Shō Tei

Shō Tei
尚貞 shoo tii
King of Ryūkyū
Reign1669–1709
PredecessorShō Shitsu
SuccessorShō Eki
BornUmigurugani (思五郎金)
(1645-01-22)January 22, 1645
DiedAugust 18, 1709(1709-08-18) (aged 64)
Burial
SpouseGesshin, Okuma Aji-ganashi
Jion, Makabe Aji-ganashi
ConcubineSengaku, Taketomi Agomo-shirare
IssueShō Jun, Crown Prince Nakagusuku
Shō Kei, Prince Tomigusuku Chōryō
Shō Kō, Prince Oroku Chōki
Shō Ki, Prince Misato Chōtei
Princess Matsudo
Princess Umimazurugane
Princess Uchima
Princess Shikina
Princess Amuro
Names
Shō Tei (尚貞)
Yamato nameChōshū (朝周)
HouseSecond Shō dynasty
FatherShō Shitsu
MotherMisato Aji-ganashi
Signature

Shō Tei (尚貞, 1645–1709) was the 11th King of the Second Shō Dynasty of the Ryukyu Kingdom, who held the throne from 1669 until his death in 1709.[1] He was the ruler of Ryukyu at the time of the compiling of the Chūzan Seifu (a document documenting Ryukyuan history).

Shō Tei received a Confucian education, and was the first Ryukyuan monarch to do so.[2]

Shō Tei was the monarch at the time when the Japanese bakufu began taking notice of trade of Chinese goods passing through the islands, during the period of sakoku (when no contact between Japan and the outside world was foreign policy). The bakufu, instead of punishing the Ryukyuan government, ordered detailed reports on the trade in 1685. The following year, trade was restricted to 2,000 ryō worth per term, and was only able to be sold in markets that did not compete with the Dutch enclave in Nagasaki.[2] The result of such trade made the Ryukyuan economy boom.[2]

Shō Tei is the final Ryukyuan monarch to be given a god's name in official histories, due to the changing image of the position (less a deity, more a Confucian sage).[2]

He was buried at the royal mausoleum Tamaudun in Shuri.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Shō Tei." Okinawa konpakuto jiten (沖縄コンパクト事典, "Okinawa Compact Encyclopedia"). Ryukyu Shimpo (琉球新報). 1 March 2003. Accessed 29 January 2010.
  2. ^ a b c d Smits, Gregory (1999). Visions of Ryukyu: Identity and Ideology in Early-Modern Thought and Politics. University of Hawai'i Press. ISBN 0-8248-2037-1.
Regnal titles
Preceded by King of Ryūkyū
1669–1709
Succeeded by