Machi-bugyō

were officials of the Tokugawa shogunate in Edo period Japan. Appointments to this prominent office were usually "fudai" daimyō, but this was amongst the senior administrative posts open to those who were not daimyō.Beasley, William G. (1955). "Select Documents on Japanese Foreign Policy, 1853-1868," p. 325.] Conventional interpretations have construed these Japanese titles as "commissioner" or "overseer" or "governor."

This "bakufu" title identifies a magistrate or municipal administrator with responsibility for governing and maintaining order in what were perceived to be important cities. [Hall, John Wesley. (1955) [http://books.google.com/books?id=x0WCAAAAIAAJ&q=kinzan+bugyo&dq=kinzan+bugyo&lr=&pgis=1 "Tanuma Okitsugu: Foreruner of Modern Japan," p. 201] ]

The "machi-bugyo" were the central public authority in the Japanese urban centers of this period. These "bakufu"-appointed officers served in a unique role, which was an amalgam of chief of police, judge, and mayor. The "machi-bugyo" were expected to manage a full range of administrative and judicial responsibilities.Cunningham, Don. (2004). [http://books.google.com/books?id=g5BP7DGuNFsC&pg=PA42&dq=kita+machi-bugyo&sig=rRhP2LDIPisNyEP0q9srK4BsOeo "Taiho-Jutsu: Law and Order in the Age of the Samurai," p. 42.] ]

The "machi-bugyo" was expected to be involved in tax collection, policing, and firefighting; and at the same time, the "machi-bugyo" needed to play a number of judicial roles – hearing and deciding both ordinary civil cases and criminal cases. [see above] ]

Only high-ranking "hatamoto" were appointed to the position of "machi-bygo" because of the critical importance of what they were expected to do. The "machi-bugyo" were considered equal in rank to the minor "daimyō". There were as many as 16 "machi-bugyo" located throughout Japan. [see above] ]

hogunal city

During this period, a number of urban cities -- including Edo, Kyoto, Nagasaki, Nara, Nikkō, and Osaka -- were considered important; and some were designated as a "shogunal city." The number of such "shogunal cities" rose from three to eleven under Tokugawa administration. [Cullen, William. (2003). [http://books.google.com/books?id=ycY_85OInSoC&pg=PA27&vq=bugyo&dq=++uraga+bugyo&source=gbs_search_r&cad=0_2&sig=Lz-lqppSwmB5wSYUxXfVmEMCrBw#PPA59,M1 "A History of Japan, 1582-1941: Internal and External Worlds," p. 159.] ]

List of "machi-bugyō"

:dynamic list
* Ido Satohiro, 1849-1856. [Beasley, p. 332.]
* Izawa Masayoshi, 1858. [Beasley, p. 334.]
* Oguri Tadamasa, 1862-1863. [Beasley, p. 338.]
* Abe Masatō, 1863-1864. [Beasley, p. 331.]
* Inoue Kiynao, 1863, 1866-1868. [Beasley, p. 333.]

Notes

References

* Beasley, William G. (1955). [http://books.google.com/books?id=jjOCAAAAIAAJ&dq=Niigata+bugyo&pgis=1 "Select Documents on Japanese Foreign Policy, 1853-1868."] London: Oxford University Press. [reprinted by RoutledgeCurzon, London, 2001. 10-ISBN 0-197-13508-0; 13-ISBN 978-0-197-13508-2 (cloth)]
* Cullen, Louis M. (2003). [http://books.google.com/books?id=ycY_85OInSoC&dq=++uraga+bugyo&source=gbs_summary_s&cad=0 "A History of Japan, 1582-1941: Internal and External Worlds."] Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 10-ISBN 0-521-82155-X (cloth) -- 10-ISBN 0-521-52918-2 (paper)
* Cunningham, Don. (2004). [http://books.google.com/books?id=g5BP7DGuNFsC&dq=Bugy%C5%8D&source=gbs_summary_s&cad=0 "Taiho-Jutsu: Law and Order in the Age of the Samurai."] Tokyo: Tuttle Publishing. 10-ISBN 0-804-83536-5; 13-ISBN 978-0-804-83536-7 (cloth)
* Hall, John Wesley. (1955). [http://books.google.com/books?id=x0WCAAAAIAAJ&q=kinzan+bugyo&dq=kinzan+bugyo&lr=&pgis=1 "Tanuma Okitsugu: Foreruner of Modern Japan."] Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
* Jansen, Marius B. (1995). [http://books.google.com/books?id=cY6GRGa2vPoC&dq=Sakuji+bugy%C5%8D&client=firefox-a&source=gbs_summary_s&cad=0 "Warrior Rule in Japan."] Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 10-ISBN 0-521-48404-9

ee also

* bugyō