Sendai Domain

The Tozama clan had its headquarters in Sendai, Mutsu Province (Miyagi Prefecture) and had a fief of 620,000 koku. In 1591 (Tensho 19), the clan's founder, Date Masamune, moved from Yonezawa, Dewa Province, to Iwadeyama, Mutsu Province, and in 1600 (Keicho 5), he moved his castle to Sendai, and the clan continued for 14 generations until it was abolished. The clan's fief was initially 580,000 koku, but in 1634 (Kan'ei 11), it was confirmed that it had 620,000 koku, which included 600,000 koku in the 21 counties of Mutsu, 10,000 koku in Omi Province and 10,000 koku in Hitachi Province as bribes, giving it an internal fief of over 1 million koku. After the Boshin War (1868), it was reduced to 280,000 koku, leading to the abolition of the clan. The vassals included newly hired vassals of the Date clan and daimyo-class warriors from the Warring States period, totaling 8,416 direct vassals (1670, Kanbun 10), and were organized according to the family ranks of clan, family, quasi-family, clan, senior retainer, jakuza, tachiage, meshidashi, and Heishi. There were 1,050 lower-ranking kumi-shi and 4,670 foot soldiers and below. They were given residences in the castle towns, but under the local fief system, the ominami were stationed in four important locations for military and security purposes: castles with small castle towns below the castle, fortresses, town areas, and rural residences. They had samurai and foot soldiers' residences, and the total number of subordinate vassals reached approximately 24,000. The total population was 818,061 in 1742 (Kanpo 2) and 687,802 in 1825 (Bunsei 8), and was characterized by a larger samurai population than other domains and a smaller townspeople population.

The land system was established during the Kan'ei General Land Survey (1640-1643), and a kanko system was adopted, with stipends and taxes calculated at 1 koku of rice per 100 mon of kanko. In the early days, developments within the domain, such as improvements to the Kitakami River course and the opening of the port of Ishinomaki, were promoted, along with the development of new fields, and a rice purchasing system was implemented, with a focus on shipping rice to Edo, which became the domain's largest source of revenue. Commerce within the domain was monopolized by the Rokunakama merchants, who were centered around Omachi, the castle town, and direct purchases within the town were prohibited. The domain government, which began with the dispatch of Hasekura Tsunenaga to Europe and the adoption of Momoyama culture, also saw the Date Disturbance caused by conflicts between the competing senior vassals, and financial difficulties led to the issuance of domain bills and a rice purchasing system by brewery merchants, but it was unable to recover. During the Boshin War, the area was the center of the Oshu-Uetsu Alliance of Feudal Lords and was subject to a large cut in its fief, and while responding to samurai returning to farming and relocating to Hokkaido, it was abolished and prefectures were established. After Masamune, the successive feudal lords were Tadamune, Tsunamune, Tsunamura, Yoshimura, Munemura, Shigemura, Narimura, Chikamune, Narimune, Nariyoshi, Narikuni, Yoshikuni, and Munemoto. In 1871 (Meiji 4), the area was abolished and incorporated into Sendai Prefecture, and then into Miyagi Prefecture.

[Nobuo Watanabe]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

陸奥(むつ)国仙台（宮城県）に藩庁を置く領知高62万石の外様(とざま)藩。1591年（天正19）藩祖伊達政宗(だてまさむね)が出羽(でわ)国米沢(よねざわ)から陸奥国岩出山(いわでやま)に入部し、さらに1600年（慶長5）仙台に居城を移し、以来廃藩まで伊達氏14代が続いた。藩領は当初58万石で、1634年（寛永11）確定の62万石は陸奥領21郡の60万石と賄料の近江(おうみ)国内1万石、常陸(ひたち)国1万石で、内高は100万石を超えた。戊辰(ぼしん)戦争（1868）後は28万石となり廃藩に至った。家臣団は伊達氏譜代(ふだい)のほか戦国期の大名級の武士などを新規に召し抱え、直臣8416人（1670年＝寛文10）を数え、一門、一家、準一家、一族、宿老、着座、太刀上(たちあげ)、召出(めしだし)、平士の家格によって編成されていた。下級の組士は1050人、足軽以下は4670人であった。城下に屋敷を与えられたが、地方知行(じかたちぎょう)制で、大身は、城館の下に小城下町を有する城、要害、町場の所、農村の在所の4種に格付けされた軍事上・治安上の要地にそれぞれ配置され、侍屋敷や足軽屋敷を抱え、陪臣数の総計は約2万4000余人に及んだ。総人口は1742年（寛保2）は81万8061人、1825年（文政8）は68万7802人で、武士人口が他藩に比して多く、町方人口が少ないのを特色とした。

　土地制度は寛永(かんえい)総検地（1640～1643）で確立し、貫高制を採用し、貫高100文につき米1石納で知行高、租税高などを換算した。初期に北上川流路改修や石巻(いしのまき)開港などの領内開発のほか新田開発を進め、買米制を行い江戸廻米(かいまい)に力を入れ最大の財源とした。領内商業は城下大町を中心とする六仲間商人が独占し、在町の直仕入を禁止した。支倉常長(はせくらつねなが)の遣欧、桃山文化の摂取などに始まる藩政も、割拠する重臣の対立から伊達騒動を引き起こし、財政窮乏から藩札の発行や蔵元商人による買米制を行ったが、立て直すことができなかった。戊辰戦争には奥羽越(おううえつ)列藩同盟の中心となり大削封を受け、士族の帰農や北海道移住などの対応を行いながら廃藩置県を迎えた。歴代藩主は、政宗のあと、忠宗・綱宗・綱村・吉村・宗村・重村・斉村(なりむら)・周宗(ちかむね)・斉宗・斉義・斉邦・慶邦(よしくに)・宗基(むねもと)。1871年（明治4）廃藩、仙台県を経て宮城県に編入された。

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