than Hiroie had presented, and thus voided their secret pact. Initially he wished to completely confiscate all Mōri domains and give two provinces to Hiroie as a reward. However the offer shocked Hiroie, whose motivation was to ensure the Mōri clan's survival. Eventually Ieyasu relented, and instead reduced the Mōri clan's domains to just two provinces under the condition that Mōri Terumoto retires. Although Hiroie succeeded in keeping the Mōri clan's daimyō status, the Mōri clan lost over 3 quarters of its former territories. Because Hiroie had proceeded with the secret negotiations without the clan's approval or knowledge, once the events came to light he came under intense attacks from his own clan. Many considered him a traitor, especially since it was felt that his actions during the battle was instrumental in the Tokugawa victory that led to the disastrous punishment. Hidemoto in particular would become his bitter rival in Mōri clan politics. After the battle, Terumoto gave a portion of his much reduced domain to Hiroie. He is therefore often mistakenly considered the first ruler of an Iwakuni han; however, unlike the Mōri shihans that were established for branches of the Mōri clan in the same period, Hiroie and his descendants were not made daimyōs in their own right until the Meiji Restoration. Instead, the Kikkawa family continued to be senior retainers of the Mōri clan until the end of the Bakufu, at which point the Iwakawa domain officially became a han. Death In 1614, Hiroie was succeeded by Kikkawa Hiromasa, his eldest son. Hiroie died in 1626, twelve years after passing the clan leadership to his heir. Hiroie worked for prosperity of his domain; he is remembered for having laid down a set of laws with 188 clauses (the Kikkawa-shi hatto'). |- References Hall, John Whitney et al., eds. (1981). Japan Before Tokugawa: Political Consolidation and Economic Growth, 1500 to 1650, Katsumata Shizuo and Martin Collcutt, "The Development of Sengoku Law." Princeton: Princeton University Press. Kikkawa Hiroie-kō sanbyakunensai kinen kōenshū'' 吉川広家公三百年祭記念講演集 (1926). Tokyo, Takada-machi: Shishaku Kikkawa-ke henshūjo 子爵吉川家編輯所. Further reading 1561 births 1626 deaths Daimyo People from Aki Province People of the Japanese invasions of Korea (1592–1598) Deified Japanese people