History of Asia

Causes and contents of the Oshio Heihachiro disturbance and its impact on the Edo Shogunate

Did you know of a major incident in elementary school history textbooks during the Edo period, despite the rebellion that was subdued in just one day? ??

1837 Oshio Heihachiro's Ran in Osaka is.

[No, everyone (1837)] [Everyone (1837)] There are probably many people who have learned the puns.

Why is it so big in the rebellion that was crushed in just one day? ?? This time, even elementary school students know [ Oshio Heihachiro's Ran ] I would like to write about.

What is Oshio Heihachiro's Ran?

The Oshio Heihachiro Ran was the former power of the Osaka Town Magistrate's Office in 1837 Oshio Heihachiro . Refers to the rebellion caused by.

Speaking of 1837, [ Tenpo Year ] And people were suffering from the famine of Tenpo. It was also during this period that Tadakuni Mizuno's Tenpo Reforms took place.

The Machi-Bugyosho did not save the people suffering from the famine of Tenpo, and attacked the wealthy merchants in Osaka who were fertile for their own self-interest, but the turbulence was suppressed in just one day. In addition, Heihachiro set fire to a residential area where many wealthy merchants live, so more than 10,000 households were burned out and the general public was also damaged.

Background and cause of the Oshio Heihachiro turbulence

Tenpo's Great Famine in 1833 due to nationwide unseasonable weather, cold weather and storms Happened.

Food shortages occurred nationwide, resulting in 200,000 to 300,000 starvation deaths.

In urban areas, food =rice shortage By [ rice price ] Soars. The people who were furious at this were destroyed by attacking the wealthy merchants. In addition, the situation in rural areas was even more serious, and in the turmoil in the county of Kamo Ikki and Kai in Mikawa, a request was made to reduce the rice price.

This famine in Tenpo was a long famine that lasted more than six years.

At that time, products gathered from various places such as rice [ Kitchen in the world Even in Osaka, food shortages are so severe that more than 100 people die of starvation every day.

The rice price rose due to the shortage of rice, and the wealthy merchants bought up more to raise the price. Also, I didn't sell the rice I had in stock until the price went up.

Some merchants, such as Daimaru, were feeding the common people, but such cases were rare. As a result, these good merchants have been spared from being burned down by the Oshio turbulence.

In this situation, Oshio Heihachiro, who used to run a private school, Senshin-dong, sold his collection and gave food to people in need. Not only that, he proposes a bailout plan to the Osaka magistrate's office and encourages the people to help, but Yoshisuke Atobe (Tadakuni Mizuno's younger brother) not only rejected Heihachiro's proposal, but also sent rice bought from a wealthy merchant to Edo to raise his reputation.

Oshio Heihachiro, who was furious at the actions of the magistrate's office and the wealthy merchants, stood up.

What is a person called Oshio Heihachiro?

The Oshio family has served as the Yoriki of the Osakamachi Governor's Office for generations.

Osaka Machi-bugy [ Yamashiro Takai] in the 1820s Under these circumstances, Heihachiro seems to have been a very capable person who worked to detect bribery politics.

He was a very justice person and did not weaken his pursuit not only of case resolution but also of official corruption. He, of course, did not receive the bribes that many of the officials at the time received.

However, when Takai resigned from Machi-bugyō, Oshio also handed over his Yoriki position to his son and retired.

After his retreat, he was a private school's Senshin-dong as a Yangming scholar. Open.

Yangmingism was a study that originated in China based on the teachings of Confucianism, but was a study that was critical of Cheng-Zhu.

Oshio may not have been forgiven by the Osaka-machi Governor's Office, which is ineffective as a scholar and as a former Yoriki, and the wealthy merchants who devour profits. Also, I feel that his innate sense of justice and Yangmingism emphasized action over theory led to the rebellion of Heihachiro Oshio.

Contents of Oshio Heihachiro's Ran

Oshio Heihachiro decided to cause a turbulence against the town magistrate who did nothing due to the spread of damage caused by famine. Heihachiro decided to divorce his family and buy cannons, gunpowder and ammunition just in case.

He also trains his disciples in the name of responding to the bursts that occur in various parts of the world.

In the meantime, the neighboring farmers should be [strong> give Tenchu ​​to the wealthy merchants . ] And encouraged participation in the turbulence, and in Osaka city [ If a fire breaks out, run through Tenma ] And distributed a message to encourage the spread of the disorder.

The decision was set on the day when the two Osaka-machi delegations would meet, and the meeting place would be attacked and blown up.

Progress of Oshio Heihachiro's turbulence

So far, we have proceeded as planned, but just before the uprising, one of the participants betrayed and reported to the Machi-bugyō. Heihachiro, who caught this information in advance, changed his schedule and began to attack the mansion of a wealthy merchant at once.

However, the magistrate's office, who knew the plans of Heihachiro and others in advance, prepared and greeted them. In various places, the magistrate's office defeated Heihachiro's hand, and as a result, the turbulence was subdued in just one day.

The mastermind, Oshio Heihachiro, suffers from a painful fall and leads a fugitive life.

One month after the turbulence was suppressed, Toshitsura Doi of Osaka Jodai located and surrounded Heihachiro, who used explosives to commit suicide. After that, most of the masterminds committed suicide or were arrested, but most died during detention.

The bodies of the dead were not allowed to be buried and were salted and stored before being crucifixed to the prison.

Influence of Oshio Heihachiro's disturbance

Even though it was a low-ranking official, the rebellion of the former shogunate's vassals shocked the shogunate and other clan. In Japan, where the feudal system in which the lower ones follow the upper ones has continued for more than 200 years, it must have been a tremendous shock.

Even in Kashiwazaki, Echigo, which was in a similar situation to Osaka, Confucian scholar Ikuta Yorozu was disturbed by Oshio Heihachiro and attacked Kashiwazaki's Daikansho with several hands [ Ikuta Yorozu . ] Has occurred.

The turmoil subsided with the death of Ikuta Yorozu, but the attack on the shogunate's deputy office spread further shocks throughout the country.

Oshio Heihachiro's Ran and Ikuta Man's Ran in the Shogunate territory However, the shogunate side began to feel a sense of crisis that some measures were necessary. So, I went to Tadakuni Mizuno, who was the chief of the old and middle ages under the 12th Shogun, and was one of the three major reforms of Edo [ Tenpo Reforms . ] Will be started.

However, the reform of Tenpo ended in failure due to Mizuno's forcible method, and the power of the shogunate would rather decline.

Significance of Oshio Heihachiro's Rebellion

The rebellion of Oshio Heihachiro, a former official, was a rebellion that clearly criticized the shogunate's method, unlike the peasant rebellion. Therefore, many people agreed with Heihachiro's idea, and some like Ikuta Yorozu professed to have been influenced by him.

Oshio Heihachiro's rebellion was suppressed in just one day, but since it is a rebellion that triggers the decline of the authority of the shogunate, it is widely treated in history textbooks.