was a after ''

Meireki was a of the Edo period, after the '' Jōō'' era and before '' Manji'' era. This era's period spanned the years from April 1655 to July 1658. The reigning emperor was .Titsingh, Change of era * 1655 : The era name was changed to mark the ...

'' and before ''

Kanbun A is a form of Classical Chinese used in Japan from the Nara period to the mid-20th century. Much of Japanese literature was written in this style and it was the general writing style for official and intellectual works throughout the period. ...

.'' This period spanned the years from July 1658 through April 1661. The reigning emperor was .Titsingh, Isaac. (1834)
''Annales des empereurs du japon'', p. 413.
/ref>

Change of era

* 1658 : The era name was changed to mark a disastrous, great fire in Edo. The previous era ended and a new one commenced in ''Meireki'' 4, on the 23rd day of the 7th month 23rd. The source of this era name comes from the

Records of the Grand Historian ''Records of the Grand Historian'', also known by its Chinese name ''Shiji'', is a monumental history of China that is the first of China's 24 dynastic histories. The ''Records'' was written in the early 1st century by the ancient Chinese his ...

: "When the common people know their place, then all under heaven is ruled" (衆民乃定、万国為治)

Events of the ''Manji'' era

* 1658 (''Manji 1''): In the aftermath of the Great Mereiki Fire, the shogunate organized four all-samurai, all-Edo firefighting squads. * 1658 (''Manji 1''):

Yanagisawa Yoshiyasu was a Japanese samurai of the Edo period. He was an official in the Tokugawa shogunate and a favourite of the fifth shōgun, Tokugawa Tsunayoshi. His second concubine was Ogimachi Machiko, a writer and scholar from the noble court who wrot ...

is born. Yoshiyasu will become Shōgun Tsunayoshi's favorite courtier and chief counselor.Bodart-Bailey, Beatrice. (2006). ''The Dog Shogun: The Personality and Policies of Tokugawa Tsunayoshi'', p. 110. * 1659 (''Manji 2''): In Edo, construction begins on the Ryōgoku Bridge (''ryogokubashi''). * 1660 (''Manji 3''): Former ''

rōjū The , usually translated as ''Elder'', was one of the highest-ranking government posts under the Tokugawa shogunate of Edo period Japan. The term refers either to individual Elders, or to the Council of Elders as a whole; under the first two ''shō ...

Sakai Tadakatsu was a Sengoku period Japanese samurai, and early Edo period ''daimyō'' and served in several important positions within the administration of the Tokugawa shogunate. Papinot, Edmund. (2003)''Nobiliare du Japon'' Sakai. pp. 50–51 Biography Ta ...

entered the Buddhist priesthood.

Gallery

Image:Sunset across the Ryogoku bridge from the bank of the Sumida river at Onmagayashi.jpg,

Katsushika Hokusai , known simply as Hokusai, was a Japanese ukiyo-e artist of the Edo period, active as a painter and printmaker. He is best known for the woodblock print series '' Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji'', which includes the iconic print ''The Great W ...

published this view of the Ryōgoku Bridge as an

ukiyo-e Ukiyo-e is a genre of Japanese art which flourished from the 17th through 19th centuries. Its artists produced woodblock prints and paintings of such subjects as female beauties; kabuki actors and sumo wrestlers; scenes from history and folk t ...

print.

Notes

References

* Bodart-Bailey, Beatrice. (2006). ''The Dog Shogun: The Personality and Policies of Tokugawa Tsunayoshi''. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press. ;
OCLC 470123491
* McClain, James L., John M. Merriman and Kaoru Ugawa. (1994). ''Edo and Paris: Urban Life and the State in the Early Modern Era''. Ithaca:

Cornell University Press The Cornell University Press is the university press of Cornell University; currently housed in Sage House, the former residence of Henry William Sage. It was first established in 1869, making it the first university publishing enterprise in t ...

. * Nussbaum, Louis Frédéric and Käthe Roth. (2005). ''Japan Encyclopedia''. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
OCLC 48943301
* Screech, Timon. (2006). ''Secret Memoirs of the Shoguns: Isaac Titsingh and Japan, 1779–1822''. London: RoutledgeCurzon.
OCLC 65177072
* Titsingh, Isaac. (1834). '' Nihon Ōdai Ichiran''; ou
''Annales des empereurs du Japon''.
Paris: Royal Asiatic Society, Oriental Translation Fund of Great Britain and Ireland
OCLC 5850691

External links