Yoshimune Becomes Shogun
April 30, 1716
A younger son of a cadet branch, Tokugawa Yoshimune inherited a bankrupt shogunate and imposed an austerity program. He lifted the ban on Western books in Chinese translation, allowing Dutch learning to seep in. Rice markets, samurai stipends, and fire brigades all received his attention. Edo remembered him as the reformer.
In context
Also in 1716 (3 other events on record)
- Leibniz Dies in Hanover · Europe · Science
- Lady Mary Wortley Montagu in Istanbul · Middle East · Science
- Battle of Petrovaradin · Europe · War
Before and after in East Asia
Before and after in Politics
Era
Enlightenment (1651–1800), one of 696 events from that era on Saeculum.