Search
Search Results
Definition
Tokugawa Ieyasu
Tokugawa Ieyasu (1543-1616) was a Japanese military leader who reunified Japan at the beginning of the 17th century after a long period of civil war, known as the Warring States or Sengoku period. He created a new government controlled by...
Definition
Tokugawa Iemitsu
Tokugawa Iemitsu (1604-1651) governed Japan as the third shogun of the Edo period. He implemented a number of important policies that not only consolidated his family's hold on power but also greatly impacted Japanese society for several...
Definition
Edo Period
The Edo period refers to the years from 1603 until 1868 when the Tokugawa family ruled Japan. The era is named after the city of Edo, modern-day Tokyo, where the Tokugawa shogunate had its government. It is also sometimes referred to as the...
Definition
Edo Castle
Edo Castle was a large castle built by the Tokugawa family in 17th-century Japan. It served as their seat of government for more than 260 years. After the Meiji Restoration of 1868, Edo became the capital of Japan and was renamed Tokyo. Edo...
Definition
Nijo Castle
Nijo Castle, located in Kyoto, Japan, was first built in 1603 CE by Tokugawa Ieyasu (r. 1603-1605 CE), founder of the Tokugawa Shogunate (1603-1868 CE). The castle complex is surrounded by a double moat and made up of three distinct areas...
Image
Tokugawa Ieyasu
Portrait of Tokugawa Ieyasu (1543-1616) by Kanō Tan'yū, Edo period.
Osaka Castle, Main Tower.
Definition
Toyotomi Hideyoshi
Toyotomi Hideyoshi (1537-1598 CE) was a Japanese military leader who, along with his predecessor Oda Nobunaga (1534-1582 CE) and his successor Tokugawa Ieyasu (1543-1616 CE), is credited with unifying Japan in the 16th century CE. Hideyoshi...
Image
Tokugawa Ieyasu Mausoleum
Tokugawa Ieyasu Mausoleum, Nikko, Japan.
Definition
Shogun
The shoguns of medieval Japan were military dictators who ruled the country via a feudal system where a vassal's military service and loyalty was given in return for a lord's patronage. Established as an institution by the first shogun proper...
Definition
Tokugawa Tsunayoshi
Tokugawa Tsunayoshi (1646-1709) governed Japan as the fifth shogun of the Edo period (1603-1876). He has often been ridiculed as the 'dog shogun' because of the laws he enacted to protect the lives of animals. Economically, however, the period...