Tokugawa Ieharu
Matsudaira Sadanobu (1759–1829) was named the shōgun's chief councilor ("rōjū") in the summer of 1787; and early in the next year, he became the regent for the 11th shōgun, Tokugawa Ienari. As the chief administrative decision-maker in the "bakufu" hierarchy, he was in a position to effect radical change; and his initial actions represented an aggressive break with the recent past. Sadanobu's efforts were focused on strengthening the government by reversing many of the policies and practices which had become commonplace under the regime of the previous shōgun, Tokugawa Ieharu. These reform policies could be interpreted as a reactionary response to the excesses of his "rōjū" predecessor, Tanuma Okitsugu (1719–1788); and the result was that the Tanuma-initiated, liberalizing reforms within the "bakufu" and the relaxation of "sakoku" (Japan's "closed-door" policy of strict control of foreign merchants) were reversed or blocked.