Mibu DomainIt was also the place where the general stayed.

The Mibu Domain was located in Mibu Town, Shimotsuga County, Tochigi Prefecture, and had Mibu Castle as its administrative headquarters. The Mibu Domain was founded by Yoshiaki Hineno, and after a period in which the ruling family changed rapidly, it was ruled by the Torii family from the middle of the Edo period until the end of the Tokugawa Shogunate.
Until the early Edo period, the Mibu Domain also served as a lodging facility for the Shogun who visited Nikko Toshogu Shrine. Let's take a look at the history of the Mibu Domain.

Founding of the Mibu Domain and Construction of the Mibu Road

The Mibu Domain was established by Hine no Yoshiaki, who inherited the land following Hideyasu Yuki after the fall of the Mibu clan, who had ruled the area since the Muromachi period, with a fief of 19,000 koku. Hine no Yoshiaki is said to have remodeled Mibu Castle, a medieval castle, into a modern one, but the castle was a simple structure without a castle tower or turret.

Around the same time that Hineno Yoshiaki established the Mibu Domain, the current Nikko Toshogu Shrine was constructed between 1616 and 1617. In conjunction with this, the Nikko Dochu road, which runs from Edo to Nikko, and the Mibu Do road, which branches off along the way, were constructed. The Mibu Dochu road was later used by common people as a pilgrimage route to the Toshogu Shrine, but when it was first constructed, it was used as a route for the shogun to visit the shrine and as a transport route for materials.

As its name suggests, the Mibu Road is a road that passes through the Mibu Domain. It was customary for the 4th Shogun, Tokugawa Tsunayoshi, to use the Mibu Road on the return journey and stay overnight at Mibu Castle. For that reason, the palace of Mibu Castle was built very luxuriously, and the miniature reconstruction of Mibu Castle looks more like a luxurious mansion than a castle.
Hino Yoshiaki was transferred to Funai Domain in Bungo Province with an increased fief of 20,000 koku.

The Shogun's aides became castle lords one after another.

After Hino Yoshiaki was relocated, the Mibu Domain changed hands rapidly from the Abe family to the Miura family, the Matsudaira (Okochi family), and the Kato family. Only the Miura and Kato families saw a change of ruler, while the other families only ruled for one generation.

Incidentally, the second lord of the domain, Abe Tadaaki, and the third lord, Miura Masatsugu, were both members of the "Six Ninshu", a group of close aides to the third shogun, Tokugawa Iemitsu. Matsudaira Terusada, who became the sixth lord after the Miura family ruled Mibu Domain for three generations, served as a page to the fourth shogun, Tokugawa Tsunayoshi. This personnel change clearly shows that Mibu Domain was considered important as a domain where the shogun would regularly stay. Incidentally, it was not uncommon for people who served as lords of Mibu Domain to join the shogunate and become senior vassals. Until the mid-Edo period, Mibu Domain was recognized as a fiefdom of a daimyo of shogunate rank.

It is said that when Kato Akihide entered Mibu as the seventh feudal lord, a petition against the new tax, known as the "Seven-Colored Hanging Scroll Petition," occurred. There are records that the details of this petition were passed down as "tradition" in various parts of Mibu during the late Edo period, and the details were also compiled in the "Toyo Minken Hyakkaden," a compilation of uprisings from around the country during the Meiji period. However, there are no official records of the domain that state that the petition took place, or the details of the taxes that were exempted. Opinions are divided even today as to whether this is historical fact or legend. However, although the Kato family was allowed to inherit the family headship as the second generation, they were soon ordered to relocate and left Mibu domain.

The Torii family era

In 1712, Torii Tadahide was appointed as the new lord of Mibu Domain. The Torii family was the family that produced Torii Mototada, who was praised as a model Mikawa samurai. In the Battle of Fushimi Castle, which took place in 1600 and is said to have been a prelude to the Battle of Sekigahara, Torii barricaded himself in Fushimi Castle and fought against Ishida Mitsunari, dying a heroic death in battle. In later years, the bloodstained floorboards left in Fushimi Castle became the ceilings of several temples in Kyoto and are now worshipped as the "blood ceiling."

After he was transferred to Mibu, Torii Tadahide built the "Seichu Shrine" to enshrine Torii Mototada, and built the "Tatamizuka" mound on the premises by burying a tatami mat with Mototada's bloodstains on it. Both the shrine and the tatamizuka mound still exist today.
The Torii family ruled the Mibu domain for eight generations from Tadanari until the Meiji Restoration.

Torii Tadahide rose to the position of Roju while serving as the lord of Mibu domain, and subsequent lords also joined the shogunate as young councilors and held important positions that supported the Edo shogunate.
On the other hand, the Mibu domain's government deteriorated due to a decrease in annual tax payments caused by the degradation of farmland, and at one point its debts reached as much as 9,000 ryo.

During the time of Torii Tadataka, the seventh feudal lord, the pro-imperial, anti-foreign movement gained momentum following the arrival of Commodore Perry, and the Mibu domain split into conservative and pro-imperial factions, eventually leading to the suicide of both the Edo elders and the national elders. After that, it was the pro-imperial, anti-foreign faction that took control of the domain.
However, when the pro-imperial, anti-foreign faction of the Mito domain started the Tenguto Rebellion, the Mibu domain worked hard to suppress the rebellion and was praised by the shogunate.

From the start of the Boshin War until the Meiji Restoration, the seventh lord of the Mibu Domain, Torii Tadataka, worked hard to protect the position of the Mibu Domain in Kyoto. At the same time, there were many social reform uprisings in the domain's territory, and he mobilized the domain's soldiers to suppress them.
After the Meiji Restoration, the last feudal lord, the 8th Torii Tadafumi, served as governor for a time, but after the abolition of the feudal domains and the establishment of prefectures, he resigned from his position and accompanied the Sogokura Mission to the United States to study, later becoming a diplomat.

Summary of Mibu Domain

The Mibu Domain was a small domain and not rich in internal affairs. However, because it was a domain connected to the Nikko Road and the Mibu Road, an important highway, the domain was headed by a feudal lord who was close to the Shogun family and was a member of the Shogunate. Furthermore, the Mibu Domain's samurai led by the seventh lord, Torii Tadataka, participated in the Battle of Utsunomiya during the Boshin War.