other · Korea and Japan

Choshu Domain

1600 CE – 1871 CE · capital Hagi, later Yamaguchi

The Mori domain at the western tip of Honshu that led the radical movement against the shogunate and supplied many leaders of Meiji Japan.

Origins

After the Mori led the losing side at Sekigahara in 1600, Tokugawa Ieyasu reduced their lands to the provinces of Suo and Nagato. Mori Terumoto's son Hidenari ruled from Hagi castle, built from 1604, and the family's grievance against the Tokugawa was said to be kept alive for generations.

Rule and society

Choshu developed paper, salt and wax and reformed its finances under Murata Seifu in the 1840s. Yoshida Shoin's private school at Hagi trained young samurai who embraced the slogan revere the emperor, expel the barbarians. In 1863 Choshu fired on foreign ships at Shimonoseki, moved its seat to Yamaguchi and was bombarded by Western fleets in 1864.

Decline and legacy

Defeated in Kyoto in 1864, Choshu was rebuilt by radicals around Takasugi Shinsaku's mixed militia, beat the shogunate's army in 1866 and allied with Satsuma. Its men, Kido Takayoshi, Ito Hirobumi and Yamagata Aritomo, led Meiji Japan; it became Yamaguchi Prefecture in 1871.

Lineage

Mori clan domain 1557 CE – 1600 CEChoshu DomainEmpire of Japan 1868 CE – 1945 CE

Connections (1)

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Cite this page
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Choshu Domain. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/choshu-domain
MLA
“Choshu Domain.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/choshu-domain. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Choshu Domain.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/choshu-domain.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Choshu Domain’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/choshu-domain (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻