A map of the territories of theSengoku daimyo around the first year of theGenki era (1570 AD)
Daimyo (大名,daimyō;English:/ˈdaɪm.joʊ/,[1]Japanese:[dai.mʲoꜜː]ⓘ[2]) were powerful Japanesemagnates,[3]feudallords[4] who, from the 10th century to the earlyMeiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to theshogun and nominally to theemperor and thekuge (an aristocratic class). In the term,dai (大) means 'large', andmyō stands formyōden (名田), meaning 'private land'.[5]
From theshugo of theMuromachi period through theSengoku period to the daimyo of theEdo period, the rank had a long and varied history. The backgrounds of daimyo also varied considerably; while some daimyo clans, notably theMōri,Shimazu andHosokawa, were cadet branches of the Imperial family or were descended from thekuge, other daimyo were promoted from the ranks of thesamurai, notably during the Edo period.
Daimyo often hired samurai to guard their land, and paid them in land or food, as relatively few could afford to pay them in money. The daimyo era ended soon after theMeiji Restoration, with the adoption of theprefecture system in 1871.
Theshugo daimyō (守護大名) were the first group of men to hold the titledaimyō. They arose from among theshugo during theMuromachi period (approximately 1336–1573). Theshugo-daimyo held not only military and police powers, but also economic power within aprovince. They accumulated these powers throughout the first decades of the Muromachi period.
TheAshikaga shogunate required theshugo-daimyō to reside inKyoto, so they appointed relatives or retainers, calledshugodai, to represent them in their home provinces. Eventually, some of these in turn came to reside in Kyoto, appointing deputies in the provinces.
TheŌnin War was a major uprising in whichshugo-daimyō fought each other. During this and other wars of the time,kuniikki, or provincial uprisings, took place as locally powerful warriors sought independence from theshugo-daimyo. The deputies of theshugo-daimyō, living in the provinces, seized the opportunity to strengthen their position. At the end of the fifteenth century, thoseshugo-daimyō who succeeded remained in power. Those who had failed to exert control over their deputies fell from power and were replaced by a new class, thesengoku-daimyō, who arose from the ranks of theshugodai andjizamurai.
TheBattle of Sekigahara in 1600 marked the beginning of theEdo period.ShōgunTokugawa Ieyasu reorganized roughly 200 daimyo and their territories intohan, which were assessed by rice production. Those headinghan assessed at 10,000koku (50,000 bushels) or more were considered daimyo. Ieyasu also categorized the daimyo according to their relation to the ruling Tokugawa family: theshinpan were related to the Tokugawa; thefudai had been vassals of the Tokugawa or allies in battle; and thetozama had not allied with the Tokugawa before theBattle of Sekigahara (but did not necessarily fight against the Tokugawa).[6]
Theshinpan were collaterals of Ieyasu, such as theMatsudaira, or descendants of Ieyasu other than in the main line of succession. Severalshinpan, including the Tokugawa ofOwari (Nagoya),Kii (Wakayama), andMito, as well as the Matsudaira ofFukui andAizu, held largehan.[citation needed]
A fewfudai daimyō, such as theIi ofHikone, held largehan, but many were small. The shogunate placed manyfudai at strategic locations to guard the trade routes and the approaches toEdo. Also, manyfudai daimyo took positions in the Edo shogunate, some rising to the position ofrōjū. The fact thatfudai daimyo could hold government positions, whiletozama in general could not, was a main difference between the two.[citation needed]
Tozama daimyō held mostly large fiefs far away from the capital, with e.g. theKagahan ofIshikawa Prefecture, headed by theMaeda clan, assessed at 1,000,000koku. Other famoustozama clans included theMori ofChōshū, theShimazu ofSatsuma, theDate ofSendai, theUesugi ofYonezawa, and theHachisuka ofAwa. Initially, the Tokugawa regarded them as potentially rebellious, but for most of the Edo period, control policies such assankin-kōtai, resulted in peaceful relations.[7][8]
Daimyo were required to maintain residences in Edo as well as their fiefs, and to move periodically between Edo and their fiefs, typically spending alternate years in each place, in a practice calledsankin-kōtai.[9]
In 1869, the year after the Meiji Restoration, the daimyo, together with thekuge, formed a new aristocracy, thekazoku.[10][11] In 1871, thehan were abolished, and prefectures were established.[12] In this year, around 200 daimyo returned their titles to the emperor, who consolidated their han into 75 prefectures.[13] Their military forces were also demobilized, with the daimyo and their samurai followers pensioned into retirement.[13] The move to abolish the feudal domains effectively ended the daimyo era in Japan. This was effectively carried out through the financial collapse of the feudal-domain governments, hampering their capability for resistance.[14]
In the wake of the changes, many daimyo remained in control of their lands, being appointed as prefecturalgovernors; however, they were soon relieved of this duty and called en masse to Tokyo, thereby cutting off any independent base of power from which to potentially rebel.
Despite this, members of former daimyo families remained prominent in government and society, and in some cases continue to remain prominent to the present day. For example,Morihiro Hosokawa, the former Prime Minister of Japan, is a descendant of the daimyo ofKumamoto.[citation needed]
^Tsukahira, Toshio G. (1966-11-04),"Preliminary Material",Feudal Control in Tokugawa Japan, Harvard University Asia Center, pp. i–xvi,ISBN978-1-68417-151-4, retrieved2024-06-24
^Norman, Herbert E. (2011).Japan's Emergence as a Modern State – 60th anniv. ed.: Political and Economic Problems of the Meiji Period. UBC Press. pp. 25–26.ISBN978-0-7748-4187-0.
^McLaren, Walter Wallace (2013).Political History of Japan During the Meiji Era, 1867–1912. Oxon: Routledge.ISBN978-1-136-99549-1.
^abNester, William R. (2016).The Foundation of Japanese Power: Continuities, Changes, Challenges: Continuities, Changes, Challenges. Oxon: Routledge.ISBN978-1-315-48931-5.
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