Stories of the Japanese 01650 [Muromachi/Saigoku/Conquest of the Rokkaku] The Yamashiro Country Uprising

The battle between the two Hatakeyama clans in Yamashiro Province, where Masanaga controlled the north and Yoshinari the south with the Uji River as the boundary, showed no signs of ending. Although a battle took place in Uji in June of the 16th year of Bunmei (1484), it did not reach a conclusion. Since there was no prospect of being able to defeat Yoshinari's army, no one could be found to take the position of Yamashiro Shugo, and in September, Yamashiro Province became a direct territory of the Shogunate. The person appointed as the deputy (daikan) was Ise Sadamune, the Mandokoro Shitsuji (Chief of the Administrative Board).
The difference between a Shugo and a deputy is that while a Shugo can keep the land tax collected within their territory for themselves, a deputy merely exercises the right to collect land tax entrusted by the Shogun, and the collected tax belongs to the Shogun's family. Furthermore, when one takes office as a Shugo, it is their own territory, so they must defeat the rebel Hatakeyama Yoshinari with their own power; whereas if one is a deputy, they do not need to organize a punitive force themselves, as the decision and responsibility for the suppression lie with the Shogun. In the first place, the Ise family, although samurai, were financial bureaucrats, so it seems they had almost no independent military force.
In July of the 17th year of Bunmei (1485), an incident occurred where Saito Hikojiro, a local warrior (kokujin) of the Mizushi Castle (in Joyo City, Kyoto Prefecture) on the south side, suddenly defected to Masanaga's side. It is believed that Hikojiro, who had been scraping by through the illegal seizure of temple and shrine lands, could not tolerate Yoshinari's appointment of three magistrates to govern southern Yamashiro and his attempt to protect the temple and shrine estates. From this point on, fighting continued for several months over Mizushi Castle, and the armies of both Hatakeyama clans requisitioned rice from the vicinity and devastated the fields.
The local warriors, exhausted by the battle between the two Hatakeyama clans, had their anger explode. On December 11, they gathered at Byodo-in Temple and issued a firm three-point notification to both armies.
・From now on, both Hatakeyama clans must not enter Yamashiro Province.
・Each manor must be restored to its previous governing relationship.
・No new checkpoints shall be built at all.
It is hard to imagine that both Hatakeyama clans would comply, but the military power of the local warriors was stronger than expected, and by December 17, they had driven both armies out of Yamashiro Province by force.
From this point on, the "Thirty-Six Men" of the local warriors carried out self-governance. There is a record that on February 13 of the 18th year of Bunmei (1486), the Thirty-Six Men gathered at Byodo-in Temple and established the "Kokuchu Okiteho" (Provincial Laws). Although it is not known what kind of laws they were, it can be said to be the first example of a self-governing organization in Japan where they decided the laws that bound themselves. This self-governance continued for 23 years until Ouchi Yoshioki (1477–1529) was appointed as Yamashiro Shugo in the 5th year of Eisho (1508).
However, it seems there were limits to their self-governance. On May 26 of the 18th year of Bunmei (1486), Ise Sadamune's eldest son, Sadamichi (1463–1521), was appointed as Yamashiro Shugo. While Sadamichi recognized a certain degree of autonomy for the Thirty-Six Men, he requested the local warriors to collect Shugo duties (that is, providing personnel for administrative purposes) when necessary, and there were cases where the local warriors complied. It was not completely independent from the government, but maintained a relationship of keeping the government at arm's length.