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'I Was Born a Shogun' — Tokugawa Iemitsu's Confidence and the Perfection of the Shogunate

The third Tokugawa shogun Iemitsu declared before the assembled daimyo: 'I was born a shogun.' Inheriting the shogunate his grandfather Ieyasu and father Hidetada had built, he perfected its control system — including the alternate-attendance (sankin-kotai) requirement.

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The third Tokugawa shogun Iemitsu declared to the daimyo that, unlike his grandfather Ieyasu and father Hidetada who rose from among them, he was ‘born a shogun’ and they were his vassals. He institutionalized sankin-kotai (alternate attendance) in 1635, forcing daimyo to alternate between Edo and their domains while keeping their families hostage in Edo — the keystone of Tokugawa control. He also rebuilt Nikko Toshogu in its current splendor.

Portrait of Tokugawa Iemitsu — the third shogun who declared himself 'born a shogun' and institutionalized alternate attendance

Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain

Yomeimon Gate of Nikko Toshogu — the World Heritage shrine Iemitsu rebuilt to honor his grandfather Ieyasu, symbol of Tokugawa authority

Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 3.0

Edo Castle — the Tokugawa seat where Iemitsu perfected the shogunate's control system; daimyo gathered here under alternate attendance

Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain

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Key Figures

Tokugawa Iemitsu