A journey to the heart of Japan
Takeda Shingen (1521-1573) has been described as the prime example of the Warring States period daimyo in that he was tremendously successful in accomplishing limited, regional goals (expansion of his domains) by means of a series of temporary alliances which were quickly broken or reformed according to the need of the moment. Regional success was… [Read more]
Miyamoto Musashi (1584-1645) was the most famous swordsman, teacher of the Way of the Sword, and ronin (masterless samurai) of the early Edo period. His story has been enshrined in popular legend, novel and movie; the movie is repeated on television each New Years in either its 7 or 15-hour version. Musashi was like many… [Read more]
Shimazaki Toson (1872-1943) is one of many literary figures with connections to the Nakasendo, but Toson is the one with the closest and longest association. Toson was born and raised in Magome and he wrote about Magome, Kiso-Fukushima (where he had relatives by marriage), and the Nakasendo at length in his autobiographical novels. Toson was… [Read more]
Scattered along the Nakasendo, at Shinchaya, Shimo-suwa, and Karuizawa, are rocks on which are inscribed poems. Composed by Basho, the poems evoke the local landscape at a particular time of year and are much appreciated by local residents who have erected the stone memorials to the poet. Basho was a master poet who developed poetry,… [Read more]
The Nakasendo may have been a road through the mountains and half as wide as the Tokaido which followed the flatter coastal areas, but it was very heavily traveled in the Edo period. The primary reason for the highway system through Japan was to provide the Tokugawa shogunate with the communication network it required to… [Read more]
Princess Kazunomiya was the sister of Emperor Komei (reigned 1846-67) and was married to the 14th Tokugawa shogun, Iemochi, in 1862. The marriage was a political device intended to bring the imperial court and the Tokugawa shogunate into harmony, even though the princess, then aged 16, was already betrothed to someone else within the imperial… [Read more]
The first lord of Hikone, Ii Naomasa, had been one of Tokugawa Ieyasu’s most loyal and trusted generals. As a reward for his services the Ii family were entrusted with a hereditary position of high status and authority as fudai daimyo in the Tokugawa shogunate. The Ii daimyo, otherwise known by their honorific title of… [Read more]
Politics changed sharply at the end of the Edo period (1603-1868): the period came to an end. But the fact that the period came to an end, after 250 years of stability and continuity raises the question Why? Historians approach the question from two directions. One is perhaps more obvious: Westerners came and their coming… [Read more]
A samurai in the Edo period, Takayama Hikokuro (1747-93) is more symbol than substance since few facts are known for sure about him. The statue of Takayama at the Sanjo Bridge in Kyoto is a testament to the impact he had, but there are many stories which surround his legend. One popular tale has it… [Read more]
Hiroshige is the given name of Ando Hiroshige (1797-1858) who was a woodblock print artist and illustrator best known for his landscapes. His work was influenced by brush painting and ukiyoe (pictures of the ‘floating world’) which depicted the joys, sorrows and beauties of the entertainment districts. Hiroshige’s father was a fireman of samurai status… [Read more]
A shogunate was a style of Japanese government which gained its name from its head, the shogun. The full title of the shogun was “Seii Taishogun” or ‘Barbarian Subduing Generalissimo’. Shogunates were fundamentally governments whose control was limited to military affairs, although the right to govern often extended into social and economic matters only remotely… [Read more]
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