| Shimazu 島津 | |
|---|---|
_inverted.svg) The Shimazu clanmon | |
| Home province | Satsuma Ōsumi Hyūga |
| Parent house |
|
| Founder | Shimazu Tadahisa |
| Final ruler | Shimazu Tadashige |
| Current head | Shimazu Tadahiro |
| Founding year | 12th century (ca. 1196 AD) |
| Dissolution | extant |
| Ruled until | 1947,Constitution of Japan renders titles obsolete |
TheShimazu clan (島津氏,Shimazu-shi;Japanese pronunciation:[ɕiꜜ.ma.(d)zɯ,ɕi.ma.(d)zɯꜜ.ɕi][1]) were thedaimyō of theSatsumahan, which spread overSatsuma,Ōsumi andHyūga provinces inJapan.
The Shimazu were identified as one of thetozama or outsiderdaimyō families[2] in contrast with thefudai or insider clans which were hereditary vassals or allies of theTokugawa clan.
The Shimazu were descendants of theSeiwa Genji branch of theMinamoto. The Shimazu would become one of the families ofEdo perioddaimyō to have held their territory continuously since theKamakura period, and would also become, at their peak, the wealthiest and most powerfulTozama daimyō family with an income in excess of 700,000koku.
The founder,Shimazu Tadahisa (d. 1227), was a son ofShōgunMinamoto no Yoritomo (1147–1199) with the sister ofHiki Yoshikazu. Tadahisa's wife was a daughter ofKoremune Hironobu, a descendant of theHata clan, whose name Tadahisa took at first. He received the domain of Shioda inShinano Province in 1186 and was then namedshugo of Satsuma Province. He sentHonda Sadachika to take possession of the province in his name and accompanied Yoritomo in his expedition toMutsu in 1189. He went to Satsuma in 1196, subdued the Hyūga and Ōsumi provinces, and built a castle in the Hyūga Province as part of theShimazu Estate, whose name he also adopted.
Shimazu Yoshihisa (1533–1611) was the 16th Head of Shimazu family and the eldest son ofShimazu Takahisa.[3] In 1586, he succeeded in unifying and controlling the entireKyushu region. He retired in 1587 afterToyotomi Hideyoshi'sKyushu Campaign.
The 17th head,Yoshihiro (1535–1619), was thedaimyō at the time of theBattle of Sekigahara, the establishment of theTokugawa Shogunate, and theSiege of Osaka.[4] His nephew and successor wasTadatsune.[5] He held significant power during the first two decades of the 17th century, and organized the Shimazu invasion of theRyūkyū Kingdom (modern-dayOkinawa Prefecture) in 1609. TheShōgun allowed this because he wished to appease the Shimazu and prevent potential uprisings after their loss at Sekigahara.[6] The trade benefits thus acquired, and the political prestige of being the onlydaimyō family to control an entire foreign country secured the Shimazu's position as one of the most powerfuldaimyō families in Japan at the time.The Shimazu clan was renowned for the loyalty of its retainers and officers, especially during theSengoku period. Some retainer families, such as theIjuin andShirakawa, were determined to defeat any opposition to help expand the power of the Shimazu clan. The Shimazu are also famous for being the first to useteppo (firearms, specifically matchlockarquebuses) on the battlefield in Japan, and began domestic production of the weapons as well. Shimazu battle tactics are known to have been very successful in defeating larger enemy armies, particularly during their campaign to conquerKyūshū in the 1580s. Their tactics included the luring of the opposition into an ambush on both sides by arquebus troops, creating panic and disorder. Central forces would then be deployed to rout the enemy. In this way, the Shimazu were able to defeat much larger clans such as theItō,Ryūzōji andŌtomo. Overall, the Shimazu was a very large and powerful clan due to their strong economy both from domestic production through trade, good organization of government and troops, strong loyalty of retainers and isolation from Honshū.
In 1789, Shigehide (1745–1833)'s daughter became the wife of the 11thshogun,Tokugawa Ienari. In 1856,Nariakira (1809–1858)'s adopted daughter (Tenshō-in) became the wife of the 13thshogun,Tokugawa Iesada.[7]
Hisamitsu (1817–1887), regent ofTadayoshi, was thedaimyō of Satsuma at the time of theBoshin War and theMeiji Restoration, in which Satsuma played a major role.[8]
The Shimazu clan claims descent of theSeiwa Genji from the paternal side (Shimazu Tadahisa) while claiming descent of theKoremune clan (branch of the ancientHata clan) from the maternal side (throughLady Sadatake).
However, Tadahisa's ambiguous genealogy has caused scrutiny among Japanese historians on whether his lineage was truly Genji, since older sources record him under "Koremune", the same clan as his wife.[9] It is believed that after serving as the head steward of theKonoe family, Tadahisa became a retainer to theMinamoto clan where he adopted the clan name and self-proclaimed to be of Seiwa Genji descent.[9] The general consensus is that Tadahisa was of Koremune descent like his wife, and not Seiwa Genji.
There is afringe theory that associates the Shimazu clan withChristianity[10] claiming that the clan was a Christian clan or in some extreme cases, that the clan had Christian (Western) ancestry. The claim compares themon of the Shimazu clan with thesun cross, stating that the similarity is more than just a coincidence[10] and usesShimazu Takahisa as an example of the clan's affinity to the religion.
However, due to the fact that the clan'smon was used much earlier than the introduction of Christianity to Japan, and no other genealogical evidence supporting the theory, it is not considered historically or scientifically accurate.
A similar claim and fringe theory was given to the Shimazu clan's ancestor family known as theHata clan, wherepseudohistorians tried connecting the Hata with theTen Lost Tribes of Israel. The Hata clan, an immigrant clan fromKorea, had a convoluted origin with many claims pointing to different civilizations, one of which wasIsrael under theJapanese-Jewish common ancestry theory also known as "Nichiyu dōsoron". However, much like its descendant clan, the theory is ignored by most modern historians.
Incorporates information from the Japanese Wikipedia article
I.Shimazu Iehisa, 1st Lord of Satsuma (cr. 1601) (1576–1638; r. 1601–1638)II. Mitsuhisa, 2nd Lord of Satsuma (1616–1695; r. 1638–1687)III. Tsunataka, 3rd Lord of Satsuma (1650–1704; r. 1687–1704)IV. Yoshitaka, 4th Lord of Satsuma (1675–1747; r. 1704–1721)V. Tsugutoyo, 5th Lord of Satsuma (1702–1760; r. 1721–1746)VI. Munenobu, 6th Lord of Satsuma (1728–1749; r. 1746–1749)VII. Shigetoshi, 7th Lord of Satsuma (1729–1755; r. 1749–1755)VIII. Shigehide, 8th Lord of Satsuma (1745–1833; r. 1755–1787)IX. Narinobu, 9th Lord of Satsuma (1774–1841; r. 1787–1809)X.Narioki, 10th Lord of Satsuma (1791–1858; r. 1809–1851)XI.Nariakira, 11th Lord of Satsuma (1809–1858; r. 1851–1858)Tadayoshi, 12th Lord of Satsuma, 1st Prince Shimazu (1840–1897; r. 1858–1869, Governor of Kagoshima 1869–1871, created 1st Prince 1884)The Shimazushichi-tō comprised the seven most significant vassal families—the Niiro, Hokugō,Ijuin,[18] Machida, Kawakami, Ata and Kajiki.[19]
