Maeda Nariyasu (28 August 1811 – 16 January 1884) was daimyo of the Kanazawa Maeda clan from 1822 to 1866, succeeding Maeda Narinaga and preceding Maeda Yoshiyasu.
Biography[]
Maeda Nariyasu was born in Kanazawa, Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan on 28 August 1811, the son of Maeda Narinaga, and he succeeded his father as family headman in 1822. He took personal control of the Kanazawa Domain's government on his father's death in 1824, and he was originally an active supporter of conservative policies before Commodore Matthew Perry's arrival, after which he supported liberal policies and military modernization in his domain. Nariyasu confined the activities of the Sonnō jōi in Kanazawa, and he retired in 1866; he retained personal control of the domain during his son Maeda Yoshiyasu's rule, cautiously edging toward closer relations with the Satsuma Domain and Choshu Domain. Under Nariyasu's leadership, Kanazawa came to side with the pro-Imperial faction during the Boshin War, taking part in the Imperial army's campaign in Echigo Province. He died in 1884 at the age of 72.