Iyo Matsuyama Domain (2/2)ruled by three houses

On the other hand, due to his infirmity, he had no biological children, so he adopted Katsunoshin, the eleventh son of Shimazu Yoshinobu, the lord of the Satsuma domain.
This Katsunoshin became Matsudaira Katsuyoshi, the 12th feudal lord who restored the castle tower of Iyo Matsuyama Castle, which had been destroyed by lightning.

The era of the 13th feudal lord, Katsunari Matsudaira, marks the end of the Edo period. Katsunari Matsudaira was a cousin of the 15th shogun, Yoshinobu Tokugawa, so he was assigned to lead the war against the new government forces such as the Choshu and Tosa clans, and the Matsuyama clan found itself in a difficult situation.
In fact, in the first year of Genji (1864), the shogunate's army was the first to win the first conquest of Choshu, and achieved a partial victory in the second conquest of Choshu, but the shogunate's forces were not aligned. I was essentially defeated.

Also, at this time, the Iyo-Matsuyama clan occupied Oshima, which was a feudal domain, and the samurai of the clan violently assaulted the islanders, which seems to have earned them the resentment of the Choshu clan.

During the Battle of Toba-Fushimi that occurred in 1867, 300 soldiers were stationed in Umeda, Osaka, and the Imperial Court ordered them to stay in seclusion, and soldiers from the Tosa clan invaded the domain. However, because they showed their obedience, there was no major turmoil, and no unnecessary fights occurred within the castle.

After the Imperial Restoration in the same year, the Matsudaira surname was returned to the Tokugawa family and the Sugawara surname was restored to Hisamatsu. After that, he became the governor of the domain and lived in Tokyo until he was 81 years old.
Katsunari Matsudaira was also known as a tea master, and was a member of the ``Wakeikai,'' a rotating tea ceremony group he established with members of the nobility and celebrities living in Tokyo.

The Matsudaira family is said to have continued until the 16th lord, but the 13th and 15th lords were Katsunari Matsudaira, and the 14th and 16th lords were Katsunari's adopted son Sadaaki Matsudaira, so in reality, Katsunari Matsudaira was the 16th lord. He is the last lord.
By the way, Sadaaki Matsudaira did not have any notable accomplishments, as he died at the young age of 28 while in seclusion after being accused of siding with the shogunate army in the Battle of Toba-Fushimi.

summary

The Iyo Matsuyama domain was ruled by three families until the end of the Edo period.
Perhaps because of the warm climate and few natural disasters, there have only been one or two natural disasters or famines in the domain's long history.
Although it fell into a financial crisis, it was only recovered by issuing han bills.
It can be said that we are extremely blessed, as many domains face financial difficulties as they approach the end of the Edo period, and it is not uncommon for some domains to be on the verge of bankruptcy.
However, many feudal lords lived short lives, with half of them dying before they reached their 50s.
On the other hand, there were feudal lords who lived into their 80s.
In addition, cultures such as haikai and tea were flourishing, and these became the foundation for producing great writers and haiku poets such as Masaoka Shiki during the Meiji period.