū-an, was a after Ten'yō and before Ninpei. This period spanned the years from July 1145 through January 1151. The reigning emperor was .-Change of Era:...
  
   6, 12th month): Minamoto-no Yoshikane
  Ashikaga Yoshikane
  was a Japanese samurai military commander, feudal lord in the late Heian and early Kamakura period of Japan's history. He played an active part in the Jishō-Juei War and the later military campaign as a closely related person of the first Kamakura shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo, and made Ashikaga...
  
  , the head of the Ashikaga clan
  Ashikaga clan
  The ' was a prominent Japanese samurai clan which established the Muromachi shogunate and ruled Japan from roughly 1336 to 1573.The Ashikaga were descended from a branch of the Minamoto clan, deriving originally from the town of Ashikaga in Shimotsuke province .For about a century the clan was...
  
  , was established in Shimotsuke Province.

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 tomb and shrine are located at Nikkō

Nikko, Tochigi

is a city in the mountains of Tochigi Prefecture, Japan. Approximately 140 km north of Tokyo and 35 km west of Utsunomiya, the capital of Tochigi Prefecture, it is a popular destination for Japanese and international tourists...

, in Shimotsuke.

Futarasan jinja was designated as the chief Shinto shrine (ichinomiya) for the province.

External links

• Shimotsuke no kuni in Iwanami Nihonshi Jiten (岩波日本史辞典), CD-ROM Version. Iwanami Shoten, 1999–2001.