Yanagisawa Mitsuteru, the next-to-last ''daimyō'' of Kurokawa was a '' fudai'' feudal domain under 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 ...

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 ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. It is located in

Echigo Province was an old provinces of Japan, old province in north-central Japan, on the shores of the Sea of Japan. It bordered on Uzen Province, Uzen, Iwashiro Province, Iwashiro, Kōzuke Province, Kōzuke, Shinano Province, Shinano, and Etchū Province, ...

Honshū , historically known as , is the largest of the four main islands of Japan. It lies between the Pacific Ocean (east) and the Sea of Japan (west). It is the seventh-largest island in the world, and the second-most populous after the Indonesian ...

. The domain was centered at Kurokawa Jin'ya, located in what is now part of the city of Tainai in

Niigata Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture in the Chūbu region of Honshu of Japan. Niigata Prefecture has a population of 2,131,009 (1 July 2023) and is the List of Japanese prefectures by area, fifth-largest prefecture of Japan by geographic area ...

History

In 1724, the '' tairō'' Yanagisawa Yoshiyasu arranged for a 10,000 ''koku'' holding in Echigo Province to be assigned to his 4th son, Yanagisawa Tsunetaka. This marked the start of Kurosawa Domain. Although the Yanagisawa clan remained in control until the

Meiji restoration The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored Imperial House of Japan, imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Althoug ...

, they preferred to reside in

Edo Edo (), also romanized as Jedo, Yedo or Yeddo, is the former name of Tokyo. Edo, formerly a (castle town) centered on Edo Castle located in Musashi Province, became the '' de facto'' capital of Japan from 1603 as the seat of the Tokugawa shogu ...

and rely on the collection of revenues as absentee landlords. The finances of the domain were perpetually in a state of bankruptcy, partly caused by the fact that much of the domain was mountains and forests and unsuitable for rice farming. The actual revenues of the domain often fell short of 10,000 ''koku'' and the domain was forced to resort to frequent loans from the parent house of the Yanagisawa clan in Yamato-Kōriyama for financial assistance. By 1843, the domain was over 5000 ''

ryō The was a gold currency unit in the shakkanhō system in pre- Meiji Japan. It was eventually replaced with a system based on the '' yen''. Origins The ''ryō'' was originally a unit of weight from China, the ''tael.'' It came into use in Ja ...

'' in debt. The 7th ''daimyō'', Yanagisawa Mitsuteru, was the first ''daimyō'' to actually visit the domain. He established a Han school and joined the

Ōuetsu Reppan Dōmei The was a Japanese military-political coalition established and disestablished over the course of several months in early to mid-1868 during the Boshin War. Its flag was either a white interwoven five-pointed star on a black field, or a black ...

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 ...

. However, the domain was too small and too weak to provide any meaningful military support. In July 1871, with the

abolition of the han system The in the Empire of Japan and its replacement by a system of prefectures in 1871 was the culmination of the Meiji Restoration begun in 1868, the starting year of the Meiji period. Under the reform, all daimyos (, ''daimyō'', feudal lords) ...

, Kurokawa Domain briefly became Kurokawa Prefecture, and was merged into the newly created

. Under the new

Meiji government The was the government that was formed by politicians of the Satsuma Domain and Chōshū Domain in the 1860s. The Meiji government was the early government of the Empire of Japan. Politicians of the Meiji government were known as the Meiji ...

, Yanagisawa Mitsukuni was given the ''

kazoku The was the hereditary peerage of the Empire of Japan, which existed between 1869 and 1947. It was formed by merging the feudal lords (''Daimyo, daimyō'') and court nobles (''kuge'') into one system modelled after the British peerage. Distin ...

'' peerage title of ''shishaku'' (

viscount A viscount ( , for male) or viscountess (, for female) is a title used in certain European countries for a noble of varying status. The status and any domain held by a viscount is a viscounty. In the case of French viscounts, the title is ...

), and later served as a member of the House of Peers

Bakumatsu period holdings

As with most domains in the

han system (, "domain") is a Japanese historical term for the Estate (land), estate of a daimyo in the Edo period (1603–1868) and early Meiji (era), Meiji period (1868–1912).Louis Frédéric, Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"Han"in ''Japan Encycloped ...

, Kurokawa Domain consisted of several discontinuous territories calculated to provide the assigned '' kokudaka'', based on periodic

cadastral A cadastre or cadaster ( ) is a comprehensive recording of the real estate or real property's metes and bounds, metes-and-bounds of a country.Jo Henssen, ''Basic Principles of the Main Cadastral Systems in the World,'/ref> Often it is represente ...

surveys and projected agricultural yields.Elison, George and Bardwell L. Smith (1987)
''Warlords, Artists, & Commoners: Japan in the Sixteenth Century,'' p. 18
*

**43 villages in Kanbara District

List of daimyō

Yanagisawa Tsunetaka

was the 1st ''

daimyō were powerful Japanese magnates, feudal lords who, from the 10th century to the early Meiji era, Meiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to the shogun and no ...

'' of Kurokawa Domain. He was the fourth son of the famous Yanagisawa Yoshiyasu and was born in Kandabashi,

. He was received in audience by ''

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 ...

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- ...

as an infant, and was permitted to take the "Matsudaira" name as an honor in 1701. In 1709, he received a fief of 10,000 ''

koku The is a Chinese-based Japanese unit of volume. One koku is equivalent to 10 or approximately , or about of rice. It converts, in turn, to 100 shō and 1,000 gō. One ''gō'' is the traditional volume of a single serving of rice (before co ...

'' from his father's lands in Kōfu Domain, and in 1710 underwent the '' genpuku'' ceremony. In 1724, his estates were transferred from Kōfu to Echigo Province, and he became ''daimyō'' of Kurokawa; however, he died only four months later at the age of 32. He was married to a daughter of the ''

Dainagon was a counselor of the first rank in the Imperial court of Japan. The role dates from the 7th century. This advisory position remained a part of the Imperial court from the 8th century until the Meiji period in the 19th century.Nussbaum, "Dainag ...

'' Ogimachi Sanetoyo, but had no heir. His grave is at the temple of Gekkei-ji in

Shinjuku , officially called Shinjuku City, is a special ward of Tokyo, Japan. It is a major commercial and administrative center, housing the northern half of the busiest railway station in the world ( Shinjuku Station) as well as the Tokyo Metropol ...

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

Yanagisawa Satozumi

was the 2nd ''daimyō'' of Kurokawa Domain. He was the fifth son of Yanagisawa Yoshikiyo, a ''samurai'' of Yamato-Kōriyama Domain, and was adopted posthumously to succeed the childless Tsunetaka. He served as ''Osaka kaban'' and ''Nikkō Bugyō'', but died in 1735 at the clan's Magome residence in Edo without heir.

Yanagisawa Satoakira

was the 3rd ''daimyō'' of Kurokawa Domain. He was the eldest son of Yanagisawa Satomitsu, a samurai of Yamato-Kōriyama Domain, and the nephew of Satozumi, and was adopted posthumously to succeed the latter on his unexpected death. However, he died immediately after an interview with the Shogun's '' metsuke'' inspectors, without heir.

Yanagisawa Yasutaka

was the 4th ''daimyō'' of Kurokawa Domain. He was the second son of Yanagisawa Satomitsu, a samurai of Yamato-Kōriyama Domain, and the younger brother of Satoakira. He served an ''Ōbangashira'' in 1747. He was married to a daughter of Hosokawa Okinari, of Uto Domain. a subsidiary of

Kumamoto Domain The , which was in existence from 1600 to 1871, had a significant influence in the region. Initially, it controlled its vast territory of 520,000 koku, which later expanded to 540,000 koku after the division of the 8th generation territory and the e ...

, and later married a daughter of Uemura Ieyuki of Takatori Domain. He died in 1774 and was succeeded by his eldest son.

Yanagisawa Nobutō

was the 5th ''daimyō'' of Kurokawa Domain. He was the eldest son of Yanagisawa Yoshitaka, and became ''daimyō'' on the death of his father in 1774. He was married to a daughter of Yanagisawa Yoshisato, of Yamato-Kōriyama Domain, and later married a daughter of Abe Masayoshi of

Fukuyama Domain file:Abe Masahiro Portrait.png, 270px, Abe Masahiro 7th daimyo of Fukuyama was a Han (Japan), feudal domain under the Tokugawa shogunate of Edo period Japan, in what is now southeastern Hiroshima Prefecture. It controlled much of Bingo Province ...

. He died in 1797 and was succeeded by his eldest son.

Yanagisawa Mitsuhi

was the 6th ''daimyō'' of Kurokawa Domain. He was the eldest son of Yanagisawa Nobutō, and became ''daimyō'' on the death of his father in 1797. He was received in formal audience by ''Shōgun''

Tokugawa Ienari Tokugawa Ienari (, 18 November 1773 – 22 March 1841) was the eleventh and longest-serving ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan who held office from 1787 to 1837.Hall, John Whitney ''et al.'' (1991) ''Early Modern Japan'', p. 21./ref> ...

the same year. he served as ''Osaka kaban'' in 1802 and 1823 and as ''Nikkō Bugyō'' in 1806, 1821 and 1828. He was married to a daughter of Toda Masachika, of Shinjō Domain, and later married a daughter of Yanagisawa Yasumitsu of Yamato-Kōriyama Domain. He died in 1836 without male heir.

Yanagisawa Mitsuteru

was the 7th ''daimyō'' of Kurokawa Domain. He was the tenth son of Yanagisawa Yasuhiro of Yamato-Kōriyama Domain and was posthumously adopted to succeed Yanagasawa Mitsugi in 1836. He was the first of the ''daimyō'' of Kurokawa to actually visit the domain. During the Bakumatsu period he established a han school. In 1863, he was appointed a '' sōshaban'' and in 1864 to the newly created title of ''Gakumon-Bugyō''. He led the domain into the

during the

, but was only lukewarm in support. In 1868, he resigned his offices in favor his adopted son, and lived in

to his death in 1900.

Yanagisawa Mitsukuni

was the 8th (and final) ''daimyō'' of Kurokawa Domain. He was the sixth son of Takeda Nobuyuki, 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 ...

'' descendant of the

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 ...

. He was adopted as heir to Yanagisawa Mitsuteru in 1862 and received in formal audience by ''Shōgun''

Tokugawa Yoshinobu Kazoku, Prince was the 15th and last ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan. He was part of a movement which aimed to reform the aging shogunate, but was ultimately unsuccessful. He resigned his position as shogun in late 1867, while ai ...

in 1867. He became ''daimyō'' on the retirement of his father in 1868. In 1869, the new

appointed him imperial governor of Kurokawa, which he held to the

in 1871. In 1879, he entered the Ministry of the Treasury. He 1884, he was ennobled with the ''

'' title of ''shishaku'' (

). From 1890 to 1897, he served as a member of the House of Peers. On his death in 1923, the title of viscount passed to Yanagisawa Mitsuharu (1891-1957).

References

*''The content of this article was largely derived from that of the corresponding article on Japanese Wikipedia.'' *

External links

"Kurokawa" at Edo 300

Notes

{{Authority control Domains of Japan History of Niigata Prefecture Echigo Province Yanagisawa clan Ōuetsu Reppan Dōmei