270px, Matsumae Nagahiro, final daimyo of Matsumae Domain The Matsumae Domain (松前藩), a prominent domain during the

Edo period The , also known as the , is the period between 1600 or 1603 and 1868 in the history of Japan, when the country was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and some 300 regional ''daimyo'', or feudal lords. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengok ...

, was situated in Matsumae, Matsumae Island (Ishijima), which is currently known as Matsumae Town, Matsumae District, Hokkaido, via Tsugaru District, Oshima Province. The clan's leader, also known as the lord of the domain, constructed Matsumae Fukuyama Castle in the same location and henceforth, the clan came to be referred to as the Fukuyama clan. In 1868, the castle was relocated to Tatejo in Assabu-cho, Hiyama-gun, within the territory, and was known as Tatehan during the

Meiji period The was an era of Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868, to July 30, 1912. The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feudal society at risk of colonizatio ...

. Initially, the Matsumae clan's jurisdiction was limited to the Wajin territory on the

Oshima Peninsula The Oshima Peninsula (渡島半島 ''Oshima-hantō'') is the southernmost part of Hokkaidō, the northernmost of the Japanese islands. Where the peninsula starts is open to interpretation. A more generous interpretation is to draw a line southea ...

in southwest Hokkaido. However, they gradually expanded their control over the Ezo region, which is now part of Hokkaido, and transformed it into their domain. The clan's economic foundation relied on their exclusive trade with the

Ainu people The Ainu are an Indigenous peoples, indigenous ethnic group who reside in northern Japan and southeastern Russia, including Hokkaido and the Tōhoku region of Honshu, as well as the land surrounding the Sea of Okhotsk, such as Sakhalin, the Ku ...

of Ezo, which set them apart from the agricultural-based governance principles of the

Shogunate , officially , was the title of the military rulers of Japan during most of the period spanning from 1185 to 1868. Nominally appointed by the Emperor, shoguns were usually the de facto rulers of the country, except during parts of the Kamak ...

system. Towards the end of the

, the shogunate often assumed control over Ezo.

History

As per the historical account in the Matsumae domain's " Silla Records,"

Takeda Nobuhiro Takeda Nobuhiro (武田信広), also known as Kakizaki Nobuhiro (蠣崎信廣) (1431 – 1494) was the ancestor of the Matsumae clan, and is celebrated for his role in suppressing the 1457 Ainu revolt of Koshamain. The adopted son of Takeda ...

, believed to be a descendant of the Kai-Genji and Wakasa-

Takeda clan The was a Japanese samurai clan active from the late Heian period until the late 16th century. The clan was historically based in Kai Province in present-day Yamanashi Prefecture. The clan reached its greatest influence under the rule of Taked ...

s, was the founder during the

Muromachi period The , also known as the , is a division of Japanese history running from approximately 1336 to 1573. The period marks the governance of the Muromachi or Ashikaga shogunate ( or ), which was officially established in 1338 by the first Muromachi ...

. Nobuhiro succeeded Kakizaki Suishige, appointed by Masasue Ando as the shugo of Kamigoku, assumed the Kakizaki clan name, and settled in the southern part of the present-day Oshima Peninsula. Under Kakizaki Toshihiro's leadership, with the lord Ando Shunsuke, peace was established with the Ainu of Chikomotain and Hashitain, strengthening control over Ezo. Towards the end of the

Sengoku period The was the period in History of Japan, Japanese history in which civil wars and social upheavals took place almost continuously in the 15th and 16th centuries. The Kyōtoku incident (1454), Ōnin War (1467), or (1493) are generally chosen as th ...

, Tamenobu Oura led an army in the Tsugaru region, resulting in the expulsion of the Ezo Kanrei (Hiyama Ando clan) from Tsugaru. This event hastened the Kakizaki clan's independence in the Ezo region. During Matsumae Yoshihiro's era, the son of Tokihiro, official separation from the Ando clan (later the

Akita clan The was a Japanese samurai clan of northern Honshū that claimed descent from Abe no Sadato of the Abe clan. The Akita clan was originally known as the . In the Kamakura period, they were installed in the Tsugaru district of Mutsu Province t ...

) was approved by submitting to Toyotomi Hideyoshi. In 1599, submission to

Tokugawa Ieyasu Tokugawa Ieyasu (born Matsudaira Takechiyo; 31 January 1543 – 1 June 1616) was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan, which ruled from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was the third of the three "Gr ...

led to the recognition of the right to rule over Ezo. In the early Edo period, the lord of Ezo Island was treated as a guest vassal, but during the fifth shogun Tsunayoshi Tokugawa's time, joining the Tokuyoriai resulted in being treated as a

hatamoto A was a high ranking samurai in the direct service of the Tokugawa shogunate of feudal Japan. While all three of the Shōgun, shogunates in History of Japan, Japanese history had official retainers, in the two preceding ones, they were referred ...

. Additionally, from 1719, becoming a feudal lord with a rank of 10,000 koku marked a significant development in the history of the Matsumae domain's governance over Ezo. At the conclusion of the Sengoku period, Oura Tamenobu assembled a military force in the Tsugaru region, resulting in the expulsion of the Ezo Kanrei (Hiyama Ando clan) from Tsugaru. This event played a significant role in expediting the independence of the Kakizaki clan in the Ezo region. Under the leadership of Matsumae Yoshihiro, the son of Tokihiro, he gained official recognition for his separation from the Ando clan (later known as the

) by pledging allegiance to Toyotomi Hideyoshi. In 1599, he further solidified his position by submitting to Tokugawa Ieyasu, thereby securing the authority to govern over Ezo. Initially, during the early

, he was regarded as a guest vassal and held the position of the lord of Ezo Island. However, during the reign of the fifth shogun,

Tokugawa Tsunayoshi was the fifth ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa dynasty of Japan. He was the younger brother of Tokugawa Ietsuna, as well as the son of Tokugawa Iemitsu, the grandson of Tokugawa Hidetada, and the great-grandson of Tokugawa Ieyasu.Nussbaum, Louis- ...

, he joined the Tokuyoriai and was elevated to the status of a hatamoto. Moreover, starting from 1719, he became a feudal lord with a substantial landholding of 10,000 koku.During that period, cultivating rice in Ezo was deemed unattainable, leading to the

Matsumae clan The was a Japanese aristocratic family who were daimyo of Matsumae Domain, in present-day Matsumae, Hokkaidō, from the Azuchi–Momoyama period until the Meiji Restoration. They were given the domain as a march fief in 1590 by Toyotomi ...

holding a feudal lord position without a high rank. The designation of 10,000 koku as a rank came later on. The black seal bestowed upon Matsumae Yoshihiro by

Ieyasu Tokugawa Ieyasu (born Matsudaira Takechiyo; 31 January 1543 – 1 June 1616) was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan, which ruled from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was the third of the three "Gr ...

in 1604 granted the clan exclusive trading rights with the

Emishi The were a group of people who lived in parts of northern Honshū in present-day Japan, especially in the Tōhoku region. The first mention of the Emishi in literature that can be corroborated with outside sources dates to the 5th century AD, ...

(

. Trade commodities like salmon, kelp, herring, and furs brought in revenue, reportedly amounting to 70,000 koku. The feudal lord himself dispatched trading vessels to Ezo, while his retainers were entrusted with the responsibility of establishing trading posts (akinaiba) in Ezo and authorizing them to send ships for trade. The Matsumae clan implemented a policy of regulating trade between Ezo and Wajin, designating the southern

as Wajinchi and the remaining area as Ezochi. Ainu individuals used to journey to Wajin territories and Honshu for trade until the early Edo period, after which control became more stringent. In 1679, the Matsumae clan established an anajinya in Kusharukotan (Kusukei, Odomari-cho, Odomari-gun) in Sakhalin, initiating the development of the region as a fishing hub. Fishing was the primary industry in Wajinchi, directly managed by the Matsumae clan, but due to dwindling herring catches, individuals began migrating to Ezo for employment opportunities. By 1834, the castle town of Matsumae had evolved into a thriving urban center with a populace exceeding 10,000 residents. Matsumae Nobuhiro, the 14th lord of the domain, submitted a request for the reinstatement of the domain name on June 24, 1869, and his request was approved. Subsequently, he was designated as the governor of the Matsumae domain. During that year,

Hokkaido is the list of islands of Japan by area, second-largest island of Japan and comprises the largest and northernmost prefectures of Japan, prefecture, making up its own list of regions of Japan, region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō fr ...

consisted of 86 districts across 11 provinces. The Matsumae Domain was established for a period of two years before it was transformed into a prefecture on July 14, 1871. Its name derived from the fact that the Imperial Court granted permission to construct a new castle in the village of Atsubu in the western region of the country. Initially, the government office was situated at Fukuyama Castle, as the construction of the new castle was interrupted by the Hakodate War. During the

Boshin War The , sometimes known as the Japanese Revolution or Japanese Civil War, was a civil war in Japan fought from 1868 to 1869 between forces of the ruling Tokugawa shogunate and a coalition seeking to seize political power in the name of the Impe ...

and the Tohoku War, the Matsumae clan joined forces with the Ou-etsu clan alliance, but the loyalist Seigi-tai took control of the domain and defected to the new government. They relocated to the newly built Tate Castle and fought against the former shogunate army in the Hakodate War under the name of the Tate clan. Following the war, individuals who collaborated with the former shogunate army were apprehended and punished accordingly. Over 90 individuals, including both townspeople and samurai, faced punishment, with 19 of them being publicly executed.

Holdings at the end of the Edo period

** Oshima Province * Erzhi County * Hiyama-gun * Tsugaru-gun * Fukushima-gun ** Mutsu Province * Ryuhi Cape *

Iwashiro Province is an old province in the area of Fukushima Prefecture. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Iwashiro''" in . It was sometimes called . The province occupies the western half of the central part of Fukushima Prefecture; the eastern half is I ...

* Date County - 10 villages * Murayama County - 39 villages

List of daimyo

References

{{Reflist

External links

*https://hokkaidoguide.com/matsumae-castle/ *https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e5380.html *https://donnykimball.com/matsumae-castle-432031118472

History

Holdings at the end of the Edo period

List of daimyo

See also

References

External links