The Tengu-to Rebellion: a tragic uprising born of Mito Gaku
The passion for imperial loyalism that Mito Gaku cultivated plunged Bakumatsu-era Mito Domain into fierce internal conflict. At its center was the Tengu-to Rebellion.
In 1864, the radical pro-imperial Tengu-to faction of Mito Domain rose up in arms. At its center was Fujita Koshiro, fourth son of the Mito Gaku scholar Fujita Toko.
The turmoil escalated through a clash at Nakaminato and dragged on as internal domain conflict even past the Meiji Restoration. Here's how it unfolded.
The figure at the uprising's core
Fujita Koshiro's uprisingFujita Koshiro
In March 1864, Fujita Koshiro, fourth son of Fujita Toko, rose in arms demanding the shogunate immediately close the port of Yokohama. Tamaru Inanoemon served as nominal commander, but Koshiro was the true driving figure, said to have risen with 62 comrades.
Source:The Late Mito Domain Turmoil and the People - Ibaraki University Library
Clash at Nakaminato and the destroyed furnace
Destruction of the Nakaminato furnace
Six months after the uprising, in October 1864, the Tengu-to clashed with Shosei Party-aligned forces at Nakaminato. The domain's Nakaminato reverberatory furnace, built in the 1850s, was destroyed in this fighting. The Tengu-to Rebellion ultimately ended with more than 350 people executed.
Source:The Tengu Party Incident - Ibaraki Prefectural History Museum
The Kodokan War as the final chapter
The 1868 Kodokan War
The internal domain conflict that began with the Tengu-to Rebellion was finally settled in October 1868, when Shosei Party and anti-Shosei Party forces clashed at Kodokan — the so-called Kodokan War. It is a historical irony that Kodokan, founded as a place of scholarship and martial arts, became the battlefield for the turmoil's final chapter.
Source:The Tengu Party Incident - Ibaraki Prefectural History Museum
FAQ
Who commanded the Tengu-to?
At the uprising, Tamaru Inanoemon served as nominal commander and Fujita Koshiro was the true driving figure. From October that year, as the group marched west toward Kyoto, Takeda Kounsai took command as its overall leader, and was executed after surrendering at Tsuruga.
Are the Tengu-to Rebellion and the Kodokan War the same event?
They're part of the same chain of Mito Domain turmoil, but they're distinct events: the Tengu-to Rebellion was the 1864 uprising, and the Kodokan War was the internal conflict's final phase in 1868.