Shôtoku 2 (正徳二年)
Timeline of 1712
- 1712/4/2 Arai Hakuseki meets with representatives of the VOC, Cornelis Lardijn, Paulus Simons, Willem Wagemans, and Joan Heusler.
- 1712/4/10 Hakuseki meets with VOC representatives again.
- 1712/6 Satsuma han restores to the king of Ryûkyû the title of koku-ô (king); for the previous hundred years, Satsuma had regarded him as kokushi (governor). Use of the surname 尚 (Shô) is restricted to the king himself; all other members of the royal family are required to use the surname 向 (Shô).
- 1712/7 Tamagusuku Chôkun travels to Kagoshima to inform Satsuma han of the death of King Shô Eki.
Other Events of 1712
- A fire destroys the tenshu and honmaru of Kôchi castle.
- Ôgata Kenzan moves from Narutaki, on the outskirts of Kyoto, to central Kyoto. No longer overseeing his own kiln, he begins focusing more heavily on decoration, and orders ceramic blanks from various kilns.
- Stipends are no longer guaranteed to those of the Ryukyuan aristocracy who do not hold official government posts.
- Shuri castle is rebuilt after a fire, with the aid of lumber from Satsuma, without which the kingdom could not undertake the repairs.
- The first volumes of Wakan sansai zue, organized by Terashima Ryôan, begin to be published.
Births and Deaths
- 1712/10/14 Shogun Tokugawa Ienobu dies.
- 1712/11/2 Hikosaka Hachibe'e Tadashige of the Enmei-ryû school of kenjutsu dies.
- Ichikawa Danjûrô IV is born (d. 1778).
- Shô Eki dies.
- Artist Toriyama Sekien is born (d. 1788).