Nobunaga’s Ambition Realized: Dawn of a New Rising Sun
- Thread starter Ambassador Huntsman
- Start date
Thank you for another interlude on the situation in Europe so quickly. I wonder how the situation in Poland will develop now. Will Sobieski continue to pursue further expansion? And if so, where? Russia plunging into civil war? The Ottoman Empire strengthening its position in the Balkans? Sweden still keeping a tight grip on the Baltic Sea?
Or will the war, which had turned from a quick and easy one into a very dangerous and and miraculously won, convince the king to focus on domestic politics? Rebuilding the country, introducing a few reforms, subordinating the nobility, establishing some colonies in the Americas or somewhere? It would be nice to see that.
Btw. I don't know if this information will change anything, but I just remembered it while reading this chapter - in OTL, one of Sobieski's political plans as king of Poland and Lithuania was to restore Ducal Prussia as a vassal of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and install his own son as its ruler. This was intended to strengthen the monarch's position in the state and ensure the Sobieski family's continued election as the ruler of the country (something like the Czech crown helping the Habsburgs in HRE).
Or will the war, which had turned from a quick and easy one into a very dangerous and and miraculously won, convince the king to focus on domestic politics? Rebuilding the country, introducing a few reforms, subordinating the nobility, establishing some colonies in the Americas or somewhere? It would be nice to see that.
Btw. I don't know if this information will change anything, but I just remembered it while reading this chapter - in OTL, one of Sobieski's political plans as king of Poland and Lithuania was to restore Ducal Prussia as a vassal of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and install his own son as its ruler. This was intended to strengthen the monarch's position in the state and ensure the Sobieski family's continued election as the ruler of the country (something like the Czech crown helping the Habsburgs in HRE).
hmm this is interesting, with how Poland seems to be a lot stronger than otl, and they're keeping themselves relatively stable while beating off all the ppl wanting to take from their land.
seeing the Transylvanian princes being destroyed by the ottomans was interesting too, with how they conducted themselves they were too uppity as vassals.
And the Netherlands taking new Sweden as per otl, which I think isn't that different from otl. If the Netherlands could get enough germans to America they would be a force to be reckoned with.
Thank you!!
At the very minimum, Anglo-Dutch relations are better than OTL. A lot of it chalks up to Stuart-Orangist ties.
What I described is basically what happened IOTL in the sense that Sophia becomes the regent after feuding with Peter I's supporters.
Well John II Casimir passed a slew of reforms that weakened the liberum veto and instituted vivente rege so whatever more is done is gonna be more incremental. I'm definitely still planning what will happen next. As for plans for his son, vivente rege instituted allows a Polish-Lithuanian king to designate his successor while he's still alive and as long as John Sobieski remains a strong king and his son Alexander isn't garbage, his succession is all but assured.
New Sweden is more substantial ITTL, mostly because of its longer survival so its incorporation moderately boosts the strength of New Netherlands.
tbf I hope we get a more absolutist PLC ittl since the Sejm is what ruined PLC at the end. Them surviving and being the counterbalance between Russia and the Ottomans would be interesting to see in general.
Maybe we have Alexander be the one to reinstitute hereditary moarchy or something like that.
hmm makes sense. I hope new Netherlands survives ittl, it was quite the interesting colony in general.
If it happens it would probably be in the west coast for otter skin, as we've talked about before.
Huntsman hasn't talked about his future plans in Japanese America.
For now.
We have discussed before and we think They will most likely follow the kurils to alaska
The Commonwealth has been shaken and those damn Teutons are running free but Sobieski's reforms have held. Decent outcome. I wonder, what are the Ottomans doing? Seems there's no sign of a Great Turkish War for now.
Not too dissimilar from our TL. The biggest change is an Ottoman-Safavid War that saw a complete takeover of the Caucuses by the Sublime Porte.
Chapter 119: The Tenwa-Jokyo Era
Chapter 119: The Tenwa-Jokyo Era
As the 1670s drew to a close and Japan entered the 1680s, the realm transitioned away from the political disunity, economic weakness, and societal anxiety that the previous decade had been defined by, paving way for a new era of prosperity and stability. Possessing the entire machinery of politics in their hands, the leadership of the Nanshin faction now pressed their own agenda. The decade between 1679 and 1689, known as the Tenwa-Jokyo era (天和貞享時代) after the era names that encompassed most of it, would be dominated by a triad of three men, known as the Nobuhiro Triumvirate (信熙三人衆) after the daijo-daijin they ruled on behalf of, in Azuchi: Luson governor Kanbe Tomozane, Inspector-General Kudō Kanefuyu, and Mōri Tsugumoto.
One of the first actions Azuchi took during this 10-year period was the organizing of a new Europe-bound embassy. Ever since the days of Oda Nobutomo, foreign embassies had been limited to Japan’s close neighbors like Ming China and Dai Viet with none coming close to the scale or scope of the previous delegations to Paris, Delhi, or Constantinople. By contrast, this upcoming embassy was set to be the most expansive one yet. This time, the Iberian powers, relations with whom were at their most positive since the Iberian-Japanese War especially with Portugal, would be visited alongside England, France, the Netherlands, and Sweden. Leading the embassy was noble and Sangi-shu member Nakanoin Michishige (中院通茂) whose father Michizumi had been a part of the Parisian embassy. The rest of the delegation was composed mostly of merchants and artisans and their sons, principally from Sakai and Azuchi, as well as Azuchi bureaucrat Mori Nagamoto (森長基). The embassy left Sakai in March 1681 and subsequently sailed across the Indian Ocean and around the Cape of Good Hope before landing in Lisbon later in the year. Over the course of their trip, they would also visit Madrid, Paris, and London, although plans to visit Amsterdam and Stockholm due to the start of the Franco-Dutch War and the French invasion of Dutch Brabant and Flanders. Like the 1635-1639 embassy, this second grand embassy captivated the interest of western Europe, particularly in Lisbon and Madrid where the Spanish and Portuguese were interested in the Asian nation that had defeated them in the far eastern reaches. In contrast to Tomoaki from decades prior, Michishige presented himself in a more reserved but equally honorable and impressive manner like the Kyoto-raised noble he was. Notably, his greater depth of knowledge in arts and culture caught the attention of the royal courts, Michishige demonstrating his mastery in tea preparation to an aristocratic audience increasingly adopting the drink as a flavor of their culture. As a representative of Azuchi and Kyoto, Michishige would also discuss ongoing trade and diplomatic arrangements through the expertise of the accompanying Nagamoto and Japanese merchants as well as the translators.
One of the first actions Azuchi took during this 10-year period was the organizing of a new Europe-bound embassy. Ever since the days of Oda Nobutomo, foreign embassies had been limited to Japan’s close neighbors like Ming China and Dai Viet with none coming close to the scale or scope of the previous delegations to Paris, Delhi, or Constantinople. By contrast, this upcoming embassy was set to be the most expansive one yet. This time, the Iberian powers, relations with whom were at their most positive since the Iberian-Japanese War especially with Portugal, would be visited alongside England, France, the Netherlands, and Sweden. Leading the embassy was noble and Sangi-shu member Nakanoin Michishige (中院通茂) whose father Michizumi had been a part of the Parisian embassy. The rest of the delegation was composed mostly of merchants and artisans and their sons, principally from Sakai and Azuchi, as well as Azuchi bureaucrat Mori Nagamoto (森長基). The embassy left Sakai in March 1681 and subsequently sailed across the Indian Ocean and around the Cape of Good Hope before landing in Lisbon later in the year. Over the course of their trip, they would also visit Madrid, Paris, and London, although plans to visit Amsterdam and Stockholm due to the start of the Franco-Dutch War and the French invasion of Dutch Brabant and Flanders. Like the 1635-1639 embassy, this second grand embassy captivated the interest of western Europe, particularly in Lisbon and Madrid where the Spanish and Portuguese were interested in the Asian nation that had defeated them in the far eastern reaches. In contrast to Tomoaki from decades prior, Michishige presented himself in a more reserved but equally honorable and impressive manner like the Kyoto-raised noble he was. Notably, his greater depth of knowledge in arts and culture caught the attention of the royal courts, Michishige demonstrating his mastery in tea preparation to an aristocratic audience increasingly adopting the drink as a flavor of their culture. As a representative of Azuchi and Kyoto, Michishige would also discuss ongoing trade and diplomatic arrangements through the expertise of the accompanying Nagamoto and Japanese merchants as well as the translators.
Portrait of Nakanoin Michishige
One of the more interesting moments of the embassy was when Michishige visited the private residence of Louis, the prince of Conde at the Chateau de Chantilly. Being one of the few people still around who had met and interacted with both Michishige’s father and Oda Tomoaki, this prince of the blood cordially welcomed Michishige, chatting about the experiences he had with Michizumi and Tomoaki. He then showed the Japanese noble the katana sword given to him as a farewell gift by Tomoaki and spoke of how it had accompanied him in all of his military campaigns. After Michishige’s visit, the prince of Conde would once more bring it to what would be his last military campaign [1] in the Low Countries as part of the Franco-Dutch War. Although Conde is remembered today largely for his illustrious military career, his relationships with the members of the Japanese embassies and casual interest in Japan marked one of the beginnings of personal interactions between the Japanese and their European counterparts beyond trade and geopolitics in Europe.
The 1681-1683 embassy would not be the only development in Japanese foreign policy and diplomacy. Through the mediation of Tsugumoto and Sou Yoshizane, Azuchi would begin its relations with Joseon over the decade after turning stone cold in the aftermath of the Asiatic Northern War. By now, king Sukjong had matured into an effective sovereign in his own right, having begun to balance the various factions at court against one another and increase his own authority in the process. This especially hurt the power of the Sinophilic Confucian bureaucrats who carried the most virulently anti-Japanese sentiments. As a result, both sides found common ground and mended affairs, meaningfully increasing Joseon-Japanese trade for the first time in years. On the other end of the spectrum, the rivalry between Siam and Japan intensified as the 1670s saw the former’s king Chaofa Chai embark upon a new mercantilist agenda while Japan was distracted with internal divisions and recovery, with Siamese maritime power beginning to encroach upon Japanese trade interests at an unprecedented level.
At home, mercantilist reforms were passed to spur economic growth, further reinvigorate overseas trade, and support the local mercantilist enterprises run by the daimyo. Previously, Azuchi had wielded a somewhat looser hand when it came to the economy and trade but with the full ascendance came a stronger desire for mercantilist intervention. To that end, the currency was debased in 1682 to increase overseas exports and the realm’s silver and copper mines were regulated to prevent too much of those metals from flowing out of Japan, a concern especially with the former as the country’s silver reserves were severely depleted from years of mass exportations into Ming China and Joseon. The base privileges of many foreign merchants in Japan were restricted by Azuchi as well.
The newly minted, debased Tenwa koban (天和小判)
Nowhere was Azuchi’s newfound emphasis on mercantilism felt more than in Luson province, the home turf of the Kanbe clan. Japan’s most southerly holding was already transitioning from a feudal military buffer between the home islands and the Spanish to a properly integrated province of the Japanese realm and a trade hub on its own beginning to rival Bireitō. After the conclusion of the Luzon War and the establishment of long-term peace with Manila, Tomozane began implementing domestic reforms, fully importing Azuchi’s political systems to the province and centralizing power. His administration invested resources towards agricultural drainage projects in the Cagayan Valley and embarked upon several building projects in Awari to make it the Sakai of the northern Philippines. In the economic sphere, Tomozane put sugar production and the Bigan gold mines directly under Awari’s control. However, this move would also standardize the employment of primarily indigenous and other non-Japanese laborers like Malays and Chinese under harsh, restrictive conditions and cement the sociocultural stratification in the province, with the Japanese at the top, the latter which would come to haunt Luson as a whole. In any case, the Nanshin-ha’s state focus on southerly trade further added to the prosperity as the province being on Japan’s southern periphery meant that it reaped the rewards first.
In addition to instituting mercantilist measures, the government also organized a military parade in Kyoto in 1681 (京都御馬揃え) that commemorated the one that Oda Nobunaga threw in 1581. It was of even greater scale, involving every daimyo clan in one way or another. Japanese contemporaries noted this and made many other comparisons to Nobunaga’s 1581 parade, including the technological evolution of the Japanese samurai over the past 100 years and the fact that the daijo-daijin mimicked Oda Nobunaga’s apparel in his military parade every way he could. Foreigners similarly were captivated by the grandeur of the spectacle, even demonstrating a degree of fear in the face of the impressive Japanese military machine. Many who viewed the parade also commented on the martial presence of the Oda heir, the 14 year old Nobuie, whose confidence and maturity was praised as the sign of a solid heir to Japan.
Depiction of Oda Nobuhiro at the 1681 Kyoto military parade
Despite Azuchi’s successes, problems old and new reared their heads during the decade. In 1684, Nobuhiro’s second son Kaga Hiroaki died at just 15, once again leaving the Kaga domain bereft of leadership. In the end, Hiroaki’s guardian Urakusai Hisahide would be given the Kaga surname and succeed Hiroaki as the next daimyo and governor of Kaga province, completely cementing the dominance of Azuchi and the Nanshin-ha in Kaga itself. This was met with rumblings of opposition from many of the late Nagaaki’s longtime vassals and retainers and the possibility of yet another insurrection loomed. Unwilling to take any chances, Hisahide conducted a purge of their ranks with the assistance of Inspector-General Kanefuyu, imprisoning suspected conspirators and confiscating the lands of untrustworthy retainers, redistributing them to his own men. This event, known as the Kaga Purge (加賀の大獄), left a mark on the domain for years to come, and its impact even drove a few senior retainers like Tsuda Takeakira into early retirement.
Outside of the quashing of political intrigue, Azuchi would also target the fledgling Salvationist faith after pressure from both the Yamato Church and Shinto-Buddhist establishment due to its perceived status as a fanatical cult. In 1685, the magistrate of Gifu, Tsumaki ordered the destruction of the city’s kyusei-do and issued a warrant for the arrest of Takemaro-no-mikoto. Although the prophet of the faith would manage to escape the hands of the law, he could not prevent his base of operations from being dismantled piece by piece, plank by plank. Many of the religion’s founding artifacts, including a beautiful tapestry crafted in Gifu itself portraying the Buddha and Jesus Christ together, were also destroyed by the magistrate’s men and several followers were also arrested. Although none of the caught were executed, they would be imprisoned and tortured, the magistrate’s men attempting forced deconversions of them. With the kyusei-do destroyed and Takemaro exiled, Salvationism’s following in Gifu quickly diminished, driven underground and hanging on for dear life. As for the prophet himself, he would go into hiding into the countryside of central Japan, focusing on regaining what had been lost amongst the peasantry and staying away from urban centers. He would pass away suddenly in 1690 while trekking the coast of Echigo, entrusting the future of his faith to his closest followers.
Under the stewardship of the Nobuhiro Triumvirate, Japan was led towards a renewed era of peace and prosperity, guided by mercantilism and bolstered by amicable foreign policy. Their regime, for all of the goodwill it earned from its constituent daimyo as well as that of the merchant class, however, also made many enemies in the process. Many former supporters of Kaga Nagaaki and the Hokushin-ha also continued to lurk on the sidelines of central politics. This would come to shape Azuchi’s politics when the Tenwa-Jokyo decade was set to end.
[1]: Due to less war happening after 1648 for France, the prince of Conde hadn’t been worn out into retirement by 1682 just yet.
Last edited:
Good chapter. Interesting to see Japan furthering international relations and the development of their own Christian theology /sycrintism
Looks like Luson could have some serious problems down the line. Hopefully no indigenous rebellions pop up which could force Azuchi and Awari to enact penal laws against the native Filipinos.
Hopefully there won’t be any famines on par with the Great Famine.
Well it's agricultura don't seems to be bases around a single crop so I think they would be fine
from what huntsman had said about it probably not, but it is something the Japanese should already be thinking about. After all, the Philippines are a relatively restive bunch, and a more permanent solution for everyone is good in the long run.
Could it be possible for Savlvationists to make the Journey to Japan’s future colonies in North America? They could be TTL Japan's version of the Mormons. Except with them fleeing to the East to escape persecution instead of journeying west.