Hitachi Province


Hitachi Province was an old province of Japan in the area of Ibaraki Prefecture. It was sometimes called Jōshū. Hitachi Province bordered on Shimōsa, Shimotsuke, and Mutsu Provinces. Generally, its northern border was with Mutsu.

History

The ancient provincial capital and temple were located near modern Ishioka and have been excavated, while the chief shrine was further east at Kashima. The province was established in the 7th century.
In the Sengoku period the area was divided among several daimyōs, but the chief castle was usually in the Mito Castle of the modern city of Mito.
In Edo period, one of the clans originating from Tokugawa Ieyasu, settled in the Mito Domain, known as Mito Tokugawa family or Mito Clan. Mito Domain, was a Japanese domain of the Edo period it was associated with Hitachi Province.
In Meiji era the political maps of the provinces of Japan were reformed in the 1870s, and the provinces became prefectures, and also some provinces were modified or merged, when creating the prefectures.

Historical districts

Two renowned history books about Japan were written in this province: