Hotta Masamori

Hotta Masamori ( Japanese 堀 田 正盛 ; * January 16, 1609 ; † June 8, 1651 ), was in the first half of the seventeenth century adviser and confidante of two shoguns of the Edo period in Japan.

Life path

Hotta Masamori, also known by the honorary title Kaga no Kami , was the son of Hotta Masayoshi . He served two shoguns, initially hidetada . He was given to advise the interests of Bakufu together with five other samurai . From this group, the “Council of Elders” ( Rokunin-shū , since 1662: wakadoshiyori ( 若 年 寄 )) of the shogunal government emerged as a permanent institution . As a minister, he had great influence on the Shogun Tokugawa Iemitsu .

The lands with which he was enfeoffed grew over the years, starting with Kawagoe ( Musashi Province , 26,000 koku ) in 1635 , and then three years later Matsumoto ( Shinano Province , 95,000 koku). In 1642 he was made daimyo of Sakura ( Shimousa Province , in what is now Chiba Prefecture ), which brought him an income of 145,000 koku.

Out of loyalty to the Shogun, he committed suicide ( junshi ) when he died together with Abe Shigetsugu , Uchida Masanobu , Saegusa Moriyoshi and others. a., so that he could serve his master in posterity. His grave is in Nikko .

His son was Masatoshi (1651–84), not to be confused with Masatoshi ( 堀 田 正 利 ; † 1629, 59 years old).

Popular culture

As a character played by Takeshi Maya , he appears in the 1989 film Shogun Iemitsu no Ranshin - Gekitotsu (German: "The Shogun's Shadow").

Literature and Sources

• Berend Wispelwey (Ed.): Japanese Biographical Archive . KG Saur, Munich 2007, ISBN 3-598-34014-1

Individual evidence

1. ↑ not to be confused with Masayoshi 1810-64 ( 堀 田 正 睦 )
2. ↑ IMDb

Japanese name: As is common in Japan, the family name comes before the first name in this article . So Hotta is the family name, Masamori the first name.