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Shimazu Nariakira
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Shimazu Nariakira (島津 斉彬, April 28, 1809, Edo (now Tokyo – August 24, 1858, Kagoshima) was a nineteenth century Japanese feudal lord, eleventh generation daimyo of the Satsuma domain. He held court rank of senior fourth rank, upper grade (shō-yon-i-jō 正四位上), though he posthumously reached senior 1st rank (shō-ichi-i 正一位). He also held court titles of Satsuma no Kami 薩摩守, Sakon-e-chūjō 左近衛中将 ("General of the Left"), and the posthumous gen-chūnagon 権中納言 ("Middle Counselor").
He was born in Edo to tenth generation Satsuma lord Shimazu Narioki (島津斉興). From a young age, Shimazu was greatly influenced by the legacy of his late grandfather, the ninth generation daimyō Shimazu Shigehide, and thus he displayed a keen interest in "Western learning." To this end, he encouraged the development of shipbuilding, glassmaking, and ironworking in his domain. Shimazu was a driving political force at the time when U.S. Navy Commodore Matthew C. Perry arrived in Japan in 1853. It was also during his tenure as daimyo that he is said to have created the current national flag of Japan.
He was succeeded by Shimazu Tadayoshi, his nephew, who was still a young child.
In May of 1863, the late Nariakira was enshrined as the Shinto god Terukuni Daimyōjin.
Sources: Japanese Wikipedia article on Shimazu Nariakira
