Turning Point - Sekigahara: Toyotomi's Global Expansion and its Consequences

PART 3: USHERING IN A NEW AGE

Phase 12 - The Turmoil in Japan

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In 1783, Mount Asama, a massive volcano located in the deep interior of the Kantō Plain, erupted. The vast amount of volcanic ash ejected fell and accumulated throughout the region, and it is recorded that even the castle of Edo, which was the base of the Marquisate of Ukita, was covered with one sun (about 3 cm) of volcanic ash.

Furthermore, the rising dust and sulfur compounds had a detrimental impact on the entire Northern Hemisphere, causing temperature drops and other negative effects. It also led to a severe famine in the eastern and northern regions of Japan.

This marked the occurrence of the Tenmei Famine that began in 1782.

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The Tenmei Famine that began in 1782 was influenced by the temporary global temperature drop caused by major volcanic eruptions in other parts of the world that had occurred prior to that. The eruption of Mount Asama further exacerbated the situation.

During this severe famine, the response from the Osaka Regency was slow.

One of the main reasons was that the Kinki region, where they were located, had relatively minimal damage. In other words, one of the causes of the famine was also a human-made disaster. Daimyōs in the Kantō region, including the Ukita clan, had advocated for large-scale disaster preparedness from the early stages and had taken action within their capabilities. However, even for a daimyō with a domain of a million koku, there were limits to what they could do.

People in the Kantō, Tōhoku, and other primarily eastern impoverished regions took matters into their own hands, engaging in riots and destruction while boarding ships bound for the New World with their hopes riding on a thread. The scale of immigration surpassed even the previous gold rushes, with over 100.000 people each year heading to California in New Japan and Australia, among others.

The Osaka Regency did take action to address the situation, such as promoting domestic logistics and importing grain from Southeast Asia. However, their efforts were half-hearted, and the advancement of the monetary economy had ironically slowed the distribution of vital agricultural products like rice. Even the grain imported from Southeast Asia at great expense did not flow to the most deprived eastern regions. Western merchants hoarded it in their warehouses and profited greatly through futures trading, a scene that became commonplace. The Regency, which should have controlled this situation, was hindered by the fact that many of the samurai who made up its organization were controlled by the wealthy through bribery, and they could not resolve the crisis. The relationship between daimyōs and major merchants appeared in the worst possible form.

Furthermore, the global temperature drop continued into the following year and the year after that. While the Kantō Plain in 1783, the year after the eruption, did not experience constant overcast conditions like the eruption year, poor harvests continued primarily in the eastern regions year after year. Due to the successive poor harvests, food reserves were insufficient in various regions, and famine worsened as crops like sweet potatoes, which were intended for emergency relief, were also insufficient. In 1784, it is said that more than 200.000 people left the Japanese archipelago. The conditions aboard the ships for immigrants were said to be akin to slave transport ships in the Atlantic, and many perished during the harsh sea voyages. Records from that time say, "Going is hell, staying is hell."

It was a kind of retribution for the population that had grown excessively without a clear purpose amid prosperity.

In this context, the inadequacy of the Osaka Regency's semi-centralized government and regional decentralization became apparent in a negative way, leading to a decisive disparity between regions with resources and those without. This became a breeding ground for people's dissatisfaction, and even within Japan, there was an increase in the flow of the poor to resource-rich areas, leading to conflicts between the residents and newcomers.