Last weekend, over Saturday and Sunday, the foreign and defence ministers of Japan and Australia met in Sydney for the (mostly) annual bilateral 2+2 dialogue, the first held in Australia since 2012. After reading the joint communiqué released after the event, the message to emerge from the meeting was twofold; Japan and Australia are closely aligned in their strategic outlook, and Japan really wants Australia to work with it on building submarines. Neither of these statements would be revelations to anyone following Australia-Japan relations in great detail, but what they did do is give reassurance to both sides that it was `business as usual` re: the strategic elements of the relationship.
 
Commentary in the Japanese and Australian media over the past three months about Australian PM Malcolm Turnbull`s apparent Sinocentric view had created the impression that Australia might suddenly veer off from its normal course of relations with Japan and emphasise China over all other long-standing ties with nations of East Asia. The communiqué was thus a response to such speculation, and affirmed that not only was the strategic relationship strong, but that it was about to get stronger through increased joint exercises and further defence agreement negotiations. One other element from the dialogue that was promoted with gusto was the role of the US in forging these closer ties. Both sides emphasised their bilateral ties with the US, and how this then contributed to the trilateral relationships between the three.
 
Given the sensitivities surrounding the topic, submarines were mentioned but without emphasis, with Japan stating that it was competing earnestly in the competitive evaluation process and that Australia welcomed Japan`s involvement. With decisions to be made within government on which country should provide Australia with its next generation of submarines, neither side wanted to give away too much detail and seemed determined to keep this topic away from anything that might cause concern in either country.   
 
So the dialogue was an exercise in building the type of strategic relationship that Japan now seeks with other regional partners and that Australia seeks to have with Japan. While submarines may become one part of this relationship, they are not the only area for potential growth, a fact that both sides recognise and which was reflected in the communiqué. Tellingly, Australia pledged its support for Japan`s new legislative changes and its embrace of the concept of collective self-defence, although whether Australia yet fully comprehends what that means (i.e., that it is interpreted in a different sense in Japan based on Japan`s own security legislation) is yet to be determined.
 
Something different about this particular communiqué was the paragraph detailing the role of women and how both countries were working towards the greater participation of women in society and the protection of women and girls from violence. That is a reflection of the fact that firstly, Australia was represented by two women in the roles of foreign minister and defence minister, and secondly that Japanese PM Abe has made the greater participation of women in the workforce a key policy, and so this aligned neatly with Australia`s ambition to be elected to the UN Human Rights Council, where Australia has stated that it will work for the promotion of women`s rights, together with Japan`s ambition to become a permanent member of the UN Security Council.
 
So it was a statement with a fair degree of quid pro quo and bonhomie, couple with an equal amount of concern about events in the South China Sea. Both countries regard this as a possible flashpoint and question China`s motives is building artificial islands in that region. The communiqué could thus be seen as a word of caution to China – either work with us and the international community to uphold pre-existing laws and create protocols for the region, or see us grow in our bilateral strategic relationship and our relationship(s) with the US. This language, which mirrors that of previous trilateral dialogues, thus makes no secret of the direction that Australia and Japan`s relationship is headed in. Each sees the other as new territory to be explored, and the potential that lies in each to provide assurances to the other in the event that the region becomes further destabilised. It is a communiqué of intent, and should be given due consideration by all governments in the region and further abroad.

The role of women in helping to avoid war
 
The marriages that we have examined up until now, such as that between O-ne and Hideyoshi, could be categorised as marriages of love. Yet in the Sengoku period, as in periods before that time, marriages based on love were exceedingly rare. Parents would choose whom their offspring would marry, and the marriage would not be between individuals on the basis of love, but formed the basis of binding two households together. The most typical of such practices were strategic marriages. From a modern perspective, such marriages are regarded simply as tragedies, yet for the people of previous ages, these kinds of marriages, whereby one`s parents chose one`s partner, were a matter of course.  For the people concerned, they certainly did not regard themselves as victims.(223)
 
It was Nagai Michiko who pointed this particular phenomenon out at a relatively early stage. Her book `A unique portrait of women of the Sengoku era` (published by Rekishi to Tabi in 1992) said the following with regard to this point.
 
“Women were not the tools of men.  Women from households of the daimyō class were joint administrators of that household. If a male was, for example, the prime minister, his sisters would be the deputy prime minister, and one of those deputies would serve as a diplomat. Her service to her country would be in the form of marriage. In other words, she was a female ambassador who also engaged in sex. It might seem somewhat crude to describe a woman in such terms, yet this was part of that reality. In truth, because women were married off, it meant that provinces that had been fighting up until then would cease fighting each other and was a prime example whereby peace could be maintained.(224)
 
In order to prove proof of that peace, the sisters of the head of the household would be married off to other provinces. Oda Nobuhide of Owari province and Saitō Dōsan of Mino province had what could be described as a `love/hate` relationship. No matter how many times they fought, neither came out as victor.  It was around this time that Oda Nobuhide decided that he wanted to make an alliance both with Dōsan and with Imagawa Yoshimoto, lord of Tōtōmi and Suruga provinces, and who was looking to expand into Mikawa province. Deciding that it would not be a good idea to have enemies on both sides of his province`s borders, Nobuhide took the advice of his retainer Hirate Masahide and made an alliance with Dōsan. To cement this, Dōsan`s daughter Princess Nō was sent as a bride to Nobuhide`s son and heir Nobunaga, and was a stereotypical political marriage.(224)
 
As a result of this marriage, the conflict that until then had been waging between Owari and Mino ceased.  This is why the example using women as a means to avoid war is so easily understood. Those `female ambassadors who also engaged in sex` performed their role admirably.(226) Yet a strategic marriage is a strategic marriage, and certainly different to a standard marriage. When the characters for `strategy` are added to marriage, that implies use as a strategic tool, used for strategic purposes. As a result of a change in circumstances from peaceful times, there were many examples of such marriages ending in tragedy.(226)”         

Nowadays, we use the characters `意見` in phrases such as `意見をいう` (express an opinion) or `意見をする` (give an opinion), yet it historical records dating from the Sengoku era, there are many examples of these characters being rendered as `異見`. Regardless of what its original meaning may have been, it has been thought that this version of the characters matches the meaning of the current characters.  There are many examples of wives expressing their `opinion` 異見` to their husbands. There are examples of Sengoku era warriors changing their strategy after adopting their wives` `opinion`, and there are examples of warriors ignoring their wives and thus finding themselves in difficult situations. (216)
 
One example of a warriors deciding to change of mind on his wife`s advice involves Hashiba Hideyoshi. Hideyoshi, who was one of Oda Nobunaga`s retainers, was granted the lands of Ōmi Sangun (Ika, Higashi Asai, and Sakata) in northern Ōmi province in the first year of Tenshō (1573), lands that formerly belonged to the Asai family. He also acquired Odani castle as his residence, which formerly belonged to Asai Nagamasa. (217) One problem was that Odani castle was located on mountain, hence Hideyoshi decided to build a new castle in the vicinity of Lake Biwa and move his household there. (217) This castle would be known as Nagahama.
 
In order to build a town around Nagahama, a proposal was made whereby `if you move to and reside at Nagahama, you will be exempt from all forms of tithes and taxes`. It was a strategy to attract merchants and workers to the town. Many took up the offer, and soon merchants and workers had made their way to Nagahama to live and took up residence in the town, which arose a short time later. No sooner had they done this, then an order was issued whereby `both annual tithes and land taxes will now be collected`. (217)
 
Hideyoshi`s wife O-ne (お禰), once she heard of this change of plan, urged Hideyoshi to rescind the order via way of her `opinion`. I will quote from part of a letter of Hideyoshi`s associated with the `Kawaji Bunsho` collection, which is thought to record these events in Tenshō 5 (1577). To continue on from the part of the document that includes the decision to impose tithes and taxes…
 
“Although I tried to explain to her otherwise, O-ne refused to agree, and as before told me that if I were to forgive all taxes, this would be an act of good governance`.  (217-218)
 
 In short, Hideyoshi conceived of the idea to exempt all tithes and taxes in order to ensure that the town of Nagahama rose quickly by enticing merchants and workers to live there.  However once this goal had been achieved, and given that tithes, land taxes and other forms of taxation were an important source of revenue, the decision was made to change the policy on tax collection. We don`t really know the extent to which O-ne was involved in the creation of the town of Nagahama, yet when she learned of Hideyoshi`s change of plan, she aired her opinion, which was `what you are proposing is different to what you told the merchants and workers`. In the end, Hideyoshi accepted O-ne`s opinion, rescinded his order, and exempted the townspeople from tithes and land taxes.(218)
 
The above example of Hideyoshi and O-ne is one of the head of the household accepting his wife`s `opinion`, yet in the case of Maeda Toshiie and his wife Matsu, we have an example of a husband dismissing his wife`s opinion.  This event in recorded in the `Kawasumi Taikakuki`, and is quite a fascinating episode linked to the Battle of Komaki and Nagakute in Tenshō 12 (1584). (218-219) The Battle of Komaki and Nagakute was, as is well known, was a conflict that took place in both Owari and Ise between the forces of Tokugawa Ieyasu and Oda Nobukatsu on one side and Hideyoshi on the other. Yet it was not confined to these areas, and also spread as far as the Hokuriku region (which housed the Maeda family). (219)
 
Maeda Toshiie, as lord of Kaga and Noto and allied to Hideyoshi, and Sasa Narimasa,as the lord of Etchū and allied to Ieyasu and Nobukatsu, began to fight one another along the border area to Etchū. When Toshiie began to assemble his forces, he was thinking of nothing else, and was somewhat flummoxed by the whole process. Toshiie`s wife Matsu, seeing him like this, took gold and silver from the treasury in Kanazawa castle, placed it in a leather pouch, and then spread it out at Toshiie`s feet. It was said…
 
“Matsu gave her opinion both day and night, saying that right now, you (Toshiie) have no need for the gold and silver of the treasury. If you are going to meet a formidable enemy, you first need to train people. This is indeed the best way. When you finally subdue a country, then you will find that you have need of funds.  This is both the beginning and end of countries, and you will need to store both silver and gold. Right now, this money will not be able to thrust a spear”.        
 
What deserves our attention here is the fact that whether at night or during the day, Matsu said to Toshiie `Don`t just collect money, train your troops`, thereby giving her opinion.  As gold and silver itself could not wield a spear, Matsu, as a result of the household not listening to her opinion, expressed her indignation at the Maeda household for panicking because they lacked military preparedness. (219-220
 
In this age of dominant fathers as head of the household, and when it was said that `if the hen crows, the household will fall`, it was considered improper for a woman to express her opinions on matters concerning the household. Women were to be silent and obey the will of their husbands. Hideyoshi`s wife O-ne, and Toshiie`s wife Matsu, were two special exceptions to this belief.(220)

Imagawa Jukeini and Akamatsu Tōshōinni were both `female daimyō`, yet at the kokujin level of society (less than that of a daimyō) there were examples of female rulers of households. Most warrior families who belonged to the kokujin class had their origins in the Kamakura era, when many families began as jitō (or estate managers), hence the term `female jitō`. (212)
 
During the Sengoku era there was a kokujin-class family known as the Ii who were located in Tōtōmi province. From this family came Ii Naomasa, one of the `four great teachers` of the Tokugawa shōgunate and the family that later became the provincial rulers of Ōmi province from Hakone during the Edo period. The family itself arose to kokujin status in the aftermath of the civil war that occurred during the Nanbokuchō period, and were located in Iinoya in Tōtōmi province. In the Sengoku era, the power of the Imagawa extended as far as Tōtōmi, hence the Ii family became bound to the Imagawa as one of their retainers.(212)
 
On the 19th day of the 5th month of Eiroku 3 (1560) at the Battle of Okehazama, the head of the Ii household, Ii Naomori, was part of the forces that made up the spear point of the Imagawa army, and was subsequently killed in the battle. Naomori had no male heirs, hence Naochika, the grandson of Naomori`s grandfather Naohira, succeeded as head of the household. (214) However, after the death of (Imagawa) Yoshimoto, the head of the Imagawa household, Ujizane, began to believe that Naochika was secretly corresponding with Matsudaira Motoyasu (later known as Tokugawa Ieyasu), and thus had Naochika killed.(214)
 
The death of Naochika plunged the Ii household into a succession crisis. Given the way that Naochika had died, there were fears that his son Manchiyo (later known as Naomasa)`s life was also in danger. Manchiyo was thus hidden away, and after consultations within part of the family, Naomori`s daughter was declared to be head of the household.  The `Records of the Ii Household` (Ii Ke Denki) state that `Jirō Hōshi was a woman, and while ruling over the territory of the Ii household, would take on the priestly name of Jirō Hōshi, to which there were no objections`.(214)
 
The name `Jirō Hōshi` sounds like that of a man, but the reality was that this `he` was a `she`. It was the beginning of the concept of `female jitō`. According to related documents of the Ii household, there are items that bare the signature of `Jirō Hōshi` and a black seal of the same name. What this tells us is that `female jitō` Jirō Hōshi did actually rule over territory.  While Imagawa Jukeini, a female daimyō, would sign documents using her own name, `female jitō` Jirō Hōshi continued to use a man`s name. (214).
 
Jirō Hōshi began by having documents stamped with a seal under this name, but eventually she took on the male name of `Jirō Naotora`, and changed her signature to the same effect. This was a highly unusual case of a woman taking on both a man`s name, and using a form of signature that was only used by adult males. (215) The fact that the daughter of Ii Naomori took on a man`s name and ruled over the Ii territory certainly went against the thinking of the age. After the role of women as a wife and mother became established as a concept, it was thought that that women had no right to carry on the household, although it wasn`t completely out of the question. Yet if we gather together some of the historical records of the time, there are quite a number of cases of women being given the responsibility of running a household.(215)   
 
One example of this was Tachibana Dōsetsu, who handed over the affairs of his household to his daughter Ginchiyo. Tachibana Dōsetsu was originally known as Betsugi Akitsura, and was a retainer of the household of Ōtomo Sōrin and well known as a military strategist. Dōsetsu had no sons and only one daughter - Ginchiyo. On this point, Dōsetsu went to Sōrin and said `I wish for my daughter Ginchiyo to be allowed to take over my household, and I would like you to approve this`. Unfortunately the document that Dōsetsu used to make his request has not survived the ravages of time, but what we do know is that in a response signed by Sōrin and his son Yoshimune, the request was acknowledged and made known to all the other retainers of the Ōtomo household. (215)   
 
Incidentally, this document was signed on the 18th day of the 6th month of Tenshō 3 (1575), which means that Ginchiyo was only 7 years old at the time it was signed. We do have to wonder whether Dōsetsu was in his right mind when he handed over the running of his household to young girl of seven. On this point we just do not know what he was thinking. In later year, however, Ginchiyo would become the wife of Tachibana Muneshige (a famous figure in the latter Sengoku era history of Kyushu). (216)

Well, this has been a long time in coming.  After many weeks of hectic work schedules, I have been able to return to what I might describe as my first interest - studies into the medieval period of Japanese history. I have been considering shifting some of the information provided here onto my website, for lord knows it needs an update, but for the time being I shall make do with this format.  Bar anything else grabbing my attention, I shall be posting translations of a chapter from the book `Sengoku no Gunzo` by Owada Tetsuo, the first part of which appears below. It will be a slightly on and off operation, as it will depend whether I have sufficient time to get an entire chapter translated, but I do hope that by translating this section, another facet of the medieval/early modern period of Japan`s history might be illuminated. 

Owada Tetsuo, Sengoku no Gunzō (A Mass Portrait of the Era of the Warring States), Gakken Shinsho, Tokyo, 2009
 
Chapter 6  The major role played by women
 
`The appearance of female daimyō` and `female jitō`
 
Female Daimyō – the case of Imagawa Jukeini (寿桂尼)
 
I have considered writing a chapter about women in this book, which takes as its theme the various people of the Sengoku era. When considering the chaotic world of the Sengoku era, there has been a tendency to have preconceptions of men fighting on the battlefield, while women are regarded as `a protector after the guns cease firing`, with their presence both beginning and ending with them in a supporting role. For the women of the Middle Ages period who lived in a society of warriors, particularly from the Muromachi era onwards, it became more common for them to live a more cloistered life, whereby they would be married off and as wives be relegated to a less-prominent position in the household dominated by the male patriarch. She would then be expected to adhere to the `lessons of the three stages of life`, which meant that as a child she would obey her father, after she was married she would obey her husband, and then as an old woman she would obey her son.(pg.208)
 
While there were many such women during that era, when we look more closely at the women of the Sengoku period, there appear women who strapped on their husband`s armour in order to fight in battle, and women who desperately defended their family`s castle in place of their still infant male children. Hence one particular characteristic of this period is the appearance of such women who could be called `female lords`, or female daimyō. One such woman who could be described as thus was Imagawa Jukeini. Allow me to go into a little more detail about her. (pg.209)
 
As we can tell from her name, Imagawa Jukeini was the wife of Sengoku daimyō Imagawa Ujichika, a lord of two provinces – Suruga and Tōtōmi. The Imagawa family were renowned for their affinity for the arts and held strong relations with Kyoto. Hence Ujichika`s wife was sent from the aristocratic Nakamikado family of Kyoto, the daughter of Nakamikado Nobutane. However we do not know what her name was (Jukeini was the name she adopted after taking vows following her husband`s death). Ujichika was at the time engaged in land surveying and quantification, and it was he who created the `Imagawa Kana Mokuroku`, a detailed work on the laws governing the Imagawa lands. It was Ujichika who elevated the Imagawa family from their previous position as shugo daimyō into the ranks of the Sengoku daimyō.(pg.209)
 
However, in the sixth year of Taiei (1526), Ujichika passed away.  Ujichika had six sons, but because he had married relatively late, his eldest son Ujiteru was still only a youth of 14 years. There are examples of 14 year old youths taking on the reins of government, inheriting the position as head of the household and doing quite an admirable job. However Ujiteru was not only young, he was also sickly. In such times as these, what would usually occur would be that one of the senior levels of retainers would take on the role of an advisor to their young charge. However in the case of Ujiteru, Ujichika`s widow took on the name of Jukeini and became his advisor. She also happened to be Ujitane`s mother.(pg.209-210)
 
So how did Jukeini come to occupy a position that would normally be held by a man? There are no records that detail how this situation came about, so we must deduce its origins from the situation that existed at the time. The most commonly believed reason was that ten years before he died, Ujichika was stricken by disease which kept him confined to his private quarters. While nursing her husband, Jukeini also began to take responsibility for the political dealings of the household. The retainers of the household also believed that `in the same manner while Ujichika was still alive, Jukeini became an advisor to Ujiteru`.(210)
 
Two years after Ujichika`s death, a seal bearing the mark of Jukeini began to appear on public documents released by the Imagawa household. Until Ujiteru began issuing documents from the eighth year of Taiei onwards, Jukeini was head of the household. It is for this reason that scholars of the Sengoku period have come to generally use the term `female daimyō` to refer to such women.(pg.210)
 
In much the same way, the daughter of Hosokawa Katsumoto was married to Akamatsu Masanori, the lord of three provinces of Harima, Bizen, and Mimasaka. She was referred to a `Madam Meshi`, and after her husband`s death, she too issued documents instead of her son Yoshimura and then her grandson Saishōmaru. In much the same manner as Imagawa Jukeini, after her husband`s death this woman also took her vows and became known as Akamatsu Tōshōinni.(pg.211-212)