The Sanshikan (三司官), or Council of Three, was a government body of the Ryūkyū Kingdom, which originally developed out of a council of regents. It emerged in 1556, when the young Shō Gen, who was mute, ascended to the throne of Ryūkyū. The council of regents that formed in order to handle this challenge and manage the country on the king's behalf soon grew into an established and powerful government organ. Shō Gen died in 1571, but the Council remained, acting alongside the successive kings in managing the affairs of government. In fact, the Articles Subscribed to by the King's Councillors, which bound the royal government in loyalty and servitude to the Japanese daimyō of Satsuma, explicitly prohibit the king from "entrust[ing] the conduct of public affairs in the islands to any persons ot