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History
Kokudaka 石高
The kokudaka (石高) was the tax base calculated in rice.
The kokudaka (石高) system was the foundation of land assessment, taxation and political authority in early modern Japan. Introduced nationwide by Toyotomi Hideyoshi (豊臣秀吉, 1537–1598) during his cadastral surveys between 1582 and 1596, it...
History
Meiji Restoration
The Meiji Restoration (明治維新 Meiji Ishin) was a far-reaching process of political, social and economic transformation that reshaped Japan during the second half of the nineteenth century. Although commonly associated with the restoration of imperial rule in 1868, the changes generally referred to...
Castle
Moriyama Castle (Fukushima)
Moriyama Castle (守山城 Moriyama-jō) was a medieval and early modern castle located in present-day Tamura Town, in the south-eastern part of Kōriyama, Fukushima Prefecture. The castle occupied a strategically advantageous position on a tongue-shaped plateau that projected eastward towards the...
History
Bugyō 奉行
Bugyō (奉行) was a title given to officials and administrators in pre-modern Japan. The term is commonly translated as "commissioner", "magistrate" or "governor", although the precise meaning varied considerably depending on period, institution and office. In practice, bugyō were officials...
History
Gokenin 御家人
Gokenin (御家人) were the direct vassals of Japan's military rulers, the shōguns, and formed one of the foundations of medieval warrior government. Although the term remained in use from the late Heian period until the end of the Tokugawa shogunate, its meaning changed considerably over time. In...
History
Gōzoku 豪族
Gōzoku (豪族), literally "powerful clans", were influential families that exercised regional authority in premodern Japan through their control of land, wealth and armed retainers. In the broadest sense, the term denotes a powerful lineage. In Japanese historical scholarship, however, it is most...
History
Gosankyō 御三卿
The Gosankyō (御三卿, literally "Three Honourable Houses") were three collateral branches of the Tokugawa family established during the middle of the Edo period to secure the succession of the Tokugawa shogunate. Created in the eighteenth century by the eighth shōgun, Tokugawa Yoshimune (徳川吉宗...
History
Tokugawa Gosanke (徳川御三家)
Tokugawa Gosanke (徳川御三家), often referred to simply as the Gosanke (御三家, "Three Honoured Houses"), were the three senior collateral branches of the Tokugawa clan during the Edo period (1603–1868). Established by Tokugawa Ieyasu (徳川家康, 1543–1616), founder of the Tokugawa shogunate, they were...
Ii Naotaka (井伊直孝, 1590–1659) was a military commander and fudai daimyō of the early Edo period. The second son of Ii Naomasa (井伊直政, 1561–1602), one of Tokugawa Ieyasu's most trusted generals, Naotaka became the third lord of Hikone Domain in Ōmi Province. He played a central role in establishing...
Temple
Gotokuji Temple
Gōtokuji (豪徳寺), officially Daikeizan Gōtokuji, is a Sōtō Zen Buddhist temple located in Setagaya in western Tōkyō. It is the ancestral temple of the Ii family; some 300 members of their clan, including Ii Naosuke, are buried there. Legend has it that Gōtokuji is also the birthplace of the...
Ii Naotora (井伊直虎, d. 12 September 1582) was a Sengoku-period lord associated with Iinoya in Tōtōmi Province (present-day Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture) and a member of the Ii clan. This regional warrior family later rose to prominence under the Tokugawa shogunate. Long celebrated as one of...
Castle
Hikone Castle
Hikone Castle (彦根城 Hikone-jō) is one of Japan's finest surviving castles and one of only five castles whose keeps have been designated National Treasures. Built by the Ii clan in the early Edo period, it preserves not only its original keep but also an exceptional collection of gates, turrets...
Ii Naomasa (井伊直政, 1561–1602) was a Japanese warrior and daimyō of the late Sengoku and early Edo periods. One of the most celebrated retainers of Tokugawa Ieyasu (徳川家康, 1543–1616), he is remembered as a brilliant battlefield commander, a capable diplomat, and a central figure in the...
History
Ii Clan
The Ii clan (井伊氏 Ii-shi) was a prominent warrior family that originated in Tōtōmi Province and later became one of the most influential hereditary allies of the Tokugawa shogunate. During the Edo period, the family ruled Hikone Domain in Ōmi Province and ranked among the wealthiest and most...
History
Ōta Clan
The Ōta clan (太田氏 Ōta-shi) was a prominent samurai family whose history spanned the medieval and modern periods. Best known for producing the military commander Ōta Dōkan (太田道灌, 1432–1486), builder of Edo Castle, the clan played an important role in the politics and warfare of the Kantō region...
Bio
Ota Dokan
The Father of Edo Castle
Ōta Sukenaga (太田資長, 1432-1486), better known under his Buddhist name Ōta Dōkan (太田道灌), was a daimyō in Musashi Province and the eldest son of Ōta Sukekiyo (太田資清, 1411-1493), who served the Ōgigayatsu Uesugi as major-domo (執事 shitsuji). When Sukekiyo was defeated in the...