The Yamagunitai (山国隊)
The Yamagunitai (the Yamaguni Corps or Troop) was an armed force of farmers that was formed during the Bakumatsu period (a fifteen-year period, from 1853-1868, that saw the demise of the Tokugawa bakufu) in the hamlet of Yamaguni in Kuwata county of Tanba Province (the modern-day Keihoku-cho, Ukyo Ward, Kyoto). They were associated with Inaba and Tottori domains, and fought as part of the loyalist forces in the Boshin War. They are also known for their role as flute- and drum-players as part of the imperial loyalist troop in the procession of the Kyoto Jidai Matsuri (the Festival of the Ages in Kyoto).
The Yamagunitai had received training in French-style military drilling, and were extremely skilled at marksmanship with guns thanks to their long familiarity from hunting excursions in their mountain villages. Moreover, while marching to the Kanto, the distinctive appearance of their bearskin military caps led some to begin calling them the Kappa Corps (kappa were mythical water goblins with distinctive heads).
Their formation
Yamaguni hamlet, which local legend has it supplied the timber to construct Heian Kyo (ancient Kyoto), had from ancient times possessed deep ties to the imperial house, and the whole area of Yamaguni was in fact a shoen (private estate) under the direct control of the imperial house up until the time of Hideyoshi TOYOTOMI's nationwide land survey. But by the Bakumatsu period (1853-1868), the remaining territory controlled by the imperial house was about half of the interior of the region, and territorial relations among the villages had changed; the various villages in Yamaguni had joined together as organized parishioners of the same local shrine, the Yamaguni-jinja Shrine, and the new balance of power led to many conflicts over land control. At this point the council of village headmen (who were also comrades from the shrine organization) began to set their sights on the entire region remaining under the control of the imperial house, arguing that, much like during the days the area was a shoen, 'Yamaguni estate,' they had received an official position and rank from the emperor and should have control over the whole area, thereby aiming to fortify the unity of the shrine organization.
It was in the midst of these developments, on January 27, 1868, that countrywide tensions broke out into open conflict in the Battle of Toba-Fushimi. Soon after, imperial loyalist (anti-bakufu) troops recruited by Kinmochi SAIONJI, the general placed in charge of pacifying the Sanindo highway and the surrounding area, appeared in Tanba Province, and in Yamaguni, whose inhabitants had been training to serve the imperial cause, for example by standing guard at the imperial palace in Kyoto, since the end of the previous year (1867), they were also hoping for a restoration of their own hamlet along with a resumption of the ties with the imperial house they had held since the Heian period, desires which quickly prompted them to form, at their own expense, a fighting force of farmers.
This peasant army had four commanding officers, in accordance with the ancient precedent from back in the days where the region was a shoen (private estate), and was split into two companies, the Western and Eastern Companies, which were composed with different goals in mind; both companies assembled and were formed on February 4, 1868 at Yamaguni Shrine.
The Western Company (with 64 regular soldiers and 12 auxiliaries, commanded by Mr. Mizoguchi, the governor of Bizen Province, Mr. Fujino, the governor of Omi Province. The Western Company intended to join forces with Saionji on the Sanindo highway, but along the way they decided that Saionji had already effectively suppressed the area. But Jirozaemon IONO of Tottori Domain (who later became prefectural governor of Kumihama Prefecture) intervened in their support as well, and Tonomi IWAKURA officially linked them to Tottori Domain and gave them instructions to begin calling themselves the 'Yamagunitai' (Yamaguni army); with this, the Yamagunitai was born.
The Eastern Company (27 regular soldiers commanded by Mr. Torii, governor of Kawachi Province, and Mr. Kawarabayashi, governor of Yamato Province). The Eastern Company aimed to join forces with the army of Prince Ninnajinomiya, the Seito Taishogun (the supreme commander temporarily appointed to destroy the shogunate), at Osaka, but their attempts to do so did not succeed; moreover, they acquired the nickname the 'Shinpeigumi' (Company of Imperial Soldiers) and tried to attain the role of guarding the palace as imperial guardsmen, but the fighting ended before they ever organized themselves into an effective unit.
The army's departs Kyoto for the east
Following Imperial Prince Taruhito ARISUGAWA, who was Tosei Daisotoku (great leader who journeys east), who led his army out of Kyoto, one small company from the Yamagunitai received orders to accompany the prince eastwards. On March 6, 1868, this small company of the Yamagunitai (comprised of 28 regulars and 2 auxiliaries) added their own force to the Tottori domain regiment of the Tosando (highway) army, becoming the 'Thirteenth Company,' and departed Kyoto. The remaining soldiers stayed behind in Kyoto, performing guard duty for the palace and so on.
(For more on the journey east, consult the chronology below.)
Their triumphant return to Yamaguni
On March 30, 1869, the Yamagunitai was met by a tremendous crowd of onlookers as they marched, playing flutes and drums, from Kyoto to Yamaguni in a triumphant return, paying homage at Yamaguni-jinja Shrine. On April 6, a memorial service was held for those soldiers who had died in battle, and founded a shrine, Shokonjo (today's Yamaguni gokoku-jinja Shrine), in Tsuji village.
In the end, the Yamagunitai suffered four war dead (including one who was never located afterwards) and three deaths to illness during the course of their activities, a steep sacrifice considering their total numbers. But much like the Shinpeigumi, they were left with enormous debts because they were shouldering the financial burden of their wartime activities themselves, so although the council of village headsmen managed to cover their expenses by selling the lumber and other things they owned jointly as villages, this led to the shrine organization--the heart and soul of the troop--quickly ceasing to exist soon after the Restoration. But thereafter, the Yamagunitai became a source of local pride, which is why figures representing the Yamagunitai can still be seen in the processions for the Yamaguni Shrine Kankosai (festival of re-enshrinement) and in the Kyoto Jidai Matsuri (Kyoto's Festival of the Ages).
Chronology
1868 (the first year of the Meiji era)
February 11: acting under the instructions of Tomomi IWAKURA, the Yamagunitai is formed.
March 6: one small company from the Yamagunitai joins the army marching east from Kyoto.
March 8: they are joined by six new recruits. This brings the total strength of the force to 34.
March 13: after witnessing the battlefield at Ogaki in Mino Province, the troop members sign a pledge of perseverance in blood.
March 26: Sakuma KAWATA, of the general administrative staff of Tottori Domain, takes over the leadership of the Yamagunitai in addition to his other duties.
March 29: the troop takes part in the battle of Katsunuma in Kai Province (Yamanashi Pref. today).
April 1: the troop's outdated Gewehr guns are replaced by the newer Minié rifles.
April 11: the troop enters Edo (modern-day Tokyo).
April 16: new bearskin caps with the character 'sakigake' (leading the charge) emblazoned on them are distributed to the troop's soldiers.
May 14: they are caught in fierce fighting during the battle of Yasuzuka in Shimotsuke Province. Two of their number are killed in battle, while five are wounded and one vanishes without a trace.
May 17: they make a triumphal return to Edo. They are entrusted with the honor of guarding the brocaded Imperial standard.
July 4: the troop clashes with the Shogitai (a pro-bakufu force) during the Battle of Ueno. One soldier is killed and four wounded in the fighting.
August 16: nine of the troop's regulars accompany the troop commander as he departs from Edo for the front in Mutsu province.
August 20: this force lands in Hirakata in Hitachi Province.
September 22: they occupy Soma-nakamura-jo Castle.
October 27: three of the troop's soldiers remain behind with the commander, while six return to duty in the newly renamed Tokyo (formerly Edo).
November 5: their force occupies Watari-jo Castle.
November 14: they occupy Sendai-jo Castle.
December 4: the three soldiers and the commander return to military duty in Tokyo.
December 18: as participants in Prince Arisugawanomiya's planned triumphal entry (into Kyoto), they depart from Tokyo.
(Their function during the procession was to guard the gold-brocaded imperial flag.)
January 7, 1869: they, together with Prince Arisugawanomiya, have a triumphal entry into Kyoto. They return to Kyoto.
(Their function during this procession was to guard the gold-brocaded imperial flag.)