Tokugawa Ieyasu's Sword Policy: The Reorganization of Swordsmiths and the Tenka Omono Collection in Early Edo

Tokugawa Ieyasu (Tokugawa Ieyasu), who won victory in the Battle of Sekigahara in Keichō 5 (1600) and assumed the position of Shogun in Keichō 8 (1603), laid the foundation for the Edo shogunate that would last 265 years. However, it is not widely known that Ieyasu was not only a "political genius" but also a "major policymaker for Japanese swords." This article analyzes how Tokugawa Ieyasu's sword policies—the recruitment of sword smiths to Edo, the official appointment of the Honami family, and the collection of famous swords—shaped the sword order of the Edo period.

Ieyasu's Passion for Swords—The Reality of Collection and Appreciation

Tokugawa Ieyasu's interest in swords transcended the mere instrumental concern of a military commander. Throughout his life, Ieyasu actively collected famous swords and maintained a deep interest in sword appraisal, as confirmed by multiple historical records.

The *Surfu-ki* (a record of the late Ieyasu's time in Surfu Castle) contains numerous descriptions of Ieyasu's daily practice of sword appraisal and appreciation. Ieyasu repeatedly summoned Honami Kohtoku (Honami Kohtoku), the leading sword appraiser of the time, to Surfu to seek his appraisal opinions. Honami Kohtoku was the finest sword appraiser of the era, and his close relationship with Ieyasu became the foundation for the long-term relationship between the Tokugawa family and the Honami family.

Among the swords Ieyasu collected, particularly renowned were those called "tenkagomotsu" (shogun's treasures)—supreme masterpieces. Many of the famous swords possessed by Oda Nobunaga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi passed into Tokugawa Ieyasu's hands after the collapse of the Toyotomi regime. Records such as the *Tōsei Taihei-ki* describe how Ieyasu acquired numerous famous swords when confiscating the Toyotomi family's treasures.

Official Appointment of the Honami Family—Institutionalizing Sword Appraisal for the Shogunate

One of the most institutionally important decisions in Tokugawa Ieyasu's sword policy was the "official appointment of the Honami family." The Honami family had been a professional group engaged in sword polishing, appraisal, and maintenance (joushiki) since the Muromachi period, and Ieyasu positioned this family as the Edo shogunate's official sword institution.

The Honami family's public functions divided into three major categories. The first was "sword appraisal and the issuance of origami (appraisal certificates)." The "origami" (appraisal documents) issued by the Honami family were official documents guaranteeing a sword's provenance, smith, and value, becoming an "authoritative certificate" in Edo-period sword trading. The second was "sword polishing and management for the shogun and daimyo families." The polishing and maintenance of swords for the shogun's household, the Three Branch Families, and other high-ranking samurai families became the exclusive function of the Honami family. The third was "auxiliary appraisal of presentation swords." When daimyo presented swords to the shogun, the Honami family would appraise their quality and value and report to the shogun.

Through the Honami family's official appointment, sword appraisal in the Edo period became "institutionalized and bureaucratized." The Honami family's origami functioned not merely as the opinion of a single appraiser, but as an official evaluation recognized by the shogunate. This became the spiritual predecessor to the modern appraisal system of the "Nippon Bijutsu Touken Hozon Kyōkai" (NBTHK).

The Recruitment of Sword Smiths to Edo and the "Official Retainer Sword Smith" System

Another crucial sword policy of Tokugawa Ieyasu was "recruiting excellent sword smiths to Edo and Surfu." Ieyasu requested renowned sword smiths from across Japan to relocate to Edo or Surfu, placing them under shogunate patronage as "official retainer sword smiths" (okakae-toukou).

A representative example of a recruited smith is Echizen Yasutsugi (Echizen Yasutsugi). Yasutsugi, a sword smith from Echizen (present-day Fukui Prefecture), was recognized by Tokugawa Ieyasu and summoned to Edo. He was granted the character "yasu" (安) from Ieyasu's own name and permitted to use the name "Echizen Yasutsugi"—the highest honor a lord could bestow, giving a retainer a character from his own name. Yasutsugi served as the official sword smith for the Tokugawa shogun family and was recognized by later shoguns, establishing a long-standing sword smith dynasty.

Additionally, disciples of Horikawa Kunihiro (Horikawa Kunihiro) produced many sword smiths who were active in Edo and Surfu during Ieyasu's era. Kunihiro himself had credentials providing swords to Toyotomi Hideyoshi and was recognized as a master smith of the highest standard demanded by the ruler of the realm.

The shogunate's "official retainer sword smith system" later spread to the various domains, with each domain establishing its own "domain-affiliated sword smith" system. This formed the foundation of nationwide sword smith protection policies, supporting both the local diversity and maintenance of sword-making standards throughout the Edo period.

Management of the Tenkagomotsu—The Shogun Family's Authority and Famous Swords

The "tenkagomotsu" that Ieyasu collected and managed functioned not merely as a personal collection but as a political symbol demonstrating the authority of the Tokugawa regime.

Among the particularly important tenkagomotsu is the "Dōji-giri Yasutsugi" (Dōji-giri Yasutsugi). This sword was crafted by Yasutsugi, the renowned Heian-period master smith, and carries the legend that "Minamoto no Yoriimitsu slew the demon Shuten-dōji with this blade." Since the Muromachi period, it has been counted as one of the "five great swords," a supreme masterpiece. By acquiring this blade, Ieyasu visibly demonstrated his position as the one who commanded "the symbol of Japanese martial prowess."

The possession and management of such renowned swords was inherited by subsequent shoguns. The second shogun, Hidetada (Hidetada), and the third shogun, Iemitsu (Iemitsu), both continued sword policies, and the "list of swords in the shogun family's collection" was maintained and updated by successive generations. Many of these swords managed by the shogun's family are currently preserved in the Tokyo National Museum and continue to live on in a form accessible to modern viewers.

The Laws for Military Houses and Sword Regulations—Daimyo Sword Possession and Management

Ieyasu's sword policy also had a "regulatory" aspect. The *Buke Shohatto* (Laws for Military Houses) promulgated in Genna 1 (1615) contained clauses limiting the military power of daimyo, effectively establishing the shogunate's administrative authority over sword manufacturing and distribution.

Specifically, when daimyo maintained "official retainer sword smiths," they remained under shogunate approval and oversight. Additionally, the "large-scale exportation of swords to other domains" became effectively regulated, and the sword market was incorporated into the shogunate's managed order.

This regulatory policy facilitated the transition from the Sengoku period's "competitive sword market" to the Edo period's "orderly sword industry under shogunate management." While sword smiths gained stable positions as domain-affiliated artisans, the space for independent smiths operating freely in the market shrank.

Conclusion—The "Edo Sword Order" Designed by Ieyasu

Tokugawa Ieyasu's sword policies—the official appointment of the Honami family, the recruitment of sword smiths, the management of the tenkagomotsu, and regulation through the Laws for Military Houses—designed the sword order that would prevail throughout the 265-year Edo period.

Under this order, swords transformed completely from "weapons" to "ceremonial garments and works of art indicating samurai status." With the establishment of appraisal systems, "objective evaluation of authenticity and quality" became possible, providing a stable development foundation for the sword market. Many modern systems of Japanese sword appraisal, preservation, and distribution are extensions of the institutional framework designed during the Ieyasu era.

When appreciating Edo-period swords, being aware of Ieyasu's policy design in the background deepens understanding of questions such as "why does this sword bear a Honami origami?" and "why is this smith affiliated with the ○○ domain?"