Inuyama Domain (1/2)Finally became independent in 4th year of Keio.

The Inuyama domain is a special domain that was finally recognized as an independent domain by the Meiji government in 1868. During the Edo period, the Naruse family, which was the chief retainer of the Owari Tokugawa family, served as the lord for generations. Let's take a look at the history of the Inuyama clan.

Inuyama Castle was the scene of many battles during the Sengoku period.

Inuyama Castle is a castle that was renovated and built in 1537 by Oda Nobuyasu, the uncle of Oda Nobunaga. Located between present-day Aichi and Gifu prefectures, it was a strategic location with the Kiso River at its back, so relatives and senior vassals of Oda Nobunaga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi served as the castle's lords. It has also been the scene of historic battles such as the Battle of Komaki-Nagakute and the Battle of Sekigahara. When Tokugawa Ieyasu established the Edo shogunate, Inuyama Castle once belonged to the Owari Kiyosu domain, and Tokugawa Ieyasu's fourth son, Matsudaira Tadayoshi, entered Kiyosu Castle as the castle owner, and the retainer, Ogasawara Yoshitsugu, owned the Inuyama territory and Inuyama Castle. given.
The official name of tsuke karō is otsuke karō, which refers to the chief retainers directly appointed by the shogun to the daimyo family, which branched off from the shogun family. Usually referred to the chief retainer. The five chief retainers of the three major families, the Owari Tokugawa family, the Kishu Tokugawa family, and the Mito Tokugawa family, are especially famous.
Chikayoshi Hiraiwa, the first lord of the Inuyama domain, was a military commander who served as one of the 16 Tokugawa generals and served as a senior vassal of Tokugawa Ieyasu.
In 1607, when Tokugawa Yoshinao was appointed lord of the Owari domain, he moved down to Owari as a retainer.
The amount of koku is 123,000 koku, which is comparable to that of a feudal lord. Although Mitsuke Karo were vassals of the three families, they had many privileges such as being able to have an audience with the Shogun.
As the first lord of the castle, Chikayoshi Hiraiwa maintained the castle town, but as no legitimate children were born and his adopted son died young, the Hiraiwa family became extinct within one generation.

Control of the Naruse family

After the Hiraiwa family became extinct, Masashige Naruse was assigned to Owari as Otsuke Karo in its place. Masashige, who made his first appearance in Komaki and Nagakute, was asked by Tokugawa Ieyasu to appoint him as a chief retainer. The amount of koku is 35,000 koku, which is lower than that of the Hiraiwa family, but equivalent to that of a daimyo from a small domain. Since then, the Naruse family served as the lord of Inuyama Castle until the end of the Edo period, and they owned Inuyama Castle until 2004.
The Naruse family had the same level of stone as a feudal lord, and had the privilege of having an audience with the shogun. In fact, when Masatora Naruse, the second lord of the castle, accompanied Mitsutomo Tokugawa, the second lord of the Owari domain, to Edo Castle, he both had an audience with the third shogun Iemitsu Tokugawa.
Therefore, the Naruse family served as the chief retainers of the Owari clan, helping with the administration of the domain and governing the castle town of Inuyama Castle.

Owari domain and Naruse family

The Owari clan is one of the three Tokugawa clans, and the first. His residence was Nagoya Castle, and he was deeply involved in the policies of the shogunate.
In particular, when the seventh shogun Ietsugu Tokugawa died without creating an heir, Tsugutomo Tokugawa competed for the position of shogun with Yoshimune Tokugawa of the Kishu Tokugawa clan, and Muneharu Tokugawa, his younger brother who openly defied the thrift edict issued by the shogunate. is famous.
Tokugawa Muneharu valued ties with the imperial court, supporting the finances of the Kujo family in Kyoto, and developed a free economy in Owari by opposing all frugal orders of the shogunate. Therefore, the shogunate severely reprimanded Muneharu Tokugawa and ordered him to change his attitude, but Muneharu did not comply. This conflict between the shogunate and the Owari Tokugawa family caused confusion among the vassals. At that time, the fifth generation lord of the Naruse family, Masayasu Naruse, was the chief retainer of the Naruse family, but he strongly opposed Masatake Takekoshi, who was also the chief retainer of the castle, who tried to force Muneharu Tokugawa into exile. Tokugawa Muneharu was eventually deposed as the lord of the domain and forced into exile, but it is said that at that time, Masayasu Naruse strongly advocated, ``We should go to war with the shogunate.''
However, due to Tokugawa Muneharu's policies, the Owari domain had turned into a large deficit, and when Masatake Takekoshi issued a frugal edict after Muneharu was confined, he did not protest.
In addition, the Naruse family strengthened the defense of the Owari clan as the lord of Inuyama Castle, and was also a family that excelled in martial arts as the key to military equipment. Masachika Naruse, the 3rd generation head of the Naruse family, and Masanori Naruse, the 6th generation head of the Naruse family, were excellent horsemen, and Masanori in particular is said to have loved horsemanship so much that he would present a horse to the lord of the Owari domain.

Ambition to become a Daimyo

As mentioned above, the Naruse family was given 35,000 koku, and their founder was a senior vassal of the Tokugawa clan. He was fully qualified to become a daimyo. In fact, the Naruse family has over 100 vassals who are unique among their vassals. For this reason, Masatoshi Naruse, the seventh lord of the castle, frequently visited Edo Castle in order to become independent from the Owari clan and become a fudai daimyo, and he devoted himself to educating Saion Tokugawa, the 11th lord of the Owari clan, who took over as head of the family at the age of nine.