Totsukawa Village Samurai

A local samurai who lived in the mountain village of Totsukawa-go in Yamato Province (Totsukawa Village, Yoshino County, Nara Prefecture). Regardless of the legends related to Emperor Jinmu and the Asuka Dynasty, there is solid evidence that the local people were active on the side of the Southern Court during the Northern and Southern Courts period, and since then, the local samurai have been proud of being a loyal village to the emperor. In the land survey of 1587 (Tensho 15), almost no actual measurements were made, and an estimated 1,000 koku of land within the village was pardoned. This privilege continued into the Edo period, and the local samurai were required to transport timber from the Imperial forest (raft-lowering) as a substitute for tax pardon. In recognition of their achievements in the Winter Siege of Osaka in 1614 (Keicho 19) and the suppression of the Kitayama Ikki, 45 local samurai were made spearmen and given 78 koku of rice as a stipend. Since the arrival of the American ships in 1853 (Kaei 6), the local people unanimously offered to serve the nation and were granted permission, taking turns to serve as guards for the Imperial Palace. In 1863 (Bunkyu 3), over 1,000 local samurai participated in the Tenchugumi Incident, but when it became clear that the Imperial Council had been changed by the "August 18th Coup," they defected. Following the Shinto-Buddhist separation order in the early Meiji period, all local people converted to Shinto.

[Yoshitomo Hirai]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

大和(やまと)国十津川郷（奈良県吉野郡十津川村）の山村に居住した在郷武士。神武(じんむ)天皇や飛鳥(あすか)朝に関連する伝承はともかく、南北朝時代には郷民が南朝方に属して活躍した確証があり、以来勤皇の郷を誇るに至った。1587年（天正15）の検地は、実測はほとんど行われず、郷中概算1000石が赦免地とされた。江戸時代もこの特権は継承され、年貢赦免の代務として御料林の材木運送（筏下(いかだおろ)し役）を負担した。1614年（慶長19）の大坂冬の陣および北山一揆(きたやまいっき)制圧などの功により郷士45人が鑓役(やりやく)とされ扶持米(ふちまい)78石を給されている。1853年（嘉永6）米艦来航以来、郷民一致して国事への奉仕を申し出て許され、皇居守衛に交代出仕している。1863年（文久3）の天誅組(てんちゅうぐみ)の変には郷士1000余名が参加したが、「八月十八日の政変」による朝議変更が明らかになったため離反した。明治初年の神仏分離令により、郷民はことごとく神道(しんとう)に帰している。

［平井良朋］

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