Thank you for always watching the SNS and videos of 'Tabinoito'! Recently, we touched on 'Sankin-kotai' in a video we uploaded, and we received unexpected feedback.
With the familiar shout of "Down, down!" from period dramas, the lord gracefully rides in a palanquin as part of a daimyo procession. Have you ever seen this on television? However, the actual sankin-kotai was not nearly as leisurely. It was a harsh system where "hundreds of millions of yen would vanish in a day, and one would walk a distance equivalent to a full marathon every day," making even modern black companies pale in comparison.
This time, I will guide you through the "realities of the daimyo procession" that are not found in textbooks, and how it connects to the history of Aizu (Ouchijuku).
[Reality 1] "Hundreds of millions of yen" disappear in a single move!?
In 1635, the sankin-kotai system was institutionalized by Tokugawa's third shogun, Iemitsu. Its primary purpose was to "force each daimyo to spend enormous amounts of money and weaken their military power (the ability to incite rebellion)."
The outrageous expenses of the Kaga domain
For example, in the case of the Maeda family, famous for the "Kaga Hyakumangoku," they would sometimes travel to Edo with as many as about 4,000 attendants. Not only samurai, but also the lord's personal physician, the head of the tea ceremony, falconers, and even those carrying a "dedicated bath kettle" accompanied them.
With such a large entourage, the daily accommodation and food costs amounted to approximately 30 million yen. Assuming it took about two weeks to travel from Kaga to Edo, the total expenses for a one-way trip reached 420 million yen.
Such expenses would likely lead to bankruptcy for a modern company, but for the Tokugawa shogunate, the strategy of "making the daimyo financially strapped" was a great success.
[Reality 2] Is the elegant procession a lie? A "super forced march" of 40 km a day.
Given the enormous costs, the daimyo were desperate. They thought, "I want to arrive as soon as possible and save on accommodation costs!"
Therefore, in the mountains and on the highways, they completely abandoned the elegant procession (forming a parade) and walked about 40 kilometers (almost the same distance as a full marathon!) at a rapid pace every day. They would set off at 5 a.m. and continue walking with heavy loads until 5 p.m., truly a forced march.
The commoners' entertainment: "Daimyo Watching"
By the way, the shout of "Down, down!" (forcing someone to prostrate) was only permitted for a select few, such as the Tokugawa's three main families, and when ordinary daimyo passed, commoners were simply required to step aside.
It is said that Edoites would buy a daimyo guidebook called "Bukan" at a bookstore in Nihonbashi and, with a sense of event, would observe, saying, "Oh, that spear shape belongs to the XX domain. What a country bumpkin!"
A "parade of the East" that astonished the Dutch
A Dutch doctor from the trading post in Dejima, Nagasaki, witnessed and recorded the scene of the sankin-kotai.
When he passed by the procession of the Kishu domain, he thought he saw a large group coming from the front in the morning, which turned out to be the "advance party." Then, he saw another large group, which was just a "cargo transport team." Finally, around noon, the luxurious "main party (the lord)" passed by, and the last tail end was not out of sight until evening.
Foreigners from Europe were reportedly astonished, saying, "Is there such a huge and organized parade in this small island nation of the East?"
The miraculous post town left by the Sankin-kotai: "Ouchi-juku"
Now, this harsh Sankin-kotai actually produced a "byproduct" that dramatically developed Japan's infrastructure and culture.
To ensure that the daimyos could safely and timely reach Edo, roads and bridges across the country were improved, and the roadside "post towns" flourished with significant economic benefits.
Our first lord of the Aizu domain, Masayuki Hoshina, also improved the "Aizu Nishi Kaido (Shimotsuke Kaido)" that connects Aizu and Nikko, and conducted Sankin-kotai through it. One of the post towns that was developed at that time is the beautiful "Ouchi-juku" with its thatched roofs still standing today.
Why was only Ouchi-juku able to preserve the appearance of Edo?
This is because when new roads and railways were opened during the Meiji era, Ouchi-juku was left off those routes and was "left behind in modernization." Furthermore, the residents' strong determination to "not sell, not rent, and not destroy" helped preserve the landscape, miraculously maintaining its historical appearance.
At "Tabinoito," we offer a tour in the 【Academic】 style where we discuss the origins of Ouchi-juku and the harsh realities of Sankin-kotai while traveling in a vehicle.
"Those lords also desperately walked this road, huh?"
Why not savor the famous negi soba while feeling the breath of history? Your perspective on period dramas might change just a little.
[Join an adult fieldwork that unravels the hidden side of history]
A journey that comfortably explores the real breath of history, different from period dramas, in a dedicated vehicle.
A dedicated guide will introduce you to the stories of Aizu not found in textbooks.
Feel free to consult us via LINE first.
