Ministry of War

A military office in the Nara period. One of the eight ministries. The Japanese name was "Tsuwamono no Tsukasa." It consisted of 1 Kami, 1 Daisuke, 1 Shosuke, 1 Daijo, 2 Shojo, 1 Daisakan, 3 Shoroku, 10 Shisho, 2 Shosho, 60 Shibu, and 4 Jikitei. Its duties included personnel management for domestic and foreign military officers, dispatching soldiers, weapons, honor guards, city gods, and beacons. The Chief of the Military Affairs Bureau and Daisuke were appointed in 675 (the 4th year of Emperor Tenmu's reign) before the Ritsuryo system was enacted, and it is believed that these were the predecessors of the Ministry of Military Affairs officials and that they were established around this time. However, further study is needed to determine how the various Ministers of War, such as the Minister of War in the Tang Dynasty, the Chief Military Administrator in the Tenmu period, the Asuka Kiyomihara Code, the Taiho Code, and the Yoro Code, are related. In modern times, the Ministry of War, which was established in the government reform of July 1869 (Meiji 2), largely inherited the structure of the ancient government system, and was in charge of the Navy and Army, local soldiers, the Shogunate, the Guard, armaments, and military academies, but was abolished in 1872 and replaced by the Ministry of the Army and the Ministry of the Navy.

[Noda Reishi]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

奈良時代の軍事官衙(かんが)。八省の一つ。和名「つわもののつかさ」。構成は卿(かみ)1、大輔(だいすけ)1、少輔1、大丞(だいじょう)1、少丞2、大録(だいさかん)1、少録3、史生(ししょう)10、省掌(しょうしょう)2、使部(しぶ)60、直丁(じきてい)4。任務は、内外武官の人事、兵士の差発、兵器、儀仗(ぎじょう)、城隍(じょうこう)、烽火(ほうか)の管理など。律令(りつりょう)以前の675年（天武天皇4）に兵政官長、大輔が任命されているが、これを兵部省官人の前身と考え、このころ成立したと考えられている。しかし、唐(とう)の兵部尚書、天武(てんむ)時代の兵政官長、飛鳥浄御原令(あすかきよみはらりょう)、大宝(たいほう)令、養老(ようろう)令、それぞれの兵部卿がどのように関連しているかは今後の検討が必要。なお近代、1869年（明治2）7月の官制改革で設置された兵部省の構成はほぼ古代官制を継承し、また海陸軍、郷兵、召幕、守衛、軍備、兵学校を管掌したが、72年に廃止され、新たに陸軍省、海軍省が設置された。

［野田嶺志］

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