The , also known as the was the retirement villa of

Tokugawa Mitsukuni , also known as , was a Japanese daimyō, daimyo who was known for his influence in the politics of the early Edo period. He was the third son of Tokugawa Yorifusa (who in turn was the eleventh son of Tokugawa Ieyasu) and succeeded him, becoming ...

, the second ''

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 no ...

'' of

Mito Domain was a Japanese domain of the Edo period. It was associated with Hitachi Province in modern-day Ibaraki Prefecture.Edo Period The , also known as the , is the period between 1600 or 1603 and 1868 in the history of Japan, when the country was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and some 300 regional ''daimyo'', or feudal lords. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengok ...

Tokugawa shogunate The Tokugawa shogunate, also known as the was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. The Tokugawa shogunate was established by Tokugawa Ieyasu after victory at the Battle of Sekigahara, ending the civil wars ...

of Japan. It is located in the city of

Hitachiōta, Ibaraki file:Seizansou1.JPG, 250px, Seizan-so is a Cities of Japan, city located in Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 48,074 in 19,327 households and a population density of 129.2 persons per km2. . The percentage of th ...

. The villa was designated a National Historic Site and its gardens a National Place of Scenic Beauty in 2007.

Overview

The Seizansō villa was constructed in 1690, and was the residence of Tokugawa Mitsukuni from 1691 unto his death in 1700. It was at this location that he gathered a number of history scholars from around Japan to compile the ''

Dai Nihonshi The ''Dai Nihonshi'' (大日本史), literally ''History of Great Japan'', is a book on the history of Japan written in Classical Chinese. It was begun in the 17th century and was completed by 1715 by Tokugawa Mitsukuni, the head of the Mito b ...

'', a history of Japan, which was not finished until 15 years after his death. The villa burned down in 1817, but was rebuilt in 1819 by the 8th ''daimyō'' of Mito Domain,

Tokugawa Narinobu 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 ...

. Currently it is managed as part of the "Tokugawa Museum", a foundation controlled by the former

Tokugawa clan The is a Japanese dynasty which produced the Tokugawa shoguns who ruled Japan from 1603 to 1868 during the Edo period. It was formerly a powerful ''daimyō'' family. They nominally descended from Emperor Seiwa (850–880) and were a branch of ...

, and is open to the public as a museum. The building is a one-story structure with a thatch roof. The interior has rough walls, which reflects Tokugawa Mitsukuni's dislike for any form of ostentation. Outside the main structure is a smaller

samurai The samurai () were members of the warrior class in Japan. They were originally provincial warriors who came from wealthy landowning families who could afford to train their men to be mounted archers. In the 8th century AD, the imperial court d ...

residence for use by his guards and a

Japanese garden are traditional gardens whose designs are accompanied by Japanese aesthetics and philosophical ideas, avoid artificial ornamentation, and highlight the natural landscape. Plants and worn, aged materials are generally used by Japanese garden desig ...

Gallery

Seizanso, Ibaraki 01.jpg, Entry Seizansou3.JPG, A portion of the gardens Seizanso, Ibaraki 04.jpg, Nishiyama Goten Villa

References

External links

Official Home page

{{in lang, ja Hitachiōta, Ibaraki 1690s establishments in Japan Hitachi Province History of Ibaraki Prefecture Museums in Ibaraki Prefecture Historic Sites of Japan Places of Scenic Beauty Tokugawa clan

Overview

Gallery

See also

References

External links