Changes

One of Katamori’s first priorities in his new post was to stabilize Kyoto and safeguard Iemochi during his visit. In 1862, rather than send squads of Tokugawa troops from Edo to Kyoto, the Bakufu decided to recruit ronin for the job of suppressing the anti-Bakufu/pro-imperial ronin subverting the rule of law in Kyoto. In other words, ronin would be used to hunt down other ronin. To this end, the Roshigumi was formed.

One of Katamori’s first priorities in his new post was to stabilize Kyoto and safeguard Iemochi during his visit. In 1862, rather than send squads of Tokugawa troops from Edo to Kyoto, the Bakufu decided to recruit ronin for the job of suppressing the anti-Bakufu/pro-imperial ronin subverting the rule of law in Kyoto. In other words, ronin would be used to hunt down other ronin. To this end, the Roshigumi was formed.

Roshigumi was a [[Ronin]] force which formed by the Edo [[Bakufu]] to guard [[Shogun]] [[Tokugawa Iemochi]] in [[1863]].

 

It was planned by [[Kiyokawa Hachiro]].

== The Short Life of the Roshigumi Corps ==

But Kiyokawa suddenly changed the purpose of the Roshigumi just after they arrived in [[Kyoto]].

 

He tried to use them for [[Sonno]] [[Joi]], then the Bakufu called them back to [[Edo]] and Kiyokawa was assassinated shortly after.

 

In a strange twist of fate befit of the times, an anti-Tokugawa, imperial loyalist named [[Kiyokawa Hachiro]] was chosen to recruit [[ronin]] for the newly created Roshigumi. Kiyokawa proceeded to recruit members from the large pool of available sonno joi proponents. Although aware that the ranks of the Roshigumi was filling up with dangerous anti-Tokugawa subversives, some naive officials within the Bakufu hoped that bringing these ronin into the fold would help cement a union between Court and Camp (union of the Imperial Court with the Bakufu) to help maintain the harmony of the national polity during this time of crisis.  Thus with a force of 250 men behind him, on February 8, [[1863]], Kiyokawa and his Roshigumi marched out of Edo as the vanguard of Shogun Iemochi’s procession to Kyoto.

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