Tokugawa Ietsuna

Tokugawa Ietsuna (徳川 家綱, September 7, 1641-June 4, 1680) was the fourth shogun of the Tokugawa dynasty of Japan who was in office from 1651 to 1680. He was the eldest son of Tokugawa Iemitsu, thus making him the grandson of Tokugawa Hidetada and the great-grandson of Tokugawa Ieyasu.

The Regency of Shogun Ietsuna (1651-1663)

Tokugawa Iemitsu died in early 1651 before he reached the age of fifty. After his death, the Tokugawa dynasty was at major risk. Ietsuna, the heir, was only ten years old. Nonetheless, despite his age, Tokugawa Ietsuna became shogun in 1651, becoming the fourth shogun of the Tokugawa dynasty. He was to be known as Shogun Ietsuna. Until he came of age, five regents were to rule in his place. Before he died, Iemitsu knew what his grandfather did as a regent to Toyotomi Hideyori, but thought that the dynasty was more important than that.

Related Topics:
1651 - Toyotomi Hideyori

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Ietsuna had five regents to rule in his name. These were Sakai Tadakatsu, Sakai Tadakiyo, Inaba Masanori, Matsudaira Nobutsuna (a distant member of the Tokugawa), and two others. In addition to this regency, Iemitsu handpicked his half-brother, Hoshina Masayuki.

Related Topics:
Sakai Tadakatsu - Sakai Tadakiyo - Inaba Masanori - Matsudaira Nobutsuna - Hoshina Masayuki

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The first thing that Shogun Ietsuna and the regency had to address was the ronin, or, "masterless samurai". During the reign of Shogun Iemitsu, two samurai, Yui Shosetsu and Marubashi Chuya, had been planning an uprising in which the city of Edo would be burned to the ground, and, amidst the confusion, Edo Castle would be raided and the shogun, other members of the Tokugawa, and high officials would be executed. Similar occurances would happen in Kyoto and Osaka. Shosetsu was himself of humble birth, and he saw Toyotomi Hideyoshi as his idol.

Related Topics:
Ronin - Yui Shosetsu - Marubashi Chuya - Kyoto - Osaka - Toyotomi Hideyoshi

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Nonetheless, the plan was discovered after the death of Iemitsu, and Ietsuna's regents were brutal in suppressing the rebellion, which came to be known as the Keian uprising of 1651. Chuya and Shosetsu, as well as their families and supporters, were executed with brutal means. In 1652, about 800 ronin led a small disturbance on Sado Island, and this was also brutally suppressed. But for the most part, the remainder of Ietsuna's rule was not disturbed anymore by the ronin as the government became more civilian oriented.

Related Topics:
Keian uprising - 1652 - Sado Island

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In 1657, when Shogun Ietsuna was almost 20 years old, a great fire erupted in Edo and burned the city to the ground. It took two years to rebuild the city, and bakufu officials supervised the rebuilding of the city. In 1659, Shogun Ietsuna presided over the opening ceremonies.

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