The moneylenders of late medieval Kyoto / Suzanne Gay.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Gay, Suzanne Marie.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Banks and banking--Japan--Kyoto--History.

Banks and banking.

Bankers--Japan--Kyoto--History.

Bankers.

Credit--Japan--History.

Credit.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (316 p.)

Place of Publication:

Honolulu : University of Hawai'i Press, c2001.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

The Moneylenders of Late Medieval Kyoto examines the large community of sake brewer-moneylenders in Japan's capital city, focusing on their rise to prominence from the mid-1300s to 1550. Their guild tie to overlords, notably the great monastery Enryakuji, was forged early in the medieval period, giving them a protected monopoly and allowing them to flourish. Demand for credit was strong in medieval Kyoto, and brewers profitably recirculated capital for loans. As the medieval period progressed, the brewer-lenders came into their own. While maintaining overlord ties, they engaged in activities that brought them into close contact with every segment of Kyoto's population. The more socially prominent brewers served as tax agents for religious institutions, the shogunate, and the imperial court, and were actively involved in a range of cultural pursuits including tea and linked verse. Although the merchants themselves left only the faintest record, Suzanne Gay has fully and convincingly depicted this important group of medieval commoners.

Contents:

Machine generated contents note: List of Illustrations ix

Acknowledgments xi

Introduction 1

PART ONE

THE SETTING: KYOTO'S EARLY YEARS AND MEDIEVAL RESIDENTS 9

PART TWO

THE LIVES OF THE MONEYLENDERS 35

Chapter One The Business of Lending Money 37

Chapter Two Overlords 56

Chapter Three Transcending Subordination 90

Chapter Four Responding to Siege 127

Chapter Five Urban Affairs 172

Chapter Six The Fate of the Moneylenders

in the Early Modem Period 201

Conclusion 211

Appendix 225

Notes 237

Bibliography 285

Index 297.

Notes:

Bibliographic Level Mode of Issuance: Monograph

Description based on online resource; title from PDF title page (publisher's Web site, viewed 28. Aug 2019)

Includes bibliographical references (p. [285]-295) and index.

ISBN:

9781441656926

1441656928

9780824864880

0824864883

OCLC:

646066549