Suminokura Ryoi
Encyclopedia
, also known as Yoshida Mitsuyoshi, was a merchant and shipper of Edo period
Kyoto
.
Along with the families of Chaya Shirōjirō
and Gotō Shōzaburō, the Suminokura family, whose merchant enterprise Ryōi founded, represented one of the three chief merchant families in the city in this period.
Ryōi obtained a formal trade license, a shuinjō
, from Toyotomi Hideyoshi
, and managed overseas trading operations, importing goods from southern Vietnam. After Hideyoshi's death in 1598, Ryōi became a trusted advisor and supplier to Tokugawa Ieyasu
, who became shogun
in 1603, and continued his overseas operations, with a shuinjō granted by Ieyasu.
Between 1605 and 1611, he also played a major role in constructing canals and making the rivers of Kyoto more navigable, so as to better ship goods to, from, and within the city. These included the Tenryū
, Takase
, Fujigawa
, and Hozu
rivers; in exchange for his efforts, the Suminokura business was granted extended shipping rights within the city.
Ryōi's sons Suminokura Genshi and Soan followed in their father's footsteps, and took over the family business after his death, enjoying considerable prosperity until the imposition of maritime restrictions
by the shogunate in the mid-1630s, when trade with Vietnam came to an end.
Edo period
The , or , is a division of Japanese history which was ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family, running from 1603 to 1868. The political entity of this period was the Tokugawa shogunate....
Kyoto
Kyoto
is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:...
.
Along with the families of Chaya Shirōjirō
Chaya Shirojiro
Chaya Shirōjirō was the name of a series of wealthy and influential Kyoto-based merchants who took part in the red-seal trade licensed under the Tokugawa shogunate. Members of the Chaya family, they were also centrally involved in the country's production and trade in textiles...
and Gotō Shōzaburō, the Suminokura family, whose merchant enterprise Ryōi founded, represented one of the three chief merchant families in the city in this period.
Life and career
Ryōi was born into a branch family of physicians and moneylenders. Like many commoner merchants of the period, he later came to be known by a name related to his work - Suminokura, or "corner warehouse."Ryōi obtained a formal trade license, a shuinjō
Red seal ships
were Japanese armed merchant sailing ships bound for Southeast Asian ports with a red-sealed patent issued by the early Tokugawa shogunate in the first half of the 17th century...
, from Toyotomi Hideyoshi
Toyotomi Hideyoshi
was a daimyo warrior, general and politician of the Sengoku period. He unified the political factions of Japan. He succeeded his former liege lord, Oda Nobunaga, and brought an end to the Sengoku period. The period of his rule is often called the Momoyama period, named after Hideyoshi's castle...
, and managed overseas trading operations, importing goods from southern Vietnam. After Hideyoshi's death in 1598, Ryōi became a trusted advisor and supplier to Tokugawa Ieyasu
Tokugawa Ieyasu
was the founder and first shogun of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan , which ruled from the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. Ieyasu seized power in 1600, received appointment as shogun in 1603, abdicated from office in 1605, but...
, who became 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...
in 1603, and continued his overseas operations, with a shuinjō granted by Ieyasu.
Between 1605 and 1611, he also played a major role in constructing canals and making the rivers of Kyoto more navigable, so as to better ship goods to, from, and within the city. These included the Tenryū
Tenryu River
The is a river arising from Lake Suwa in Okaya, Nagano Prefecture, grazing Aichi Prefecture and flowing through western Shizuoka Prefecture in central Honshū, Japan. With a length of , it is Japan's ninth longest river.-Geography:...
, Takase
Takase River
The is a canal in Kyoto, Japan. It rises from Nijō-Kiyamachi, going along Kiyamachi Street, and meets the Uji River at Fushimi port. The canal crosses with the Kamo River on the way. Today the south half is not connected with Kamo River.-History:...
, Fujigawa
Fuji River
The is a river in Yamanashi and Shizuoka Prefectures of central Japan. It is long and has a watershed of . With the Mogami River and the Kuma River, it is regarded as one of the three most rapid flows of Japan....
, and Hozu
Hozu River
The is a part of Katsura River in Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. The river begins in the mountains near Kameoka, a town northwest of Kyoto City. It snakes into the Arashiyama section of western Kyoto before changing its name to Katsura River....
rivers; in exchange for his efforts, the Suminokura business was granted extended shipping rights within the city.
Ryōi's sons Suminokura Genshi and Soan followed in their father's footsteps, and took over the family business after his death, enjoying considerable prosperity until the imposition of maritime restrictions
Sakoku
was the foreign relations policy of Japan under which no foreigner could enter nor could any Japanese leave the country on penalty of death. The policy was enacted by the Tokugawa shogunate under Tokugawa Iemitsu through a number of edicts and policies from 1633–39 and remained in effect until...
by the shogunate in the mid-1630s, when trade with Vietnam came to an end.