Maruoka Domain (1/2)Ruled by the Honda family and the Arima family.

The Maruoka domain was ruled by the Honda family and the Arima family until the end of the Edo period.
Let's unravel the history of the Maruoka domain and what kind of domain it was.

Until the Honda family established the Maruoka domain

Maruoka Castle was built by Katsutoyo Shibata, the son (nephew) of Katsuie Shibata's sister, who became the first lord of the domain.
However, after the Battle of Shizugatake, he died of illness without leaving any children behind.
Munekatsu Aoyama and his children took over as the castle owners, but in 1600, they sided with the Western army at the Battle of Sekigahara, and as punishment for that, they were reduced to a new castle.

Maruoka Castle was once again without its lord, and Imamura Moritsugu, a senior vassal of Ieyasu's second son Hideyasu Yuki, took over as the castle owner for 25,000 koku.
However, in 1611, he too was involved in an internal conflict between senior retainers of the Fukui clan and was exiled.

After that, Honda Shigetsugu's son, Honda Narishige, who was a senior vassal of Ieyasu and was nicknamed ``Oni Sakusa,'' was transferred as a fudai daimyo with 40,000 koku.
The history of the Maruoka clan started with this Honda family. By the way, Shigetsugu Honda is the person who wrote the famous letter ``Ichipo Keijo~'', and the ``Osen'' written ``Don't make me cry'' is the first lord of the domain, Narishige Honda.

Honda family history

Narishige Honda worked hard to build a castle town and carry out flood control works in order to solidify the foundation of his domain.
It can be said that it was Narishige Honda who laid the foundations for the Maruoka domain.

Narishige Honda and his successor, the second feudal lord Honda Shigeyoshi, lived long lives for the time, with Narishige at the age of 72, and Honda Shigeyoshi, who participated in the Osaka Winter Siege, lived to the age of 62.

Although Shigeaki Honda passed away earlier than his father and grandfather at the age of 43, he continued to devote himself to detection and temple and shrine policy.
Shigemasu Honda, who became the fourth lord of the domain, was a deeply religious man, but was politically incompetent, leaving the politics of the domain to his vassals, and it is recorded that he himself was addicted to alcohol. .

As a result, a fight broke out between the vassals for control of the domain.
In particular, the conflict between Ota Matahachi, who tried to appoint Honda Shigemasu as his successor and force Honda Shigemasu to retire, and Honda Oribe, who tried to take over the real power, was fierce, and the conflict finally reached the ears of the shogunate. Multiple profits have become easier.

This concludes the history of the Honda family.
Furthermore, Honda Shigemasu was pardoned and pardoned when the 6th Shogun Tokugawa Ienobu ascended the throne, and he returned as a hatamoto yoriai with 2,000 koku.

History of the Arima family

The person who took charge of the Maruoka domain after the Honda family was Kiyozumi Arima, the great-grandson of Harunobu Arima, the lord of the Hyuga Nobeoka domain, who was famous as a Christian daimyo.
The Hyuga Nobeoka domain where Seizumi Arima studied was a domain prone to unrest, such as the Shimabara Rebellion and the Escape Uprising.
Kiyozumi Arima took responsibility for the uprising and fled to Echigo Itoigawa, then moved to the Maruoka domain.

Since there was no castle in Echigo-Itoigawa, he would have been promoted again from the lord of a castleless castle, but the reality was very harsh, and when Seizumi Arima and his son Kazunori Arima became lords, there were frequent bad weather conditions. Harvest failures continued due to unseasonal conditions and flooding, and the domain government was in such dire straits that a rebellion broke out.

Around the time of Arima Issun, who became the second lord of the Arima clan, he issued han bills called Gin-satsu and borrowed part of his vassals' salaries, but it had little effect, and Issun died in despair at the age of 62. ended his life.
The third lord of the domain, Takasumi Arima, continued his father's policies and embarked on the development of a copper mine, but failed.
The fourth lord of the domain, Takasumi Arima, died at the young age of 26, and the future of the Arima family's rule was difficult.
However, the fifth generation lord of the domain, Yoshizumi Arima, who succeeded him, was a very capable man, and rose through the ranks from the shogunate's chief of performers to the magistrate of temples and shrines, and at the same time reformed the domain's administration in the Maruoka domain.

When the annual tax was raised to resolve financial difficulties, a revolt occurred, but in response to the demands of the peasants, the annual tax was lowered to its original value and the shoya system was abolished.

Furthermore, he established clan schools to educate the children of samurai, and set up a system called ``gokaisho,'' in which merchants took over when farmers were unable to pay annual taxes, and took steps to combat poverty.
As a result, the Maruoka domain escaped from financial difficulties.

The talented daimyo, who is said to be the founder of the Maruoka clan's revitalization, died at the age of 68, putting his efforts into compiling domain history and topography such as ``Kunijo Imon'' and ``Fujiwara Arima Sefu.'' .