Mima

Mima lies in Awa on Shikoku, around the middle Yoshino River. Settlements and fields occupy the river plain and smaller valleys, with mountain slopes rising on either side. During the Sengoku period Iwakura and Waki castles became strongholds of the Miyoshi family, whose power extended across parts of Shikoku and the Kansai region.

After the Hachisuka family took control of Awa, Waki Castle served as one of its regional strongholds until the early Edo restriction on castles. Wakimachi continued to prosper as a commercial centre, gathering indigo for shipment along the Yoshino. In the Edo period the plains produced rice, barley and indigo leaves, while mountain communities cut timber and made charcoal and paper.