daimyos

Daimyō were powerful feudal lords in Japan who governed large, semi-autonomous domains called han from the late Muromachi period through the Edo period and into the early Meiji era. They held significant military and administrative authority within their territories and were vassals of the shogunate, binding their power to the central authority.

A domain was defined by its kokudaka, an assessment of annual rice production that determined wealth and influence rather than land area alone. One koku was roughly enough rice to feed one person for a year. Daimyō maintained a samurai retinue, collected taxes from peasants, supervised local administration, and operated the castle towns that formed the political and economic centers of their domains.

During much of the Edo period, the Tokugawa shogunate imposed a hierarchical system that constrained daimyo while preserving their status. The sankin-kotai, or alternate attendance, required daimyo to spend every other year in Edo (later Tokyo) and maintain a residence there, a policy designed to pacify potential rebellion and integrate the lighter demands of distant domains into the central state.

Daimyō were classified as fudai (insider) or tozama (outsider) according to their relationships with the Tokugawa before or after the unification of Japan in 1600, affecting their political alliances and privileges. The feudal system began to unravel during the Meiji Restoration, and in 1871 the han were replaced by prefectures, with many daimyō incorporated into the new nobility (kazoku).

Notable daimyō include Oda Nobunaga, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, Tokugawa Ieyasu, Date Masamune, Maeda Toshiie, and Shimazu Yoshihiro, who played pivotal roles in shaping Japan’s political landscape across centuries.