Tenpō famine
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The Tenpō famine (天保の飢饉, Tenpō no kikin), also known as the Great Tenpō famine (天保の大飢饉, Tenpō no daikikin), was a famine that affected Japan during the Edo period. Considered to have lasted from 1833 to 1837, it was named after the Tenpō era (1830–1844), during the reign of Emperor Ninkō. The death toll was estimated between 200,000 and 300,000.[1] The ruling shōgun during the famine was Tokugawa Ienari.
Causes
The famine was most severe in northern
The famine was further deepened by repeat insect infestations and outbreaks of disease.[4] Although the Tenpō famine is considered one of the Four Great Famines of the Tokugawa period, the Japanese demographer Akira Hayami has proposed that the deaths and population decline from the years of the famine were actually caused by the disease outbreaks rather than the famine itself.[5]
Social effects
The Tenpō famine increased the number of beggars throughout northern Japan, who were considered more lawless and unorderly than the beggars seen during the
Consequences
Between 1834 and 1840, only eight of Japan's sixty-eight provinces reported a population increase; 27 provinces reported a population decline of 5% of more.[7]
The famine was one of a series of calamities that shook the faith of the people in the ruling
Tenpō reforms
The nationwide Tenpō reforms were a variety of economic policies introduced after the end of the famine in 1841. However, domains across Japan had begun instituting their own reforms during the latter years of the famine. Mito Domain, under Tokugawa Nariaki, implemented four major reforms: a comprehensive land survey, resettlement of samurai to rural areas, the end of the domain's daimyo in Edo, and the establishment of a domain school.[8]
See also
References
- ISBN 978-1-000-28091-3.
- ISBN 0-521-22356-3.
- ISBN 978-0-8047-6386-8.
- ISBN 978-0-520-91726-2.
- ISBN 978-0-19-925191-9.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-68417-589-5.
- ISBN 978-0-521-62647-7.
- ISBN 978-1-7936-4190-8.