Great Peace: Great Peace: Tokugawa Political Tokugawa Political SettlementSettlement

Foreign relations and Foreign relations and legitimacylegitimacy

Foreign relations: overcoming Foreign relations: overcoming bitter pastbitter past

“MimiZuka”“ear Mound”

Foreign relations: Korean Foreign relations: Korean embassiesembassies

Tokugawa EconomyTokugawa Economy

Feast or FamineFeast or Famine

1717thth CenturCentury Boomy Boom

•16th c. castle towns

•Alternate attendance

Nihonbashi(Bridge of Japan)

circa 1700

•5% >100,000

•10% over 10,000

Transportation networkTransportation network

Edo-era traffic jam: townEdo-era traffic jam: town

Edo-era Edo-era traffic jam: traffic jam: countrycountry

Water transportWater transport

Osaka merchant warehousesOsaka merchant warehouses

Urban economic vitality: Urban economic vitality: EchigoyaEchigoya

Agricultural DevelopmentAgricultural Development

•Villages relatively autonomous

•Paid taxes as a unit, self-governed

•Improved practice via diffusion of technology

Better technologies: hoesBetter technologies: hoes

Agricultural DevelopmentAgricultural Development

LiteracyLiteracy

Expansion and tension: Expansion and tension: population boom, then bustpopulation boom, then bust

Stagnation of castle-town Stagnation of castle-town economieseconomies

New social conflictsNew social conflicts•More numerous protest•Larger in scale•Setting rural poor versus rich (rather than both versus authorities

Rise of “country places”Rise of “country places”

Rise of “country places”Rise of “country places”

ConclusionsConclusions

Need to consider distribution, in two sensesNeed to consider distribution, in two senses Place: Country places gainPlace: Country places gain

Near materials, power, markets, networksNear materials, power, markets, networks Near laborNear labor UnrestrictedUnrestricted

Class: Rural rich gainClass: Rural rich gain Fewer kin ties to dependent poorFewer kin ties to dependent poor Less “benevolence”?Less “benevolence”?