Years
Ansei
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The author of the script was not shallow in judgment ―― the decision in the sixth month of Ansei 5 to send Manabe Akikatsu and Sakai Tadaaki up to the capital
The twelfth day of the sixth month of Ansei 5 (1858). -
The Emperor’s Wish for Clemency ―― From the Second Month to the Twelfth Month of Ansei 6
The twenty-first day of the second month of Ansei 6 (1859). It was a document to the effect that Edo should be approached. -
The Tinted Lens of the Ii Side ―― The Eleventh Month of Ansei 5: From the Record of Inquiries into Mito Affairs to the Evil Hand Reaching Mito
The eleventh month of Ansei 5 (1858). A bundle of rumor records had been placed at Ii Naosuke's side. The title was "Record of Inquiries into Mito Affairs." -
Abe Masahiro’s Letter of Resignation ―― A Report of Headache and Dizziness, Fourth Month of Ansei 1
The tenth day of the fourth month of Ansei 1 (1854). Abe Masahiro, the senior councilor in the chief seat, did not attend the castle. He sent a short report to Makino Tadamasa, a fellow senior… -
The First Day of the Sixth Month: Announcement of the Adopted Lord ―― The Shogunate That Concealed the Name, and Kyoto’s Reply Blocked by the River
The first day of the sixth month of Ansei 5 (1858). The members of the Gosanke who had come to Edo Castle as usual (Owari excepted), the two kyō lords, and the men of the Tamarinoma-zume were ordered… -
Two Draft Texts for Circulating the Imperial Edict ―― The Letter Tokugawa Nariaki Wrote but Never Sent
Tokugawa Nariaki, while under house confinement, placed two draft texts before his retainers. Tokutomi Sohō writes that the steward Kuki Naojirō and the chief oku-yūhitsu Harada Hachibei joined them… -
Manabe Akikatsu’s Deception ―― The Document of the Kogosho and “Nothing But Lies,” Tenth Month, Ansei 5
The lower chamber of the Kogosho. Present together were the court liaisons to the shogunate, Hirohashi Mitsushige and Madenokōji Masafusa. The matter was taken up at the fifth hour of the night,… -
The Shield of “I Beg Your Pardon” ―― On the Twenty-Third Day of the Sixth Month of Ansei 5, Tokugawa Yoshinobu Confronts Ii Naosuke
The twenty-second day of the sixth month of Ansei 5 (1858). A chief retainer of the Hitotsubashi house, having withdrawn from Edo Castle, returned to the residence and presented his lord with a… -
The Three Characters “Violation of the Imperial Command” ―― Tokugawa Nariaki’s Petition and Ii Naosuke’s Reply, Sixth Month of Ansei 5 (1858)
At the Mito domain residence in Edo, Tokugawa Nariaki was making corrections to an inquiry document. It was a reply. -
The Sealed Memorial of the Third Day of the Fifth Month ―― Kawaji Toshiakira’s Memorial on the Selection of an Heir and His Demotion Three Days Later
The third day of the fifth month of Ansei 5 (1858). It was submitted to the senior councilor Hotta Masayoshi. Kawaji had been prepared for this from the outset, Tokutomi Sohō surmises. -
Ii Naosuke Becomes Great Elder ―― From the Second Month of Ansei 5 to the Twelfth Month of Ansei 5
It was just past noon. A visitor came to the Ii residence. Yakushiji Motozane, head of foot soldiers. Onoda Koichirō, the guest reception officer, came out to receive him. He said he wished to report… -
The Person at Umoregi no ya Was Waiting ―― In the Fourth Month of Ansei 5 (1858), Hotta Masayoshi’s Return to Edo and Two Difficult Problems
There, an envoy of Matsudaira Yoshinaga, the leader of the Hitotsubashi faction, caught up with him. Tokutomi Sohō writes that Yoshinaga, unable to wait for Hotta's return to Edo, had deliberately…
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