In 1636,
Hitotsuyanagi Naomori,
daimyō of
Kanbe Domain in
Ise Province received an increase in
kokudaka of 18,000
koku and was transferred to Saijō in
Iyo Province with a total of 68,000
koku. This marks the start of
Saijō Domain. However, Naomori died in
Osaka in the same year and his inheritance was divided among his three sons: his heir Naoshige inherited 30,000
koku and became daimyo of Saijō Domain, his second son Naoie inherited 28,000
koku, forming Iyo Kawanoe Domain and later transferred his seat to
Ono Domain in
Harima Province, and his third son Naoyori became the 10,000
koku daimyō of Komatsu Domain. Naoyori set up a ''
jin'ya'' in Shinyashiki Village, Sufu County, located west of Saijo, and his descendants would continue to rule the area for 280 years until the end of the
Edo period. In 1642, Hitotsuyanagi Naoie was transferred to Harima and after his death, his territory of 18,600 in Iyo Province was confiscated by the shogunate. In 1665, Hitotsuyanagi Naoki (a son of Naoshige) of Saijo Domain was deprived of his status, leaving only the Komatsu Domain in Iyo Province. During the
Kanbun through
Genroku eras (1661-1704), Hitotsuyanagi Naoharu, the second
daimyō, developed considerable new rice lands. The Ichinokawa Mine was a major source of
antimony in the Edo period, and the domain also developed
washi paper as a domain monopoly and a major source of revenue. Nevertheless, as with all domains, finances were always tight with the demands of
sankin kōtai attendance to the Shogun's court in
Edo, and the need to maintain a domain residence in Edo. The third
daimyō, Yorinori, was a master of
Japanese calligraphy and was highly praised by his peers. During the
Kyōhō famine of 1732, although the number of inhabitants needing assistance exceeded 40%, no one in the domain starved, unlike the situation in neighboring
Iyo-Matsuyama Domain. As Komatsu Domain was a small domain, it was able to quickly grasp the signs of poor harvests in its territory, and countermeasures were taken. In the last 18th century, although there was occasional unrest, the domain also escaped the bloody peasants revolts experienced by many other domains. The 7th
daimyō, Yorichika, established a
han school in 1802. Under the 8th
daimyō, Yoritsune, the domain entered the
bakumatsu period as an early supporter of the new government. Komatsu disputed 51
samurai and
ashigaru as its contribution in the
Boshin War. In June 1869, Hitotsuyanagi Yoritsugu was appointed as imperial governor of the domain following the
Meiji Restoration, but he died of illness soon after. Yoriakira succeeded as the imperial governor, but in July 1871, the Komatsu Domain was abolished with the
abolition of the han system and the establishment of prefectures. "Komatsu Prefecture" was abolished in the same year and incorporated into Ehime Prefecture via Matsuyama Prefecture and Sekitetsu Prefecture. In 1884, Hitotsuyanagi Jōnen, the younger brother of Yoriaki, was ennobled with the
kazoku peerage title of
viscount. Among those from the Komatsu Domain who were active in the
Meiji period was Baron Kurokawa Michiki, a
lieutenant general in the
Imperial Japanese Army,
military attache to the
Crown Prince. ==Holdings at the end of the Edo period==