Satsuma Province - Satsuma no Kuni

A province in the Kyushu region of the Saikaido. Together with Osumi and Hyuga, it was formerly known as the Okusanshu (Three Oku Provinces). It corresponds to the western half of present-day Kagoshima Prefecture. The Satsuma Peninsula and its base and associated islands include the Kawanabe Islands, Koshikijima, and Nagashima. It borders Higo to the north and Osumi and parts of Hyuga to the east. It is roughly divided into north and south by the Sendai River, the largest river in Satsuma. Mount Shibi in the north and Mount Kanmuri, Mount Hanao, Mount Kinpo, Mount Noma, and Mount Kaimon in the south have been revered as sacred mountains since ancient times. Mt. Kaimon erupted frequently in ancient times, and Hirakiki Shrine at the foot of the mountain is listed as a shrine listed in the Shikinaisha (Engishiki) alongside Kashikuri Shrine in northern Satsuma. The title Satsuma was first seen in the July 653 (Hakuchi 4) entry in the Nihon Shoki, where it read "between Satsuma no Kuma and Takeshima." The Shoku Nihongi, Shoku Nihongi, Shoku Nihongi, Shoku Nihongi, Shoku Nihongi, Shoku Nihongi, Shoku Nihongi, Shoku Nihongi, Shoku Nihongi, and ... This is a country inhabited by the Hayato people, and is known as Ata Hayato, Satsuma Hayato, and Koshiki Hayato. The Wamyōshō lists 13 counties and 35 villages, including Izumi, Takaki, Satsuma, Koshikijima, Hioki, Izaku, Ata, Kawanabe, Ei, Ibusuki, Kiire, Taniyama, and Kagoshima. It is ranked as Chugoku. Its powerful clans include Ata Kimi, Satsuma Kimi, Mae Kimi, and Enoki Kimi, and are thought to be descended from the chiefs of the Hayato people. The land allotment system was finally implemented in 800 (Enryaku 19), later than other countries. The provincial capital was located in Takajo County on the north bank of the Kawauchi River, and nearby attractions include Kokubunji Temple and Ichinomiya Nitta Shrine, which has existed since the Middle Ages.

At the end of the ancient period, the Gun-go system also fell into disarray, and according to the 1197 (Kenkyu 8) map, 26 Guns, Ins, and Gos were recorded in the same order, with the majority of them being Shimazu Sho-yosego-ri, the domain of the Konoe family. Many of these Gun-in-go-ji were hereditary, such as the Taira clan, the same clan as Ata Gunji Tadakage, who wielded great power in the late Heian period, the Omae clan, the Okura clan, and the Tomo clan, and most of them were vassals of the Kamakura shogunate. On the other hand, Shimazu (Koremune) Tadahisa was appointed as Shugo and Sojito, and in northern Satsuma, the Chiba clan of Shimousa (Chiba Prefecture) and later the Shibuya clan of Sagami (Kanagawa Prefecture) were appointed as Jito. From then on, the Shimazu clan controlled these Gunji Shokan and gradually grew into Shugo Daimyo by eliminating their resistance and subjugating them. During the Nanboku-cho period, the Shimazu clan split into the Soshu clan led by Morohisa and the Oshu clan led by Ujihisa, with the position of Shugo inherited by the Soshu clan in Satsuma. However, during the Muromachi period, under Motohisa, the Oshu clan also took over as Shugo of Satsuma Province, and under Hisatoyo, they drove the Soshu clan out of Satsuma and took possession of it. Their castles also changed from Kinomure Castle in Izumi to Ikariyama Castle in Kawauchi, Tofukuji Castle in Kagoshima, and Shimizu Castle. During the Sengoku period, Tadamasa's reign saw the rise of the arts, including the invitation of Keian Genju (the founder of the Satsuma school), but in 1535 (Tenbun 4), Katsuhisa left the country after failing to govern the country, and Takahisa, the son of Tadayoshi (Nissin) of the Isaku (Sagami) clan, entered Kagoshima Uchijo Castle as his successor and succeeded in unifying the three provinces with his sons Yoshihisa and Yoshihiro, and advanced into Higo and Bungo. However, in 1587 (Tensho 15), Toyotomi Hideyoshi entered Kyushu, and Yoshihisa surrendered, and Satsuma, Osumi, and parts of Hyuga were assured. During the Korean expedition, a Taiko land survey was carried out in 1594 (Bunroku 3), and the Satsuma Province was estimated at over 280,000 koku. In the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600 (Keicho 5), Yoshihiro joined the Western Army, but through skillful diplomacy, his territory was secured, and Iehisa built his residence (Tsurumaru Castle) at the foot of Ueyama Castle in Kagoshima and developed a castle town. He introduced the Tojo system, which placed bases (fumoto, samurai settlements) at the foot of each town, and established a system of feudal rule in the early modern period. After the Meiji Restoration, the feudal domains were abolished in 1871 (Meiji 4), and the entire Satsuma Province became Kagoshima Prefecture.

Due to its warm and humid climate, frequent typhoons, and volcanic ash soil, productivity is generally low, but the population is denser than Osumi, and in the early modern period, migration to the area was encouraged. Surrounded by the sea on three sides, trade with the southern islands has been thriving since ancient times, and it became a place where foreign cultural artifacts flowed in, with Bonotsu (Minamisatsuma City) and Yamagawa (Ibusuki City) being bases for this.

[Katsuo Gomi]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

西海道(さいかいどう)九州の一国。大隅(おおすみ)、日向(ひゅうが)とともに奥三州とよばれた。現在の鹿児島県の西半部にあたる。薩摩半島とその基部、属島に川辺(かわなべ)諸島、甑(こしき)島、長島などがある。北は肥後(ひご)、東は大隅および一部日向と接する。薩摩第一の大河川内(せんだい)川でおおむね南北に分かれる。北の紫尾山(しびさん)、南の冠(かんむり)岳・花尾(はなお)山・金峰(きんぽう)山・野間(のま)岳・開聞(かいもん)岳などは古来霊山として信仰された。開聞岳は古代しばしば噴火を繰り返し、山麓(さんろく)にある開聞(ひらきき)（枚聞）神社は北薩の賀紫久利(かしくり)神社と並んで式内社に列す。薩摩の号は『日本書紀』653年（白雉4）7月条に「薩麻之曲(さつまのくま)・竹嶋(たかしま)之間」とあるのが初見、『続日本紀(しょくにほんぎ)』702年（大宝2）10月条に唱更(はやひと)国司の言上があり、唱更国はいまの薩摩国とあるから、このころ日向国から分出したのであろう。709年（和銅2）6月の勅には「薩摩・多禰(たね)両国司」とある。隼人(はやと)居住の国で、阿多(あた)隼人、薩摩隼人、甑隼人の呼称がある。『和名抄(わみょうしょう)』に出水(いずみ)、高城(たかき)、薩摩、甑島、日置(ひおき)、伊作(いざく)、阿多、河辺(かわなべ)、頴娃(えい)、揖宿(いぶすき)、給黎(きいれ)、谷山(たにやま)、鹿児島の13郡35郷をあげる。等級は中国。豪族に阿多君、薩摩君、前君、衣君(えのきみ)などがあり、隼人の首長の系統かと思われる。班田の制は他国に遅れて800年（延暦19）にようやく実施された。国府は川内川北岸の高城郡にあり、近隣に国分寺、中世以降の一宮(いちのみや)新田(にった)神社などがある。

　古代末には郡郷制も乱れ、1197年（建久8）の図田帳(ずでんちょう)によれば26の郡、院、郷が等置記載されており、その大半が近衛(このえ)家領島津庄(しょう)寄郡(よせごおり)となっている。それらの各郡院郷司には平安末期勢威を振るった阿多郡司忠景(ただかげ)の同族の平氏や、大前氏、大蔵氏、伴氏など世襲するものが多く、ほとんど鎌倉幕府の御家人(ごけにん)となっていた。一方、守護兼総地頭には島津（惟宗(これむね)）忠久が補任(ぶにん)され、北薩には地頭として初め下総(しもうさ)（千葉県）の千葉氏が、のち相模(さがみ)（神奈川県）の渋谷(しぶや)氏が入部した。以後島津氏はこれら郡司庄官らを統轄、その抵抗を排除服属させながら漸次守護大名へと成長していく。南北朝期、島津氏は師久(もろひさ)の統の総州家と氏久(うじひさ)の統の奥州家とに分かれるが、薩摩は総州家が守護職を相伝した。しかし室町期、元久(もとひさ)の代に奥州家は薩摩国守護職もあわせ、久豊(ひさとよ)の代に総州家を薩摩から追って領有した。居城も出水木牟礼(きのむれ)城から川内碇山(いかりやま)城、鹿児島東福寺(とうふくじ)城、清水(しみず)城と推移。戦国期の忠昌(ただまさ)の代には桂庵玄樹(けいあんげんじゅ)（薩南学派の祖）の招致など文運の興隆もみられたが、1535年（天文4）勝久(かつひさ)は国内の統治に失敗して出国、かわって伊作（相州）家の忠良(ただよし)（日新(にっしん)）の子貴久(たかひさ)が鹿児島内城(うちじょう)に入って守護職を継ぎ、その子義久(よしひさ)、義弘(よしひろ)らとともに三州統一に成功、進んで肥後(ひご)、豊後(ぶんご)方面にも進出した。しかし1587年（天正15）豊臣(とよとみ)秀吉の九州入りによって義久は降服、薩摩、大隅と日向の一部が安堵(あんど)された。朝鮮出兵中の1594年（文禄3）太閤(たいこう)検地が実施され、薩摩国は28万余石と算定された。1600年（慶長5）の関ヶ原の戦いでは義弘が西軍に投じたものの、巧みな外交で領国は安堵され、家久は鹿児島上山(うえやま)城の麓(ふもと)に居館（鶴丸(つるまる)城）を構え、城下町を整備。各郷に麓（府本(ふもと)、武士集落）を置く外城(とじょう)制度をとり、近世封建支配の体制を確立した。維新後、1871年（明治4）の廃藩置県により薩摩国は一円鹿児島県となった。

　温暖多湿、台風の常襲地帯、火山灰土壌などのため全般的に生産力は低いが、大隅に比し人口は稠密(ちゅうみつ)であったから、近世その地への人口移動が奨励された。三方を海に囲まれた環境で古来南島貿易が盛んで、海外文物の流入地となり、坊津(ぼうのつ)（南さつま市）、山川(やまがわ)（指宿(いぶすき)市）などがその拠点となっていた。

［五味克夫］

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