Shimazu clan

Japanese: 島津氏 - しまづうじ

A samurai family in southern Kyushu since the Kamakura period. It began when Koremune Tadahisa was appointed as a subordinate official of the Shimazu Manor, which was the domain of the Konoe family. There are various theories about Tadahisa's origins, and they are unclear. With the establishment of the Kamakura Shogunate, he became a vassal of the Shogun and was appointed as land steward of the Shimazu Manor and shugo of the three southern Kyushu provinces of Satsuma, Osumi, and Hyuga, but his domains and shugo position in Osumi and Hyuga were soon confiscated. In Satsuma, he gradually strengthened his control by fighting with the existing local lords (small land stewards). During this time, powerful branch families such as the Echizen Shimazu clan and Wakasa Shimazu clan were born in the Hokuriku region, and the Yamada clan, Isaku clan, and Ijuin clan were born in Japan, and each gradually became independent. During the Nanboku-cho period, under the reigns of Sadahisa, Michihisa, and Ujihisa, the clan faced strong resistance from local anti-samurai forces such as the Kimotsuki clan, and also fought with various powerful forces such as Hatakeyama Naoaki and Imagawa Ryoshun for control of local lords and the position of shugo, but they steadily became daimyo throughout southern Kyushu. After the unification of the Northern and Southern Courts, under Genkyu, the clan regained the shugo title for three provinces in southern Kyushu. After fierce conflicts with powerful clans that had become lords in various places, Takahisa unified Osumi and Satsuma provinces, solidifying his position as a daimyo in the Sengoku period. It was also around this time that Europeans arrived, firearms, and Christianity were introduced. His son Yoshihisa advanced north, oppressing the Otomo and Ryuzoji clans, and became the leading daimyo in Kyushu. In 1587, he surrendered to Toyotomi Hideyoshi's attack, but his former territories in the three provinces were assured. Although they sided with Toyotomi in the Battle of Sekigahara, they were pardoned and became one of the most powerful Tozama daimyo with a fief of 770,000 koku. Within the domain were powerful branches known as Ichimon families (such as the Kajiki and Tarumi families). In the final days of the Tokugawa shogunate, some of their retainers produced patriots who fought for the overthrow of the shogunate, and the domain, along with the Choshu clan, eventually became a central force in the overthrow of the shogunate. After the Meiji Restoration, the main family became a duke, and played an important role in political and financial circles during the Meiji and Taisho periods.

Source: Encyclopaedia Britannica Concise Encyclopedia About Encyclopaedia Britannica Concise Encyclopedia Information

Japanese:

鎌倉時代以来の南九州の武家。惟宗忠久が近衛家領島津荘下司職に補任されたのに始る。忠久の出自は諸説あって不明。鎌倉幕府の成立で，御家人となり，島津荘地頭職ならびに薩摩，大隅，日向の南九州3ヵ国の守護職に補任されたが，まもなく，大隅，日向の所領，守護職を没収された。薩摩では，従来の在地領主 (小地頭) と争って次第に支配権を強化。その間，北陸に越前島津氏，若狭島津氏，国内には山田氏，伊作氏，伊集院氏など有力庶家が生れ，次第にそれぞれ独立していく。南北朝時代，貞久，師久，氏久の代に，肝付氏など在地の反武家勢力の強い抵抗にあい，また畠山直顕，今川了俊など諸権力と国人支配，守護職をめぐる争奪戦を演じるが，南九州一円で着実に大名化の道をたどる。南北朝合一後，元久のとき南九州3ヵ国守護職を回復。その後，各地で領主化した有力一族との激しい相克の末，貴久は大隅，薩摩両国を統一して戦国大名の地歩を固めていった。ヨーロッパ人の来航，鉄砲，キリスト教の伝来もこのときである。その子義久は，北進して大友氏，龍造寺氏を圧迫し，九州随一の大名となった。天正 15 (1587) 年，豊臣秀吉の進攻に降伏したが，3ヵ国の旧領は安堵された。関ヶ原の戦いには豊臣方に属したが許され，77万石という外様大名屈指の雄藩となった。藩内には，一門家 (加治木家，垂水家など) と称される有力な支族があった。また，幕末には討幕運動の志士を家臣から出し，結局，藩も長州藩とともに討幕の中心勢力となった。明治維新後，本家は公爵となり，明治，大正には政財界に重きをなした。

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