Tokugawa Nariaki was the ninth daimyo of Mito and father of the last shogun, Tokugawa Yoshinobu. He was a reactionary who despised everything Western. He advocated answering foreign demands on Japanese sovereignty with cannon fire and the tempered razor-sharp steel of the Japanese sword. His Mito domain, the cradle of Imperial Loyalism, attracted Imperial Loyalists throughout Japan; and it was Nariaki who coined the Loyalists’ war cry of Sonnō-Jōi—Revere the Emperor and Expel the Barbarians (abbreviated as Son-Jō).

In 1841 Nariaki established the famed Kōdōkan within the precincts of Mito Castle, as the official school of Mito Han. The famous “Sonjō” tablet (below) hangs on the back wall of a room beyond an entrance to the Kōdōkan.

For more on Tokugawa Nariaki’s life and influence, read my post on the two “philosopher kings” of the Bakumatsu.

[The photograph of Nariaki is from the Tokugawa Museum in Mito.]

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Recently I have been focusing on his forthcoming Samurai Swordsmen: The Definitive History of the Shinsengumi (1863–1869), scheduled for publication in fall 2026 with Helion. I also provide consulting on Bakumatsu–Meiji Restoration history and culture to authors, editors, publishers, documentarians, producers, screenwriters, and other professionals who need expert guidance on the era.

To explore my books on the Meiji Restoration, see Books at a Glance.

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