Native Name: | 美濃国 |
Conventional Long Name: | Mino Province |
Common Name: | Mino Province |
Subdivision: | province of Japan |
Status Text: | pre-Meiji period Japan |
Capital: | Tarui |
Coordinates: | 35.3775°N 136.5239°W |
Today: | Gifu Prefecture |
Year Start: | 701 |
Year End: | 1871 |
Event Start: | Ritsuryō system |
Image Map Caption: | Map of Japanese provinces (1868) with Mino Province highlighted |
was a province of Japan in the area of Japan that is today southern Gifu Prefecture.[1] Mino was bordered by Ōmi to the west, Echizen and Hida to the north, Shinano to the east, and Ise, Mikawa, and Owari to the south. Its abbreviated form name was . Under the Engishiki classification system, Mino was ranked as one of the 13 "great countries" (大国) in terms of importance, and one of the "near countries" (近国) in terms of distance from the capital. The provincial capital and ichinomiya were located in what is now the town of Tarui.
"Mino" is an ancient place name, and appears in mokkan wooden tags from the ruins of Asuka-kyō, Fujiwara-kyō, and other ancient sites, but using the kanji "三野国". Per the Kujiki, there were originally three separate countries in Mino, centered around what is now Ōgaki, Ōno, and Kakamigahara. Each had its own Kuni no miyatsuko, and together with Motosu (in eastern Gifu) and Mugetsu (in north-central Gifu), these five entities were joined under Yamato rule to form the province of Mino. The use of the kanji "美濃" is found in the Kojiki and became prevalent in the Nara period. Early Mino included much of Kiso District in Shinano and portions of northern Owari. The route of the ancient Tōsandō highway connecting the ancient capitals of Japan and the eastern provinces passed through Mino, and even in 713 AD, records indicate that the road was widened to accommodate increasing numbers of travelers.[2]
The Nihon Shoki and Shoku Nihongi indicates that numerous immigrants from the Hata clan and from Silla settled in Mino in the Asuka and Nara periods.
During the Kamakura and Muromachi Period, the Toki clan held the position of shugo of Mino Province. During the Sengoku period, Saitō Dōsan usurped political power from the Toki, and later the province was conquered by Oda Nobunaga. The Battle of Sekigahara took place at the western edge of Mino, near the mountains between the Chūbu Region and the Kinki Region. With the establishment of the Tokugawa Shogunate, several feudal domains were established in Mino. At the time of the Meiji restoration, Mino was divided into 18 districts, which in turn were divided into 131 subdistricts and 1561 villages. The total assessed kokudaka of the province was 654,872 koku.
Mino Province consisted of twenty-one districts:
Below is an incomplete list of the shugo who controlled Mino Province and the years of their control:
Ōgaki Domain | Ōgaki Castle |
50,000; 1601 - 1616 (transfer to Hita Domain)
20,000; 1616 - 1624 (transfer to Komoro Domain)
50,000; 1624 - 1633 (transfer to Tatsuno Domain]) 60,000; 1633 - 1635 (transfer to Kuwana Domain)
100,000,1635 - 1871 | |
---|---|---|---|
Ōgaki Shinden Domain | Hatamura jin'ya |
10,000; 1688 - 1871 | |
Gujō Domain | Gujō Hachiman Castle |
27,000→24,000; 1600 - 1692 (attainder) 50,000; 1692 - 1697 (transfer to Kameyama Domain)
38,000; 1697 - 1758 (attainder due to mismanagement) 48,000; 1758 - 1871 | |
Kanō Domain | Kanō Castle |
100,000; 1601 - 1632 (attainder) 50,000; 1632 - 1639 (transfer to Akashi Domain)
70,000; 1639 - 1711 (transfer to Yodo Domain) 65,000→50,000; 1711 - 1756 (transfer to Iwakitaira Domain)
32,000; 1711 - 1871 | |
Iwamura Domain | Iwamura Castle |
20,000; 1601 - 1638 (transfer from Hamamatsu Domain) 20,000; 1638 - 1702 (transfer to Takayanagi Domain)
| |
Naegi Domain | Naegi Castle |
10,000; 1600 - 1871 | |
Takatomi Domain | Takatomi jin'ya |
10,000; 1709 - 1871 | |
Imao Domain | Imao Castle Imao jin'ya |
20,000; 1600 - 1610 (transfer to Yabase Domain
| |
Takasu Domain | Takasu Castle Takasu jin'ya |
22,000; 1640 - 1691 (transfer to Katsuyama Domain) 30,000; 1700 - 1870 (as part of Owari Domain) | |
Kurono Domain | Kurono Castle |
40,000; 1600 - 1610 (transfer to Yonago Domain) | |
Ibi Domain | Ibi Castle |
| |
Kaneyama Domain |
25,000; 1600 - 1601 (transfer to Hamamatsu Domain) | ||
Kozuchi Domain | Ogurayama Castle |
18,000→20,000; 1600 - 1611 (attainder) | |
Jushichijo Domain | Jushichijo Castle |
10,000→20,000, 1607 - 1627 (transfer to Moka Domain) | |
Aono Domain | Aono jin'ya |
12,000; 1681 - 1684 (attainder) | |
Seki Domain | Seki jin'ya |
18,000 1600 - 1604 (reduced to hatamoto holding) | |
Kiyomizu Domain | Kiyomisu Castle |
12,000; 1600 - 1607 (attainder) | |
Iwataki Domain | Iwataki Jin'ya |
1,000: 1705 - 1709 (reelected to Takatomi Domai) | |
Tokuno Domain | Tokuno jin'ya |
| |
Nomura Domain |
10,000; 1600 - 1631 (attainder) | ||
Mino-Hasegawa Domain |
10,000 1617 - 1635 (divided into hatamoto holdings) | ||
Mino-Wakisaka Domain |
10,000; 1615 - 1632 (attainder) |
Mino and Owari provinces were separated by the Sakai River, which means "border river."