Shimotsuke Province (下野国,Shimotsuke-no kuni) was aprovince of Japan in the area of Japan that is todayTochigi Prefecture.[1] Shimotsuke was bordered byKōzuke,Hitachi,Mutsu andShimōsa Provinces. Its abbreviated form name was Yashū (野州). Under theEngishiki classification system, Shimotsuke was ranked as one of the 13 "great countries" (大国) in terms of importance, and one of the 30 "far countries" (遠国) in terms of distance from the capital. The provincial capital is located in what is now the city ofTochigi. TheIchinomiya of the province is the Futarasan jinja located in what is now the city ofUtsunomiya.
During the 4th century AD, (Kofun period) the area of modern Gunma and southern Tochigi prefectures were known as Keno or Kenu (毛野). At some unknown point in the 5th century, the area was divided at theKinugawa River into Kamitsukeno (上毛野) and Shimotsukeno (下毛野). Per theNara periodTaihō Code, these provinces became Kamitsukeno-no-kuni (上毛野国) and Shimotsukeno-no-kuni (下毛野国). In 713, with the standardization of province names into twokanji, these names becameKōzuke (上野) andShimozuke (下野).
The area of Shimotsuke is mentioned frequently in theNara periodRikkokushi, including theNihon Shoki and had strong connections with theYamato court since theKofun period. A large Buddhist temple complex, the Shimotsuke Yakushi-ji, located in what is now the city of Tochigi, dates from the Nara period.
From theHeian period, the area was dominated by a number of samurai bands, including the Utsunomiya clan, and the Nasu clan. A branch of theMinamoto clan, theAshikaga rose to prominence during theKamakura period from theirshōen at what is nowAshikaga, and went on to create theAshikaga shogunate of theMuromachi period.
During theSengoku period, Shimotsuke was contested between thelater Hōjō clan, theTakeda and theUesugi clans. After the establishment of theTokugawa shogunate, much of the province was assigned to severalfeudal domains.Tokugawa Ieyasu andTokugawa Iemitsu chose the sacred site ofNikkō to be the location of their tombs, and thus the area prospered as a site of pilgrimage through the end of theEdo period.
TheNikkō Kaidō and theŌshū Kaidō highways passed through the province, and numerouspost stations were established.
Following theMeiji Restoration, the various domains became prefectures with theabolition of the han system in 1871. These various prefectures merged to form Tochigi Prefecture in 1873.
Shimotsuke Province consisted of ten districts:
| Name | type | daimyo | kokudaka | notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Utsunomiya Domain | fudai | Toda | 77,000koku | |
| Mibu Domain | fudai | Torii | 30,000koku | |
| Karasuyama Domain | fudai | Okubo | 30,000koku | |
| Sano Domain | fudai | Hotta | 18,000koku | |
| Kurobane Domain | tozama | Oseki | 18,000koku | |
| Ashikaga Domain | fudai | Toda | 12,000koku | |
| Ōtawara Domain | tozama | Ōtawara | 11,000koku | |
| Kitsuregawa Domain | tozama | Ashikaga | 10,000koku | |
| Fukiake Domain | tozama | Arima | 10,000koku |
Media related toShimotsuke Province at Wikimedia Commons