Metsuke (目付) were the censors or the inspectors of Tokugawa shogunate. They were bakufu officials ranking somewhat lower than the bugyō. The metsuke were charged with the special duty of detecting and investigating instances of maladministration, corruption or disaffection anywhere in Japan, and particularly amongst the populace having status below the daimyō.[1]
The shogunate recognized the need for some kind of internal intelligence-gathering apparatus and for some degree of covert espionage within its own ranks. It could be said that the metsuke functioned as the Shogun's intelligence agency or as internal spies, reporting to the officials in Edo on events and situations across the country.[2]
The metsuke were charged with focusing on those ranking below daimyō-status; and their counterparts, the ōmetsuke, were responsible for supervising the activities of officials and members of the daimyō (feudal lords).[1]
Although similarly engaged, the reporting protocols of the metsuke and ōmetsuke differed. The metsuke reported to wakadoshiyori who ranked just below the rōjū. The ōmetsuke reported directly to the four or five rōjū at the top of the shogunate bureaucracy. By design, the intelligence-gathering activities of the metsuke was intended to complement those of the ōmetsuke even though there was no official reporting relationship between the two somewhat independent groups.[2]
There were at any given time as many as twenty-four metsuke.[2]
Ad hoc evolution
The bureaucracy of the Tokugawa shogunate expanded on an ad hoc basis, responding to perceived needs and changing circumstances. Sometimes one or more of the metsuke or ōmetsuke would have been selected to address a specific or even a unique problem. For example, Arao Norimasa in the period from 1852 through 1854 was charged with special duties as kaibo-gakari-metsuke.[3]
The prefix kaibō-gakari meaning "in charge of maritime defense" was used with the titles of some bakufu officials after 1845. This term was used to designate those who bore a special responsibility for overseeing coastal waters, and by implication, for dealing with matters involving foreigners. "Kaibō-gakari-metsuke" later came to be superseded by the term gaikoku-gakari.[4] These developments preceded the Gaikoku bugyō system which began just prior to the negotiations which resulted in the Harris Treaty.[5] First appointed in August 1858, the gaikoku-bugyō were bakufu officials who were charged with advising the government on foreign affairs and who were tasked with conducting negotiations with foreign diplomats both in Japan and abroad.
In popular culture
The post of metsuke was, of course, not immune to corruption, and sometimes the conduct of these officials could be affected by bribes. For example, the televised jidaigeki episodes of Abarenbō Shōgun are rife with petty corruption, including a broad range of officials across the span of television seasons.
In the video game Total War: Shogun 2, metsuke are agents tasked with imprisoning or executing operatives of enemy clans, particularly ninja, as well as with overseeing settlements to increase internal security and improve tax collection.
metsuke, 目付, were, censors, inspectors, tokugawa, shogunate, they, were, bakufu, officials, ranking, somewhat, lower, than, bugyō, metsuke, were, charged, with, special, duty, detecting, investigating, instances, maladministration, corruption, disaffection, an. Metsuke 目付 were the censors or the inspectors of Tokugawa shogunate They were bakufu officials ranking somewhat lower than the bugyō The metsuke were charged with the special duty of detecting and investigating instances of maladministration corruption or disaffection anywhere in Japan and particularly amongst the populace having status below the daimyō 1 Contents 1 Intelligence gathering 2 Ad hoc evolution 3 In popular culture 4 List of metsuke 5 Notes 6 References 7 See alsoIntelligence gathering EditThe shogunate recognized the need for some kind of internal intelligence gathering apparatus and for some degree of covert espionage within its own ranks It could be said that the metsuke functioned as the Shogun s intelligence agency or as internal spies reporting to the officials in Edo on events and situations across the country 2 The metsuke were charged with focusing on those ranking below daimyō status and their counterparts the ōmetsuke were responsible for supervising the activities of officials and members of the daimyō feudal lords 1 Although similarly engaged the reporting protocols of the metsuke and ōmetsuke differed The metsuke reported to wakadoshiyori who ranked just below the rōju The ōmetsuke reported directly to the four or five rōju at the top of the shogunate bureaucracy By design the intelligence gathering activities of the metsuke was intended to complement those of the ōmetsuke even though there was no official reporting relationship between the two somewhat independent groups 2 There were at any given time as many as twenty four metsuke 2 Ad hoc evolution EditThe bureaucracy of the Tokugawa shogunate expanded on an ad hoc basis responding to perceived needs and changing circumstances Sometimes one or more of the metsuke or ōmetsuke would have been selected to address a specific or even a unique problem For example Arao Norimasa in the period from 1852 through 1854 was charged with special duties as kaibo gakari metsuke 3 The prefix kaibō gakari meaning in charge of maritime defense was used with the titles of some bakufu officials after 1845 This term was used to designate those who bore a special responsibility for overseeing coastal waters and by implication for dealing with matters involving foreigners Kaibō gakari metsuke later came to be superseded by the term gaikoku gakari 4 These developments preceded the Gaikoku bugyō system which began just prior to the negotiations which resulted in the Harris Treaty 5 First appointed in August 1858 the gaikoku bugyō were bakufu officials who were charged with advising the government on foreign affairs and who were tasked with conducting negotiations with foreign diplomats both in Japan and abroad In popular culture EditThe post of metsuke was of course not immune to corruption and sometimes the conduct of these officials could be affected by bribes For example the televised jidaigeki episodes of Abarenbō Shōgun are rife with petty corruption including a broad range of officials across the span of television seasons Metsuke also appear as persecutors of Japanese Christians in the film Silence 2016 6 In the video game Total War Shogun 2 metsuke are agents tasked with imprisoning or executing operatives of enemy clans particularly ninja as well as with overseeing settlements to increase internal security and improve tax collection List of metsuke EditMatsudaira Chikano 1841 1844 7 Ido Staohiro 1842 1845 8 Arao Narimasa 1852 1854 9 Nagai Naomune 1853 1858 10 Iwase Tadanari 1854 1858 11 Oguri Tadamasa 1859 1860 10 Ikeda Nagaaki 1862 1863 1863 11 Kawada Hiroshi 1864 12 Kurimoto Sebei 1864 1865 7 Notes Edit a b Beasley William G 1955 Select Documents on Japanese Foreign Policy 1853 1868 p 326 a b c Cunningham Don 2004 Taiho jutsu Law and Order in the Age of the Samurai p 39 Beasley p 341 Beasley p 323 Cullin L M 2003 A History of Japan 1582 1941 p 185 Silence los silencios de Martin Scorsese 8 January 2017 a b Beasley p 335 Beasley p 332 Beasley p 331 a b Beasley p 338 a b Beasley p 333 Beasley p 334 References EditBeasley William G 1955 Select Documents on Japanese Foreign Policy 1853 1868 London Oxford University Press reprinted by RoutledgeCurzon London 2001 ISBN 978 0 19 713508 2 cloth Cullen L M 2003 A History of Japan 1582 1941 Internal and External Worlds Cambridge Cambridge University Press ISBN 0 521 82155 X cloth ISBN 0 521 52918 2 paper Cunningham Don 2004 Taiho jutsu Law and Order in the Age of the Samurai Tokyo Tuttle Publishing ISBN 0 8048 3536 5 Sansom George Bailey 1963 A History of Japan 1615 1867 Stanford Stanford University Press ISBN 978 0 8047 0527 1See also EditBugyō Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Metsuke amp oldid 1088411268, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
