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His nomination as Prince Imperial
was an even more arbitrary violation of the right of primogeniture
than the case of his predecessor had been, for he was chosen in
preference to his elder brother merely because, when the two youths
were casually questioned as to what they wished for, the elder said,
"a bow and arrows," and the younger, "the empire." The delusive
nature of the Nihongi's chronology in these prehistoric epochs is
exemplified in the annals of this sovereign, for he is represented as
having been in his eighty-third year when he ascended the throne,
yet, in the third year of his reign, he took a consort who bore him
thirteen children, and altogether his progeny numbered eighty sons
and daughters by seven wives. His plan of providing for these
numerous scions constituted the first systematization of a custom
which had been observed in a fitful manner by several of his
predecessors. They had given to their sons local titles and estates
but had not required them to leave the capital. Keiko, however,
appointed his sons, with three exceptions, to the position of
provincial or district viceroy, preserving their Imperial connexion
by calling them wake, or branch families. This subject will present
itself for further notice during the reign of Keiko's successor.
One of the most memorable events in this epoch was the Emperor's
military expedition in person to quell the rebellious Kumaso (q.v.)
in Kyushu. There had not been any instance of the sovereign taking
the field in person since Jimmu's time, and the importance attaching
to the insurrection is thus shown. Allowance has to be made, however,
for the fact that the territory held by these Kumaso in the south of
Kyushu was protected by a natural rampart of stupendous mountain
ranges which rendered military access arduous, and which, in after
ages, enabled a great feudatory to defy the Central Government for
centuries. In connexion with this expedition a noteworthy fact is
that female chieftains were found ruling in the provinces of Suwo and
Bingo. They were not aliens, but belonged to the Yamato race, and
their existence goes far to account for the appellation, "Queens'
Country," applied by Chinese historians to the only part of Japan
with which the people of the Middle Kingdom were familiar, namely,
Kyushu and the west-coast provinces. Keiko's reign is remarkable
chiefly for this expedition to the south, which involved a residence
of six years in Hyuga, and for the campaigns of one of the greatest
of Japan's heroes, Prince Yamato-dake. The military prowess of the
sovereign, the fighting genius of Yamato-dake, and the administrative
ability of Takenouchi-no-Sukune, the first "prime minister" mentioned
in Japanese history, combined to give signal eclat to the reign of
Keiko.
Arriving at this stage of the annals, we are able to perceive what an
influence was exercised on the fortunes of the country by its
topographical features. The southwestern sections of the islands are
comparatively accessible from the centre (Chogoku or Kinai), whether
by sea or by land, but the northeastern are guarded by mountain
chains which can be crossed only by arduous and easily defended
passes. It was, therefore, in these northeastern provinces that the
Yemishi maintained their independence until their strength was broken
by the splendid campaign of Yamato-dake; it was in these northeastern
provinces that the bushi, noblest product of Japanese civilization,
was nurtured; it was in the same provinces that the Taira family made
its brilliant debut, and it was by abandoning these provinces for the
sweets of Kyoto that the Taira fell; it was in the north-eastern
provinces that Minamoto Yoritomo, the father of military feudalism,
established himself, to be followed in succession by the Hojo, the
Ashikaga, and the Tokugawa, and it is in the northeastern provinces
that the Meiji Government has its seat of power.
We can not wonder, therefore, that modern historiographers have
devoted much labour to tracing the route followed by Yamato-dake's
troops and rationalizing the figurative or miraculous features of the
narratives told in the Kojiki and the Nihongi. It is enough to know,
however, that he overran the whole region stretching from the
provinces along the Eastern Sea as far as Iwaki; crossed westward
through Iwashiro to Echigo on the west coast, and turning southward,
made his way through Shinano and Mino to Owari, whence, suffering
from a wound caused by a poisoned arrow, he struggled on to Ise and
died there. This campaign seems to have occupied ten years, and
Yamato-dake was only thirty at the time of his death. He had marched
against the Kumaso in the south at the age of sixteen. The Chronicles
relate that when crossing the Usui Pass and looking down on the sea
where his loved consort had cast herself into the waves to quell
their fury, the great warrior sighed thrice and exclaimed, "My wife,
my wife, my wife!" (Ago, tsuma haya), whereafter the provinces east
of the mountain were designated Azuma.
It was imagined until quite recent times that the pass referred to
was the well-known Usui Toge on the Nakasendo road; but Dr. Kume has
shown that such a supposition is inconsistent with any rational
itinerary of Yamato-dake's march, and that the sea in question cannot
be seen from that defile. The pass mentioned in the Chronicles is
another of the same name not far from the Hakone region, and the term
"Azuma" "had always been used to designate the Eastern Provinces."
Throughout the Records and the Chronicles frequent instances occur of
attempts to derive place-names from appropriate legends, but probably
in many cases the legend was suggested by the name. In connexion with
Yamato-dake's career, a circumstance is recorded which indirectly
points to the absence of history at that period. In order to
immortalize the memory of the hero, hereditary corporations (be)
called after him were created. These Take-be gave their names to the
districts where they lived, in Ise, Izumo, Mimasaka, and Bizen.
FEMALE HOSTAGES
Another custom inaugurated by this sovereign was to require that the
rulers of provinces should send to the Yamato Court female hostages.
The first example of this practice took place on the occasion of an
Imperial visit to the regions overrun by Yamato-dake's forces. Each
of twelve kuni-yatsuko (provincial rulers) was required to send one
damsel for the purpose of serving in the culinary department of the
palace. They were called makura-ko (pillow-child) and they seem to
have been ultimately drafted into the ranks of the uneme
(ladies-in-waiting). Japanese historians hold that the makura-ko were
daughters of the local magnates by whom they were sent, though the
fact of that relationship is not clearly stated in either the Records
or the Chronicles.
TABE AND MIYAKE
In the annals of Suinin's reign brief reference is made to granaries
(miyake) erected by order of the Court. The number of these was
increased in Keiko's time, and it is further mentioned that a
hereditary corporation of rice-field cultivators (tabe) were
organized for service on the Imperial estates. The miyake were at
once storehouse and offices for administering agricultural affairs.
THE THIRTEENTH EMPEROR, SEIMU (A.D. 131--190)
The thirteenth Emperor, Seimu, occupied the throne for fifty-nine
years, according to the Chronicles, but the only noteworthy feature
of his reign was the organization of local government, and the
details of his system are so vaguely stated as to be incomprehensible
without much reference and some hypotheses. Speaking broadly, the
facts are these: Imperial princes who had distinguished themselves by
evidences of ability or courage were despatched to places of special
importance in the provinces, under the name of wake, a term conveying
the signification of "branch of the Imperial family." There is reason
to think that these appointments were designed to extend the prestige
of the Court rather than to facilitate the administration of
provincial affairs. The latter duty was entrusted to officials called
kuni-no-miyatsuko and agata-nushi, which may be translated
"provincial governor" and "district headman." The word miyatsuko
literally signifies "honourable (mi) servant (yatsuko or yakko)."
In the most ancient times all subjects were yakko, but subsequently
those holding office at Court were distinguished as omi (grandee).
Persons eligible for the post of provincial governor seem to have
been chosen from among men of merit, or Imperial princes, or chiefs
of aboriginal tribes. There was little exclusiveness in this respect.
The rate of expansion of the area under Imperial sway may be inferred
from the fact that whereas there were nine provinces (kuni) in
Jimmu's time, one was added by Kaikwa, eleven by Sujin, seven by
Keiko, and sixty-three by Seimu, making a total of ninety-one. Yet,
though by the time of the last named sovereign almost the whole of
the southern and central regions were included in the administrative
circle, the northern provinces, some of the western, and certain
regions in the south (Kyushu) were not yet fully wrested from the
Yemishi and the Kumaso. In subsequent reigns the rate of growth was
as follows: Chuai (A.D. 192-200), two provinces; Ojin (270-310),
twenty-one; Nintoku (313-399), seven; Hansho (406-411) and Inkyo
(412-453), one each; Yuryaku (457-459), three; Keitai (507-531), one;
and eight others at untraceable periods, the total being one hundred
thirty-five.
The agata was a division smaller than a province (kuni). It
corresponded to the modern kori or gun, and its nearest English
equivalent is "district." A distinction must be made, however,
between agata and mi-agata. The latter were Imperial domains whence
the Court derived its resources, and their dimensions varied greatly.
A smaller administrative district than the agata was the inagi.* This
we learn from a Chinese book--the Japanese annals being silent on the
subject--consisted of eighty houses, and ten inagi constituted a
kuni. The terra inagi was also applied to the chief local official of
the region, who may be designated "Mayor."
*Supposed to be derived from ine (rice) and oki (store).
THE FOURTEENTH EMPEROR, CHUAI (A.D.
was an even more arbitrary violation of the right of primogeniture
than the case of his predecessor had been, for he was chosen in
preference to his elder brother merely because, when the two youths
were casually questioned as to what they wished for, the elder said,
"a bow and arrows," and the younger, "the empire." The delusive
nature of the Nihongi's chronology in these prehistoric epochs is
exemplified in the annals of this sovereign, for he is represented as
having been in his eighty-third year when he ascended the throne,
yet, in the third year of his reign, he took a consort who bore him
thirteen children, and altogether his progeny numbered eighty sons
and daughters by seven wives. His plan of providing for these
numerous scions constituted the first systematization of a custom
which had been observed in a fitful manner by several of his
predecessors. They had given to their sons local titles and estates
but had not required them to leave the capital. Keiko, however,
appointed his sons, with three exceptions, to the position of
provincial or district viceroy, preserving their Imperial connexion
by calling them wake, or branch families. This subject will present
itself for further notice during the reign of Keiko's successor.
One of the most memorable events in this epoch was the Emperor's
military expedition in person to quell the rebellious Kumaso (q.v.)
in Kyushu. There had not been any instance of the sovereign taking
the field in person since Jimmu's time, and the importance attaching
to the insurrection is thus shown. Allowance has to be made, however,
for the fact that the territory held by these Kumaso in the south of
Kyushu was protected by a natural rampart of stupendous mountain
ranges which rendered military access arduous, and which, in after
ages, enabled a great feudatory to defy the Central Government for
centuries. In connexion with this expedition a noteworthy fact is
that female chieftains were found ruling in the provinces of Suwo and
Bingo. They were not aliens, but belonged to the Yamato race, and
their existence goes far to account for the appellation, "Queens'
Country," applied by Chinese historians to the only part of Japan
with which the people of the Middle Kingdom were familiar, namely,
Kyushu and the west-coast provinces. Keiko's reign is remarkable
chiefly for this expedition to the south, which involved a residence
of six years in Hyuga, and for the campaigns of one of the greatest
of Japan's heroes, Prince Yamato-dake. The military prowess of the
sovereign, the fighting genius of Yamato-dake, and the administrative
ability of Takenouchi-no-Sukune, the first "prime minister" mentioned
in Japanese history, combined to give signal eclat to the reign of
Keiko.
Arriving at this stage of the annals, we are able to perceive what an
influence was exercised on the fortunes of the country by its
topographical features. The southwestern sections of the islands are
comparatively accessible from the centre (Chogoku or Kinai), whether
by sea or by land, but the northeastern are guarded by mountain
chains which can be crossed only by arduous and easily defended
passes. It was, therefore, in these northeastern provinces that the
Yemishi maintained their independence until their strength was broken
by the splendid campaign of Yamato-dake; it was in these northeastern
provinces that the bushi, noblest product of Japanese civilization,
was nurtured; it was in the same provinces that the Taira family made
its brilliant debut, and it was by abandoning these provinces for the
sweets of Kyoto that the Taira fell; it was in the north-eastern
provinces that Minamoto Yoritomo, the father of military feudalism,
established himself, to be followed in succession by the Hojo, the
Ashikaga, and the Tokugawa, and it is in the northeastern provinces
that the Meiji Government has its seat of power.
We can not wonder, therefore, that modern historiographers have
devoted much labour to tracing the route followed by Yamato-dake's
troops and rationalizing the figurative or miraculous features of the
narratives told in the Kojiki and the Nihongi. It is enough to know,
however, that he overran the whole region stretching from the
provinces along the Eastern Sea as far as Iwaki; crossed westward
through Iwashiro to Echigo on the west coast, and turning southward,
made his way through Shinano and Mino to Owari, whence, suffering
from a wound caused by a poisoned arrow, he struggled on to Ise and
died there. This campaign seems to have occupied ten years, and
Yamato-dake was only thirty at the time of his death. He had marched
against the Kumaso in the south at the age of sixteen. The Chronicles
relate that when crossing the Usui Pass and looking down on the sea
where his loved consort had cast herself into the waves to quell
their fury, the great warrior sighed thrice and exclaimed, "My wife,
my wife, my wife!" (Ago, tsuma haya), whereafter the provinces east
of the mountain were designated Azuma.
It was imagined until quite recent times that the pass referred to
was the well-known Usui Toge on the Nakasendo road; but Dr. Kume has
shown that such a supposition is inconsistent with any rational
itinerary of Yamato-dake's march, and that the sea in question cannot
be seen from that defile. The pass mentioned in the Chronicles is
another of the same name not far from the Hakone region, and the term
"Azuma" "had always been used to designate the Eastern Provinces."
Throughout the Records and the Chronicles frequent instances occur of
attempts to derive place-names from appropriate legends, but probably
in many cases the legend was suggested by the name. In connexion with
Yamato-dake's career, a circumstance is recorded which indirectly
points to the absence of history at that period. In order to
immortalize the memory of the hero, hereditary corporations (be)
called after him were created. These Take-be gave their names to the
districts where they lived, in Ise, Izumo, Mimasaka, and Bizen.
FEMALE HOSTAGES
Another custom inaugurated by this sovereign was to require that the
rulers of provinces should send to the Yamato Court female hostages.
The first example of this practice took place on the occasion of an
Imperial visit to the regions overrun by Yamato-dake's forces. Each
of twelve kuni-yatsuko (provincial rulers) was required to send one
damsel for the purpose of serving in the culinary department of the
palace. They were called makura-ko (pillow-child) and they seem to
have been ultimately drafted into the ranks of the uneme
(ladies-in-waiting). Japanese historians hold that the makura-ko were
daughters of the local magnates by whom they were sent, though the
fact of that relationship is not clearly stated in either the Records
or the Chronicles.
TABE AND MIYAKE
In the annals of Suinin's reign brief reference is made to granaries
(miyake) erected by order of the Court. The number of these was
increased in Keiko's time, and it is further mentioned that a
hereditary corporation of rice-field cultivators (tabe) were
organized for service on the Imperial estates. The miyake were at
once storehouse and offices for administering agricultural affairs.
THE THIRTEENTH EMPEROR, SEIMU (A.D. 131--190)
The thirteenth Emperor, Seimu, occupied the throne for fifty-nine
years, according to the Chronicles, but the only noteworthy feature
of his reign was the organization of local government, and the
details of his system are so vaguely stated as to be incomprehensible
without much reference and some hypotheses. Speaking broadly, the
facts are these: Imperial princes who had distinguished themselves by
evidences of ability or courage were despatched to places of special
importance in the provinces, under the name of wake, a term conveying
the signification of "branch of the Imperial family." There is reason
to think that these appointments were designed to extend the prestige
of the Court rather than to facilitate the administration of
provincial affairs. The latter duty was entrusted to officials called
kuni-no-miyatsuko and agata-nushi, which may be translated
"provincial governor" and "district headman." The word miyatsuko
literally signifies "honourable (mi) servant (yatsuko or yakko)."
In the most ancient times all subjects were yakko, but subsequently
those holding office at Court were distinguished as omi (grandee).
Persons eligible for the post of provincial governor seem to have
been chosen from among men of merit, or Imperial princes, or chiefs
of aboriginal tribes. There was little exclusiveness in this respect.
The rate of expansion of the area under Imperial sway may be inferred
from the fact that whereas there were nine provinces (kuni) in
Jimmu's time, one was added by Kaikwa, eleven by Sujin, seven by
Keiko, and sixty-three by Seimu, making a total of ninety-one. Yet,
though by the time of the last named sovereign almost the whole of
the southern and central regions were included in the administrative
circle, the northern provinces, some of the western, and certain
regions in the south (Kyushu) were not yet fully wrested from the
Yemishi and the Kumaso. In subsequent reigns the rate of growth was
as follows: Chuai (A.D. 192-200), two provinces; Ojin (270-310),
twenty-one; Nintoku (313-399), seven; Hansho (406-411) and Inkyo
(412-453), one each; Yuryaku (457-459), three; Keitai (507-531), one;
and eight others at untraceable periods, the total being one hundred
thirty-five.
The agata was a division smaller than a province (kuni). It
corresponded to the modern kori or gun, and its nearest English
equivalent is "district." A distinction must be made, however,
between agata and mi-agata. The latter were Imperial domains whence
the Court derived its resources, and their dimensions varied greatly.
A smaller administrative district than the agata was the inagi.* This
we learn from a Chinese book--the Japanese annals being silent on the
subject--consisted of eighty houses, and ten inagi constituted a
kuni. The terra inagi was also applied to the chief local official of
the region, who may be designated "Mayor."
*Supposed to be derived from ine (rice) and oki (store).
THE FOURTEENTH EMPEROR, CHUAI (A.D.
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