was a

feudal domain A demesne ( ) or domain was all the land retained and managed by a lord of the manor under the feudal system for his own use, occupation, or support. This distinguished it from land sub-enfeoffed by him to others as sub-tenants. The concept or ...

under the

Tokugawa shogunate The Tokugawa shogunate (, Japanese 徳川幕府 ''Tokugawa bakufu''), also known as the , was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Tokugawa-jidai''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia ...

Edo period The or is the period between 1603 and 1867 in the history of Japan, when Japan was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the country's 300 regional '' daimyo''. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengoku period, the Edo period was characteriz ...

Japan, located in

Harima Province or Banshū (播州) was a province of Japan in the part of Honshū that is the southwestern part of present-day Hyōgo Prefecture. Harima bordered on Tajima, Tanba, Settsu, Bizen, and Mimasaka Provinces. Its capital was Himeji. During the ...

in what is now the southwestern portion of modern-day

Hyōgo Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Hyōgo Prefecture has a population of 5,469,762 () and has a geographic area of . Hyōgo Prefecture borders Kyoto Prefecture to the east, Osaka Prefecture to the southeast, an ...

. It was centered around

Akō Castle is a flatland Japanese castle located in the city of Akō, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan. Built by the Asano clan in the Edo period, it was the center of Akō Domain in western Harima Province. The castle was designated a National Historic Site ...

, which is located in what is now the city of

Akō, Hyōgo is a city located in southwestern Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 45,747 in 20563 households and a population density of 360 persons per km². The total area of the city is . Geography Akō is located in ...

History

During the

Muromachi period The is a division of Japanese history running from approximately 1336 to 1573. The period marks the governance of the Muromachi or Ashikaga shogunate (''Muromachi bakufu'' or ''Ashikaga bakufu''), which was officially established in 1338 by t ...

, the area of Akō District was under the control of the

Akamatsu clan is a Japanese samurai family of direct descent from Minamoto no Morifusa of the Murakami-Genji. Papinot, Jacques Edmond Joseph. (1906). ''Dictionnaire d’histoire et de géographie du Japon''; Papinot, (2003)"Akamatsu" at ''Nobiliare du Japon ...

, the ''

shugo , commonly translated as “(military) governor,” “protector,” or “constable,” was a title given to certain officials in feudal Japan. They were each appointed by the ''shōgun'' to oversee one or more of the provinces of Japan. The pos ...

'' of

. In the

Sengoku period The was a period in History of Japan, Japanese history of near-constant civil war and social upheaval from 1467 to 1615. The Sengoku period was initiated by the Ōnin War in 1467 which collapsed the Feudalism, feudal system of Japan under the ...

, it was part of the holdings of

Ukita Hideie was the ''daimyō'' of Bizen and Mimasaka Provinces (modern Okayama Prefecture), and one of the council of Five Elders appointed by Toyotomi Hideyoshi. Son of Ukita Naoie, he married Gōhime, a daughter of Maeda Toshiie. Having fought again ...

. During the

Battle of Sekigahara The Battle of Sekigahara (Shinjitai: ; Kyūjitai: , Hepburn romanization: ''Sekigahara no Tatakai'') was a decisive battle on October 21, 1600 (Keichō 5, 15th day of the 9th month) in what is now Gifu prefecture, Japan, at the end of ...

, Ukita Hideie sided with the losing Western Army, and his territories were confiscated by the victorious

Tokugawa Ieyasu was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa Shogunate of Japan, which ruled Japan from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was one of the three "Great Unifiers" of Japan, along with his former lord Oda Nobunaga and fellow ...

, who awarded the area to his general and son-in-law

Ikeda Terumasa was a Japanese ''daimyō'' of the early Edo period. His court title was '' Musashi no Kami''. Terumasa was also known by the nickname ''saigoku no shōgun'', or, "The ''Shōgun'' of Western Japan". Terumasa fought in many of the battles of the ...

. His vast holdings were broken up after his death, and his fifth son, Ikeda Masatsuna received a 35,000 ''

koku The is a Chinese-based Japanese unit of volume. 1 koku is equivalent to 10 or approximately , or about . It converts, in turn, to 100 shō and 1000 gō. One ''gō'' is the volume of the "rice cup", the plastic measuring cup that is supplied ...

'' portion which had been assigned as the widow's portion to his mother

Tokuhime Tokuhime may refer to: * Tokuhime (Oda) (徳姫) (1559–1636), daughter of Oda Nobunaga; also known as Gotokuhime * Tokuhime (Tokugawa) (督姫) (1565–1615), daughter of Tokugawa Ieyasu * (登久姫) (1576–1607), daughter of Matsudaira ...

. This marked the start of Akō Domain. HIs younger brother,

Ikeda Teruoki was a Japanese ''daimyō'' of the Edo period, who ruled the Akō Domain. His position was given to Asano Naganao was a Japanese ''daimyō'' of the Edo period, who ruled the Akō Domain. He was classified as a '' tozama'', and Akō under his r ...

, inherited the domain in 1631. However, he went insane in 1645, murdering his concubine and several ladies-in-waiting, and was dispossessed. The domain was awarded to Asano Naganao, formerly of

Kasama Domain was a feudal domain under the Tokugawa shogunate of Edo period Japan, located in Hitachi Province (modern-day Ibaraki Prefecture), Japan. It was centered on Kasama Castle in what is now the city of Kasama, Ibaraki. It was ruled by a number o ...

Hitachi Province was an old provinces of Japan, old province of Japan in the area of Ibaraki Prefecture.Louis Frédéric, Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Hitachi fudoki''" in . It was sometimes called . Hitachi Province bordered on Shimōsa Province, S ...

. Nagaoki spend 13 years building

on a scale far in excess of his ''

kokudaka refers to a system for determining land value for taxation purposes under the Tokugawa shogunate of Edo-period Japan, and expressing this value in terms of ''koku'' of rice. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"Koku"in ''Japan Encyclopedia'', p. 54 ...

'' of 53,000 ''koku'' and also reconstructed the

castle town A castle town is a settlement built adjacent to or surrounding a castle. Castle towns were common in Medieval Europe. Some examples include small towns like Alnwick and Arundel, which are still dominated by their castles. In Western Europe, ...

. In order to alleviate the financial situation, he expanded on coastal salt production (which had been a speciality of the area since the

Yayoi period The started at the beginning of the Neolithic in Japan, continued through the Bronze Age, and towards its end crossed into the Iron Age. Since the 1980s, scholars have argued that a period previously classified as a transition from the Jōmon p ...

to support the clan's finances. The third ''

daimyō were powerful Japanese magnates, feudal lords who, from the 10th century to the early Meiji era, Meiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast, hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to the shogun and n ...

'',

Asano Naganori was the ''daimyō'' of the Akō Domain in Japan (1675–1701). His title was ''Takumi no Kami'' (). He is known as the person who triggered a series of incidents retold in a story known as ''Chūshingura'' (involving the forty-seven rōnin), o ...

was assigned to provide security for the 1682

Joseon missions to Japan Joseon missions to Japan represent a crucial aspect of the international relations of mutual Joseon-Japanese contacts and communication. In sum, these serial diplomatic ventures illustrate the persistence of Joseon's '' kyorin'' (neighborly rela ...

and also had to handle a judicial case involving the assassination of ''

Tairō ''Tairō'' (, "great elder") was a high-ranking official position in the Tokugawa shogunate government of Japan, roughly comparable to the office of prime minister. The ''tairō'' presided over the governing '' rōjū'' council in the event of an ...

Hotta Masatoshi was a ''daimyō'' (feudal lord) in Shimōsa Province, and top government advisor and official in the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan. He served as ''rōjū'' (chief advisor) to ''shōgun'' Tokugawa Ietsuna from 1679–80, and as ''Tairō'' (head of th ...

Inaba Masayasu was a Japanese ''hatamoto'' and ''daimyō'' (feudal lord) of Aono han in Mino Province in Edo period Japan. Masayasu's family was descended from Konō Michitaka.Papinot, Jacques. (2003)''Nobiliare du Japon'' -- Inaba, p. 15 Papinot, Jacques Edm ...

. However, he is more famously known for being one the principal participants in the famous 1702 Akō Incident, in which he was forced to commit ''

seppuku , sometimes referred to as hara-kiri (, , a native Japanese kun reading), is a form of Japanese ritual suicide by disembowelment. It was originally reserved for samurai in their code of honour but was also practised by other Japanese people ...

'' after attempting to kill a powerful shogunal named

Kira Yoshinaka was a ''kōke'' (master of ceremonies). His court title was '' Kōzuke no suke (上野介)''. He is famous as the adversary of Asano Naganori in the events of the Forty-seven rōnin. Although his name (義央) has been long pronounced as "Yoshi ...

and was subsequently avenged by his now masterless retainers. The Asano clan was replaced at Akō Domain by

Nagai Naohiro was a Japanese ''daimyō'' of the Edo period, who ruled the Akō Domain following its confiscation from Asano Naganori. Naohiro was the eldest son of Nagai Naotsune, and assumed family headship after his father's death. Upon the confiscation o ...

, formerly of

Karasuyama Domain was a Han (Japan), feudal domain under the Tokugawa shogunate of Edo period Japan, located in the Nasu region of northern Shimotsuke Province (modern-day Tochigi Prefecture), Japan. It was centered on Karasuyama Castle in what is now part of the ...

Shimotsuke Province was a Provinces of Japan, province of Japan in the area of Japan that is today Tochigi Prefecture.Louis-Frédéric, Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''SHimotsuke''" in . Shimotsuke was bordered by Kōzuke Province, Kōzuke, Hitachi Province, ...

. However, five years later, in 1706, he was transferred to

Iiyama Domain was a feudal domain under the Tokugawa shogunate of Edo period Japan. It was located in northern Shinano Province, Honshū. The domain was centered at Iiyama Castle, located in what is now part of the city of Iiyama in Nagano Prefecture.

Shinano Province or is an old province of Japan that is now Nagano Prefecture. Shinano bordered on Echigo, Etchū, Hida, Kai, Kōzuke, Mikawa, Mino, Musashi, Suruga, and Tōtōmi Provinces. The ancient capital was located near modern-day Matsumoto, whi ...

. The domain was then given to

Mori Naganao was a Japanese ''daimyō'' of the mid-Edo period, who ruled the domain of Nishi-Ebara before being transferred to Akō. Naganao was the 11th son of Mori Nagatsugu, the lord of the Tsuyama Domain (later moved to Nishi-Ebara). Nagatsugu was suc ...

, who had been ''daimyō'' of a 20,000 ''koku'' sub-domain of

Tsuyama Domain was a Japanese domain of the Edo period. It was associated with Mimasaka Province in modern-day Okayama Prefecture.Bakumatsu period was the final years of the Edo period when the Tokugawa shogunate ended. Between 1853 and 1867, Japan ended its isolationist foreign policy known as and changed from a feudal Tokugawa shogunate to the modern empire of the Meiji govern ...

, pro-''

Sonnō jōi was a ''yojijukugo'' (four-character compound) phrase used as the rallying cry and slogan of a political movement in Japan in the 1850s and 1860s during the Bakumatsu period. Based on Neo-Confucianism and Japanese nativism, the movement sought ...

'' samurai murdered the domain's ''

karō were top-ranking samurai officials and advisors in service to the ''daimyōs'' of feudal Japan. Overview In the Edo period, the policy of ''sankin-kōtai'' (alternate attendance) required each ''daimyō'' to place a ''karō'' in Edo and anoth ...

'' in front of the gate of Akō Castle in 1861. The revolt was suppressed and seven of the 13 perpetrators were executed. In 1871, with the

abolition of the han system The in the Empire of Japan and its replacement by a system of prefectures in 1871 was the culmination of the Meiji Restoration begun in 1868, the starting year of the Meiji period. Under the reform, all daimyos (, ''daimyō'', feudal lords) ...

, Akō Domain became Akō Prefecture, and was incorporated into Hyōgo prefecture via Shikama Prefecture. The Mori family became a

viscount A viscount ( , for male) or viscountess (, for female) is a title used in certain European countries for a noble of varying status. In many countries a viscount, and its historical equivalents, was a non-hereditary, administrative or judicial ...

(''shishaku'') in the ''

kazoku The was the hereditary peerage of the Empire of Japan, which existed between 1869 and 1947. They succeeded the feudal lords () and court nobles (), but were abolished with the 1947 constitution. Kazoku ( 華族) should not be confused with ' ...

'' peerage system in 1884.

Holdings at the end of the Edo period

As with most domains in the

han system ( ja, 藩, "domain") is a Japanese historical term for the estate of a daimyo in the Edo period (1603–1868) and early Meiji period (1868–1912). Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"Han"in ''Japan Encyclopedia'', p. 283. or (daimyo domain) s ...

, Ako Domain consisted of several discontinuous territories calculated to provide the assigned ''

'', based on periodic

cadastral A cadastre or cadaster is a comprehensive recording of the real estate or real property's metes-and-bounds of a country.Jo Henssen, ''Basic Principles of the Main Cadastral Systems in the World,'/ref> Often it is represented graphically in a cad ...

surveys and projected agricultural yields.Elison, George and Bardwell L. Smith (1987)
''Warlords, Artists, & Commoners: Japan in the Sixteenth Century,'' p. 18
*

**42 villages in Ako District

List of daimyō

References

{{Authority control Domains of Japan 1615 establishments in Japan States and territories established in 1615 1871 disestablishments in Japan States and territories disestablished in 1871 Harima Province Domains of Hyōgo Prefecture

History

Holdings at the end of the Edo period

List of daimyō

See also

Further reading

References