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The {{nihongo, Ejima-Ikushima affair, 江島生島事件, Ejima Ikushima jiken was the most significant scandal in the
Ōoku The was historically the harem, women's quarters of Edo Castle, the section where the women connected to the reigning resided. Similar areas in the castles of powerful , such as the Satsuma Domain, were also referred to by this term. During ...
, the Tokugawa shōgun's
harem A harem is a domestic space that is reserved for the women of the house in a Muslim family. A harem may house a man's wife or wives, their pre-pubescent male children, unmarried daughters, female domestic Domestic worker, servants, and other un ...
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 ...
of the
history of Japan The first human inhabitants of the Japanese archipelago have been traced to the Japanese Paleolithic, Paleolithic, around 38–39,000 years ago. The Jōmon period, named after its cord-marked pottery, was followed by the Yayoi period in the fi ...
, that occurred in February 1714. After inviting a Kabuki actor and others to a
tea house A teahouse or tearoom (also tea room) is an establishment which primarily serves tea and other light refreshments. A tea room may be a room set aside in a hotel, especially for serving afternoon tea, or may be an establishment that only ser ...
, Lady Ejima missed her curfew into the Ōoku and became the focus of a power struggle between the mother of the ruling shogun and the wife of the late shogun. An investigation into the curfew saw 1,300 people being punished and led to the death of Ejima's brother.


Background

The
Ōoku The was historically the harem, women's quarters of Edo Castle, the section where the women connected to the reigning resided. Similar areas in the castles of powerful , such as the Satsuma Domain, were also referred to by this term. During ...
was a complex of
Edo Castle is a flatland castle that was built in 1457 by Ōta Dōkan in Edo, Toshima District, Musashi Province. In modern times it is part of the Tokyo Imperial Palace in Chiyoda, Tokyo, and is therefore also known as . Tokugawa Ieyasu established th ...
, the seat of the ''
shōgun , 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 ...
'' of the
Tokugawa shogunate The Tokugawa shogunate, also known as the was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. The Tokugawa shogunate was established by Tokugawa Ieyasu after victory at the Battle of Sekigahara, ending the civil wars ...
, that served as a residence for women connected to the reigning ''shōgun''. It functioned as a
harem A harem is a domestic space that is reserved for the women of the house in a Muslim family. A harem may house a man's wife or wives, their pre-pubescent male children, unmarried daughters, female domestic Domestic worker, servants, and other un ...
with different sections that housed the ''shōguns official wife (''
Midaidokoro The ''midaidokoro'' (御台所) was the official wife of the ''shōgun''. During the Edo period, she resided in the ''Ōoku'' of Edo Castle and sometimes wielded considerable political power behind the scenes. Heian period * Miyoshi Takako, wife ...
'') and her children, his
concubine Concubinage is an interpersonal relationship, interpersonal and Intimate relationship, sexual relationship between two people in which the couple does not want to, or cannot, enter into a full marriage. Concubinage and marriage are often regarde ...
s and their children, widows of previous ''shōgun'' (''
Ōmidaidokoro ''Ōmidaidokoro'' (大御台所) was a title that can only be given to the past ''shōgun''s official widow or retired ''shōgun''s chief consort/wife. These women had an extraordinary or considerable political power behind the scenes, leading muc ...
''), his mother, and their various servants. The Ōoku was highly regimented and controlled, resident women were held to strict standards, and adult men were forbidden from entering without the ''shōgun''.


Incident

On the twelfth day of the first month of the fourth year of the Shōtoku era (February 26, 1714, by the Western calendar), Ejima, a high-ranking lady in the Ōoku, visited the grave of the late ''shōgun''
Tokugawa Ienobu (11 June 1662 – 12 November 1712) was the sixth ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa dynasty of Japan. He was the eldest son of Tokugawa Tsunashige, thus making him the nephew of Tokugawa Ietsuna and Tokugawa Tsunayoshi, the grandson of Tokugawa Iem ...
. Ejima's visit was a proxy for her superior Gekkō-in, mother of the ruling ''shōgun''
Tokugawa Ietsugu Tokugawa Ietsugu; 徳川 家継 (8 August 1709 – 19 June 1716) was the seventh ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa dynasty, who ruled from 1713 until his death in 1716. He was the son of Tokugawa Ienobu, thus making him the grandson of Tokugawa Tsu ...
, who had been a
lady-in-waiting A lady-in-waiting (alternatively written lady in waiting) or court lady is a female personal assistant at a Royal court, court, attending on a royal woman or a high-ranking nobility, noblewoman. Historically, in Europe, a lady-in-waiting was o ...
and concubine of Ienobu. Ejima then accepted an invitation to attend a
kabuki is a classical form of Theatre of Japan, Japanese theatre, mixing dramatic performance with Japanese traditional dance, traditional dance. Kabuki theatre is known for its heavily stylised performances, its glamorous, highly decorated costumes ...
performance by the popular actor Ikushima Shingorō at the Yamamura-za theatre, located near Edo Castle. After the performance, she invited the actor and others to a party at a tea house. The party ran late and Ejima missed the closing of the gates to the Ōoku, and as she went from one gate to the next trying to gain entry, word of her situation reached the officials within. Ejima became the focus of a
power struggle A power struggle is situation where two or more people or groups fight to gain dominance over each other. The term is most commonly used in a political context, when parties contend for power or leadership positions, but can also be applied to a ...
between Gekkō-in and her rival Ten'ei-in, the official wife of the late Ienobu. They in turn were part of a larger power struggle between two factions in the Tokugawa elite: one led by
Arai Hakuseki was a Confucianist, scholar-bureaucrat, academic, administrator, writer and politician in Japan during the middle of the Edo period, who advised the ''shōgun'' Tokugawa Ienobu. His personal name was Kinmi or Kimiyoshi (君美). Hakuseki (白� ...
and
Manabe Akifusa was a close person confidant and loverCrompton, Louis, ''Homosexuality and Civilization'', Harvard University, 2003. Page 442 of Shōgun Tokugawa Ienobu and held numerous important posts within the administration of the Tokugawa shogunate. He was ...
, the two closest advisors to both Ienobu and Ietsugu, and the other was headed by ''
fudai daimyō was a class of ''daimyō'' (大名) in the Tokugawa Shogunate (徳川幕府) of Japan who were hereditary vassals of the Tokugawa before the Battle of Sekigahara. ''Fudai daimyō'' and their descendants filled the ranks of the Tokugawa admin ...
s'' and the ''
rōjū The , usually translated as ''Elder (administrative title), 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 wh ...
'' who had been in office since the time of the fifth shōgun
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- ...
.


Aftermath

Ten'ei-in seized the opportunity of Ejima missing her curfew to launch an investigation of the Ōoku by the ''
Machi-bugyō were samurai officials of the Tokugawa shogunate in Edo period Japan. The office was amongst the senior administrative posts open to those who were not ''daimyō''.Beasley, William G. (1955). ''Select Documents on Japanese Foreign Policy, 1853–1 ...
'', with numerous infractions being discovered, and ultimately over 1,300 people were punished. Ejima was sentenced to death, but she received a pardon and was instead placed in custody of the
Takatō Domain was a domain of the Tokugawa Shogunate of Japan during the Edo period from 1600 to 1871. The Takatō Domain was based at Takatō Castle in Shinano Province, in the modern city of Ina, located in the Chūbu region of the island of Honshu. The ...
, while her brother was sentenced to die not by ''
seppuku , also known as , is a form of Japanese ritualistic suicide by disembowelment. It was originally reserved for samurai in their code of honor, but was also practiced by other Japanese people during the Shōwa era (particularly officers near ...
'' (which is an honoured death under
Bushido is a Samurai moral code concerning samurai attitudes, behavior and lifestyle. Its origins date back to the Kamakura period, but it was formalized in the Edo period (1603–1868). There are multiple types of bushido which evolved significantl ...
), but by ''zanshu'' (beheading, which was more suited for a regular criminal). Ikushima was banished to the island of
Miyake-jima is a Volcano, volcanic island in the Izu Islands, Izu archipelago in the Philippine Sea approximately southeast of Tokyo, Japan. As with the other islands in the Izu Island group, Miyake-jima forms part of the Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park. ...
and the Yamamura-za was disbanded, with its owner being banished to the island of
Izu Ōshima is an inhabited volcanic island in the Izu archipelago in the Philippine Sea, off the coast of Honshu, Japan, east of the Izu Peninsula and southwest of Bōsō Peninsula. As with the other islands in the Izu Island group, Izu Ōshima forms ...
. Over a century later, the kabuki theatres in Edo were relocated to
Asakusa is a district in Taitō, Tokyo, Japan. It is known for Sensō-ji, a Buddhist temple dedicated to the bodhisattva Kannon. There are several other temples in Asakusa, as well as various festivals, such as . History The development of Asaku ...
, farther away from Edo Castle. Within the Ōoku, Ten'ei-in emerged victorious as the most dominant woman in the harem. The following year, when Ietsugu died, she supported
Tokugawa Yoshimune was the eighth ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan, ruling from 1716 until his abdication in 1745. He was the son of Tokugawa Mitsusada, the grandson of Tokugawa Yorinobu, and the great-grandson of Tokugawa Ieyasu. Yoshimune is know ...
, the successful contender for the shogunate. The Ejima-Ikushima affair has been dramatized in kabuki, and has been the subject of ''
nagauta is a kind of traditional Japanese music played on the and used in kabuki theater, primarily to accompany dance and to provide reflective interludes. History It is uncertain when the was first integrated into kabuki, but it was sometime dur ...
'' chants. Numerous films and television dramas have portrayed the event. The 2006 film ''
Oh! Oku is a Japanese historic romantic drama film released on December 23, 2006, by Fuji Television. The film revolves around the Ejima-Ikushima affair of 1714. Director Tōru Hayashi and screenplay writer Taeko Asano also directed and wrote the 2003~2 ...
'' stars
Yukie Nakama is a Japanese actress, singer and former idol. Biography She was born in Urasoe, Okinawa, Japan, into a fisherman's family, the youngest of five siblings. At the start of her career she was a gravure idol and singer (her debut single "Moonli ...
as Ejima and Hidetoshi Nishijima as Ikushima Shingorō. A 1971 television series featured
Ineko Arima is a Japanese stage and film actress. She has appeared in films of directors such as Yasujirō Ozu, Mikio Naruse and Kon Ichikawa was a Japanese film director and screenwriter. His work displays a vast range in genre and style, from the anti ...
as Ejima, and kabuki actor Takao Kataoka (now
Kataoka Nizaemon XV Kataoka Nizaemon (片岡 仁左衛門) is a stage name used by Kabuki actors, beginning with Fujikawa Isaburo (younger brother of the actor Toyoshima Harunojo), who adopted the name. Lineage *Kataoka Nizaemon I (1656-1715): student of Yamashita Ha ...
) as Ikushima.


References

*新井政義(編集者)『日本史事典』。東京:旺文社1987(p. 50) * 竹内理三(編)『日本史小辞典』。東京:角川書店1985(p. 314) 1714 in Japan