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Hosokawa Shigekata
was a Japanese samurai ''daimyō'' of the Edo period. Early life Shigekata's father, Hosokawa Nobunori, was the 4th ''daimyō'' of Hosokawa clan, but his elder brother, the 5th ''daimyō'', unfortunately was killed, because the family crest of another person was similar to that of the Hosokawa clan. Family * Father: Hosokawa Nobunori (1676–1732) * Wife: daughter of Koga Michie * Concubine: Yokoshi later Entei-in * Children: ** Hosokawa Harutoshi (1758–1787) by Yokoshi ** Norihime later Korin'in married Hosokawa Okinori ** Hidejiro Daimyo Shigekata was the 6th ''daimyō'' of Kumamoto of Hosokawa clan, noted for successful financial reform of Kumamoto Domain, for establishing Jishūkan Han school, Medical School Saishunkan (school) and new ideas of criminal law. There were financial difficulties of the Kumamoto Han. The deficits at the time of his father's administration reached 400,000 Ryō. The financial situation of his Han worsened because of the Edo bakufu's ''sank ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Daimyō
were powerful Japanese magnates, feudal lords who, from the 10th century to the early Meiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast, hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to the shogun and nominally to the emperor and the '' kuge''. In the term, means 'large', and stands for , meaning 'private land'. From the '' shugo'' of the Muromachi period through the Sengoku to the ''daimyo'' of the Edo period, the rank had a long and varied history. The backgrounds of ''daimyo'' also varied considerably; while some ''daimyo'' clans, notably the Mōri, Shimazu and Hosokawa, were cadet branches of the Imperial family or were descended from the ''kuge'', other ''daimyo'' were promoted from the ranks of the samurai, notably during the Edo period. ''Daimyo'' often hired samurai to guard their land, and they paid the samurai in land or food as relatively few could afford to pay samurai in money. The ''daimyo'' era ended soon after the Meiji R ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Famine
A famine is a widespread scarcity of food, caused by several factors including war, natural disasters, crop failure, population imbalance, widespread poverty, an economic catastrophe or government policies. This phenomenon is usually accompanied or followed by regional malnutrition, starvation, epidemic, and increased mortality. Every inhabited continent in the world has experienced a period of famine throughout history. In the 19th and 20th century, generally characterized Southeast and South Asia, as well as Eastern and Central Europe, in terms of having suffered most number of deaths from famine. The numbers dying from famine began to fall sharply from the 2000s. Since 2010, Africa has been the most affected continent of famine in the world. Definitions According to the United Nations World Food Programme, famine is declared when malnutrition is widespread, and when people have started dying of starvation through lack of access to sufficient, nutritious food. The Int ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Magic (paranormal)
Magic, sometimes spelled magick, is an ancient praxis rooted in sacred rituals, spiritual divinations, and/or cultural lineage—with an intention to invoke, manipulate, or otherwise manifest supernatural forces, beings, or entities in the natural, incarnate world. It is a categorical yet often ambiguous term which has been used to refer to a wide variety of beliefs and practices, frequently considered separate from both religion and science. Although connotations have varied from positive to negative at times throughout history, magic continues to have an important religious and medicinal role in many cultures today. Within Western culture, magic has been linked to ideas of the Other, foreignness, and primitivism; indicating that it is "a powerful marker of cultural difference" and likewise, a non-modern phenomenon. During the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, Western intellectuals perceived the practice of magic to be a sign of a primitive mentality and also c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Karō
were top-ranking samurai officials and advisors in service to the ''daimyōs'' of feudal Japan. Overview In the Edo period, the policy of ''sankin-kōtai'' (alternate attendance) required each ''daimyō'' to place a ''karō'' in Edo and another in the home '' han'' (feudal domain). A ''karō'' who was in charge of a castle was called the ''jōdai karō'' (城代家老), while the one in Edo was called the ''Edo karō'' (江戸家老). A general term for a domain-based ''karō'' is ''kunigarō'' (国家老). Some domains referred to this position as '' bugyō'' (奉行) or '' toshiyori'' (年寄). The shogunate post of ''rōjū'' (elder) had many similarities to that of ''karō''. The famous samurai tale, '' Kanadehon Chūshingura'', describes events involving a ''karō''. The final Asano ''daimyō'' of the Ako ''han'' was Asano Naganori. While he was in Edo, he was sentenced to commit seppuku for the offense of drawing a sword against Kira Yoshinaka in Edo Castle. When th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Seppuku
, sometimes referred to as hara-kiri (, , a native Japanese kun reading), is a form of Japanese ritual suicide by disembowelment. It was originally reserved for samurai in their code of honour but was also practised by other Japanese people during the Shōwa period (particularly officers near the end of World War II) to restore honour for themselves or for their families. As a samurai practice, ''seppuku'' was used voluntarily by samurai to die with honour rather than fall into the hands of their enemies (and likely be tortured), as a form of capital punishment for samurai who had committed serious offences, or performed because they had brought shame to themselves. The ceremonial disembowelment, which is usually part of a more elaborate ritual and performed in front of spectators, consists of plunging a short blade, traditionally a '' tantō'', into the belly and drawing the blade from left to right, slicing the belly open. If the cut is deep enough, it can sever the abd ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bugyō
was a title assigned to ''samurai'' officials during the feudal period of Japan. ''Bugyō'' is often translated as commissioner, magistrate, or governor, and other terms would be added to the title to describe more specifically a given official's tasks or jurisdiction. Pre-Edo period In the Heian period (794–1185), the post or title of ''bugyō'' would be applied only to an official with a set task; once that task was complete, the officer would cease to be called ''bugyō''. However, in the Kamakura period (1185–1333) and later, continuing through the end of the Edo period (1603–1868), posts and title came to be created on a more permanent basis.Kinihara, Misako''The Establishment of the Tosen-bugyō in the Reign of Ashikaga Yoshinori'' (唐船奉行の成立 : 足利義教による飯尾貞連の登用) Tokyo Woman's Christian University. ''Essays and S.tudies''. Abstract. Over time, there came to be 36 ''bugyō'' in the bureaucracy of the Kamakura shogunate. In 14 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Metsuke
were the censors or the inspectors of Tokugawa shogunate. They were ''bakufu'' officials ranking somewhat lower than the ''bugyō.'' The ''metsuke'' were charged with the special duty of detecting and investigating instances of maladministration, corruption or disaffection anywhere in Japan, and particularly amongst the populace having status below the ''daimyō''.Beasley, William G. (1955). ''Select Documents on Japanese Foreign Policy, 1853–1868'', p. 326. Intelligence gathering The shogunate recognized the need for some kind of internal intelligence-gathering apparatus and for some degree of covert espionage within its own ranks. It could be said that the ''metsuke'' functioned as the Shogun's intelligence agency or as internal spies, reporting to the officials in Edo on events and situations across the country.Cunningham, Don. (2004) ''Taiho-jutsu: Law and Order in the Age of the Samurai,'' p. 39./ref> The ''metsuke'' were charged with focusing on those ranking below ''dai ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tenmei
is a Japanese era name (年号, ''nengō'', literally "years name") for the years between the An'ei Era and before the Kansei Era, from April 1781 through January 1789. The reigning emperor was . Change of era * 1781 : The new era name of Tenmei (meaning "dawn") was created to mark the enthronement of Emperor Kōkaku. The previous era ended and the new one commenced on the second day of the fourth month in what had been An'ei 11. As is customary for choosing nengō, the name was selected from a passage in a historical Chinese text. In this case, the text was ''Classic of History'' (書経) (also quoted in '' The Great Learning'' (大學)), more specifically from the first of the King Tai Jia (大甲) chapters. It says: "先王顧諟天之明命..." meaning "The former king kept his eye continually on the bright requirements of Heaven, nd..." This is continued with a description of reverence, virtue, and prosperity for the lands. From this, the two characters 天 and 明 were ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cereal
A cereal is any grass cultivated for the edible components of its grain (botanically, a type of fruit called a caryopsis), composed of the endosperm, germ, and bran. Cereal grain crops are grown in greater quantities and provide more food energy worldwide than any other type of crop and are therefore staple crops. They include wheat, rye, oats, and barley. Edible grains from other plant families, such as buckwheat, quinoa and chia, are referred to as pseudocereals. In their unprocessed whole grain form, cereals are a rich source of vitamins, minerals, carbohydrates, fats, oils, and protein. When processed by the removal of the bran and germ the remaining endosperm is mostly carbohydrate. In some developing countries, grain in the form of rice, wheat, millet, or maize constitutes a majority of daily sustenance. In developed countries, cereal consumption is moderate and varied but still substantial, primarily in the form of refined and processed grains. Because of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hōreki
, also known as Horyaku, was a after ''Kan'en'' and before '' Meiwa''. The period spanned the years from October 1751 through June 1764. The reigning emperor and empress were and .Titsingh, Isaac. (1834 ''Annales des empereurs du japon'', p. 418./ref> Change of era * 1751 : The new era of ''Hōreki'' (meaning "Valuable Calendar" or "Valuable Almanac") was said to have been created to mark the death of the retired Emperor Sakuramachi and the death of the former ''shōgun'' Tokugawa Yoshimune. The previous era could be said to have ended and the new era is understood to have commenced in ''Kan'en'' 4, on the 27th day of the 10th month; however, this ''nengō'' was promulgated retroactively. The ''Keikō Kimon'' records that the calendar was amended by Imperial command, and the era was renamed Hōreki on December 2, 1754, which then would have become 19th day of the 10th month of the 4th year of Hōreki. Events of the ''Hōreki'' era * 1752 (''Hōreki 2''): An ambassador arrived ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Washi
is traditional Japanese paper. The term is used to describe paper that uses local fiber, processed by hand and made in the traditional manner. ''Washi'' is made using fibers from the inner bark of the gampi tree, the mitsumata shrub (''Edgeworthia chrysantha''), or the paper mulberry (''kōzo'') bush. As a Japanese craft, it is registered as a UNESCO intangible cultural heritage. ''Washi'' is generally tougher than ordinary paper made from wood pulp, and is used in many traditional arts. Origami, Shodō, and Ukiyo-e were all produced using ''washi''. ''Washi'' was also used to make various everyday goods like clothes, household goods, and toys, as well as vestments and ritual objects for Shinto priests and statues of Buddha. It was even used to make wreaths that were given to winners in the 1998 Winter Paralympics. ''Washi'' is also used to repair historically valuable cultural properties, paintings, and books at museums and libraries around the world, such as the Louvre a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kokudaka
refers to a system for determining land value for taxation purposes under the Tokugawa shogunate of Edo-period Japan, and expressing this value in terms of '' koku'' of rice. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"Koku"in ''Japan Encyclopedia'', p. 549. One 'koku' (roughly equivalent to five bushels) was generally viewed as the equivalent of enough rice to feed one person for a year. The actual revenue or income derived holding varied from region to region, and depended on the amount of actual control the fief holder held over the territory in question, but averaged around 40 percent of the theoretical ''kokudaka''. pp. 14–15. The amount taxation was not based on the actual quantity of rice harvested, but was an estimate based on the total economic yield of the land in question, with the value of other crops and produce converted to their equivalent value in terms of rice. The ranking of precedence of the ''daimyō'', or feudal rulers, was determined in part by the ''kokudaka'' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
