A Study on the Diffusion and Establishment of Maniwa Nenryu Kenjutsu school in Jyoshu during the Edo Period and the Licensing and Grading System

2022 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 18K10934
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Review Section: Basic Section 59030:Physical education, and physical and health education-related
• Research Institution: Kogakuin University
• Principal Investigator: KAZUMA Koji 工学院大学, 教育推進機構(公私立大学の部局等), 教授 (30204407)
• Project Period (FY): 2018-04-01 – 2023-03-31
• Keywords: 馬庭念流 / 樋口十郎右衛門 / 目代 / 行事 / 世話人 / 免許 / 伊香保額論一件

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Maniwa Nenryu is a school of swordsmanship that has survived for over 400 years since the end of the 16th century,headed by the Higuchi family, the head family of Maniwa Nenryu in Maniwa Village, Tago County, Ueno Province. The school spread throughout Ueno, Musashi, Shinano, and Edo City and had students mostly farmers, though including some bannermen (Hatamoto) and feudal lords (Hanshu). I investigated how the Higuchi, a peasant family, acquired students under the strict measures of status control of the Edo period and identified the following five reasons: (1) awarding of the “Tachigumi Mokuroku” ; (2) Sewa Yakunin control of the dojo; (3) internal control by “gyoji” and external negotiations with other schools; (4) Mokudai instruction in other areas; and (5) allowing “licensees” (top license-holders) to organize their own students. For these reasons, the Ｍaniwa Nenryu could prevent Chiba Shusaku from expanding their line of teaching in the Ikaho-Gakuron incident of 1823.

Free Research Field

身体教育

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

400年以上続く在村剣術流派を対象にし、普及の背景を探る研究はこれまでになく、本研究でその拡大の理由を指摘できたことは、今後、他流儀との比較を試みる上において学術的意義が深い。