| Utsunomiya Domain 宇都宮藩 | |
|---|---|
| under Tokugawa shogunate Japan | |
| 1601–1871 | |
| Capital | Utsunomiya Castle |
| • Type | Daimyō |
| Historical era | Edo period |
• Established | 1601 |
• Disestablished | 1871 |
| Today part of | part ofTochigi Prefecture |
Utsunomiya Domain (宇都宮藩,Utsunomiya-han) was afeudal domain under theTokugawa shogunate ofEdo period Japan, located inShimotsuke Province (modern-dayTochigi Prefecture),Japan. It was centered onUtsunomiya Castle in what is now part of the city ofUtsunomiya. Utsunomiya was ruled by numerous daimyō clans during its history.
Utsunomiya has been ruled by theUtsunomiya clan, one of the eight major samurai bands of the northernKantō region and a cadet branch of theFujiwara clan since theKamakura period. For assistingToyotomi Hideyoshi in the 1590Battle of Odawara, Utsunomiya Kunitsuna had been confirmed as a 187,613kokudaimyō. However, in 1597 the Utsunomiya were stripped of their holdings when Hideyoshi's spies revealed that their actual income was more than double what he had authorized. The area then briefly came under theGamō clan ofAizu, but after theBattle of Sekigahara and the creation of theTokugawa shogunate,Tokugawa Ieyasu regarded the location as strategically important due to its position at the junction of theŌshū Kaidō and theNikkō Kaidō.
The 100,000koku Utsunomiya Domain was created forOkudaira Iemasa, the grandson ofTokugawa Ieyasu via his eldest daughter Kame-hime. His creation came as somewhat of a surprise, as he had until this point been largely ignored by Ieyasu and had no domain or even a base of retainers to assist him. However, at the time of theOsaka Campaign Iemasa fell ill, and was ordered to remain behind atEdo Castle, where he died a few days later. His son, Okudaira Tadamasa was confirmed as daimyō, but was only seven years old, and it was decided that Utsunomiya was too important to be left in his hands. He was given an increase to 110,000koku and transferred toKoga Domain inShimōsa.
To replace the Okudaira, the Shogunate turned to the trustedHonda clan, movingHonda Masazumi fromOyama Domain in 1617 and increasing the holdings of Utsunomiya to 155,000koku. He largely rebuilt theUtsunomiya Castle and the surroundingcastle town, and successfully hostedshōgunTokugawa Hidetada on his way to worship at theNikkō Tōshō-gū in 1622. However, Hidetada bypassed Utsunomiya on his way back to Edo, and Masazumi was soon relieved of office and exiled toKubota Domain under house arrest. The reason given was that the Shogun’s investigators had uncovered a plot to assassinate Hidetada using a trap room with a falling ceiling (i.e. The “Utsunomiya Castle Hanging Ceiling Incident”).
The domain was then returned to Okudaira Tadamasa and reduced back to 110,000koku. Tadamasa ruled Utsunomiya for the next 46 years until his death in 1668, hosting the shogunal entourage on several occasions. However, on his death, one of his senior retainers, Sugiura Ezaemon, committedjunshi, which had been outlawed by the shogunate five years previously. Also, a few days after this, a retainer of the domain was involved in the “Utsunomiya Kozen-ji Duel”, whereas dueling was also prohibited. Oukdaira Tadamasa’s son Masayoshi was reduced by 20,000koku and transferred toYamagata Domain.
Utsunomiya was then given to Matsudaira Tadahiro, and the domain increased to 150,000koku. Tadahiro’s father was Okudaira Tadamasa’s brother by the same mother. He was transferred toShirakawa Domain inMutsu 13 years later in 1681.
The domain then returned to the Honda clan in the form of Honda Tadahira, who had traded places from Shirakawa with Matsudaira Tadahiro. However, his rule proved very unpopular and he had difficulty in securing the cooperation of his subjects in taxes. He was transferred toYamato-Koriyama in 1685.
The domain was reduced further to 90,000koku, and Okudaira Masayoshi’s son, Okudaira Masaakira was permitted to return from Yamagata to Utsunomiya. He is noted for establishing a medical system with 20 doctors in Utsunomiya to treat travelers. He died in 1695 at the age of 28, and as his son Masashige was only two years old, he was transferred toFukuyama Domain inBungo.
The domain as then given to Abe Masakuni, formerly ofMiyazu Domain inTango, who ruled for 13 years until his transfer to Fukuyama Domain as well.
The domain was reduced further to 70,000koku and was then given to Toda Tadazane, formerly ofTakada Domain inEchigo. He served asrōjū toTokugawa Ietsugu andTokugawa Yoshimune. His son and grandson ruled, until the clan traded places with Matsudaira Tadamasa ofShimabara Domain inHizen in 1738.Under the Matsudaira, Utsunomiya suffered from repeated floods and crop failure. The expenses involved in the change of domains from distant Shimabara meant that the Matsudaira had to press for increased taxes, which led to several peasant revolts, which had to be suppressed by military force. To add to their woes, Utsunomiya town also suffered from repeated fires, which caused yet more damage and economic issues. Matsudaira Tadahiro was transferred back to Shimabara in 1774, trading places again with the Toda clan.
Toda Tadato was the fourth son of Toda Tadami, and as with the Matsudaira, the move back-and-forth from distant Shimabara all but bankrupted the clan, and the pilgrimage of ShogunTokugawa Ieharu to the Nikkō Tōshō-gū in 1776 further complicated matters. Nevertheless, the clan struggled on to theBakumatsu period over seven generations.
During theBoshin War of theMeiji Restoration, theBattle of Utsunomiya Castle occurred in 1868. Former Tokugawa retainers underŌtori Keisuke andHijikata Toshizō led forces which captured Utsunomiya Castle while the final daimyō of Utsunomiya,Toda Tadatomo, was absent, as he had been charged byTokugawa Yoshinobu with traveling toKyoto and submitting a letter of apology and submission.[1] However, pro-Imperial forces recaptured the castle a week later.
After theabolition of the han system in July 1871, Utsunomiya Domain became part of Tochigi Prefecture. The domain had a population of 59,908 people in 15,557 households, per a census in 1870.[2]
As with most domains in thehan system, Utsunomiya Domain consisted of several discontinuous territories calculated to provide the assignedkokudaka, based on periodiccadastral surveys and projected agricultural yields.[3][4]
| # | Name | Tenure | Courtesy title | Court Rank | kokudaka |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Okudaira clan (fudai) 1601–1619 | |||||
| 1 | Okudaira Iemasa (奥平家昌) | 1601–1614 | Daizen-no-daifu (大膳大夫);Jijū (侍従) | Lower 4th (従四位下) | 100,000koku |
| 2 | Okudaira Tadamasa (奥平忠昌) | 1614–1619 | Mimasaka-no-kami (美作守) | Lower 4th (従四位下) | 100,000koku |
 Honda clan (fudai) 1619–1622 | |||||
| 1 | Honda Masazumi (本多正純) | 1619–1622 | Kozuke-no-suke (上野介) | Lower 5th (従五位下) | 155,000koku |
| Okudaira clan (fudai) 1622–1668 | |||||
| 1 | Okudaira Tadamasa (奥平忠昌) | 1622–1668 | Mimasaka-no-kami (美作守) | Lower 4th (従四位下) | 110,000koku |
| 2 | Okudaira Masayoshi (奥平昌能) | 1668–1668 | Daizen-no-suke (大膳亮) | Lower 5th (従五位下) | 110,000koku |
| Okudaira-Matsudaira clan (shinpan) 1668–1681 | |||||
| 1 | Matsudaira Tadahiro (松平忠弘) | 1668–1681 | Shimosa-no-kami (下総守) | Lower 4th (従四位下);Jijū(侍従) | 150,000koku |
| Honda clan (fudai) 1681–1685 | |||||
| 1 | Honda Tadahira (本多忠平) | 1681–1685 | Noto-no-kami (能登守) | Lower 4th (従四位下) | 110,000koku |
| Okudaira clan (fudai) 1685–1697 | |||||
| 1 | Okudaira Masaakira (奥平昌章) | 1685–1695 | Mimasaka-no-kami (美作守) | Lower 5th (従五位下) | 90,000koku |
| 2 | Okudaira Masashige (奥平昌成) | 1695–1697 | Daizen-no-daifu (大膳大夫) | Lower 4th (従四位下) | 110,000koku |
 Abe clan (fudai) 1697–1710 | |||||
| 1 | Abe Masakuni (阿部正邦) | 1697–1710 | Tsushima-no-kami (対馬守) | Lower 5th (従五位下) | 100,000koku |
.svg) Toda clan (fudai) 1710–1749 | |||||
| 1 | Toda Tadazane (戸田忠真) | 1710–1729 | Yasashiro-no-kami (山城守);Jijū （侍従） | Lower 4th (従四位下) | 67,000 → 77,000koku |
| 2 | Toda Tadami (戸田忠余) | 1729–1746 | Hyuga-no-kami (日向守) | Lower 5th (従五位下) | 77,000koku |
| 3 | Toda Tadamitsu (戸田忠盈) | 1746–1749 | Hyuga-no-kami (日向守) | Lower 5th (従五位下) | 77,000koku |
 Fukozu-Matsudaira clan (fudai) 1749–1774 | |||||
| 1 | Matsudaira Tadamasa (松平忠祇) | 1749–1762 | Tonomo-no-kami (主殿頭) | Lower 5th (従五位下) | 66,000koku |
| 2 | Matsudaira Tadahiro (松平忠恕) | 1762–1774 | Tonomo-no-kami (主殿頭) | Lower 5th (従五位下) | 66,000koku |
| Toda clan (fudai) 1774–1871 | |||||
| 1 | Toda Tadato (戸田忠寛) | 1774–1798 | Inaba-no-kami (因幡守);Jijū （侍従） | Lower 4th (従四位下) | 77,000koku |
| 2 | Toda Tadanaka (戸田忠翰) | 1798–1811 | Noto-no-kami (能登守) | Lower 5th (従五位下) | 77,000koku |
| 3 | Toda Tadanobu (戸田忠延) | 1811–1823 | Hyuga-no-kami (日向守) | Lower 5th (従五位下) | 77,000koku |
| 4 | Toda Tadaharu (戸田忠温) | 1823–1851 | Yamashiro-no-kami (日向守);Jijū (侍従) | Lower 4th (従四位下) | 77,000koku |
| 5 | Toda Tadaaki (戸田忠明) | 1851–1856 | Inaba-no-kami (因幡守) | Lower 5th (従五位下) | 77,000koku |
| 6 | Toda Tadayuki (戸田忠恕) | 1856–1865 | Uchizen-no-kami (越前守) | Lower 5th (従五位下) | 77,000koku |
| 7 | Toda Tadatomo (戸田忠友) | 1865–1871 | Tosa-no-kami (土佐守) | Lower 5th (従五位下) | 77,000koku |