Return of land and people to the Emperor

In June 1869 (Meiji 2), the feudal lords returned their lands and people to the emperor in a political change. The Boshin War caused the finances of the feudal lords to collapse, exposed the contradictions in the ruling relationships between exclaves and groups, weakened the unity within the feudal lords, and deepened the crisis in the feudal lord system. Most of the feudal lord class hoped to overcome this crisis by returning and reissuing their lands and people. Meanwhile, Kido Takayoshi and Okubo Toshimichi, among others in the new government, had long considered the need for the return of the lands and people to the emperor. They rejected the initial request by the lord of Himeji to return the lands and people to the emperor, and worked with the four feudal lords of Satsuma, Choshu, Tosa, and Hizen to realize their proposals for the return of the lands and people to the emperor in January 1869. After that, most of the feudal lords followed suit. The new government also made preparations for the return of the domains and peoples to the shogunate by having the emperor return to Tokyo, consulting with feudal lords, nobles, and samurai at the Upper Bureau Conference and the Council of Ministers, and bestowing prizes and stipends for distinguished service in the Boshin War. Between June 17th and 25th, the emperor heard and approved the petitions of the feudal lords to return their domains and peoples to the shogunate, appointed governors, made nobles and lords members of the nobility, and ordered the various domains to change their affairs. As a result, the governors' stipends were set at one-tenth of the current rice yields, the samurai stipends were appropriately revised in each domain, and all members of the same clan, even common samurai, were called samurai. In July, the government system was reformed through the Personnel Order, and the Ritsuryo system of government was restored. The return of the domains and peoples to the emperor marked the decisive first step towards the abolition of the feudal domains and the establishment of prefectures, which also saw the consolidation of territorial rights of the various feudal domains under the Emperor, the making of feudal lords non-hereditary governors, the denial of the lord-vassal relationship between feudal lords and their retainers, and major reforms of the class and stipend systems.

[Kiyoshi Haraguchi]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

1869年（明治2）6月、諸藩主が天皇に版（土地）と籍（人民）を還納した政治変革。戊辰(ぼしん)戦争は諸藩財政の破綻(はたん)、飛地(とびち)・入組(いりくみ)支配関係の矛盾顕在化、藩内の団結力弛緩(しかん)、その他藩体制の危機を深めた。領主階級の大部分は、判物(はんもつ)返上―再交付によってこの危機を乗り切ることを期待した。一方、新政府内の木戸孝允(たかよし)、大久保利通(としみち)らは早くから版籍奉還の必要を考え、姫路藩主の最初の版籍奉還願を退け、薩長土肥(さっちょうどひ)四藩に工作して69年1月にこれら四藩主の版籍奉還建白を実現させた。以後、大部分の諸藩がこれに倣った。また新政府は、天皇の東京再幸、上局会議、公議所などでの諸侯公卿(くぎょう)藩士への諮問、戊辰戦功の賞典禄(しょうてんろく)下賜などにより版籍奉還の準備を整えた。6月17～25日諸藩主の版籍奉還願を天皇が聴許して知藩事を任命、公卿諸侯を華族とし諸藩に諸務変革を指令した。これにより、知藩事の家禄(かろく)を現石高(こくだか)の10分の1とし、藩士家禄は諸藩適宜に改革、一門以下平士まですべて士族と称されることになった。7月職員令(しきいんりょう)による官制改革が行われて、律令(りつりょう)制の官制が復活した。版籍奉還は、諸藩領有権の天皇への統合、藩主の非世襲知事化、藩主・藩士の主従関係の否定、身分制・禄制の大改革など、廃藩置県への決定的第一歩となった。

［原口　清］

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