Osaka’s Formation and Development

  Early modern Osaka’s development began in 1583 with Toyotomi Hideyoshi’s construction of Osaka Castle and the urbanization of the surrounding area.  The Castle was constructed on the former site of Osaka Hongan Temple, a Buddhist institution that violently resisted the first of early modern Japan’s three great unifiers, Oda Nobunaga, for 11 years.  The initial plan for Osaka’s development called for the construction of a linear city area on top of the Uemachi Plateau, which extended southward from the Castle area to the established urban settlements surrounding Shitennō Temple.  The castle’s inner keep (honmaru) and outer keep (ninomaru), and the urbanized settlement surrounding it were located inside of a broad external barrier known as the sōgamae.  In other words, the Castle was initially encircled by three lines of defense.  Shortly before his death in 1598, however, Hideyoshi ordered the construction of a third keep inside of the sōgamae in order to ensure the safety of his young heir, Hideyori.  As a result, commoners living on land within the area designated for the third keep were forced to relocate.  In order to secure a suitable relocation site and sufficient residential space to house the vast pool of labor power required to construct the third keep, efforts began to construct residential settlements in the Senba area, which was located west of the Higashiyoko Canal.  With the development of the Senba area, the plan for Osaka’s construction shifted from its north-south axis to include districts that extended westward from the Castle.

  Since the sixth century, urban development in the Osaka region had been concentrated almost entirely on the Uemachi Plateau.  With the development of the Senba area, however, the city area began to extend into the low-lying swamplands west of the Uemachi Plateau.

  Formerly below sea level, the area west of the Uemachi Plateau was gradually reclaimed using sediment carried inland by the ocean current.  Over time, areas previously under water transformed into marshland with extremely poor natural drainage.  In order to prepare that marshland for urban development and ensure proper drainage, it was necessary to construct a series of canals.  The earth that was taken out of the ground during the construction process was used to reinforce the land surrounding the canals.  Residential housing was then constructed on the reinforced tracts of canal-side land.

  During the Battle of Osaka in 1614 and 1615, Osaka Castle was destroyed and portions of the city were badly damaged.  After assuming direct control of Osaka in 1619, Tokugawa Ieyasu initiated efforts to reconstruct the Castle and surrounding city.  Thereafter, urban development continued apace in the city until about 1630, when construction slowed.  

 

The Spatial Structure of Late Seventeenth-Century Osaka

  In 1687, cartographer Hayashi Yoshinaga composed the above map of early modern Osaka.  Using it, let us explore city’s spatial structure.

  The map includes areas as far north as the Nakatsu River, as far east as the Hirano River, and as far west as Osaka Bay.  Therefore, it includes not only the Osaka city area, but also the rural village communities that surrounded the city. Many other early modern maps of Osaka cover the same territorial scope.

  The inner structure of Osaka Castle is not depicted in detail.  The areas surrounding the Castle that are not marked with the symbols ● and ▲ were the site of warrior estates.  Such areas can be found immediately to the west and south of the Castle.  They include the Osaka Castellan’s estate, residences of members of the castle guard, and the residential compounds of various warrior officials, including the Shogunal Storehouse Steward, Treasury Steward, Rifle Steward, Archery Steward, Armor Steward, and Lumber Steward.

  The area directly to the south of the warrior estates includes agricultural fields and lands that were under the control of a commoner named Terashima Tōemon.　 A tile producer by trade, Terashima was one of early modern Osaka’s so-called “three great commoners”  (sandai chōnin) .  Together with Yamamura Yosuke and Amagasaki Mataemon, Terashima was contracted by the Tokugawa House to perform a range of official functions.  In exchange, he was granted a range of special privileges, including the right to possess a sword and surname and conduct business with Osaka Castle.  The Karahori, or Waterless Canal, was located at the southern edge Terashima’s territory.  It comprised the southern part of the external barrier constructed around Osaka Castle by Toyotomi Hideyoshi.  In addition, the Ō River comprised the northern portion of that barrier, while the Higashiyoko Canal the Nekoma River respectively comprised its western and eastern portions.  Collectively, these four waterways formed Osaka Castle’s outermost line of defense.  A long roadway stretched south from the Karahori towards Shitennō Temple.  The map shows that it was lined on both sides by buildings. This area was known as Hiranomachi.  Once a populous residential community, it is believed that the residents of Hiranochō left the area after being invited to live inside the city proper.  After the area’s former residents moved to Osaka, various types of Buddhist temples, excluding those affiliated with the True Pure Land sect, gathered in Hiranochō, transforming the area into a “temple district” (teramachi).  That transformation began during the 1580s and continued into the early 1600s.  Excluding a portion of the territory controlled by Terashima Fujiemon, all of the areas mentioned above overlap geographically with the castle and castle town that existed during the Toyotomi era (1583-1598).  They represent the portion of the city area that Toyotomi planned to construct along the Uemachi Plateau.   Although Toyotomi’s plan was never fully realized, it called for the establishment of an urban settlement extending from Osaka Castle to Shitennō Temple and then onward to Sakai.

  As noted above, shortly before his death in 1598, Hideyoshi ordered the construction of a third keep around Osaka Castle to protect his young heir.  At the same time, he initiated efforts to develop tracts of low-lying swampland located to the west of Higashiyoko Canal (the Senba area) in order to provide commoners displaced as a result of the construction project with an alternative place to live.  As a result of his efforts, the direction of urban development in Osaka shifted from a north-south axis to an east-west axis.  By the early seventeenth century, the city area extended to the western edge of the Senba area.  During that period, the city authorities continued efforts initiated in the 1590s to construct a network of canals to the west of the Uemachi Plateau.  In addition, they continued to encourage the development of the tracts of land lining the canals.  After the Battle of Osaka, a series of canals were constructed in the Nishi Senba and Shimanouchi areas.  In those areas as well, residential tracts were erected alongside the newly-constructed canals.  While urban settlements in the Senba area was laid out in a square pattern, those in neighboring Nishi Senba were laid out in a rectangular pattern.  Internally, the streets in Nishi Senba curved in accordance with the shape of the canals that traversed the neighborhood.  The differing layouts of the Senba and Nishi Senba areas reflect the different stages in Osaka’s incremental urban development.

  The development of northern Osaka’s Tenma district began in 1585 with the construction of Tenma Hongan Temple and formation of a surrounding urban settlement.  Ultimately, the Tenma area was integrated into early modern Osaka as one of the city’s three commoner districts (sangō).  However, the fact that Tenma continued, during the seventeenth century, to be referred to in official documents as “Osaka’s Tenma Town” indicates that the area developed independently of the urban settlements to the south and west of the Osaka Castle.  A number of prominent temples and shrines, including Tenmangu and Kōshoji, were located in the center of Tenma district.  On the district’s north end, there was a heavy concentration of Buddhist temples, which spread out from east to west.  In addition, the residences of lower-ranking officials from the Osaka City Governor’s Office were located on Tenma’s northern edge and along the banks of the Ō River in Yorikimachi and Dōshinmachi.

  In the Nakanoshima area, which was located immediately to the south of Tenma, large domainal storehouses known as kurayashiki lined the banks of the Ō River. They were called storehouses because they were originally established as a place to store the annual rice tribute and domainal commodities sent to and sold in Osaka.  More than storage facilities, these storehouses also performed an important political function.  Namely, they served as a vital link between the Bakufu government, which was based in Edo, and the various domains in Western Japan.  Importantly, most storehouses were not located on the grounds of warrior estates.  Rather, they were constructed on land officially designated for commoners.  On the above map, the tracts of land occupied by these storehouses bear the name of the lord of the domain with which they were affiliated, such as Matsudaira Aki-no-kami and Arima nakatsukasa.

  In Nishi Senba, which was located further south, there is an area known as Shinmachi that is completely encircled by narrow canals. During the early modern period, Shinmachi was the site of Osaka’s only officially sanctioned pleasure quarter.  In addition, even further south, there was a long narrow district known as Nagamachi, which jutted out from the city’s edge.  Located at the northern terminus of the Kishū Highway, it was the site of a large number of inns and flophouses.

  At the time that Hayashi’s 1687 map was composed, the Horie and Dōjima neighborhoods had yet to be constructed Dōjima was constructed shortly after the map’s publication, while Horie’s development began in 1698 with the construction of the Horie Canal.

  From the late-seventeenth century to the early-eighteenth century, the Bakufu carried out a series of flood prevention construction projects on the Yodo and Yamato River systems.  In Osaka, the riparian and river construction projects directed by an individual named Kawamura Zuiken were of particular signifiance.  In addition to dredging river bottoms and widening riverways in order to improve water flow, Zuiken constructed the Aji River.  A linear waterway, the Aji River was positioned near the mouth of other more serpentine waterways. The above map was composed shortly after the completion of the Aji River.  At that point, it had yet to be officially named the Aji River and is simply referred to as the “new river” (shinkawa).   As a result of these projects, new tracts of land, including the Horie and Dōjima districts, were opened on the city’s western periphery and a port was constructed at the mouth of the Aji River.  In addition, after Zuiken’s death, the course of the Yamato River was redirected in an effort to further limit flooding.

  Entering the eighteenth century, efforts to reclaim and develop new tracts of land on the city’s outer edge continued. However, they were smaller in scale and did not include major land reclamation efforts.  In that sense, the development of the early modern Osaka city area was almost entirely complete by the end of the seventeenth century.

 

Early Modern Osaka’s Administrative Structure

  As described above, the reconstruction of Osaka Castle and surrounding city area after the Battle of Osaka was almost entirely complete by 1630.  At the same time, by the early 1630s, its administrative structure was almost entirely in place.  In this section, let us examine that structure.

  The Bakufu’s chief representative in Osaka was the Osaka Castellan (Osaka jōdai).  Influential hereditary vassals of the Tokugawa clan, who had already filled other important administrative positions, including that of chief Bakufu representative in Kyoto, were generally appointed  as Osaka Castellan.  The position of Castellan marked an important step on the path of advancement to the position of Bakufu Elder (rōjū).  In addition, there were the various captains who supervised the guard units charged with protecting Osaka Castle.  Also, there were various lower-ranking official posts, such as Storehouse Steward, Treasury Steward, Rifle Steward, Archery Steward, Armor Steward, and Lumber Steward.

  The Osaka City Governor (Osaka machi bugyō) supervised the city’s civil administration.  Throughout the Tokugawa period, there were two governors, the Eastern City Governor and the Western City Governor.  Below the governors in the chain of command were large groups of warrior officials known as yoriki and dōshin, who filled positions in the city government.  There were two governor’s offices, the Eastern City Governor’s Office and the Western City Governor’s Office.  The two offices were referred to as such because of their relative geographic locations within the city.  It was not the case that one governed the eastern part of the city while the other governed the western part.  Both offices shared responsibility for all commoner areas of the city.  The governors supervised all areas of civil administration, including policing and civil and criminal courts.  In addition, they enacted laws and ordinances, which were generally issued in the form of official proclamations, or fure.  Accordingly, Osaka’s City Governors had a major impact on urban society in early modern Osaka.  The samurai officials under their authority executed specific official duties.  Some were charged with policing duties, while others handled land administration and investigated civil complaints.

  Osaka’s commoner districts (chōninchi) were divided into three districts: Kita District, Minami District, and Tenma District. Collectively, the three districts were known as the Osaka sangō.  While the districts were geographic agglomerations, new chō subsequently added on the city as a result of land reclamation projects were not necessarily integrated into the district to which they were closest.  Accordingly, some areas of the city existed as detached territories located far from the districts with which they were affiliated.  On the above map, areas marked with a ● symbol were part of Kita District, while areas marked with a ▲ symbol were part of Minami District.  In addition, all of the commoner areas without a marking were part of Tenma District.

  An administrative office (sōkaisho) was established in each district and several district chiefs (sōdoshiyori) were appointed to administer district affairs. In addition to the chiefs, various functionaries, including general representatives (sōdai), secretaries (monokaki), office guards (kaishomori), and scribes (hikkō), worked at each district office.

  Each of Osaka’s three districts was comprised of hundreds of individual chō, or block associations.  The chart below lists the number of chō and number of land parcels in each district during the second half of the eighteenth century.  It also includes the location of each district office.

	Chō	Land Parcels	District Office Location
Osaka’s Three Districts	620	18,944
Kita District	250	7,272	Hiranomachi 3-chōme
Minami District	261	8,181	Minami nōninmachi 1-chōme
Tenma District	109	3,451	Tenma 7- chōme

  Early modern Osaka’s commoner population was between 350,000 and 400,000.  In contrast, it is likely that the city’s total population included only about 10,000 members of the warrior status groups.  Even if you factor in monks and religious practitioners, who were not included in commoner population registers, it is clear that Osaka’s population was characterized by an extremely high ratio of commoners.  In other words, persons of commoner status comprised the overwhelming majority of the city’s population.

  Together with Kyoto and Edo, Osaka was widely considered one of early modern Japan’s “three great cities” (santo). However, an examination of the demographic composition of the three cities reveals that each had distinct characteristics.  Edo, the largest of Japan’s early modern cities, had 500,000 warriors and 500,000 commoners.  Although Kyoto was similar to Osaka in that there were a relatively small number of warriors and a vast number of commoners, its population also included a unique preponderance of nobles, Shinto priests, and Buddhist monks.  In addition, there were differences in spatial structure and administrative organization.  While each city was governed by a City Governor and partitioned into hundreds of chō, Osaka’s three districts and the mode of existence of the city’s landholders served to distinguish it from Kyoto and Edo.

都市大坂の形成

　大坂の都市建設は、天正11（1583）年の豊臣秀吉による大坂城の築城に伴う城下町造りに始まる。織田信長に対して11年にわたって抗戦した大坂本願寺の址を利用した大坂城と、四天王寺周辺に形成されていた都市的な場をつなぐ形で上町台地上に都市建設を行う南北に長い線状の都市プランであった。大坂城の本丸・二の丸と城下町も包み込む惣構(そうがまえ)（北の大川と東横堀と空堀と猫間川で囲まれる）の三重の守りが造られていたが、秀吉は最晩年の慶長3（1598）年に幼い秀頼のことを思い、二の丸と惣構の間に三の丸を築いた。このため、三の丸内相当の場所にいた町人たちに「町中屋敷替え」が実施された。その替地を確保するため、さらにこのような大規模な建設需要に引き付けられて集まる者たちの居住空間を確保するために、東横堀の西側、つまり船場の方面に都市建設の方向が広げられたのである。いわば西に展開する面状の都市プランへの転換が行われたと言えよう。

　これまでは、難波宮以来、上町台地上に都市建設が指向されてきたが、ここで初めて上町台地より西の低湿地に都市が展開することになったのである。

　大坂は、上町台地の西側は海流の堆積作用で徐々に陸地化してきたのであるが、水はけの悪い湿地状の土地であった。そのため西への面状の都市開発は、堀川の開削と一体で進行した。堀川を掘った土で川の両側を造成していき、町屋として開発していったのである。

　慶長19?20年(1614?15)の大坂の陣で、大坂は甚大な被害をこうむるが、元和5（1619）年の徳川氏の直轄化後に大坂城の大規模な再建と都市づくりが行われる。そして、ほぼ1630年頃までに大坂の都市開発は一段落を迎える。

 

17世紀終わりの大坂の空間構造

　この絵図は、貞享4（1687）年に御絵図所林吉永によって出版された「新撰増補大坂大絵図」である。この絵図から近世大坂の空間構造を説明していこう。

　地図に描かれている範囲は、北は中津川、南は四天王寺、東は大坂城の東（平野川）、西は海まで、となっている。大坂の市街地だけでなく、周辺の農村地域も含めて描かれている。他の大坂を描いた地図も同様の範囲のものが多い。

　大坂城の中はあまり詳しく描かれていない。大坂城の周辺で、●や▲の印のないところが武家屋敷であり、大坂城の西側や南側に展開している。大坂城代の屋敷、大坂城を警備する定番や大番の与力・同心の屋敷、蔵奉行・金奉行・鉄砲奉行・弓奉行・具足奉行・材木奉行などの諸奉行の屋敷などがある。

　その南に「瓦屋」「野畠」とある。「瓦屋」とあるところは、三町人＊の一人、御用瓦師寺島藤右衛門の請地である。その南の端あたりが空堀である。先述したように空堀は豊臣期大坂城の惣構の一部である。惣構は、北は大川、西は東横堀川、南が空堀、東が猫間川となっており、大坂城の一番外側の防御ラインである。空堀の南から四天王寺に向かって一本の道が延びており、その両側に家の絵が描かれている。これが平野町で、平野から町人たちを大坂に誘致したと言われている。平野町の両側には浄土真宗を除く宗派の寺院が集められた。寺町である。これらは豊臣期から徳川期にかけてできあがった。これらがほぼ豊臣秀吉の時期の大坂城とその城下町の範囲と重なる（寺島の請地と一部の寺町は除く）。大坂城?四天王寺?堺へと上町台地上に都市を建設するプランであった痕跡である。

　これまた先述したように秀吉の死の直前、慶長三（一五九八）年に三の丸が造営されるとその代替地として、東横堀川より西の低地（船場地域）で都市開発が行われるようになった。これまでの南北軸から東西軸へ都市計画が変更されたのである。さらにその周辺へと開発が進められ、豊臣（秀頼）末期から堀川の開削とその両側での町屋の開発が行われるようになる。そして大坂の陣後は船場より西側（西船場）や島之内といった地域でたくさんの堀川が開削され、町屋が開発されていった。船場では正方形の街区となっているのに対し、西船場では堀川に沿った歪みをともなう長方形の街区となっているが、これは開発の段階性を表している。

　天満地域は、天正13（1585）年からの天満本願寺とその寺内町の建設によって開発されていった。天満組として大坂三郷に組み入れられているが、17世紀中は「大坂・天満町中」などと呼び習わされているように、大坂城下町とは独自の起源を持っていた。天満地域の中心には天満宮や興正寺などの寺社があり、北端には東西に寺町があった。その北側や大川沿い近くには町奉行所の与力・同心が住んでいた（与力町・同心町）。

　大川沿いの中之島周辺には諸藩の蔵屋敷が建ち並んでいる。蔵屋敷は、年貢米や特産物を大坂で売却するために設置されたのでその名があるが、それ以外に幕府と西国諸藩との連絡を担うといった政治的な機能もあった。蔵屋敷のほとんどが幕府からの拝領地ではなく、町人地に建っている。絵図上では、「松平安芸守」「有馬中務」といった藩主の名前で記されている。

　西船場で細い堀で囲まれた一角がある。新町である。新町は大坂で唯一公認された傾城（遊女）町である。市街地の南端で南に細長く伸びた街区がある。長町である。南の紀州街道へとつながっており、旅籠屋や木賃宿が多かった。

　この地図の時点では、堂島や堀江（長堀川と道頓堀川の間の「下難波領」「上難波領」と書いてある空白部分）は開発されていない。堂島はこの直後に新地開発が行われるが、堀江地域は元禄11（1698）年に堀江川が開削され開発された。

　17世紀の終わりから18世紀の初頭にかけては、幕府による淀川・大和川水系の治水工事(河川改修)が行われた。大坂市中で特に重要なのは、河村瑞賢が行った改修である。水を流れやすくするための川底の土砂の浚渫や川幅の変更に加えて、蛇行している河口付近で直線的な安治川を開削した。先の絵図は安治川の開削が完成した直後に作られたもので、まだ「安治川」の名は無く、「新川」と表記されている。このような河川改修によって、先述のように、その周辺に堂島や堀江などの新地が開発され、安治川口の港もできた。さらに、瑞賢の死後には、大和川の付け替え工事も実施された。

　18世紀に入っても、部分的な新地の開発は実行されるが、大規模なものはあまり実施されていない。その意味で、17世紀の終わりに近世都市大坂の都市開発は完了したといえるだろう。

 

近世大坂の行政組織

　先に述べたように、大坂の陣後の幕府による大坂城の再興と町づくりは、1630年ころにほぼ完了した。同時に、行政組織もほぼこの時期に整えられていった。ここでは、大坂の行政組織について概観しておきたい。

　大坂における幕府の最高責任者は大坂城代である。大坂城代は、有力な譜代大名が着任し、これより京都所司代などを経て老中に昇任する出世コースの登竜門にあたるポストである。そのほか、先述のように大坂城を警備するする定番や大番、城内の諸事を所管する蔵奉行・金奉行・鉄砲奉行・弓奉行・具足奉行・材木奉行などの諸奉行があった。

　大坂の民政を担っていたのは、大坂町奉行である。定員は2名。それぞれに配下の与力・同心とよばれる武士がおり、独立して任務に当たっていた。役所の位置関係から、大坂では東・西と区別して呼び慣わされていた(担当エリアが東と西とに分かれていたわけではない)。町奉行は、警察、裁判(刑事・民事)、法令(おもに「触」という形態)の公布など民政全般を担当し、大坂の都市社会に大きな影響力をもった。与力・同心は、盗賊方・目安方・地方役など、それぞれ担当する役割が割り当てられていた。

　大坂の町人地は、北組・南組・天満組の三組に分かれており、「大坂三郷」ともよばれた。三組は領域的なものだが、新地など新たにできた町は、必ずしも領域的に編入されなかったので、飛び地のようになっている地域もある。先の絵図で、町人地のうち●印のついた町が北組、▲印のついた町が南組、印のないところが天満組である。

　三組には、それぞれ惣会所が置かれ、複数名ずつ惣年寄が任命された。惣会所には、惣年寄のほか、惣代（?若き者）、物書、会所守、筆工などの役職の者が働いていた。

　各組はそれぞれ、道修町三丁目や南木挽町北之丁など数百の個別の「町（チョウ）」から成り立っていた。

　一八世紀後半の段階で、三郷に含まれる町数・家数と惣会所の所在地は次表の通りである。

 

	町	家数	惣会所の位置
三郷全体	620	18,944
北組	250	7,272	平野町三丁目
南組	261	8,181	（本町五丁目→）南農人町一丁目
天満組	109	3,451	天満七丁目

 

　三郷の町方人口は、おおよそ35?40万人で推移している。武士の数は、諸説あるが家族を入れても1万人程度だと考えられる。町方の人別では把握されない神職や僧侶などを入れても、都市の中で町人が圧倒的な比重を占めているのが大坂の特徴である。

　大坂は、江戸・京都とともに「三都」と呼ばれる巨大都市であったが、人口構成でみると、それぞれに特徴があった。江戸は武士と町方がほぼ同数(50万人ずつ)といわれ、京都は町方・武士の人口は大阪と近似していたが、ほかに朝廷・公家、神職・僧侶が多数いる、などそれぞれに特徴があった。また、空間構造や行政組織のレベルでも、町奉行の存在や「町」の基本的な性格は共通していたが、大坂でいう三郷(惣年寄)のあり方や家持(家屋敷の所持者)の存在形態など、それぞれの都市で固有の特徴があった。