Kyogoku and the fight against flooding – 京極氏

In 1634, rule over the Matsue domain passed to Kyogoku Tadataka, who married the fourth daughter of Shogun Tokugawa Hidetada. Kyōgoku Tadataka is best known for his participation in the Tokugawa clan’s military campaign for Osaka (1615) in which he commanded 2,000 troops.

Though he only reigned for three years, Tadataka is remembered for his work against the floods that kept occurring in his domain, especially around the Hii River, where he oversaw the construction of the Wakasa embankment. Another marked development for the Matsue Domain under Tadataka’s rule was being granted ownership of the Iwami Ginzan Silver Mine in 1636. Tadataka died at age 45 without an heir, and his holdings reverted to the shogunate.