(July 17, 1846 – August 29, 1866) was the 14th ''

shōgun , officially , was the title of the military dictators of Japan during most of the period spanning from 1185 to 1868. Nominally appointed by the Emperor, shoguns were usually the de facto rulers of the country, though during part of the Kamakur ...

'' of 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 ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

, who held office from 1858 to 1866. During his reign there was much internal turmoil as a result of the "re-opening" of Japan to western nations. Iemochi's reign also saw a weakening of the shogunate. Iemochi died in 1866 and was buried in

Zōjō-ji is a Jōdo-shū Buddhist temple in Tokyo, Japan. It is the main temple of the Jōdo-shū ("Pure Land") Chinzei sect of Buddhism in the Kantō region,. Its mountain name is San'en-zan (三縁山). Zōjō-ji is notable for its relationship wit ...

. His Buddhist name was Shonmyoin.

Biography

Iemochi, known in his childhood as Kikuchiyo (菊千代), was the eldest son of the 11th-generation

Wakayama Domain Wakayama may refer to: *Wakayama Prefecture, a prefecture of Japan *Wakayama (city), the capital city of Wakayama Prefecture, Japan *Wakayama Station, a train station in Wakayama, Wakayama *Wakayama University , or , is a national university loca ...

lord

Tokugawa Nariyuki Tokugawa may refer to: *Tokugawa era, an alternative term for the Edo period, 1603 to 1868 *Tokugawa shogunate, a feudal regime of Japan during the Edo period **Tokugawa clan, a powerful family of Japan ***Tokugawa Ieyasu (1543–1616), most nota ...

(1801–1846) with his concubine known as Jitsujoin and was born in the domain's residence in Edo (modern-day Minato-ku in

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

). Nariyuki was a younger son of the 11th ''shōgun'',

Tokugawa Ienari Tokugawa Ienari ( ja, 徳川家斉, November 18, 1773 – March 22, 1841) was the eleventh and longest-serving ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan who held office from 1787 to 1837.Hall, John Whitney ''et al.'' (1991) ''Early Modern J ...

. In 1847, at age 1, he was adopted as the heir of the 12th-generation ''daimyō''

Tokugawa Narikatsu Tokugawa may refer to: *Tokugawa era, an alternative term for the Edo period, 1603 to 1868 *Tokugawa shogunate, a feudal regime of Japan during the Edo period **Tokugawa clan, a powerful family of Japan ***Tokugawa Ieyasu (1543–1616), most nota ...

, and succeeded him in 1850, taking the name Tokugawa Yoshitomi following his coming of age in 1851. In 1858 he had audience with ''shōgun'' Iesada and his wife, Atsuhime short after he was adopted as their son and named as the successor to the main Tokugawa house. The choice of Yoshitomi was not without conflict; there were other factions in the government who supported

Tokugawa Yoshinobu Prince was the 15th and last ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan. He was part of a movement which aimed to reform the aging shogunate, but was ultimately unsuccessful. He resigned of his position as shogun in late 1867, while aiming ...

Matsudaira Naritami was a Japanese ''daimyō'' of the late Edo period who ruled the Tsuyama Domain of Mimasaka Province. Born Tokugawa Ginnosuke (銀之助), the 16th son of the ''shōgun'' Tokugawa Ienari, Naritami was adopted by Matsudaira Naritaka of Tsuyama. ...

for ''shōgun''; both of them, unlike Yoshitomi, were adults. After assuming the office of shogun, Yoshitomi changed his name to Iemochi. Before Iesada died he give his will to

Ii Naosuke was ''daimyō'' of Hikone (1850–1860) and also Tairō of the Tokugawa shogunate, Japan, a position he held from April 23, 1858, until his death, assassinated in the Sakuradamon Incident on March 24, 1860. He is most famous for signing the Ha ...

, that: * First,

must help Iemochi at administration until Iemochi was old enough to rule. * Second, all political issues must be discussed with Tenshoin, as Iemochi's mother. As part of the '' kōbu gattai'' ("Union of Court and Bakufu") movement, On 11 February 1862, Iemochi married

Princess Kazu (''Kazunomiya'') was the wife of 14th ''shōgun'' Tokugawa Iemochi. She was renamed Lady Seikan'in-no-miya after she took the tonsure as a widow. She was the great-great-great aunt of Emperor Akihito, who reigned from 1989 to 2019. Biography ...

, daughter of

Emperor Ninko An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife ( empress consort), mother ( e ...

. Princess Kazu refused to use the title "

Midaidokoro The ''midaidokoro'' (御台所) was the official wife of the ''shōgun''. During the Edo period, she resided in the '' Ōoku'' of Edo Castle and sometimes wielded considerable political power behind the scenes. Heian period * Miyoshi Takako, wif ...

", and instead only used the title "Miya". On April 22, 1863 (''

Bunkyū was a after ''Man'en'' and before '' Genji''. This period spanned the years from March 1861 through March 1864. The reigning emperor was . Change of era * March 29, 1861 (''Man'en 2/Bunkyū 1, 19th day of the 2nd month'') : The new era name of ...

3, 5th day of the 3rd month''), ''shōgun'' Iemochi traveled in a great procession to the capital. He had been summoned by the emperor, and had 3,000 retainers as escort. This was the first time since the visit of

Iemitsu Tokugawa Iemitsu (徳川家光, August 12, 1604 – June 8, 1651) was the third ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa dynasty. He was the eldest son of Tokugawa Hidetada with Oeyo, and the grandson of Tokugawa Ieyasu. Lady Kasuga was his wet nurse, who a ...

in the ''

Kan'ei was a after ''Genna'' and before ''Shōhō.'' This period spanned the years from February 1624 through December 1644. The reigning emperors and empress were , and .Titsingh, Isaac. (1834) ''Annales des empereurs du japon'', p. 411./ref> Chang ...

'' era, 230 years before, that a shogun had visited Kyoto.Ponsonby-Fane, Richard. (1956). ''Kyoto: the Old Capital of Japan, 794–1869'', p. 325. His early death at the age of 20 put an end to his short marriage with princess Kazu-no-Miya. Before he died he adopted a son, Tayasu Kamenosuke (later known as

Tokugawa Iesato Prince was the first head of the Tokugawa clan after the overthrow of the Tokugawa bakufu, and a significant figure in Japanese politics and diplomacy during the Meiji, Taishō and early Shōwa period Japan. When Prince Tokugawa travelled to ...

), as his heir. At that time Tayasu Kamenosuke was only 3 years old, but as the Tokugawa shogunate was at war with Chōshū, the adult Yoshinobu was appointed the fifteenth ''shōgun''. ''Shōgun'' Yoshinobu then adopted Iemochi's adopted son, Tayasu Kamenosuke. After Iemochi's death, Kazu-no-Miya changed her name to Seikan'in no Miya. The cause of Iemochi's death is widely reported as heart failure due to

beriberi Thiamine deficiency is a medical condition of low levels of thiamine (Vitamin B1). A severe and chronic form is known as beriberi. The two main types in adults are wet beriberi and dry beriberi. Wet beriberi affects the cardiovascular system, ...

, a disease caused by

thiamine Thiamine, also known as thiamin and vitamin B1, is a vitamin, an essential micronutrient, that cannot be made in the body. It is found in food and commercially synthesized to be a dietary supplement or medication. Phosphorylated forms of thi ...

(vitamin B₁) deficiency. His successor, Tokugawa Yoshinobu, was the last Tokugawa ''shōgun'' and witnessed the end of the shogunate, which gave way to the

Meiji Restoration The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored practical imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Although there were ...

Family

* Father:

(1801–1846) * Mother: Jitsujoin (1821–1904) * Adoptive fathers: **

(1820–1849) **

Tokugawa Iesada was the 13th ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan. He held office for five years from 1853 to 1858. He was physically weak and was therefore considered by later historians to have been unfit to be ''shōgun''. His reign marks the begin ...

* Adoptive Mother:

Tenshō-in , also known as , was the official wife of , the 13th ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan. She was the daughter of Lady Oyuki and , who was the head of the branch of the Shimazu in Satsuma. She was originally named by her parents ...

* Wife:

Kazu-no-Miya Chikako (''Kazunomiya'') was the wife of 14th ''shōgun'' Tokugawa Iemochi. She was renamed Lady Seikan'in-no-miya after she took the tonsure as a widow. She was the great-great-great aunt of Emperor Akihito, who reigned from 1989 to 2019. Biography ...

* Concubine: ** Oyuri no Kata (1850–1880) later Shoko-in ** Ohina no Kata (1846–1862) daughter of Shimazu Tadafuyu also niece of

* Adopted son:

Eras of Iemochi's ''bakufu''

Abraham Lincoln to the Shogun of Japan 14 November 1861

Letter of Napoleon III to the Japanese Shogun to introduce Leon Roches in replacement of Duchesne de Bellecourt

The years in which Iemochi was ''shōgun'' are more specifically identified by more than one

era name A regnal year is a year of the reign of a sovereign, from the Latin ''regnum'' meaning kingdom, rule. Regnal years considered the date as an ordinal, not a cardinal number. For example, a monarch could have a first year of rule, a second year o ...

or ''

nengō The , also known as , is the first of the two elements that identify years in the Japanese era calendar scheme. The second element is a number which indicates the year number within the era (with the first year being ""), followed by the literal ...

''. * ''

Ansei was a after ''Kaei'' and before ''Man'en''. This period spanned the years from November 1854 through March 1860. The reigning emperor was . Change of era * November 27, 1854 (): The new era name of ''Ansei'' (meaning "tranquil government") ...

'' (1854–1860) * ''

Man'en was a after ''Ansei'' and before ''Bunkyū''. This period spanned the years from March 1860 through February 1861. The reigning emperor was . Change of era * March 18, 1860 (): The new era name was created to mark the destruction caused by a ...

'' (1860–1861) * ''

'' (1861–1864) * '' Genji'' (1864–1865) * ''

Keiō was a after '' Genji'' and before '' Meiji''. The period spanned the years from May 1865 to October 1868. The reigning emperors were and . Change of era * May 1, 1865 (''Genji 2/Keiō 1, 7th day of the 4th month'') : The new era name of ''K ...

'' (1865–1868)

Notes

References

*''Rekishi Dokuhon'' Jan. 2006 issue: ''Tokugawa Shōgun-ke to Matsudaira Ichizoku'' *''Tokugawa Iemochi to sono jidai: wakaki shōgun no shōgai'' 徳川家茂とその時代: 若き将軍の生涯. Tokyo: Tokugawa kin'en zaidan 徳川記念財団, 2007. * Totman, Conrad. (1980)
''The Collapse of the Tokugawa Bakufu, 1862–1868.''
Honolulu:

University of Hawai'i Press A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...

External links

* Digitized woodblock print
Shogun Iemochi in procession towards Kyoto in ''Bunkyū 3''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tokugawa, Iemochi 1846 births 1866 deaths 19th-century shōguns Kishū-Tokugawa clan Tokugawa shōguns Tokugawa clan People of Bakumatsu Child rulers from Asia People from Tokyo