When
Emperor Shōmu ordered two official temples for each province (one for male
Buddhist priests and one for
nuns), two temples were founded in Aki Province. The provincial temple was founded in present-day
Saijō,
Higashihiroshima. In the late
Heian period (12th century), Aki Province became well known for the
Itsukushima Shrine.
Taira no Kiyomori realized the shrine's importance and donated funds for a new complex of buildings and sutra scrolls.
Itsukushima (Miyajima) had a good sea port and had clear strategic significance. In the
Sengoku period, it was the original seat of the
Mōri clan until 1600. In 1555,
Mōri Motonari won the
Battle of Itsukushima against
Sue Harutaka and established his power in the western part of
Honshū.
Mōri Terumoto, one of the
Council of Five Elders Toyotomi Hideyoshi appointed for his son
Hideyori, sided with
Ishida Mitsunari before the
Battle of Sekigahara in 1600, and lost Aki and many of his other domains. After a short rule by
Fukushima Masanori, in 1619,
Asano Nagaakira was appointed as the daimyō of
Hiroshima Domain with 420,000
koku. Until the
Meiji Restoration, the Asano governed almost all the province. Aki Province was abolished in 1871, and renamed to
Hiroshima Prefecture. After some mergers the current area of Hiroshima Prefecture was established. ==Shrines and temples==