Iga-mono of the Todo Domain (vassals based in Iga)
To begin with, the word “伊賀者 Iga-mono” has three meanings: ① a person from Iga, ② a ninja from Iga, and ③ a ninja (from Iga) whom the Todo domain had in its employ and his position name. Here, we will explain ③.
Needless to say, since the Warring States Period, Iga has been the birthplace of many ninja. The reputation of the ninja of Iga spread widely through the migrations of these ninja. During the Edo period, Iga was ruled by the Todo clan, headed by Todo Takatora. Naturally, the Todo clan employed Iga-mono, but of course, the Tokugawa Shogunate and other clans also employed Iga-mono (their families had already left Iga).
The Iga-mono held by the Todo clan were responsible for guarding Iga-Ueno Castle and Tsu Castle (in Tsu city, Mie prefecture), guarding the entrance to the Todo domain residence in Edo (Tokyo), accompanying the feudal lord on his visits to Edo, and searching for information. Their main duty was to guard the feudal lord. As a professional ninja, they were also expected to do the opposite: to guard against acts of stealth from the outside (this was also the case for the Shogunate and other clans).
The Number of Iga-mono and Their Income
The maximum number of Iga-mono were usually 20 to 10 or so. After The Great Fire of Meireki in 1657, the number of Iga-mono tended to decrease, probably to save the domain’s finances. Iga-mono were rarely stay in one place to live, it was common for them to change the house to live in. From the early Edo period to the end of the Edo period, only a few families, such as the Kaino family, had descendants who continued to be Iga-mono.
As the main domain that owned Iga, which had many ninja, the number of people who were able to raise their status appears to have been small. However, the descendants of the Iga ninja were raised to the rank of unpaid samurai (無足人 musokunin), and there are many cases of going to other clans to command troops as ninja.
The income of the Iga ninja varied from family to family, so it is difficult to make a single statement. However, taking the “Bungencho” (a list of Todo clan samurai) from 1742 as an example, there were 15 Iga-mono families at the time, with Kaino Kuzaemon having the highest income at 43 bales for five people, and the smallest number of households had 30 bales for three people.
Iga-mono are from villages
Iga-mono were all raised in rank above Gōshi (the local samurai in the village). In the Edo period, samurai usually lived in castle towns, but in some areas, there were Gōshi (郷士), who were known as samurai continuing from the Warring States period. Iga was another area with a particularly large number of Gōshi.
The Todo domain, considering the military importance of Iga as a stronghold near the capital and such social conditions, raised the status of Iga-mono to that of Gōshi, who were descended from ninja.
Some of the Iga-mono also had residences in the castle town of Iga-Ueno Castle, where the name “Shinobi-cho” (忍町) still exists today. However, the period which they were intensively granted houses in the castle town was limited to the early modern period, and the basic rule was that Iga-mono had to be enrolled in the village. Famous Iga-mono families include the Sawamura, Kaino, and Kizu families. Each of these families has a record of their official duties as Iga-mono, including a copy of the “由緒書Yuishogaki” (a document indicating the origin of the family) submitted to the domain. (Yoshiki Takao)
