Escape - Chosan

A form of peasant struggle in the Middle Ages, in which many peasants abandoned their fields and fled to other places. Similar acts have been seen since ancient times, but in ancient times, this was called flight or vagrancy, and peasants who could not bear the heavy taxes fled to the lands of aristocrats, temples, shrines, and local feudal lords in order to avoid taxation. However, in the Middle Ages, flight took on a more positive meaning, and peasants demanded reductions in taxes and labor duties, the expulsion of illegal magistrates, and the transfer of well fees (payment of water management fees) from manorial lords, and these demands were not granted. Therefore, unlike ancient flight, many peasants took collective action based on the collective unity of villages. As a result, the blow to the lords was great, and there were many cases in which the lords who received the fleeing peasants reduced taxes or replaced illegal magistrates. During the Sengoku and Oda-Toyotomi periods, it was the case that farmers from several villages would flee together, but this was strictly prohibited under the feudal system, and this gradually died down. Even in the Middle Ages, there were cases where one or several people fled their villages, but this was called elopement or fleeing, and was distinguished from flight.

[Naonori Kurokawa]

"Kichiji Nakamura's 'Study of the Uprising' (1974, Tokura Shobo)"

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

中世の農民闘争の一形態で、多くの農民が田畑を捨てて他所に逃れることをいう。類似の行為は古くからみられるが、古代の場合には、これを逃亡、浮浪とよび、重課に耐えかねた農民たちが、貴族・社寺・地方豪族の所領に流入し、課役を逃れようとするものであった。しかし、中世の逃散はさらに積極的な意味を帯びたもので、荘園(しょうえん)領主に対し年貢・夫役(ぶやく)の減免、非法代官の排斥、井料(いりょう)の下行(げぎょう)（用水の管理費の給付）などを要求し、この要求が認められなかった場合に行われた。したがって、古代の逃亡とは異なり、村落の惣(そう)的結合を基盤とし、多数の農民が集団的な行動をとった。そのため、領主の受ける打撃も大きく、逃散を受けた領主が年貢を減免したり、非法のあった代官を改替させる事例も多かった。戦国・織豊(しょくほう)時代には数か村の百姓が申し合わせて逃散することもあったが、幕藩体制のもとでは厳重に禁止されたために、しだいに下火となった。なお、中世においても1人あるいは数人が村落を逃れ去る行為はあったが、これらは欠落(かけおち)、逐電(ちくでん)とよばれ、逃散と区別されている。

［黒川直則］

『中村吉治著『土一揆研究』（1974・校倉書房）』

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