TheRōjū (老中), usually translated asElder, was one of the highest-ranking government posts under theTokugawa shogunate ofEdo periodJapan. The term refers either to individual Elders, or to the Council of Elders as a whole; under the first twoshōguns, there were only twoRōjū. The number was then increased to five, and later reduced to four. TheRōjū were usually appointed from the ranks of thefudai daimyōs with domains of between 25,000 and 50,000koku.[1]
TheRōjū had a number of responsibilities, most clearly delineated in the 1634 ordinance that reorganized the government and created a number of new posts:
TheRōjū served not simultaneously, but in rotation, each serving the Shogun for a month at a time, communicating with the Shogun through a chamberlain, calledSoba-yōnin. However, theRōjū also served as members of theHyōjōsho council, along with theŌ-Metsuke and representatives of variousBugyō (Commissions or Departments). As part of theHyōjōsho, theRōjū sometimes served a role similar to that of asupreme court, deciding succession disputes and other such disputed matters of state and its vassals.
Under the reign ofTokugawa Tsunayoshi (1680–1709) theRōjū lost nearly all their power, as the Shogun began to work more closely with theTairō, Chamberlains, and others, includingYanagisawa Yoshiyasu, who held the power of aTairō, but not the title. TheRōjū became little more than messengers, going through the motions of their proper roles as intermediaries between the Shogun and other offices, but not being able to exercise any power to change or decide policy. AsArai Hakuseki, a major Confucian poet and politician of the time wrote, "All the Rōjū did was to pass on his [Yoshiyasu's] instructions" (Sansom 141). Even after Tsunayoshi's death, theRōjū did not regain their former power. They continued to exist, however, as a government post and a council with, officially if not in fact, all the powers and responsibilities they originally held, through theEdo period.
Each office-holder is listed once. Some may have served under multipleshōguns, and as a result of multiple terms, the list may not fully accurate reflect the order in which the office was held. For example,Hotta Masayoshi served in 1857–58 afterAbe Masahiro (1843–57), but also served earlier, and is listed earlier; he is not also listed after Abe.
Tokugawa bureaucracy organization chart | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| |||
Notes | |||
This bureaucracy evolved in anad hoc manner, responding to perceived needs. | |||
