Hotta Masatoshi
Encyclopedia
was a daimyō
(feudal lord) in Shimousa Province
, and top government advisor and official in the Tokugawa shogunate
of Japan. He served as rōjū
(chief advisor) to Shogun
Tokugawa Ietsuna
from 1679–80, and as Tairō
(head of the rōjū council) under Tokugawa Tsunayoshi
from the 12th day of the 11th lunar month of 1681 until his death on 7 October 1684.
, advisor (Tairō
) under the previous shogun, Tokugawa Iemitsu
, who committed seppuku
upon Iemitsu's death in 1651. Masatoshi was then adopted by Iemitsu's nurse, Kasuga no Tsubone.
He served as personal secretary to the next shogun, Tokugawa Ietsuna, for a time, before being appointed wakadoshiyori
(junior councillor) in 1670. Ietsuna was already quite ill when Masatoshi was appointed rōjū in 1679, and died the following summer. At this time, another rōjū, Sakai Tadakiyo
, in a bid for personal power, proposed that the next shogun be selected from the princely houses. He sought to be regent
to this new shogun, who would be made a puppet ruler. However, Masatoshi, said to have been infuriated, voiced strong opposition to this scheme; Tadakiyo resigned his post shortly afterwards, and Ietsuna's brother Tokugawa Tsunayoshi
was installed as the new shogun.
Masatoshi became Tairō soon afterwards, and was granted a domain worth 13,000 koku
by Tsunayoshi. He was killed several years later, on 7 October 1684. The motives of the culprit, Masatoshi's cousin Inaba Masayasu
, are unknown. Following Masatoshi's death, Tsunayoshi took the opportunity to reorganize the shogunate's offices so as to weaken the rōjū and grant additional powers to the Soba-yōnin (Chamberlains). Masatoshi was not succeeded as Tairō, and much of his power came to be wielded by the shogun himself.
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Daimyo
is a generic term referring to the powerful territorial lords in pre-modern Japan who ruled most of the country from their vast, hereditary land holdings...
(feudal lord) in Shimousa Province
Shimousa Province
was a province of Japan in the area modern Chiba Prefecture, and Ibaraki Prefecture. It lies to the north of the Bōsō Peninsula , whose name takes its first kanji from the name of Awa Province and its second from Kazusa and Shimōsa Provinces. Its abbreviated form name was or .Shimōsa is...
, and top government advisor and official in the Tokugawa shogunate
Tokugawa shogunate
The Tokugawa shogunate, also known as the and the , was a feudal regime of Japan established by Tokugawa Ieyasu and ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family. This period is known as the Edo period and gets its name from the capital city, Edo, which is now called Tokyo, after the name was...
of Japan. He served as rōjū
Roju
The ', usually translated as Elder, was one of the highest-ranking government posts in Tokugawa Japan. The term refers either to individual Elders, or to the Council as a whole; under the first two shoguns, there were only two Rōjū...
(chief advisor) to Shogun
Shogun
A was one of the hereditary military dictators of Japan from 1192 to 1867. In this period, the shoguns, or their shikken regents , were the de facto rulers of Japan though they were nominally appointed by the emperor...
Tokugawa Ietsuna
Tokugawa Ietsuna
was the fourth shogun of the Tokugawa dynasty of Japan who was in office from 1651 to 1680. He was the eldest son of Tokugawa Iemitsu, thus making him the grandson of Tokugawa Hidetada and the great-grandson of Tokugawa Ieyasu.-Early Life :...
from 1679–80, and as Tairō
Tairo
Tairō was a high-ranking official position in the bakuhan taisei government of Japan. The tairō would preside over the governing Rōjū council in the event of an emergency. A tairō would be nominated from among a group of samurai families who supported Tokugawa Ieyasu...
(head of the rōjū council) under Tokugawa Tsunayoshi
Tokugawa Tsunayoshi
was the fifth shogun of the Tokugawa dynasty of Japan. He was the younger brother of Tokugawa Ietsuna, thus making him the son of Tokugawa Iemitsu, the grandson of Tokugawa Hidetada, and the great-grandson of Tokugawa Ieyasu....
from the 12th day of the 11th lunar month of 1681 until his death on 7 October 1684.
Life and career
His father was Hotta MasamoriHotta Masamori
, Japanese daimyo of the early Edo period who was a key figure in the early decades of the Tokugawa shogunate.-Origins:The rise of Hotta Masamori through the ranks of the Tokugawa shogunate is a rather miraculous one; his family had a very short history with the Tokugawa family prior to his father...
, advisor (Tairō
Tairo
Tairō was a high-ranking official position in the bakuhan taisei government of Japan. The tairō would preside over the governing Rōjū council in the event of an emergency. A tairō would be nominated from among a group of samurai families who supported Tokugawa Ieyasu...
) under the previous shogun, Tokugawa Iemitsu
Tokugawa Iemitsu
Tokugawa Iemitsu was the third shogun of the Tokugawa dynasty. He was the eldest son of Tokugawa Hidetada, and the grandson of Tokugawa Ieyasu. Iemitsu ruled from 1623 to 1651.-Early life :...
, who committed seppuku
Seppuku
is a form of Japanese ritual suicide by disembowelment. Seppuku was originally reserved only for samurai. Part of the samurai bushido honor code, seppuku was either used voluntarily by samurai to die with honor rather than fall into the hands of their enemies , or as a form of capital punishment...
upon Iemitsu's death in 1651. Masatoshi was then adopted by Iemitsu's nurse, Kasuga no Tsubone.
He served as personal secretary to the next shogun, Tokugawa Ietsuna, for a time, before being appointed wakadoshiyori
Wakadoshiyori
The ', or "Junior Elders", were high government officials in 17th century Tokugawa Japan. The position was established around 1631, but appointments were irregular until 1662....
(junior councillor) in 1670. Ietsuna was already quite ill when Masatoshi was appointed rōjū in 1679, and died the following summer. At this time, another rōjū, Sakai Tadakiyo
Sakai Tadakiyo
, also known as Uta-no-kami, was a daimyō in Kōzuke Province, and a high-ranking government advisor and official in the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan....
, in a bid for personal power, proposed that the next shogun be selected from the princely houses. He sought to be regent
Regent
A regent, from the Latin regens "one who reigns", is a person selected to act as head of state because the ruler is a minor, not present, or debilitated. Currently there are only two ruling Regencies in the world, sovereign Liechtenstein and the Malaysian constitutive state of Terengganu...
to this new shogun, who would be made a puppet ruler. However, Masatoshi, said to have been infuriated, voiced strong opposition to this scheme; Tadakiyo resigned his post shortly afterwards, and Ietsuna's brother Tokugawa Tsunayoshi
Tokugawa Tsunayoshi
was the fifth shogun of the Tokugawa dynasty of Japan. He was the younger brother of Tokugawa Ietsuna, thus making him the son of Tokugawa Iemitsu, the grandson of Tokugawa Hidetada, and the great-grandson of Tokugawa Ieyasu....
was installed as the new shogun.
Masatoshi became Tairō soon afterwards, and was granted a domain worth 13,000 koku
Koku
The is a Japanese unit of volume, equal to ten cubic shaku. In this definition, 3.5937 koku equal one cubic metre, i.e. 1 koku is approximately 278.3 litres. The koku was originally defined as a quantity of rice, historically defined as enough rice to feed one person for one year...
by Tsunayoshi. He was killed several years later, on 7 October 1684. The motives of the culprit, Masatoshi's cousin Inaba Masayasu
Inaba Masayasu
was a Japanese hatamoto and daimyō of Aono han in Mino Province in Edo period Japan. Masayasu's family was descended from Konō Michitaka....
, are unknown. Following Masatoshi's death, Tsunayoshi took the opportunity to reorganize the shogunate's offices so as to weaken the rōjū and grant additional powers to the Soba-yōnin (Chamberlains). Masatoshi was not succeeded as Tairō, and much of his power came to be wielded by the shogun himself.
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