Naotaka Ii

He was the leading elder statesman in the shogunate during the early Edo period. He was born in Fujieda, Suruga Province (Shizuoka Prefecture). He was the illegitimate son of Naomasa. He inherited 150,000 koku of land in Hikone due to his older brother Naokatsu's frequent illness. He distinguished himself as a vanguard in the Winter and Summer Sieges of Osaka, and was granted an additional 50,000 koku of land. In 1617 (Genwa 3), he received another 50,000 koku of land. After the death of the second shogun, Tokugawa Hidetada, he briefly participated in the shogunate government with Matsudaira Tadaaki and others. In 1633 (Kan'ei 10), he was granted an additional 50,000 koku (Sano in Shimotsuke and Setagaya in Musashi), giving him a total of 300,000 koku of land. This was an outstanding amount of land for a fudai daimyo, and confirmed his position as a leading figure in the Tokugawa clan. He served three generations of Tokugawa Shoguns, Hidetada, Iemitsu, and Ietsuna, and from 1634 he lived in Edo for the rest of his life. He was a highly respected member of the genro (elder statesman) and always attended the major meetings of the shogunate, devoting himself to the shogunate government. Naotaka was a man of great decisiveness, and in his emphasis on frugality he resembled Tokugawa Ieyasu. He died on June 28, 1612. His grave is at Gotokuji Temple in Setagaya, Tokyo.

[Masuo Inorimoto]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

江戸初期、幕閣の元老の第一人者。駿河(するが)国（静岡県）藤枝に生まれる。直政(なおまさ)の庶子。兄直勝が多病のため彦根(ひこね)15万石を相続した。大坂冬の陣、夏の陣に先鋒(せんぽう)で軍功をあげ、領知を5万石加増され、さらに1617年（元和3）にも5万石の加増を受けた。2代将軍徳川秀忠(ひでただ)の没後、松平忠明らと一時幕政に参与した。1633年（寛永10）にも5万石（下野(しもつけ)佐野、武蔵(むさし)世田谷(せたがや)）の加増があり、あわせて30万石を領した。これは譜代(ふだい)大名中抜群の領知高で、徳川氏の重鎮的地位が確定された。秀忠、家光(いえみつ)、家綱(いえつな)3代に仕え、1634年より江戸に終身定住する。幕閣の主要な会議には常時出席して幕政に献身し、元老として重んぜられた。直孝は決断力に優れ、また、質素倹約を重んじたことで徳川家康に似ていた。万治(まんじ)2年6月28日死去。墓所は東京・世田谷の豪徳寺。

［煎本増夫］

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