The Shogunate Establishes the Kyoto Protectorate

The court’s expanding role in treaty and expulsion policy made Kyoto an increasingly important center of government. The marriage of Kazunomiya and Iemochi in 1862 created a family connection, while political disagreement and violence in the capital continued.

The shogunate established the Kyoto protectorate and appointed Matsudaira Katamori, lord of Aizu. The office stood above the Kyoto shoshidai and city magistrates, giving a senior domain lord responsibility for security. Katamori initially based his headquarters at Konkai Kōmyōji. The arrangement added a command level to institutions already operating in the capital.

Katamori’s office subsequently participated in the 1863 expulsion of Chōshū and its court allies. Armed protection of the palace affected who could approach the emperor and present political demands. The protectorate therefore joined policing to court politics. Its creation was a concrete administrative response within the Bunkyū reforms; neither the new office nor the marriage ended the contest over national policy.