Personnalité historique

Egawa Hidetatsu

Daikan of Nirayama · Egawa Tarōzaemon

Egawa Hidetatsu (1801-1855), also known by the hereditary name Egawa Tarōzaemon and the artist name Tan'an, was the 36th head of the Egawa family, hereditary intendants (daikan) of Nirayama in Izu on behalf of the Tokugawa shogunate. A disciple of Takashima Shūhan, he promoted Western-style artillery and became one of the principal architects of Japan's coastal defence at the end of the Edo period. After Perry's ships arrived in 1853, he directed the design and construction of the artificial island batteries off Shinagawa (Odaiba), of which batteries No. 3 and No. 6 survive. He also launched the Nirayama reverberatory furnace project, now a World Heritage property, and is honoured in Japan as the 'ancestor of bread' for having baked a military ration bread.

Portrait de Egawa Hidetatsu
Naissance23 juin 1801, Nirayama (province d'Izu)
Décès4 mars 1855, Edo (Honjo)
FonctionDaikan of Nirayama · Egawa Tarōzaemon
MaisonFamille Egawa (daikan de Nirayama)
ÉpoqueLate Edo period (Bakumatsu)
Histoire & patrimoine

A magistrate turned towards coastal defence

Descended from a line of hereditary intendants in Izu, Egawa Hidetatsu devoted his office to local administration and military modernisation: trained in Western artillery under Takashima Shūhan, he began studying ways to protect Edo Bay as early as 1839.

Batterie de ShinagawaBatterie de Shinagawa
Frise chronologique

Repères dans sa vie

1801

Born in Nirayama, in Izu Province.

1835

Succeeds his father Hidetake as daikan of Nirayama.

1839

Tasked with studying the defence of Edo Bay.

1841

Supports Takashima Shūhan's demonstrations of Western artillery before the shogunate.

1853-1854

Designs and oversees the construction of the Shinagawa (Odaiba) batteries on the orders of Abe Masahiro, after Perry's arrival.

1855

Dies at his residence in Edo, in Honjo.

1858

The Nirayama reverberatory furnace, a project he had launched, is completed by his son.

Patrimoine associé

Les châteaux liés à cette personnalité

1 lieu
Réseau historique

Personnalités liées

Portrait de Takashima Shūhan
Takashima ShūhanMaster of Western artillery→
Portrait de Abe Masahiro
Abe MasahiroRōjū who ordered the construction of the Shinagawa batteries→
Portrait de Matthew Perry
Matthew PerryHis arrival prompted the construction of the batteries→
Portrait de Matsudaira Tadakuni
Matsudaira TadakuniChâteau en commun→
Approfondir

Egawa Hidetatsu dans l’histoire

The Shinagawa batteries

In 1853 he drew up the plan for a line of eleven batteries off Shinagawa; the first three were completed in April 1854, followed by Nos. 5 and 6 in December. Batteries Nos. 3 and 6 are today a national historic site.

Documentation

Sources de la fiche

Cette synthèse croise plusieurs sources pour documenter les lieux, événements et relations historiques.