Matsuda Town Daimyo Procession

Festival highlights

Highlights include costumes that evoke the formality of the Edo period and procession formations modeled on those of the time.

The yakko-buri passed down in the Odawara Domain is central to the performance, allowing visitors to see a historical procession formation at a modern event.

This event was selected for the “50 Selected Folk Performing Arts of Kanagawa” and has also been designated an intangible cultural property of Matsuda Town.

A historical pageant preserving Edo formality and Matsuda’s yakko-buri

What to expect

In the procession, the preservation society prepares costumes and formations close to those of the Edo period and performs yakko-buri.

The daimyo procession is presented as a performance at events such as the Matsuda Industrial Tourism Festival, rather than only on a regular date of its own.

The 2026 fiscal year schedule states that performances were held at the Hojo Godai Festival in May, the Samuta Shrine Annual Festival in July, and the Matsuda Industrial Tourism Festival in November.

How to take part

The Matsuda Town Daimyo Procession Preservation Society is recruiting people to help with performances, dressing participants, and other support.

Those interested, please contact the Lifelong Learning Promotion Division of Matsuda Town at 0465-83-7021.

Location and access

Address

Matsuda Town

Host municipality 神奈川県松田町

This map shows the surrounding area, not the exact venue location.

Open in Google Maps

Origins and History of Matsuda Town Daimyo Procession

The Matsuda Town Daimyo Procession is said to have begun after the abolition of the domains and establishment of prefectures in Meiji 4, when a retainer from Matsuda Town passed down the yakko-buri forms as the former lord of the Odawara Domain moved to Tokyo.

Those forms were offered at Samuta Shrine and incorporated into the shrine procession.

It was presented every year from Meiji 8 in July 31, but was discontinued around the end of the Meiji period. It was later revived and suspended repeatedly during the Taisho and Showa periods.

It was designated an intangible cultural property of the town in Showa 46, and the preservation society was established in Showa 51.

Source: 松田町の大名行列はこうして始まった – 松田町大名行列

Official information

Matsuda Town official website, “The Matsuda Town Daimyo Procession Marks Its 150th Anniversary.”」

／松田町大名行列保存会 matsuda-daimyo.com↗

Matsuda Town Daimyo Procession at a Glance

The Matsuda Town Daimyo Procession is a traditional event in Matsuda Town that preserves the daimyo procession rooted in the system of alternate attendance and the Odawara Domain’s yakko-buri.

The preservation society prepares costumes and procession formations close to those of the Edo period, and performances are now presented at events such as the Matsuda Industrial Tourism Festival.

This local culture has endured through periods of continuity and interruption since the Meiji period, leading to its designation as an intangible cultural property of the town and the formation of a preservation society.

Accommodation and hotels PR