美濃金山城主森家と茶の湯
The MORI Family, Lords of Mino-Kaneyama Castle, and their Involvement with the Tea Ceremony
信長の家臣で、桶狭間の合戦(1560年)などで戦功あげたのが、森可成(もりよしなり)です。可成は、信長の信頼が厚く、織田家の宿老(重要な地位に就く者)でした。そして、東山道(後の中山道)や木曽川を使う交通の要所であり、濃尾平野の東を防御する美濃金山城主(1565年)となりました。その後、森家は美濃金山城主として、関ヶ原の合戦後に可児を離れるまで、長可(ながよし)、蘭丸(らんまる)、忠政と4代続きます。
可成は、茶頭(さどう)として名高い今井宗久や千利休などの茶頭三宗匠と親交があり、茶の湯に精通していました。また、可成の長男可隆(よしたか)は、弟の長可とともに千利休を師として尊敬し、教えを受けていました。利休から可隆にあてた手紙には、「茶杓が必要とのことなので、使いに持たせて一つ進上します。これは私のとっておきのものです」と書かれており、二人の親密さをうかがい知ることができます。
忠政の茶の湯への造詣の深さは、秀吉が催した北野の大茶会のために、金山(現在の可児市兼山)から運ばせた「小関の清水」を用いて茶を点てさせたことでもうかがい知れます。また、忠政は摂津茨城城主中川清秀の女と結婚したことで、古田織部(ふるたおりべ)とは叔父甥の関係となり、織部から忠政に宛てた書簡が残るなど特に親しい間柄でした。
このように森家と茶の湯の関係は深く、同時に森家が美濃金山城に在城した桃山期において、当時の陶器の生産と流通に森氏が関与したか可能性は高いと推察されます。
A retainer of ODA Nobunaga, MORI Yoshinari was distinguished himself at the Battle of Okehazama (1560). He was highly trusted by Nobunaga, becoming one of his chief vassals and was later put in charge of Mino-Kaneyama Castle (1565), which, positioned between the Kisogawa River and the Tōsandō (later Nakasendō) Road, was in an ideal position to guard the east of the Nōbi Plain. From that time until they moved away from present-day Kani City after the Battle of Sekigahara (1600), four generations of the MORI family, Yoshinari, Nagayoshi, Ranmaru and Tadamasa, ruled there.
Yoshinari was well versed in the tea ceremony and on close terms with the three great tea masters, IMAI Sōkyū, SEN no Rikyū and TSUDA Sōgyū. His eldest and second sons, Yoshitaka and Nagayoshi, were both students of SEN no Rikyū whom they venerated. In a letter from Rikyū to Yoshitaka, he writes, ‘You will need a tea scoop so I am sending a servant with one. It is one of my favorites.’ From this we can see the close relationship that existed between the two men.
Tadamasa was also an accomplished tea master and on the event of Hideyoshi’s ‘Kitano Grand Tea Ceremony’, he transported water all the way from Kaneyama (present day Kani City) to Kyoto in order to prepare tea. Having married the daughter of NAKAGAWA Kiyohide, Lord of Settsu Ibaraki Castle, he became a nephew of FURUTA Oribe and from letters written by Oribe, we can see that the two men were on intimate terms.
In this way, it is clear that the MORI family was deeply involved in the tea ceremony and it seems likely that they promoted the production and distribution of ceramics while they were lords of Mino Kaneyama Castle during the Momoyama period (1573-1603).
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美濃金山城跡の天守の礎石 Foundations of the donjon of Mino Kaneyama Castle |
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二の丸の石垣
Stone walls of the outer citadel of Mino Kaneyama Castle
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