Keiō Era — The Final Swords of the Tokugawa Order

The Keiō era (1865–1868) was a period of violent acceleration in which the Tokugawa system, established over 260 years, collapsed in rapid succession — and the final phase in which the Japanese sword's social role underwent fundamental transformation. Having passed through the turbulence of the Ansei, Bunkyū, and Genji eras, the conflict between the shogunate and anti-shogunate forces entered its decisive stage in the Keiō years, and swords once again stood at the very front of historical action as direct instruments of political change.

The emblematic figures of Keiō-era sword culture are the Shinsengumi, the special police force entrusted by the shogunate with maintaining order in Kyoto. From the Ikedaya Incident (1864) through the Aburanokōji Incident (1867), the Shinsengumi relied primarily on close-quarters sword combat as their principal fighting method. The names of their swords have achieved remarkable renown in Japanese sword history: Kondō Isami's Kotetsu, Hijikata Toshizō's Izuminokami Kanesada, Okita Sōji's Kikuichimonji Norimune. What is significant from a sword-historical perspective is not legend but fact: that these men actively sought the finest quality blades available — Shintō, Shinshintō, and classical Kotō masterworks — demonstrating a genuine return to the sword's combat value among those who remained committed to blade warfare.

Through the chain of political events — the Satsuma-Chōshū Alliance (1866), Taisei Hōkan (October 1867), the Imperial Restoration (December 1867), and the Battle of Toba-Fushimi (January 1868) — swords remained the most direct visible expression of the warrior's identity and political will. At Toba-Fushimi, the Satsuma-Chōshū forces used modern Minié and Snider rifles, while shogunal, Aizu, and Shinsengumi forces relied primarily on swords and obsolete firearms. This battle is one of history's clearest demonstrations of firearms' decisive superiority over blade warfare, marking the announcement of the sword's end as the primary military instrument.

The sword industry of the Keiō era found itself in difficult circumstances — caught between surging demand and shortages of materials and skilled craftsmen. The prolonged Bakumatsu crisis forced smiths across Japan into complex political positions, receiving commissions from han, the shogunate, and anti-shogunate factions alike. The great shinshintō masters who embodied Suishinshi Masahide's classical-revival vision were also increasingly losing patrons and production environments amid the political chaos.

The outbreak of the Boshin War in Keiō 4 (1868) and the establishment of the Meiji government marked an essential turning point in the history of the Japanese sword. The Abolition of Domains (1871), the Conscription Ordinance (1873), and the Sword Abolition Edict (1876) collectively transformed the sword from "the soul of the warrior" into "a fine art and craft object," redefining the swordsmith from "weapons manufacturer" to "traditional artisan." The Keiō era is inscribed in Japanese sword history as this transformation's immediate precursor — the last era in which the sword genuinely functioned in the context of social power and actual combat.