The politics of famine in a far-off place : Nyūi Mitsugi and the Hōreki crisis in Tsugaru

The Tsugaru domain in far north eastern Honshu was located at the very northern boundary of Japan in the Tokugawa period, and its identi1y as an independent poli1y was almost as new the shogunate itself. A relative newcomer to the political and economic structures that had taken shape by the end of the sixteenth century, the domain spent most of the seventeenth century establishing itself a viable poli1y with a sound economic base. By the mid eighteenth century, after the productivi1y of Tsugaru had increased by a greater margin than that of any other domain, outgoing expenditures had also increased enormously and a fiscal crisis occurred. This dissertation examines the program of reforms instituted in the Horeki reforms to address the situation, arguing that the rationalisation of bureaucracy and integration of local commercial actors into managing official fiscal affairs showed some promise. Then, by closely tracing the experiences of famine in Tsugaru and two neighbouring domains, and their comparative fates in after the harvest failure that interrupted Tsugaru's reform program, I go on to argue that the combination of distance from the central markets, a climate unsuited to rice cultivation at the technological level of the period, and a latest art in establishing sound Procedures for fiscal management meant that the Tsugaru poli1y was hard put to move out of the precarious situation it was in by the mid 1700s. The succession of a child daimyo had left the administration of the domain in the hands of a small group of hereditary elders before the crises. One of them, who favoured fl.l1damental char'9es to government structures and procedures, was instrumental in the appointment of Nyui Mitsugi to lead the reforms. Mitsugi stored rice in the domain's granaries and was able to save the domain from the famine by arranging the distribution of relief food supplies. The elders, religious institutions and established merchants of the domain, however, chafed at the radical reform policies with which he followed up that triumph, however, and he was dismissed. Through a1examination of some of the writings Mitsugi produced during the periods he spent under house arrest a1d in exile, I argue that although to a large extent the domain was captive to its geography, climate and lack of depth in administrative experience, the world of the spirit and the intellect had no bol.l1daries. Taking politics in the broadest sense of political economy and social organisation, the dissertation demonstrates that although the ideas arguments for more equitable access to entitlements to adequate food were accessible to, and in fact elaborated by, Nyui Mitsugi, the powers of wealth, status and a centralised political system militated against saving the poorest and most isolated people from starvation when famines occurred

宝暦治水前の普請意見書の分析 その3

Prior to the Horeki riparian works, opinions and requests related to flood control work were collected from villages in the basin.Some of them are accompanied by river maps, which are the best materials for understanding the river environment at that time.In this paper, we analyzed these opinions and requests and river maps to read the river environment ,Interests of villages in the basin of The Kiso Three Rivers.departmental bulletin pape

"The Tale of Nisuke": Peasant and authorities in Higo around 1800.

"The Tale of Nisuke," which deals with conditions in the Higo domain of Southern Japan around 1800 as experienced by the peasantry, forms the core of this thesis; it is here for the first time translated and studied in depth. Besides the translation of the text, I have set myself the task of establishing its value as illustrative source material for the student of Tokugawa society by identifying the background of its author and his intentions. In the absence of contemporary references to the "Tale" as well as other clues to assist me in my task, I have had to proceed by analyzing the "Tale" 's content and then to establish its position within the cultural context of Tokugawa society. The resulting socio-cultural portrait of Higo provides at the same time the clues to a correct understanding of the "Tale" as well as a comprehensive insight into rural life in a comparatively backward region of late Tokugawa Japan. The great variety of questions raised by the "Tale," a quality which makes this text so singularly suited as departure point of a cultural study, has forced me to concentrate more intensively on historical questions than would first seem warranted by the subject. All of my commentary must, however, be seen as of immediate importance to a full understanding of the "Tale". The first chapter contains a general introduction to the history of the Tokugawa period, with special reference to the developments in the village. The second chapter traces the political and economic history of the Higo domain in the 18th century to portray conditions which constitute the background to the "Tale". The third chapter contrasts peasant life in the economically advanced regions with conditions in the Higo domain and investigates the role played by the rural priesthood in the life of the peasantry. In the fourth chapter, an introduction to the tradition of critical writing in Tokugawa literature leads to a discussion of the "Tale," followed by my conclusions as to author and purpose of the "Tale". In Part Two, there then follows my annotated translation of the "Tale"

木曽三川流域大絵図に関する一考察

木曽三川流域大絵図として知られる二枚の絵図は、これまで宝暦治水以前と幕末期の河川環境を示すものとして紹介されてきた。しかし、絵図の内容を、関連する他の絵図や、治水担当者（川通役）の職務日誌である川通御用日記と併せて再検討すると、これらの絵図が高木家の川通役である三和六左衛門の手で、文政6年（1823）11～12月頃に作成された可能性が高いことが明らかになった。彼は、川通役としての職責を全うするために、木曽三川の地理を学ぼうとしてこの絵図を作成したものと思われ、これらの絵図は、治水行政における高木家および川通役の立場を象徴する資料として位置づけられる。In the Takagi family documents, there are two maps of the Kiso Three Rivers basin. These have previously been described as illustrating the river environment before the Horeki era and during the late Edo period. However, upon analyzing the content of the maps, it has become evident that these were created by Miwa Rokuzaemon, the flood control official (Kawadori-yaku) of the Takagi family, around November to December of the year 1823. He crafted these maps with the intention of studying the geography of the Kiso Three Rivers to fulfill his responsibilities as a flood control official. These maps symbolize the position of the Takagi family and the Kawadori-yaku in the flood control administration.departmental bulletin pape