Nakasendo - Nakasendo

One of the five main roads in the Edo period, it was the second most important road between Edo and Kyoto after the Tokaido. While the Tokaido was a road along the east coast of Honshu, the Nakasendo was named after the road that ran through the central mountain ranges. If the former was the main road, the latter was the back road. In the early Edo period, it was written as Nakasendo, but in 1716 (Kyoho 1), it was changed to Nakasendo. It also passed through 11 Kiso post stations, so it was also called Kiso Road or Kiso Highway. The Nakasendo covers 67 stations from its starting post station Itabashi (Itabashi Ward, Tokyo) to Moriyama post station (Kusatsu City, Shiga Prefecture), covering a distance of 129 ri 10 cho 8 ken, and merges with the Tokaido at the next post station, Kusatsu. However, it has more stations than the Tokaido's 53 stations, and is about six ri longer in distance.

The most difficult part of the Nakasendo is the Usui Pass, followed by the three passes of Wada, Shiojiri, and Torii. After passing through the Kiso Valley, the road crosses the Magome Pass and heads towards the plains. Along the way, there were two important checkpoints for the shogunate, Usui and Kiso Fukushima, which strictly inspected all pedestrians. The number of feudal lords who made alternate attendance trips to Edo was about one-fifth of the 146 on the Tokaido, with only 30 on the Nakasendo, and not even as many as the 37 on the Oshu road. Reflecting this, the number of regular personnel and horses at post stations was only 50 on the Nakasendo (half that at the 11 Kiso post stations and 5-6 other post stations), compared to 100 on the Tokaido, and the number of headquarters was an average of 1.1 per post station, and the number of inns was 27, about half that of the Tokaido. Securing regular personnel and horses was particularly difficult at the 11 Kiso post stations, and it was necessary to combine two or three post stations, and assistant personnel and horses had to be called in from faraway villages across the mountains. However, the traffic volume was not as congested as on the Tokaido, and lodging fees were relatively cheap, so it was popular with travelers, and the procession of a princess from Kyoto to Edo often took this route.

[Yoshinari Maruyama]

"Nagano Prefectural Cultural Properties Protection Association, ed., "26 Stations of Shinano on the Nakasendo Road" (1980, Shinano Mainichi Shimbun)"

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

江戸時代における五街道の一つで、東海道に次ぐ江戸―京都間の重要な街道。東海道が本州の東海岸沿いの街道であるのに対し、中山道は中央部山脈の間を貫通する街道という意味でこの名称があり、前者を表街道とすれば、後者は裏街道にあたる。江戸前期には中仙道と書いたが、1716年（享保1）中山道に改めた。これはまた、木曽(きそ)11か宿を通過するので、木曽路・木曽街道などともよんだ。中山道はその始宿板橋(いたばし)（東京都板橋区）より守山(もりやま)宿（滋賀県草津(くさつ)市）まで67次、行程129里10町八間で、次の草津で東海道と合流するが、東海道の53次よりも宿次が多く、距離も六里余り長い。

　中山道の難所は碓氷(うすい)峠をはじめとして、和田、塩尻(しおじり)、鳥居(とりい)の三峠がこれに続き、木曽谷を通過したのち、馬籠(まごめ)峠を越えて平野部へと向かう。この間には幕府の重要な関所、碓氷・木曽福島の両関があり、通行人を厳しく検閲した。参勤交代の大名数は、東海道の146家に対して中山道は30家で、約5分の1程度であり、奥州道中の37家にも及ばない。これを反映して宿駅の常備人馬数も、東海道の100人・100疋(ぴき)に対し、中山道は50人・50疋（うち木曽11か宿ほか5～6か宿はその半分）にすぎず、また本陣数は一宿平均1.1軒、旅籠(はたご)屋数は27軒で、東海道の約半分である。とくに木曽11か宿などでは常備人馬の確保がむずかしく、2～3か宿の合体継立(つぎたて)が必要で、助郷(すけごう)人馬も山越えしたはるか遠方の村々から呼び集めねばならなかった。もっとも、交通量が東海道ほど過密でなく、休泊料も比較的安いこともあって旅行者に好まれ、京都の姫君の江戸輿(こし)入れの行列もこの道筋をとることが多かった。

［丸山雍成］

『長野県文化財保護協会編『中山道信濃26宿』（1980・信濃毎日新聞社）』

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