Konoe family - Konoe

Japanese: 近衛家 - このえけ

The main line of the Northern Fujiwara clan. Its founder was Motozane, the eldest son of Fujiwara Tadamichi, the regent of Hossho-ji Temple in the late Heian period. The name Konoe comes from the fact that his residence faced Konoe-dori street, and the clan has been called Konoe since the time of Motomichi, the son of Motomichi. After Iezane, Kanetsune's younger brother Kanehira founded the Takatsukasa clan during his time, and the Konoe clan split into two branches, and was ranked at the top of the five regent families along with the Kujo, Nijo, and Ichijo clans. The family is also known by the name "Yomei," which comes from the fact that Konoe-dori street runs east to west through the Yomeimon Gate of the Imperial Palace. The 17th head of the family, Nobutada, had no heir, so Nobuhiro, the fourth son of Emperor Goyozei, who was born to Nobutada's younger sister, Sakiko, became the 18th head of the family. During the Edo period, the family's landholding was over 2,862 koku. In 1884 (Meiji 17), he was ranked as a member of the nobility and granted the title of duke.

[Masanobu Hashimoto]

Konoe family estate

At the end of the Heian period, Fujiwara no Tadamichi, who had almost become the head of the regent family's territories, handed over most of them to his eldest son, Motozane, and some to his daughter, Seishi (Kogamon'in), and after Motozane's death, the territories that Motozane inherited became the kanre (regent) domain of his wife, Shirakawa Kitano Mandokoro (daughter of Taira no Kiyomori), and later passed on to his eldest son, Motomichi, and the Konoe family territories were established. An outline of these territories can be found in the "Konoe Family Territory Catalog," compiled in October 1253 (Kencho 5), which lists 153 territories, excluding oban territories and scattered territories. The breakdown of these is as follows: (1) 14 privately owned bessoudenchi, (2) 50 territories from which the honjo received a certain share, (3) 5 territories donated to related temples and shrines while retaining the right to advance, (4) 4 territories from which the basic right to collect annual taxes was donated to temples and shrines, (5) 60 territories from which the honjo carried out duties, and (6) 20 territories from which the local lords had a certain share as ukesho. Of (1), seven of the territories became the domains of the Takatsukasa family when the family separated from the Konoe family. Later, in the Nanboku-cho period, the division of the imperial lineage had a major impact on the various noble families, and after Iemoto of the Konoe family, the Iehira and Tsunehira lines competed for the position of kanrei (regent) over the family and the family estates, but it seems that the majority of the family estates were passed down to Mototsugu of the Tsunehira line. In November 1336 (1st year of Engen, 3rd year of Kenmu), Mototsugu received confirmation of 25 territories, including Enamino-sho in Settsu Province, from the Northern Court. However, this cannot be said to be all of the Konoe family's territory at that time. According to the Konoe Family Miscellaneous Affairs Yoroku, which covers the period from 1478 (Bunmei 10) to 1505 (Eisho 2), even during the period when the manors were dissolved, the Konoe family maintained around 40 official domains. However, as time passed, the decline was unstoppable, and by 1524 (Taiei 4), the number of unofficial domains exceeded the official domains by several times. In the second half of the 16th century, when the kokudaka (rice yield) system was established, the Konoe family was given fiefs by the Oda and Toyotomi clans, and in the Edo period, in 1601 (Keicho 6), the Tokugawa clan gave them a fief of over 1,795 koku. It later reached over 2,862 koku, the highest koku among the five regent families.

[Masanobu Hashimoto]

[Reference] | Five Regent Families

Konoe family / Brief family tree
Note: In the diagram, biological children are indicated with | and adopted children with ‖ ©Shogakukan

Konoe family / Brief family tree

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

Japanese:

藤原北家(ほっけ)の嫡流。平安末期の法性寺関白藤原忠通(ただみち)の長子基実(もとざね)を始祖とする。近衛の称はその邸が近衛通りに面していたことにちなみ、基実の子基通(もとみち)のときより近衛氏を称する。家実(いえざね)を経て兼経(かねつね)のとき弟の兼平(かねひら)が鷹司(たかつかさ)氏を興し、ここに近衛家は2流に分かれ、九条・二条・一条の3氏と並んで五摂家と称され、その筆頭に位置した。一名「陽明」とも称されるが、これは禁裏(きんり)の陽明門を東西に通じているのが近衛通りであることにちなむ。17代信尹(のぶただ)には継嗣(けいし)なく、信尹の妹前子(さきこ)の所生になる後陽成天皇(ごようぜいてんのう)の第4皇子信尋(のぶひろ)が入って18代となった。江戸時代の家領は2862石余。1884年（明治17）華族に列し、公爵を授けられた。

［橋本政宣］

近衛家領

平安時代末、摂関家領をほぼ惣領(そうりょう)した藤原忠通は、その大部分を長子基実に、一部を女子聖子(せいし)（皇嘉門院(こうかもんいん)）に譲り、基実が伝領した所領はその没後は妻白河北政所(きたのまんどころ)（平清盛(たいらのきよもり)女）が管領し、のち長子基通に伝わり、近衛家領が成立する。その概要は、1253年（建長5）10月作成の『近衛家所領目録』にみえ、大番領・散所などを除いて、153か所の所領を載せる。その内訳は、(1)私的な別相伝地14、(2)本所として一定の得分を収取する所領50、(3)進止(しんし)権を保留して有縁の寺社に寄進した所領5、(4)基本的な年貢収取権を寺社に寄進した所領4、(5)本所として荘務を進退する所領60、(6)在地領主を請所(うけしょ)として一定の得分権をもつ所領20からなる。なお(1)のうち7か所は鷹司家が近衛家から分立するに伴い、鷹司家領となっていく。その後、南北朝期に入り皇統の分裂は公家(くげ)の諸家にも大きく影響し、近衛家は家基(いえもと)後に家平(いえひら)流、経平(つねひら)流の2流が家門と家領の管領をめぐって対抗したが、家領総体の主要部分は経平流の基嗣(もとつぐ)へと伝領されたようである。基嗣は1336年（延元1・建武3）11月に北朝から摂津国榎並庄(えなみのしょう)以下25か所の所領の安堵(あんど)を受けている。ただしこれが当時の近衛家領のすべてであったともいいがたく、1478年（文明10）から1505年（永正2）にわたる『近衛家雑事要録』によれば、荘園(しょうえん)解体期においても、近衛家領は40か所に前後する当知行(とうちぎょう)所領を維持していたが、時期を逐(お)うにしたがいその衰退は覆うべくもなく、1524年（大永4）には不知行が当知行を数倍も上回る状況と化した。16世紀の後半、石高(こくだか)知行制が成立するや、近衛家も織田・豊臣(とよとみ)2氏から知行地を与えられ、江戸時代に入り1601年（慶長6）徳川氏より1795石余の知行を与えられた。その後2862石余に達し五摂家中最高の石高を保持した。

［橋本政宣］

[参照項目] | 五摂家

近衛家／略系図

出典　小学館　日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)について　情報 | 凡例

<<: Konoe Sakihisa

>>: Konoe Kanetsune