Editing Edo Five Routes

{{Short description|Five centrally administered routes connecting Kyoto to Edo, Japan}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2022}}
[[Image:Gokaido Edo Five Routes Map.png|thumb|The Gokaidō]]
The {{nihongo|'''Five Routes'''|五街道|Gokaidō}}, sometimes translated as "Five Highways", were the five centrally administered routes, or ''[[kaidō]]'', that connected the ''de facto'' capital of [[Japan]] at [[Edo]] (now [[Tokyo]]) with the outer provinces during the [[Edo period]] (1603–1868).<ref name="e">{{cite encyclopedia|encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of Japan |title=Gokaidō |url=http://rekishi.jkn21.com/ |access-date=10 November 2012 |year=2012 |publisher=Shogakukan |location=Tokyo |oclc=56431036 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070825113418/http://rekishi.jkn21.com/ |archive-date=25 August 2007 }}</ref> The most important of the routes was the [[Tōkaidō (road)|Tōkaidō]], which linked Edo and [[Kyoto]]. [[Tokugawa Ieyasu]] started the [[construction]] of the five routes to increase his control over the country in 1601, but it was [[Tokugawa Ietsuna]], the 4th ''[[shōgun]]'' of the [[Tokugawa shogunate]] and Ieyasu's great-grandson, who declared them as major routes. [[Shukuba|Post stations]] were set up along the route for travelers to rest and buy supplies.<ref name="e" /> The routes thrived due to the policy of ''[[sankin-kōtai]]'', that required the ''[[daimyō]]'' (regional rulers) to travel in alternate years along the routes to [[Edo]].<ref name="e" />

== History ==
The various roads that make up the Five Routes existed in some form before becoming an official set of routes. [[Tokugawa Ieyasu]] began work on the routes shortly after becoming ''[[shōgun]]'' in 1600. The official creation of the Five Routes began with the [[Tokugawa shogunate|shogunate]] taking government control of the post stations along the existing routes.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal|title = Post Station and Assisting Villages. Corvέe Labor and Peasant Contention|last = Vaporis|first = Constantine|date = 1986|journal = Monumenta Nipponica| volume=41 | issue=4 | pages=377–414 |doi = 10.2307/2384861|jstor = 2384861}}</ref>  Before this intervention, the post stations provided places for travelers to rest and ran a courier system. After the official takeover, the shogunate required that these stations give preferential treatment to those on official business or be forced to cease activity. In the 1640s, ''shōgun'' [[Tokugawa Iemitsu]] closed down all but the necessary stations, which would be the last major change during the [[Edo period]].<ref name=":0" />

Along with the Post Stations, the government created a system of Check Stations along the Five Routes. Unlike the Post Stations, which provided for travelers, the Check Stations served a regulatory purpose, controlling the movement of people and goods. Some of the uses of these stations were preventing the trafficking of [[firearms]], ensuring that the various rules and policies surrounding the ''[[sankin-kōtai]]'' were followed, and checking the passports of travelling commoners. Fifty-three Check Stations were created in the 17th century.<ref name=":1">{{cite book|chapter = Linking the Realm: The Gokaidô Highway Network in Early Modern Japan (1603–1868)|last = Vaporis|first = Constantine|date = 2012|title = Highways, Byways, and Road Systems in the Pre-Modern World|pages = 90–105|doi = 10.1002/9781118244326.ch4|isbn = 9781118244326}}</ref> (This is not to be confused with the [[53 Stations of the Tōkaidō]], which refers to the Post Stations on the [[53 Stations of the Tōkaidō|Tōkaidō]].)

The shogunate also coordinated general improvements to the roads of the Five Routes. The roads were flattened and widened, with steeper sections paved with rough stone. Trees were planted alongside the road, and drainage ditches  dug in many places. Markers were put up to indicate distance at each [[Li (unit)|ri]], which was defined at the time as 3.93&nbsp;km (2.44&nbsp;mi) from the starting point at [[Nihonbashi]]. While the Five Routes crossed many waterways, few bridges were built. Instead, [[ferry boat]]s were instituted.<ref name=":1" />

==Five Routes==
[[Image:NihombashiDatum.jpg|thumb|right|Nihonbashi's highway distance marker, marking the beginning of the five routes]]
[[Image:Tokaido1825.jpg|thumb|The Tōkaidō in 1865]]

All five routes started at [[Nihonbashi]] in Edo. From that point, each road linked the capital with other parts of the country.
;[[Tōkaidō (road)|Tōkaidō]]
:The Tōkaidō had [[53 Stations of the Tōkaidō|53 stations]], connecting with [[Kyoto]].<ref>Forbes, Andrew; Henley, David (2014). ''Utagawa Hiroshige's 53 Stations of the Tokaido''. Chiang Mai: Cognoscenti Books. B00LM4APAI</ref> Once it reached [[Kusatsu-juku]], it shared its route with the Nakasendō.
;[[Nakasendō]]
:The Nakasendō (also often called the Kisokaidō) had [[69 Stations of the Nakasendō|69 stations]] and ran through the center of [[Honshū]], connecting with [[Kyoto]]. The Nakasendō's [[Shimosuwa-shuku]] served as the end point for the Kōshū Kaidō. Also, the Nakasendō merged with the Tōkaidō at Kusatsu-juku.<ref name="webjapan">[http://web-japan.org/atlas/historical/his26.html WebJapan Atlas: Nakasendo]. Accessed 2 August 2007.</ref>
;[[Kōshū Kaidō]]
:The Kōshū Kaidō had 44 stations, connecting with [[Kai Province]] ([[Yamanashi Prefecture]]), before ending at the Nakasendō's [[Shimosuwa-shuku]].<ref name="yume1">{{webtrans|http://www.yumekaido.ne.jp/framepage4.htm|Yumekaidō: Kōshū Kaidō Map|ja}}. Accessed 4 September 2007.</ref>
;[[Ōshū Kaidō]]
:The Ōshū Kaidō had 27 stations, connecting with [[Mutsu Province]] ([[Fukushima Prefecture]]). There were subroutes that connected to other places of northern Japan, too.<ref name="yume2">{{webtrans|http://www.yumekaido.ne.jp/ousyuframe.html|Yumekaidō: Ōshū Kaidō Map|ja}}. Accessed 4 September 2007.</ref>
;[[Nikkō Kaidō]]
:The Nikkō Kaidō had 21 stations, connecting with [[Nikkō Tōshō-gū]] in modern-day [[Tochigi Prefecture]].<ref name="road">{{webtrans|http://www.ikedakai.com/nikkokaido1.html|Nikkōdō|ja}} {{cite web |url=http://www.ikedakai.com/nikkokaido1.html |title=日光街道 |access-date=8 December 2007 |url-status=bot: unknown |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071212072821/http://www.ikedakai.com/nikkokaido1.html |archive-date=12 December 2007 }}. Accessed 15 August 2007.</ref>

== Other official routes ==
As part of the Five Routes network, eight minor routes were also created by the shogunate:<ref name=":1" />
* [[Aizu Nishi Kaidō]]
* [[Honzaka Dōri]]
* [[Mibudō]]
* [[Minoji]]
* [[Mito Kaidō]]
* [[Nikkō Onari Kaidō]]
* [[Nikkō Reiheishi Kaidō]]
* [[Sayaji]]
* [[Yamazaki Dōri]]

== Unofficial routes ==
[[File:Magome 2009 5.JPG|thumb|Nakasendō's [[Magome-juku]]]]
In addition to the five routes, there were minor routes that were unofficial branches of or alternates to the main routes, or infrequently used routes. Some of the routes were referred to as ''[[hime kaidō]]'', as they were alternate paths for main trade routes, but none were officially called that.
{|
|
*[[Bungo Kaidō]]
*[[Chichibu Ōkan]]
*[[Hokkoku Kaidō]]
*[[Hokurikudō]]
*[[Kawagoe Kaidō]]
*[[Kawagoe Kodama Kaidō]]
*[[Kamakura Kaidō]]
*[[Kōya Kaidō]]
|
*[[Tōkaidō (road)#Ōsaka Kaidō|Kyōkaidō]]
* [[Matsumaedō]]
*[[Mikuni Kaidō]]
*[[Nagasaki Kaidō]]<ref name="nag">[http://www.pref.nagasaki.jp/n-kaido/ Nagasaki Kaidō] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080408053331/http://www.pref.nagasaki.jp/n-kaido/ |date=8 April 2008 }}. {{in lang|ja}} Nagasaki Prefecture. Accessed 12 March 2008.</ref>
*[[Nankaidō]]
*[[Nikkō Wakiōkan]]
* [[Ōyama Kaidō]]
* [[Saigoku Kaidō]]
|
*[[Satsuma Kaidō]]
*[[Sendaidō]]
*[[Shio no Michi]]
*[[Tōgane Onari Kaidō]]
*[[Tosa Kaidō]]
*[[Ushū Kaidō]]
*[[Yamato no Kodō]]
|}

==See also==
*[[Gokishichidō]]
*[[Kaidō]]
*[[Great Post Road]] - a similar road in colonial era-Indonesia built in the early 19th century

==References==
{{commons category|Five Routes of the Edo period}}
{{Reflist}}

[[Category:Edo-period roads and trails]]