On June 7, 2025 (Reiwa 7), a history lecture titled “Remembering the Okada Domain: Considering the Future of the Community Through History” was held at the Okada Branch of Mabi Community Center, located in Okada, Mabi, Kurashiki City. The event was hosted by the Okada District Community Development Promotion Council.
The lecturer, Imazu Kai, published “Stories of the Domains Series: The Okada Domain” through Gendaishokan Inc. in April 2023 (Reiwa 5). While researching and writing the book, he visited Mabi, Kurashiki City, many times. Through exchange with local residents, he built relationships of trust, which led to this lecture being held.
Here is an introduction to the history lecture, which explored the future of the community through the history of the Okada Domain and flooding.
The information presented was current when this article was published in July 2025. Please note that it may differ from current information.
History Lecture: “Remembering the Okada Domain: Considering the Future of the Community Through History”
The lecture began with welcome remarks by Masanori Kurose, chair of the Okada District Community Development Promotion Council.
Why do we need to study “history”?
Imazu’s history lecture began with the question, “Why do we need to study history?” As one answer, he quoted a famous remark by Winston Churchill, British prime minister during World War II: “We cannot know what the future holds. But the past should give us hope.”
As Okada, Mabi, is one of the areas affected by the torrential rains of July 2018, the words “the many lessons of the past can guide us into the future” are especially compelling.
The lecture focused on the following two themes. Here are excerpts from each.
- Theme 1: The history of the area around Mabi during the Edo period, focusing on the Okada Domain
- Theme 2: Floods that struck the area around Mabi during the Edo period
The history of the area around Mabi during the Edo period, focusing on the Okada Domain
Here are three particularly interesting points.
- The highly unusual founding of the Okada Domain
- Who were the Ito clan?
- The ten generations of Okada domain lords and their times
The highly unusual founding of the Okada Domain
The Okada Domain was founded in 1615, when Tokugawa Ieyasu, a general on the opposing side, confirmed the holdings of more than 10,000 koku in Shimomichi District, Bitchu Province, including detached territories, for Nagazane Ito, a warrior who had fought for the Toyotomi side in the Siege of Osaka. The Tokugawa side’s response was apparently highly unusual by national standards.
There is also a rumor that Nagazane may have been a Tokugawa spy, since he informed Tokugawa Ieyasu of Ishida Mitsunari’s uprising during the Battle of Sekigahara.
Who were the Ito clan?
The Ito clan was a powerful family based in Ito Manor in Izu Province (around present-day Ito City, Shizuoka Prefecture) during the Kamakura period. The family descended from the Fujiwara clan’s Southern House.
Nagazane Ito’s father, Nagahisa Ito, served Oda Nobunaga and distinguished himself in many battles. Nobunaga bestowed on him the character “長” (naga) and the family crest (the Ito lightning crest).
The ten generations of Okada domain lords and their times
Founded after the Siege of Osaka, the Okada Domain was passed down through ten generations until the Meiji Restoration.
| Successive lords of the Okada Domain | Major events of their respective eras |
|---|---|
| First lord: Nagazane Ito | Fought on the Toyotomi side in the Siege of Osaka but received a pardon. There is even a rumor that he was actually a Tokugawa “spy”… Became the first lord of the Okada Domain in 1615. |
| Second lord: Nagamasa Ito | Born the second son of the first lord, Nagazane. Became his father Nagazane’s successor after his elder brother, Naganao Ito, died young. |
| Third lord: Nagaharu Ito | An anecdote says he was praised by Tokugawa Mitsukuni, known as “Mito Komon” and popularly called the “Deputy Shogun of Japan,” but… |
| Fourth lord: Nagasada Ito | Moved the domain’s administrative headquarters from the Doi residence in Kawabe Village to the Nakamura residence in Okada Village. Also held important posts in the Edo shogunate, including guarding Sunpu Castle. |
| Fifth lord: Nagahira Ito | In 1701 (Genroku 14), moved the headquarters to Okada Jin’ya. In 1717 (Kyoho 2), a peasant uprising known as the Shinhon Gimin Disturbance broke out over the domain’s communal forests. The great Bitchu flood of 1721 (Kyoho 6) occurred. |
| Sixth lord: Nagaoka Ito | Struggled to rebuild the domain’s finances. The Great Kyoho Famine occurred in 1732 (Kyoho 17). |
| Seventh lord: Nagatoshi Ito | Known as a wise lord, he was deeply mourned by his people when he died. |
| Eighth lord: Nagatomo Ito | Worked with Uraike Kyuen and others on financial reforms and the establishment of a domain school (Keigakukan). |
| Ninth lord: Nagayasu Ito | The great flood of 1850 (Kaei 3) occurred. |
| Tenth lord: Nagatoshi Ito | The last lord of the Okada Domain. He became a viscount after the Meiji Restoration. |
Floods that struck the area around Mabi during the Edo period
Next, we learn about the history of the Okada Domain and flooding.
A region long prone to flooding: at least 26 major floods
The oldest recorded flood to strike the Okada Domain (the former Mabi area) is said to date to 1652 (Keian 5). The Okada Domain suffered repeated large-scale floods throughout the Edo period.
| Year | Overview |
|---|---|
| 1652 | In August, heavy rain caused extensive flooding in Kawabe Village and surrounding areas. |
| 1702 (Genroku 15) | In July, heavy rain caused flooding of more than one shaku (about 30 cm) above floor level in Kawabe Village. Flood damage from torrential rain also occurred in August of the same year. |
| 1707 (Hoei 4) | Heavy rain caused flooding in the Bizen and Bitchu regions in August and September. |
| 1721 (Kyoho 6) | The great Bitchu flood of Kyoho 6 In July, torrential rain caused extensive damage when several rivers, including the Takahashi River, Oda River, and Nariwa River, overflowed. |
| 1778 (An’ei 7) | In June, many areas of the Okada Domain, including Shinjo, Honjo, and Hatta villages, suffered damage. |
| 1836 (Tenpo 7) | Overflowing rivers, including the Oda River, caused flooding, mainly in Kawabe, Arii, and Shimoman. |
| 1840 (Tenpo 11) | Overflowing rivers, including the Oda River, flooded most of the Okada Domain. |
| 1850 (Kaei 3) | The great flood of Kaei 3 Prolonged rain that began in late May caused levees along the Takahashi River and other rivers to collapse. The Okada Domain suffered severe damage, particularly in Kawabe, Arii, and Hatta. |
The damage caused by the “great flood of Kaei 3” in 1850 was presented using maps from the time. Maps remain that depict much of the area from central Kurashiki City to western Okayama City submerged, conveying the devastation of the time to us today.
Why were floods so frequent?
Although the factors behind the frequent flooding in the Okada Domain and surrounding areas were complex and difficult to pinpoint, the following were presented as factors that contributed to flooding.
- The topography of the Takahashi and Oda rivers caused backwater effects.
- “Kanna-nagashi,” the practice of washing iron sand during tatara iron production in the upper Takahashi River basin, caused large amounts of sediment to accumulate downstream.
The struggle against floods—our predecessors’ fight against flooding
To address frequent flooding, the Okada Domain reportedly implemented a range of measures, including building levees and improving the Oda River.
Examples introduced included the construction of the “Kagura Dote” and the “Okada Mizuyoke Tsutsumi,” as well as the “Oda River improvement project” led by Moriya Kanbee.
In particular, remnants of the Kagura Dote can still be found in places such as the parking lot of the Kawabe Branch of Mabi Community Center.
The Kagura Dote is the remains of an embankment built around the town of Kawabe to protect it from floods. Rows of stones were placed inside and outside the base, with the embankment built above them. The base was six ken (about 11 m) wide and perhaps two ken (3.6 m) high. At the four corners of the Kagura Dote were shrines to Ekijin (northeast), Kojin (southeast), Konpira (southwest), and Abe (northwest). It is unclear when the Kagura Dote was built, but an 1704 (Hoei 1) map of the Oda River improvement project, when Moriya Kanbee carried out major work on the river, shows an embankment south of the old Sanyo Road. The embankment that had protected the settlement from floods was breached in the great flood of 1893 (Meiji 26), and was removed after major improvements to the Takahashi River levee. Traces of it can be seen on the road south of the Kawabe Branch, in the stone wall on the grounds of Genpukuji Temple, and in the fields north of Genpukuji Temple.
(Quoted from the guide map at the Kawabe Branch of Mabi Community Center)
Summary: The struggle against floods—lessons from our predecessors
Imazu summarized the lessons from those who struggled against floods for many years as follows.
In the past, and even today, it is important not only to take physical measures (structural measures), but also to take non-structural measures by maintaining disaster-preparedness awareness in everyday life and, in an emergency, “protecting your own life and the lives of those dear to you.”
Even as times change, the basic framework of what is known as “self-help, mutual assistance, and public assistance” has continued since ancient times. We must also pass on the history and experience of the past to the next generation.
“The many lessons of the past can guide us into the future.”
From the history lecture handouts
From the Writer
When we spoke with Mr. Imazu after the lecture, he told us that some of the attendees had provided many valuable documents and information while he was writing “The Domain Story Series: Okada Domain.”
Then, while he was writing the book, the July 2018 torrential rains struck…
Although privately owned documents and other materials were washed away, their contents were compiled into a single book, “The Domain Story Series: Okada Domain,” and thus preserved.
Please also pick up a copy of the book “The Domain Story Series: Okada Domain,” which led to this lecture being held.
History Lecture: Memories of the Okada Domain—Considering the Future of the Region Through History Information
| Name | History Lecture: Memories of the Okada Domain—Considering the Future of the Region Through History |
|---|---|
| Date | June 7, 2025, 1:30 p.m.–3:00 p.m. |
| Location | Okada Branch of Mabi Community Center (271 Okada, Mabi-cho, Kurashiki City) |
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