Matsudaira clan in the context of "Tokugawa clan"

⭐ In the context of the Tokugawa clan’s origins, the Matsudaira clan is considered…

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⭐ Core Definition: Matsudaira clan

The Matsudaira clan (松平氏, Matsudaira-shi) was a Japanese samurai clan that descended from the Minamoto clan. It originated in and took its name from Matsudaira village, in Mikawa Province (modern-day Aichi Prefecture). During the Sengoku period, the chieftain of the main line of the Matsudaira clan, Matsudaira Motoyasu became a powerful regional daimyo under Oda Nobunaga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi and changed his name to Tokugawa Ieyasu. He subsequently seized power as the first shōgun of the Tokugawa shogunate which ruled Japan during the Edo period until the Meiji Restoration of 1868. Under the Tokugawa shogunate, many cadet branches of the clan retained the Matsudaira surname, and numerous new branches were formed in the decades after Ieyasu. Some of those branches were also of daimyō status.

After the Meiji Restoration and the abolition of the han system, the Tokugawa and Matsudaira clans became part of the new kazoku nobility.

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👉 Matsudaira clan in the context of Tokugawa clan

The Tokugawa clan (徳川氏, Tokugawa-shi, Tokugawa-uji; Japanese pronunciation: [to.kɯꜜ.ɡa.wa, -ŋa.wa, -kɯ.ɡa.waꜜ.ɕi, -ŋa.waꜜ-]) is a Japanese dynasty which produced the Tokugawa shoguns who ruled Japan from 1603 to 1868 during the Edo period. It was formerly a powerful daimyō family. They nominally descended from Emperor Seiwa (850–880) and were a branch of the Minamoto clan (Seiwa Genji) through the Matsudaira clan. The early history of the clan remains a mystery. Nominally, the Matsudaira clan is said to be descended from the Nitta clan, a branch of the Minamoto clan, but this is considered to be untrue or unlikely.

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Matsudaira clan in the context of Aizu domain

Aizu Domain (会津藩, Aizu-han) was a domain of the Tokugawa Shogunate of Japan during the Edo period from 1601 to 1871.

The Aizu Domain was based at Tsuruga Castle in Mutsu Province, the core of the modern city of Aizuwakamatsu, located in the Tōhoku region of the island of Honshu. The Aizu Domain was ruled for most of its existence by the shinpan daimyō of the Aizu-Matsudaira clan, a local cadet branch of the ruling Tokugawa clan, but was briefly ruled by the tozama daimyō of the Gamō and Katō clans. The Aizu Domain was assessed under the Kokudaka system with a peak value of 919,000 koku, but this was reduced to 230,000 koku. The Aizu Domain was dissolved in the abolition of the han system in 1871 by the Meiji government and its territory was absorbed into Fukushima Prefecture, covering much of the traditional region of Aizu.

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Matsudaira clan in the context of Fukui Prefecture

Fukui Prefecture (福井県, Fukui-ken; Japanese pronunciation: [ɸɯ̥.kɯ(ꜜ)(.)i, -kɯ.iꜜ.keɴ, -kɯꜜi.keɴ]) is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshū. Fukui Prefecture has a population of 737,229 (1 January 2025) and has a geographic area of 4,190 km (1,617 sq mi). Fukui Prefecture borders Ishikawa Prefecture to the north, Gifu Prefecture to the east, Shiga Prefecture to the south, and Kyoto Prefecture to the southwest.

Fukui is the capital and largest city of Fukui Prefecture, with other major cities including Sakai, Echizen, and Sabae. Fukui Prefecture is located on the Sea of Japan coast and is part of the historic Hokuriku region of Japan. The Matsudaira clan, a powerful samurai clan during the Edo period that became a component of the Japanese nobility after the Meiji Restoration, was headquartered at Fukui Castle on the site of the modern prefectural offices. Fukui Prefecture is home to the Kitadani Formation and Kitadani Family, the Ichijōdani Asakura Family Historic Ruins, and the Tōjinbō cliff range.

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Matsudaira clan in the context of Shinpan

Shinpan (親藩) was a class of daimyō in the Tokugawa Shogunate of Japan who were certain relatives of the Shōgun.

While all shinpan were relatives of the shōgun, not all relatives of the shōgun were shinpan; an example of this is the Matsudaira clan of the Okutono Domain. Non-daimyō relatives, such as the Gosankyō, were also known as kamon – thus the shinpan lords were alternatively known as kamon daimyō (家門大名). Shinpan included the Gosanke, the Matsudaira clan of Aizu and the Matsudaira clan of the Fukui Domain. These branch families were created after the 1600 Battle of Sekigahara; there were 23 shinpan domains, producing a total of approximately 2.6 million koku of rice. Because they were family and thus could wield informal power, they were not permitted to hold official positions in the bakufu. These families could also provide a shogunal successor if necessary.

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Matsudaira clan in the context of Ii clan

Ii clan (Japanese: 井伊氏, Hepburn: Ii-shi) is a Japanese clan which originates in Tōtōmi Province. It was a retainer clan of the Imagawa family, and then switched sides to the Matsudaira clan of Mikawa Province at the reign of Ii Naotora. A famed 16th-century clan member, Ii Naomasa, adopted son of Ii Naotora, was Tokugawa Ieyasu's son-in-law and one of his most important generals. He received the fief of Hikone in Ōmi Province as a reward for his conduct in battle at Sekigahara. The Ii and a few sub-branches remained daimyō for the duration of the Edo period. Ii Naosuke, the famed politician of the late Edo period, was another member of this clan.

The clan claims descent from Fujiwara no Yoshikado, who had been one of the Daijō daijin during the ninth century.

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Matsudaira clan in the context of Shimabara Domain

Shimabara Domain (島原藩, Shimabara-han) was a Japanese domain of the Edo period. Originally known as Hinoe Domain, its administrative center was initially established at Hinoe Castle in Minamishimabara, Nagasaki Prefecture. However, it was later relocated to Shimabara Castle in Shimabara, Nagasaki Prefecture. The domain was governed by various fudai daimyō clans, including the Koriki clan and the Fukōzu-Matsudaira clan.

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Matsudaira clan in the context of Fukui Castle

Fukui Castle (福井城, Fukui-jō) is a flatland-style castle located in what is now the city of Fukui, Fukui Prefecture, Japan. During the Edo period, it was the headquarters of a branch of the Matsudaira clan, who were hereditary daimyō of Fukui domain under the Tokugawa shogunate. The castle was also known by the name of Kitanoshō Castle (北ノ庄城, Kitanoshō-jō), after an earlier castle built by Shibata Katsuie, over whose ruins it is partly built.

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Matsudaira clan in the context of Fukui Domain

The Fukui Domain (福井藩, Fukui-han), also known as the Echizen Domain (越前藩, Echizen-han), was a domain (han) of the Tokugawa Shogunate of Japan during the Edo period from 1601 to 1871.

The Fukui Domain was based at Fukui Castle in Echizen Province, the core of the modern city of Fukui, located in the Chūbu region of the island of Honshu. The Fukui Domain was founded by Yūki Hideyasu, the son of shōgun Tokugawa Ieyasu, and was ruled for all of its existence by the shinpan daimyō of the Matsudaira clan. The Fukui Domain was assessed under the Kokudaka system and its value peaked at 680,000 koku. The Fukui Domain was dissolved in the abolition of the han system in 1871 after the Meiji Restoration and its territory was absorbed into Fukui Prefecture.

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Matsudaira clan in the context of Matsue Castle

Matsue Castle (松江城, Matsue-jō) is a Japanese castle located in Matsue, Shimane Prefecture.

Matsue Castle was constructed from 1607 to 1611 by Horio Yoshiharu, the first daimyō of the Matsue Domain, during the early Edo period. Ownership was passed to the Izumo branch of the Kyōgoku in 1633 and then the Matsudaira, a junior branch of the ruling Tokugawa clan, in 1637. The Matsudaira donated Matsue Castle to the city of Matsue in 1927.

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