Changes

The period is sometimes said to begin in [[1600]], the year of the [[battle of Sekigahara]], in which [[Tokugawa Ieyasu]] eliminated nearly all opposition to his rule. He was officially granted the title "[[Shogun]]" by the Emperor in [[1603]], so the period is sometimes said to begin then, or in [[1615]], following the Tokugawa victory over the [[Toyotomi clan]] in the [[siege of Osaka Castle]], thus finally eliminating the last serious opposition.

The period is sometimes said to begin in [[1600]], the year of the [[battle of Sekigahara]], in which [[Tokugawa Ieyasu]] eliminated nearly all opposition to his rule. He was officially granted the title "[[Shogun]]" by the Emperor in [[1603]], so the period is sometimes said to begin then, or in [[1615]], following the Tokugawa victory over the [[Toyotomi clan]] in the [[siege of Osaka Castle]], thus finally eliminating the last serious opposition.

<!--Elements on nation-building and the shogunate's establishment-->

<!--Elements on nation-building and the shogunate's establishment-->Having defeated the armies of his enemies, and been named Shogun, Tokugawa Ieyasu began the process of establishing the legitimacy and stability of his clan's rule. It was not a rapid process, and many of these policies and structures were put into place by Ieyasu's successors over the course of several decades.

Ieyasu divided the [[provinces of Japan]] into several hundred feudal domains, called ''[[han]]''. Some areas, including [[Edo]], [[Kyoto]], [[Nagasaki]], and [[Osaka]] after its fall in 1615, were administered directly by shogunal representatives called ''[[Shoshi-dai]]'' in Kyoto and ''[[Machi bugyo|Machi bugyô]]'' in the other cities. [[Nara]], [[Sunpu]], [[Nikko|Nikkô]] were also among the cities administered in this way<ref>Sansom, George. ''A History of Japan 1615-1867''. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1963</ref>. The ''han'' were then divided among members of the Tokugawa family, Tokugawa retainers, and other clan heads, who thus became ''[[daimyo|daimyô]]''.  

 

Ieyasu divided the [[provinces of Japan]] into several hundred feudal domains, called ''han''. Some areas, including [[Edo]], [[Kyoto]], [[Nagasaki]], and [[Osaka]] after its fall in 1615, were administered directly by shogunal representatives called ''[[Shoshi-dai]]'' in Kyoto and ''[[Machi bugyo|Machi bugyô]]'' in the other cities. [[Nara]], [[Sunpu]], [[Nikko|Nikkô]] were also among the cities administered in this way<ref>Sansom, George. ''A History of Japan 1615-1867''. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1963</ref>. The ''han'' were then divided among members of the Tokugawa family, Tokugawa retainers, and other clan heads, who thus became ''[[daimyo|daimyô]]''.  

Descendants of Ieyasu granted land were known as ''[[shinpan]]''. Ieyasu gave his sons the provinces of [[Owari province|Owari]] (Nagoya), [[Kii province|Kii]], and [[Echizen province|Echizen]], and  [[Mito han|Mito]] in [[Hitachi province|Hitachi]] in the [[Kanto|Kantô]] Plain. Important Tokugawa retainers were made ''[[fudai]] daimyô'' and given territories in the Kantô or [[Kinai]] (the center of the country), or in strategic locations, such as overseeing important points along the [[Tokaido|Tôkaidô]] highway, or watching over the last group of ''daimyô'', the ''[[tozama]] daimyô''<ref>Sansom. p3.</ref>. The ''tozama'' were those who had not been retainers of Ieyasu at Sekigahara, whether they had supported him or not. Many of them held the largest, wealthiest and most powerful territories, and most were allowed by the shogunate to keep their lands in exchange for their loyalty. (One sometimes reads that the ''tozama'' were enemies of Ieyasu at Sekigahara, but that is a mistake.)

Descendants of Ieyasu granted land were known as ''[[shinpan]]''. Ieyasu gave his sons the provinces of [[Owari province|Owari]] (Nagoya), [[Kii province|Kii]], and [[Echizen province|Echizen]], and  [[Mito han|Mito]] in [[Hitachi province|Hitachi]] in the [[Kanto|Kantô]] Plain. Important Tokugawa retainers were made ''[[fudai]] daimyô'' and given territories in the Kantô or [[Kinai]] (the center of the country), or in strategic locations, such as overseeing important points along the [[Tokaido|Tôkaidô]] highway, or watching over the last group of ''daimyô'', the ''[[tozama]] daimyô''<ref>Sansom. p3.</ref>. The ''tozama'' were those who had not been retainers of Ieyasu at Sekigahara, whether they had supported him or not. Many of them held the largest, wealthiest and most powerful territories, and most were allowed by the shogunate to keep their lands in exchange for their loyalty. (One sometimes reads that the ''tozama'' were enemies of Ieyasu at Sekigahara, but that is a mistake.)

==Political Structures==

==Political Structures==

*bakuhan taisei, Shogun, Roju, Hatamoto, Daimyo (fudai and tozama)

*bakuhan taisei, Shogun, Roju, Hatamoto, Daimyo (fudai and tozama)

==Economy and Trade==

==Economy and Trade==