The Suruga Date Collection
The Suruga Date, a family sharing the same ancestor as the famous Date Masamune of Northern Japan were a warrior (kokujin) family based in Suruga Province (currently known as Shizuoka Prefecture). They moved to Tsuyama domain in Mimasaka province (current day Okayama Prefecture) where they survived during the Early Modern era (1600-1868). In all, 121 documents survive in the Suruga Date collection, with the oldest dating from the fourteenth century, and the most recent dating from the late nineteenth century (Meiji era).
65 documents from the Early Modern to the Meiji era are available here, excluding the 56 documents released separately as medieval documents. The documents cover a wide range of topics, but at the heart of them are those relating to the dispute over the Date family name from 1690 to the following year. It is thought that in the course of this dispute leading to the ruling by the Shogunate's review office, genealogical records and other documents were compiled and passed on to future generations.
