The Land Tax in the Tokugawa Period

• DOI: 10.2307/2941283
• Publication Date: 2006-04-13T16:13:33Z
• Authors: Thomas C. Smith

Few notions are so widely held among students of Japanese economic history as the view that land tax during Tokugawa period was cruelly oppressive. It is thought to have left peasantry no significant surplus after production costs, and moreover become heavier time passed. I propose in this paper examine certain evidence bearing on view, which strongly influences interpretation modern history.