Sword Culture in the Genbun, Enkyo, and Kannen Eras (1736-1750): Kenjutsu Popularity and Samurai Sword Customs under Shogun Ieshige

Genbu Currency Reform and Samurai Economics—Impact on the Sword Market

The approximately 15-year period of Genbu, Enkyō, and Kanpō (1736–1750), which began in the later stages of the Kyōhō Reforms (1716–1745), corresponds to the first half of the era under the rule of Tokugawa Ieyoshi (家重), the 9th shogun. Ieyoshi is known as a shogun with a speech impediment, and the actual administration of government was handled by Ōoka Tadamitsu, his senior retainer. To understand the sword culture of this period, it is first necessary to grasp the 1736 shogunate's currency recoinage (Genbu Currency Reform).

In the Genbu Currency Reform, new coins with debased gold and silver were introduced into circulation, increasing economic liquidity. Although the financial situation of the samurai class remained difficult, the increase in currency quantity brought rising prices, and sword trading prices also rose gradually. For sword dealers, prices of koto (ancient swords) rose particularly during this period, and trade in famous blades became active. Meanwhile, orders to sword smiths did not decline sharply; rather, sword demand during the continued peaceful reign—demand as art objects and ceremonial items rather than for practical use—underpinned the market.

The Flourishing of Kenjutsu Schools and Sword Demand

The Genbu–Kanpō period was also an era in which the fervor for kenjutsu (sword martial arts) practice heightened throughout Edo. Since the 8th shogun Yoshimune issued the Martial Arts Encouragement Edict during the Kyōhō era, the consciousness of kenjutsu training became ingrained in the samurai class, and dojos of various schools proliferated throughout Edo. Even under Ieyoshi's rule, which continued this trend, interest in kenjutsu did not wane. In particular, various schools that would become the foundations of Shintō Munen-ryū, Kagami Shin'meichi-ryū, and Hokushin Ittō-ryū advanced their organization and expanded the number of dojo disciples.

The prevalence of kenjutsu created demand for honshin (real swords) used for licensing ceremonies and formal initiation, in addition to wooden and bamboo practice swords. Advanced practitioners performed kata training with actual uchigatana, and training swords (keiko-tō) with dulled blades were commissioned from sword smiths. Moreover, because it was customary to present swords alongside "permission certificates" (inkyōjō) that kenjutsu dojo masters gave to their disciples, there was also steady demand for relatively affordable practical swords.

Changes in Sword Fittings Design and Form of Shin-tō

In discussing swords of this era, one cannot overlook the change in design of sword fittings (koshirae). The elaborate and ornate sword mountings that reached their peak during the Genroku period (1688–1704) were temporarily suppressed by the frugality edicts of Shōtoku and Kyōhō, but from Genbu onward, decorative tendencies began to revive. In the designs of tsuba, menuki, and fuchigashira, motifs drawn from Chinese classics and Japanese poetry with a literati aesthetic were preferred, and tsuba craftsmen under the influence of Higo metalwork and the Gotō family executed refined chasing and inlay work.

In terms of blade form, while shin-tō of this period inherited the slender and shallow-curve form from the Kanmon period onward, the "mid-period forging" style, with gradually increased curve, began to be preferred. Among renowned sword smiths, those in Edo and Osaka connected to the lineage of Fujiwara Kunitsugu (Echizen Daijō) were actively working, and "regional shin-tō," which maintained local characteristics while following the Edo shin-tō style, was mass-produced.

Samurai Etiquette and the Establishment of Sword-Wearing Protocol

The Genbu–Kanpō period was also an era in which the codification and formalization of samurai etiquette advanced. Under the dual-wheel policy of "Martial Arts" and "Etiquette" promoted by the previous shogun Yoshimune, etiquette education in domain schools became more comprehensive, and the protocol for wearing a sword—how to wear, sheathe, and present it to others—was prescribed in detail. Sword-wearing regulations within Edo Castle—the types and lengths of denchū-zashi (formal swords worn in the castle)—had already become established as customs by this period.

In particular, the differentiation among ceremonial sword-wearing forms such as gusoku-tachi (armored sword) and shikidai-zashi (formal hall sword) at audiences with the shogun and official occasions became consciously recognized as an important marker of samurai rank. The opulence of koshirae and the grade of the sword (signature blades, unmarked, substitute swords, etc.) also functioned as symbols of social status. This codification of etiquette promoted the process of elevating swords from mere weapons to "identity credentials of the samurai class."

Regional Sword Smiths—The Bipolar Structure of Official and Town Smiths

The situation of regional sword smiths during the Genbu–Kanpō period was fundamentally structured as a bipolar system between the center (Edo and Osaka) and provincial castle towns. Official smiths (goyō-kaji) employed by the shogunate and daimyo received stable stipends (rice allowances) in exchange for the obligation to present a fixed number of swords annually, operating in a protected environment. Meanwhile, unaffiliated independent smiths ("town smiths") faced market competition, and problems such as counterfeiting famous signatures emerged.

In regional production centers, such as Kawachi and Settsu smiths in Osaka, Naminohira smiths in Satsuma, and Echigo smiths in Echigo, maintained unique techniques while meeting the demands of their respective domains. The sword market from the Edo to Hōreki periods had a complex structure in which such diverse production centers coexisted, and the increased economic liquidity following the Genbu Currency Reform further intensified inter-regional competition. The sword culture of this era occupies an important place in the history of the Japanese sword as a bridge to the new flourishing period of the Hōreki–Tenmei eras.