Who was this person?
Lord of the Uwajima domain in Iyo in the late Edo period and a statesman of the early Meiji era. Born into a hatamoto family, he became heir to Uwajima, invited scholars such as Takano Chōei to introduce Western learning, and had a steamship built by Japanese hands. Counted among the "Four Wise Lords" of the late Edo period, he handled foreign affairs for the Meiji government and concluded the Sino-Japanese Friendship and Trade Treaty.
| Name | Date Munenari (伊達宗城) |
|---|---|
| Born–died | 1818 – 1892 |
| Period | Late Edo–Meiji |
| Birthplace | Edo |
| Main achievements |
|
He was born in Edo, the second son of Yamaguchi Naokatsu, a high-ranking hatamoto. His childhood name was Kamesaburō. His grandfather had been adopted into the Yamaguchi family from the Date house, lords of Uwajima, and this blood tie later led to Munenari inheriting the Uwajima domain.
He was adopted by Date Munetada, lord of Uwajima, who had no son, and designated his heir. Munetada was a lord who carried out domain reforms to promote industry, and from him Munenari learned how to govern. Munetada lived a long life and remained a valued adviser to Munenari.
When his adoptive father retired, he became the eighth lord of the Uwajima domain. Continuing Munetada's reforms, he made vegetable wax, the raw material for candles, a domain monopoly and had coal deposits surveyed, seeking to restore the domain's finances through promotion of industry.
He secretly invited Takano Chōei, a scholar of Dutch learning (rangaku) hiding in Edo from the shogunate, to Uwajima and had him translate Western military books. Later he also brought in Murata Zōroku (Ōmura Masujirō) from Chōshū to modernise his army. So eager was he for new knowledge that he welcomed even a scholar on the run.
After Perry's arrival he ordered Murata Zōroku to design a ship and Kazō, a lantern maker in the castle town later known as Maehara Kōzan, to build a steam engine. After much trial and error by the whole domain, they completed a working steamship made entirely by Japanese, without relying on foreign engineers.
He backed Hitotsubashi Yoshinobu as heir to the thirteenth shōgun and, with Matsudaira Shungaku, Yamauchi Yōdō and Shimazu Nariakira, was counted among the Four Wise Lords. Defeated by the great elder Ii Naosuke, who backed Tokugawa Yoshitomi of Kii, he was ordered into retirement and confinement in the Ansei Purge and handed the domain to Munetada's son Munee.
Released from confinement, he again became involved in national politics. After the Namamugi Incident, in which a Satsuma procession killed and wounded Britons, he opposed the shogunate paying compensation. At the same time he was on friendly terms with Shimazu Hisamitsu, who was at the centre of the incident, and promoted the union of court and shogunate.
At the end of this year he joined the Council of Daimyō Advisers, which the court set up so that leading lords could discuss national policy, sitting alongside Tokugawa Yoshinobu, Matsudaira Shungaku, Shimazu Hisamitsu and others. Disagreements, notably over the opening of ports, prevented agreement, and the council soon broke up.
When the British minister Harry Parkes visited Uwajima aboard a warship, Munenari went aboard incognito and later entertained the landing party at a Japanese-style banquet. The same year he also discussed Japan's future with the diplomat Ernest Satow, actively engaging with foreigners.
With Shimazu Hisamitsu, Matsudaira Shungaku and Yamauchi Yōdō he took part in the Council of Four Lords, discussing key national issues with the shōgun Yoshinobu, but the disagreements could not be resolved and it failed. At the end of the year, when a new government was born through the imperial restoration, he was chosen as one of its leading councillors.
In the new government he served concurrently as Minister of Civil Affairs and Minister of Finance, responsible for national finances and civil administration. He arranged a British loan to fund railway construction, among other contributions to building the new state. During the Boshin War he had once resigned a post in protest at the methods of Satsuma and Chōshū.
As plenipotentiary he travelled to Qing China and signed the Sino-Japanese Friendship Treaty with Li Hongzhang. It was the first treaty concluded between Japan and the Qing on an equal footing. After this mission Munenari withdrew from the front line of government.
He died of illness at his residence in Tokyo. That year he had been asked to urge the judge Kojima Iken, a former Uwajima retainer, to resign, but he reportedly never met him and instead sent Kojima a letter encouraging him to stay. The anecdote shows his care for his former retainers.
A. Lord of the Uwajima domain in Iyo in the late Edo period and a statesman of the early Meiji era. Born into a hatamoto family, he became heir to Uwajima, invited scholars such as Takano Chōei to introduce Western learning, and had a steamship built by Japanese hands. Counted among the "Four Wise Lords" of the late Edo period, he handled foreign affairs for the Meiji government and concluded the Sino-Japanese Friendship and Trade Treaty.
A. Period: Late Edo–Meiji. Born in 1818, died in 1892.
A. Date Munenari was born in Edo.
A. They were four daimyō who voiced opinions on the country's course and strongly influenced politics at the end of the Edo period: Matsudaira Shungaku of Fukui, Yamauchi Yōdō of Tosa, Shimazu Nariakira of Satsuma, and Date Munenari of Uwajima. After Nariakira's death, Shimazu Hisamitsu is sometimes counted instead.
See also: Wikipedia (ja) / Wikipedia (en) / Wikipedia (fr) / Wikipedia (zh) / Wikidata
Follow this life (autoplay)Matthew C. PerryTakano ChōeiShimazu NariakiraIi NaosukeShimazu HisamitsuŌmura MasujirōTokugawa YoshinobuYamauchi Yōdō (Toyoshige)
Yoshida TōyōKawatake MokuamiShimazu HisamitsuIwase TadanariAbe MasahiroKatsu KaishūŌmura MasujirōJohn Manjirō
People of the Edo period ・ People by period
Based on facts found in textbooks and biographies. Uncertain points are marked as such.