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Ieyasu Tokugawa

Ieyasu Tokugawa

Original Name
Takechiyo Matsudaira
Birth
Okazaki, Okazaki-shi, Aichi, Japan
Death
1 Jun 1616 (aged 73)
Shizuoka, Shizuoka-shi, Shizuoka, Japan
Burial
Nikkō, Nikko-shi, Tochigi, Japan Add to Map
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Warrior and Dictator. He was a gifted leader and brilliant general, and was the founder of the Tokugawa shogunate. Early in his career, he helped Nobunaga Oda and Hideyoshi Toyotomi unify Japan. In 1590, he received the area surrounding Edo (present-day Tokyo) in fief and made it his capital. After Hideyoshi Toyotomi's death in 1598, he became Japan's most powerful daimyo (feudal lord) by defeating rival barons in the battle of Sekigahara in 1600. He became shogun in 1603, made his son, Hidetada, nominal ruler in 1605, and subdued Hideyoshi's heirs. At the time of his death, he was the most powerful dictator in Japan. He sought to perpetuate the supremacy of his family by freezing the status quo. Under his regime, attendance at the shogunate court was compulsory, castle building was strictly controlled, and Confucianism was revived to strengthen the state. Like Nobunaga Oda and Hideyoshi Toyotomi, he encouraged foreign trade. Japanese vessels carried goods to China, the Philippines, and Mexico. Christians were tolerated for the first time because he wished to trade with Europe. His mausoleum is part of one of the most important shrines in Japan.

He was buried at the Gongens' mausoleum at Kunōzan, Kunōzan Tōshō-gū. It is commonly believed that a year after his death, his remains were reburied at Nikkō Shrine, Nikkō Tōshō-gū. Neither grave has been opened, and the location of his remains remains a mystery.

Warrior and Dictator. He was a gifted leader and brilliant general, and was the founder of the Tokugawa shogunate. Early in his career, he helped Nobunaga Oda and Hideyoshi Toyotomi unify Japan. In 1590, he received the area surrounding Edo (present-day Tokyo) in fief and made it his capital. After Hideyoshi Toyotomi's death in 1598, he became Japan's most powerful daimyo (feudal lord) by defeating rival barons in the battle of Sekigahara in 1600. He became shogun in 1603, made his son, Hidetada, nominal ruler in 1605, and subdued Hideyoshi's heirs. At the time of his death, he was the most powerful dictator in Japan. He sought to perpetuate the supremacy of his family by freezing the status quo. Under his regime, attendance at the shogunate court was compulsory, castle building was strictly controlled, and Confucianism was revived to strengthen the state. Like Nobunaga Oda and Hideyoshi Toyotomi, he encouraged foreign trade. Japanese vessels carried goods to China, the Philippines, and Mexico. Christians were tolerated for the first time because he wished to trade with Europe. His mausoleum is part of one of the most important shrines in Japan.

He was buried at the Gongens' mausoleum at Kunōzan, Kunōzan Tōshō-gū. It is commonly believed that a year after his death, his remains were reburied at Nikkō Shrine, Nikkō Tōshō-gū. Neither grave has been opened, and the location of his remains remains a mystery.

Bio by: Warrick L. Barrett

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  • Maintained by: Find a Grave
  • Originally Created by: Warrick L. Barrett
  • Added: 6 Oct 2002
  • Find a Grave Memorial ID:
  • Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/6826472/ieyasu-tokugawa: accessed ), memorial page for Ieyasu Tokugawa (31 Jan 1543–1 Jun 1616), Find a Grave Memorial ID 6826472, citing Toshogu Shrine, Nikkō, Nikko-shi, Tochigi, Japan; Maintained by Find a Grave.