Toyotomi Hideyoshi's Sword Control and Prohibition Edicts

Toyotomi Hideyoshi's Sword Control and Prohibition Edicts

The "sword hunt" implemented by Toyotomi Hideyoshi in the process of unifying the realm was not merely a disarmament policy, but rather a strategic measure that supported the establishment of a hierarchical social system and the foundation of territorial governance. In late 16th-century Japan, as the country moved from the chaos of the Warring States period toward unification, Hideyoshi's confiscation of swords from commoners had a dual purpose: the concept of separating warriors from farmers and the suppression of peasant uprisings. This article traces how Hideyoshi's sword prohibition edict transformed the history of Japanese swords and the impact it had on the hierarchical social order of the Edo period.

Unification of the Realm and the Historical Inevitability of the Sword Hunt

Hideyoshi began the sword hunt in 1588 (Tensho 16). During this period, Hideyoshi was about to undertake the Korean Campaign (the Bunroku and Keicho Wars) and considered the stabilization of governance within Japan a pressing necessity. Throughout the Warring States period, it was not uncommon for peasants and townspeople to possess weapons, and regional conflicts and uprisings continued unabated. During this era, armed peasants and lower-class people posed a threat to power, as exemplified by the Tenbun Hokke Rebellion of 1532, when the Honganjiji faction in Kyoto rose up in arms.

Hideyoshi's predecessor, Oda Nobunaga, also recognized the importance of disarmament, but did not implement thorough nationwide control. Behind Hideyoshi's full-scale implementation of this policy was the intention to clearly distinguish social status based on the understanding of arable land, population, and production capacity that he had completed through the Taikō Land Survey (1582 onwards), thereby determining who would be permitted to bear arms. In other words, the sword hunt was a policy inseparable from the land survey.

The Taikō Land Survey and Governance Strategy of the Sword Hunt

The Taikō Land Survey was a large-scale land measurement project that Hideyoshi undertook from Tensho 10 (1582), with the purpose of accurately measuring rice paddies and fields throughout the country and ascertaining harvest quantities. Its byproduct was the distinction between landowners and laborers, in other words, the clear separation of "commoners" and "warriors." Those not listed in the land survey records were deemed not "warriors" but "commoners" and lost the right to wear swords.

The sword hunt edict was issued in multiple stages. The "Sword Hunt Edict" dated September 15, 1588, prohibited peasants and townspeople from possessing swords, spears, firearms, and other weapons, and ordered the confiscation to be carried out nationwide between May and August. It was particularly thorough in the Kinai region, with records remaining of officials going door-to-door to confiscate weapons in the areas around Kyoto and Osaka.

This policy had multiple objectives. First, it was to prevent regional uprisings such as peasant rebellions. During the Muromachi period from the 1480s onwards, peasant uprisings and revolts occurred frequently, posing a threat to the power of feudal lords. Through the sword hunt, Hideyoshi sought to stabilize his rule by depriving peasants of the ability to mount organized armed uprisings. Second, it was to establish the exclusive monopoly of the warrior class status. In Hideyoshi's governance model, the right to bear arms was limited to the warrior class alone, aiming toward a social structure where other social classes were not permitted to possess weapons. This became the prototype of the hierarchical social order of the Edo period.

Prohibition of Private Weaponry and Confiscation of Swords from Shrines and Temples

During the implementation phase of the sword hunt edict, swords were confiscated from commoners in a manner that could not be resisted. Particularly noteworthy is that swords dedicated to shrines and temples were also made targets for confiscation. Although religious facilities were normally considered places beyond the reach of feudal power, Hideyoshi broke through this sacred status and confiscated swords under the pretext of disarmament.

In major temples in Kyoto, Hideyoshi's officials visited the main halls and confiscated dedicated swords. According to records from Tensho 16, a total of several hundred swords were confiscated from the temples of the Five Great Zen Monasteries of Kyoto. Most of these swords were stored in the Taikō storehouse and used as Hideyoshi's own arsenal. Some of the confiscated swords were also distributed as rewards to Hideyoshi's retainers.

What is interesting in this process is the aspect by which Hideyoshi justified the confiscation under the pretext of "performing memorial services for swords." In a Buddhist context, there was a belief that swords were instruments of killing, and by dedicating them to temples, one could avoid karmic retribution. Hideyoshi reversed this belief and proceeded with confiscation under the pretext of "removing instruments of murder from temples and not defiling the Pure Land."

The Korean Campaign and the Dilemma of Sword Demand

Interestingly, during the same period from 1588 to 1598 when Hideyoshi was carrying out the sword hunt thoroughly, he was also executing the Korean Campaign (the Bunroku and Keicho Wars). This campaign was a large-scale military operation that dispatched more than 150,000 troops to the Korean Peninsula, requiring vast quantities of swords. In siege warfare at Korean fortifications, Japanese swords served as the primary close-combat weapon.

This contradiction demonstrates the complexity of Hideyoshi's governance policies. While prohibiting private sword ownership domestically, Hideyoshi required vast quantities of swords for overseas expeditions. Warriors participating in the campaign naturally needed swords for combat in Korea. Hideyoshi was simultaneously implementing seemingly contradictory policies: demanding high production from sword smiths while strictly prohibiting private weaponry domestically.

After returning from Korea, Hideyoshi pursued further disarmament, also called the "Great Sword Hunt." There are also records indicating that Hideyoshi confiscated Korean and Japanese swords acquired as war spoils from returning soldiers and accumulated them in his storehouse. During this process, it is estimated that several thousand swords were removed from domestic circulation.

The Impact of Hideyoshi's Policies on Edo Period Order

Hideyoshi's sword prohibition edict and hierarchical governance were completely inherited by the subsequent Tokugawa shogunate. In the Edo period (1603 onwards), the "two-sword system" was established, under which only warriors could officially wear swords, and it was prohibited by law for peasants, merchants, and servants to possess swords. This order was built upon the foundation laid by Hideyoshi.

When Tokugawa Ieyasu established the Edo shogunate in 1603, he inherited Hideyoshi's governance system in many ways. The sword hunt was one such example, and in the early Edo period, the shogunate reissued the sword confiscation edict targeting peasants. Particularly, the "Farmer Weapon Prohibition Edict" issued at the same time as the One Castle per Province edict directly followed the logic of Hideyoshi's sword hunt.

Moreover, while many of the swords confiscated by Hideyoshi were stored in the Toyotomi storehouse, after his death, they were seized by the Tokugawa family. There are records indicating that the Tokugawa shogunate's arsenal preserved several thousand swords collected by Hideyoshi. Some of these swords were used in official shogunal sword displays and as rewards distributed to daimyo. In other words, the sword resources that Hideyoshi absorbed domestically through disarmament were reused as symbols of power by the Edo shogunate.

Edo period sword craftsmanship was also influenced by Hideyoshi's policies. As private demand for swords drastically decreased, sword smiths increasingly specialized in crafting high-quality swords for the warrior class. At the same time, they elevated the value of swords as "works of art" and "cultural assets," transforming them from mere weapons into symbols of status and aesthetics. This elevation of aesthetic value was also a product of the environment created by Hideyoshi's sword control.

Conclusion: Sword Control and the Formation of Japanese Social Order

Toyotomi Hideyoshi's sword hunt and sword prohibition edict were policies that marked a turning point in the history of Japanese swords. Rather than merely implementing military disarmament, Hideyoshi executed a social design that clearly distinguished social classes and gave the warrior class exclusive monopoly over the right to bear arms. The sword hunt, coordinated with the Taikō Land Survey, was a measure that symbolized the transition from the chaotic Warring States period to an orderly unified nation, laying the foundation for the 300 years of hierarchical society in the Edo period.

The contradiction between the external military demand of the Korean Campaign and the control of domestic weapon prohibition also demonstrates the complexity of Hideyoshi's governing philosophy. For Hideyoshi, the "sword" was not merely a weapon but a symbolic tool for visualizing social hierarchy and maintaining power structures.

The tradition of private sword ownership that Hideyoshi abolished was carried forward through the Edo period to the current sword and firearms laws. The fact that the logic of the sword hunt from over 400 years ago continues to influence modern Japanese sword regulations demonstrates how fundamental a change Hideyoshi's governance strategy brought about. In understanding the history of swords, Hideyoshi's sword prohibition edict is undoubtedly an important turning point that cannot be overlooked.