was a

province A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

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 ...

, which today comprises Tokyo Metropolis, most of

Saitama Prefecture is a Landlocked country, landlocked Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Saitama Prefecture has a population of 7,338,536 (January 1, 2020) and has a geographic area of 3,797 Square kilometre, km2 ( ...

and part of

Kanagawa Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Kanagawa Prefecture is the List of Japanese prefectures by population, second-most populous prefecture of Japan at 9,221,129 (1 April 2022) and third-dens ...

. It was sometimes called . The province encompassed Kawasaki and

Yokohama is the List of cities in Japan, second-largest city in Japan by population as well as by area, and the country's most populous Municipalities of Japan, municipality. It is the capital and most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a popu ...

. Musashi bordered on Kai, Kōzuke, Sagami, Shimōsa, and Shimotsuke Provinces. Musashi was the largest province in the

Kantō region The is a geography, geographical region of Honshu, the largest island of Japan. In a common definition, the region includes the Greater Tokyo Area and encompasses seven prefectures of Japan, prefectures: Chiba Prefecture, Chiba, Gunma Prefe ...

History

Musashi had its ancient capital in modern

Fuchū, Tokyo file:FuchuCityHall2023091.jpg, 260px, Fuchū City Hall is a Cities of Japan, city located in the western Tokyo, western portion of the Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. Fuchū serves as a regional commercial center and a commuter town for workers in cent ...

, and its provincial temple in what is now Kokubunji, Tokyo. By 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 ...

, the main city was Edo, which became the dominant city of eastern Japan.

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 ...

was the headquarters of

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 ...

before the

Battle of Sekigahara The Battle of Sekigahara (Shinjitai: ; Kyūjitai: , Hepburn romanization: ''Sekigahara no Tatakai'') was an important battle in Japan which occurred on October 21, 1600 (Keichō 5, 15th day of the 9th month) in what is now Gifu Prefecture, ...

and became the dominant city of Japan 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 ...

, being renamed

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 ...

during 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 ...

. ''Hikawa-jinja'' was designated as the chief Shinto shrine ('' ichinomiya'') of the province; and there are many branch shrines. The former province gave its name to the battleship of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Timeline of important events

* 534 ('' Ankan 1, 12th month''): The Yamato court sends a military force to appoint Omi as the governor of Musashi Province, his rival, Wogi was executed by the court. Omi presented four districts of Musashi Province to the court as royal estates. * July 18, 707 ('' Keiun 4, 15th day of the 6th month''):

Empress Genmei , also known as Empress Genmyō, was the 43rd monarch of Japan,Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'') 元明天皇 (43) retrieved August 22, 2013. according to the traditional order of succession. Genmei's reign spanned the years 707 through ...

is enthroned at the age of 48. Brown, Delmer M. (1979)
''Gukanshō,'' p. 271
Wadoukaichin monument2

* 707 (''Keiun 4''): Copper was reported to have been found in Musashi province in the region which includes modern day Tokyo. Titsingh, Isaac. (1834). * 708 (''Keiun 5''): The era name was about to be changed to mark the accession of Empress Genmei; but the choice of ''Wadō'' as the new ''

nengō The or , is the first of the two elements that identify years in the Japanese era calendar scheme. The second element is a number which indicates the year number within the era (with the first year being "", meaning "origin, basis"), followed b ...

'' for this new reign became a way to mark the welcome discovery of copper in the Chichibu District of what is now

. The Japanese word for copper is ; and since this was indigenous copper, the ''"wa"'' (the ancient Chinese term for Japan) could be combined with the ''"dō"'' (copper) to create a new composite term—''"wadō"''—meaning "Japanese copper". * May 5, 708 ('' Wadō 1, 11th day of the 4th month''): A sample of the newly discovered Musashi copper was presented in Genmei's Court where it was formally acknowledged as ''Japanese copper.'' The Wadō era is famous for the first Japanese coin . *1590 (''Tenshō 18''): Siege of Odawara. Iwatsuki Domain and Oshi Domain founded in Musashi Province.

Historical districts

Musashi Province had 21 districts and then added one later. *

** Chichibu District (秩父郡) ** Hanzawa District (榛沢郡) – merged into Ōsato District (along with Hatara and Obusama Districts) on March 29, 1896 ** Hatara District (幡羅郡) – merged into Ōsato District (along with Hanzawa and Obusama Districts) on March 29, 1896 ** Hiki District (比企郡) – absorbed Yokomi District on March 29, 1896 ** Iruma District (入間郡) – merged into Koma District on March 29, 1896 ** Kami District (賀美郡, 加美郡) – merged into Kodama District (along with Naka District) on March 29, 1896 ** Kodama District (児玉郡) – absorbed Kami and Naka Districts on March 29, 1896 ** Koma District (高麗郡) – merged into Iruma District on March 29, 1896 ** Naka District (那珂郡) – merged into Kodama District (along with Kami District) on March 29, 1896 ** Niikura District (新座郡, 新倉郡, 新羅郡) – merged into Kitaadachi District on March 29, 1896 ** Obusuma District (男衾郡) – merged into Ōsato District (along with Hanzawa and Hatara Districts) on March 29, 1896 ** Ōsato District (大里郡) – absorbed Hanzawa, Hatara and Obusama Districts on March 29, 1896 ** Saitama District (埼玉郡) *** Kitasaitama District (埼玉郡) – dissolved *** Minamisaitama District (埼玉郡) ** Yokomi District (横見郡) – merged into Hiki District on March 29, 1896 * Tokyo Metropolis (''-to'') (until 1943: Tokyo Prefecture (''-fu'')) ** Ebara District (荏原郡) – merged into Tokyo (City/''-shi'') in 1932 ** Toshima District (豊嶋郡) *** Kitatoshima District (北豊島郡) – merged into Tokyo City in 1932 *** Minamitoshima District (南豊島郡) – merged with Higashitama District to become Toyotama District on April 1, 1896, merged into Tokyo City in 1932 *

** Kuraki District (久良岐郡) – dissolved ** Tachibana District (橘樹郡) – dissolved ** Tsuzuki District (都筑郡) – dissolved * Mixed ** Adachi District (足立郡) *** Kitaadachi District (Saitama) (北足立郡) – absorbed Niikura District on March 29, 1896 *** Minamiadachi District (Tokyo) (南足立郡) – merged into

Tokyo City was a Cities of Japan, municipality in Japan and capital of Tokyo Prefecture (1868–1943), Tokyo Prefecture (or ''Tokyo-fu'') which existed from 1 May 1889 until the establishment of Tokyo Metropolis on 1 July 1943. The historical boundari ...

on October 1, 1932 ** Katsushika District (葛飾郡) – Transfer from

Shimōsa Province was a province of Japan in the area of modern Chiba Prefecture and Ibaraki Prefecture as well as the bordering parts of Saitama Prefecture and Tokyo (the parts that used to be located east of the lower reaches of the old Tone River prior to the ...

in 1683 (some say 1622–1643) for the river improvement of Naka River. *** Kitakatsushika District (Saitama) (北葛飾郡) – absorbed Nakakatsushika District (Shimōsa, Saitama) on March 29, 1896 *** Minamikatsushika District (Tokyo) (南葛飾郡) – merged into the Tokyo City on October 1, 1932 ** Tama District (多摩郡, 多麻郡, 多磨郡) *** Higashitama District (東多摩郡, ''Higashi-Tama-gun'', "East Tama District") – part of Tokyo since its creation, merged with Minamitoshima District to become Toyotama District (豊多摩郡) on April 1, 1896, in turn merged into Tokyo City in 1932 *** Kitatama District (北多摩郡, ''Kita-Tama-gun'', "North Tama District") – was part of Kanagawa in 1878 until being transferred to Tokyo in 1893; North Tama's last

towns A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

became y definition: district-independent

cities A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

in 1970 *** Minamitama District (南多摩郡, ''Minami-Tama-gun'', "South Tama District") – was part of Kanagawa in 1878 until being transferred to Tokyo in 1893; South Tama's last towns were turned into cities in 1971 *** Nishitama District (西多摩郡, ''Nishi-Tama-gun'', "West Tama District") – was part of Kanagawa in 1878 until being transferred to Tokyo in 1893

Notes

References

* Brown, Delmer M. and Ichirō Ishida, eds. (1979)
''Gukanshō: The Future and the Past''.
Berkeley: University of California Press.
OCLC 251325323
* Kōta Kodama and Kitajima Masamoto. (1966). 物語藩史. 第2期第2卷, 関東の諸藩 (''Monogatari hanshi. 2(2), Kantō no shohan''). Tokyo: Shin Jinbutsu Ōraisha
OCLC 673172166
* Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric and Käthe Roth. (2005)
''Japan encyclopedia''.
Cambridge:

Harvard University Press Harvard University Press (HUP) is an academic publishing house established on January 13, 1913, as a division of Harvard University. It is a member of the Association of University Presses. Its director since 2017 is George Andreou. The pres ...

.
OCLC 58053128
* Titsingh, Isaac. (1834)
''Annales des empereurs du Japon''
('' Nihon Ōdai Ichiran''). Paris: Royal Asiatic Society, Oriental Translation Fund of Great Britain and Ireland
OCLC 5850691

External links