Han (Japan)

Han (Japanese: 藩) were the fiefs of feudal clans of Japan that existed during all the Edo period and for a few years after the Meiji Restoration. The number of han varied; typically, there were around 300 han in the Edo period. Most han were led by a daimyo with an assessment of 10,000 koku or more. The daimyo swore loyalty to the shogun. Sometimes a powerful daimyo let a man govern a domain over 10,000 koku. Those men were definitely not daimyo but their domains were sometimes called han.

Related Topics:
Japanese - Japan - Edo period - Meiji Restoration - Daimyo - Koku - Shogun

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The richest han was the Kaga han with 1 million koku. It was situated in Kaga, Etchu and Noto Provinces.

Related Topics:
Kaga han - Kaga - Etchu - Noto Province

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In July, 1871, all the han were disbanded in favor of the formation of prefectures.

Related Topics:
1871 - Prefecture

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