Rōjū
The , usually translated as "Elder", was one of the highest-ranking government posts under the Tokugawa shogunate of Edo period Japan. The term refers either to individual Elders, or to the Council of Elders as a whole; under the first two "shōguns", there were only two "Rōjū". The number was then increased to five, and later reduced to four. The "Rōjū" were appointed from the ranks of the "fudai daimyōs" with domains of between 25,000 and 50,000 "koku". Duties. The "Rōjū" had a number of responsibilities, most clearly delineated in the 1634 ordinance that reorganized the government and created  a number of new posts: The "Rōjū" served not simultaneously, but in rotation, each serving the Shogun for a month at a time, communicating with the Shogun through a chamberlain, called "Soba-yōnin". However, the "Rōjū" also served as members of the "Hyōjōsho" council, along with the "Ō-Metsuke" and representatives of various "Bugyō" (Commissions or Departments). As part of the "Hyōjōsho", the "Rōjū" sometimes served a role similar to that of a supreme court, deciding succession disputes and other such disputed matters of state. Under the reign of Tokugawa Tsunayoshi (1680–1709) the "Rōjū" lost nearly all their power, as  the Shogun began to work more closely with the "Tairō", Chamberlains, and others, including Yanagisawa Yoshiyasu, who held the power of a "Tairō", but not the title. The "Rōjū" became little more than messengers, going through the motions of their proper roles as intermediaries between the Shogun and other offices, but not being able to exercise any power to change or decide policy. As Arai Hakuseki, a major Confucian poet and politician of the time wrote, "All the Rōjū did was to pass on his <nowiki>[Yoshiyasu's]</nowiki> instructions" (Sansom 141). Even after Tsunayoshi's death, the "Rōjū" did not  regain their former power. They continued to exist, however, as a government post and a council with, officially if not in fact, all the powers and responsibilities they originally held, through the Edo period. List of "Rōjū". "Each office-holder is listed once. Some may have served under multiple "shōguns", and as a result of multiple terms, the list may not fully accurate reflect the order in which the office was held. For example, Hotta Masayoshi served in 1857–58 after Abe Masahiro (1843–57), but also served earlier, and is listed earlier; he is not also listed after Abe." Rōjū The