Kyogoku Takakuni (京極高国)

Takakuni KYOGOKU was the third lord of the domain of Miyazu in the Province of Tango.

In 1616, he was born as a son of Takahiro KYOGOKU, the second lord of the domain. On June 8, 1654, when his father retired, he succeeded his father as the head of the family and acceded to the lord. Takakuni confronted the retired father who still intervened with the administration in the domain, but in 1661, Takakuni himself misruled the domain by breaking a village for their delinquency in payment of nengu (land tax). At last, on June 5, 1666, the bakufu issued the order of kaieki (punishment by being deprived of one's fief) to Takakuni because of the discord between parent and child as well as his misrule of the domain, and Takakuni was placed in custody of Shigenobu NANBU, the lord of the domain of Morioka of the Province of Mutsu. He was still given 3000 bales of salary.

When Takakuni received the order of kaieki, a part of retainers including Chikaranosuke OCHIAI did not comply with the order of evacuating from the Miyazu-jo Castle and even attempted to hold up in the Castle and put up all-out resistance, but Takakuni persuaded them to surrender the castle. Therefore, although unqualified as the lord, Takakuni was supposed to have an aspect of having retainers attached to him.

He died on February 7, 1676. Age at death: 60. His descendants acceded to hatamoto (a direct vassal of the shogun) and even ranked with koke (privileged family under Tokugawa Shogunate) in a certain period due to its distinguished family line since the Muromachi period.

[Original Japanese]