Tokugawa Ieshige

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Tokugawa Ieshige

Tokugawa Ieshige; 徳川家重 (January 28, 1712 – July 13, 1761) was the ninth shogun of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan.

The first son of Tokugawa Yoshimune, his mother was the daughter of Okubo Tadanao, known as Osuma no kata. His childhood name was Nagatomi-maru. He underwent the gempuku coming-of-age ceremony in 1725. His official wife was the daughter of Prince Fushimi Kuninaga.

Ieshige suffered from chronic ill health and a severe speech defect. Yoshimune's choice of Ieshige as his heir created considerable controversy within the bakufu administration, as his younger brothers Tokugawa Munetake (1715-1771) and Tokugawa Munetada (1721-1765) appeared to be far more suitable candidates. Yoshimune continued to insist on his decision, and continued to direct affairs after his official retirement in 1745 until his death in 1751 to ensure that Ieshige was secure in the post. Ieshige remained shogun until 1760.

Uninterested in government affairs, Ieshige left all decisions in the hands of his chamberlain, Ooka Tadamitsu (1709-1760). He officially retired in 1760 and assumed the title of Ōgosho, appointed his first son Tokugawa Ieharu as the 10th shogun, and died the following year.

Ieshige's second son Tokugawa Shigeyoshi became the founder of the Shimizu Tokugawa clan, which together with the Tayasu and Hitotsubashi (established by Ieshige's younger brothers) became the gosankyō, three cadet branches from which future shoguns might be selected if the main line were to die out. They joined the existing three cadet branches, the gosanke, to which Ieshige's father Yoshimune had been born.

Ieshige's reign was beset by corruption, natural disasters, periods of famine and the emergence of the mercantile class, and his feeblemindedness in dealing with these issues greatly weakened the rule of Tokugawa.

Ieshige's posthumous title was Junshinin, and his grave was at the Tokugawa family mausoleum at Zojo-ji in Shiba, Edo. His remains were disinterred and underwent scientific investigation from 1958-1960. It was discovered that his teeth were crooked and badly deformed, confirming historical references to his speech defect, and that his blood type was Type A.