He was born in Musashi Province in 1658 as the fifth head of the Abe family, and was relocated to Fukuyama in Bingo Province in 1710 at age 53. This was the beginning of the history of the Abe family in the Fukuyama domain, which continued into the Meiji era (1868 – 1912).
After relocation, he worked diligently to maintain control of the territory, by having all the villages submit a report book containing information on kokudaka (yield), the number of houses, cows, horses, cotton, and other commodities, and whether or not Mizuno ronin (lordless samurai) resided in the area. Further, he promulgated 35 articles for the purpose of maintaining public order, including crackdowns on fights and thefts, etc., thereby settling unrest due to the change of daimyo.
The Abe family was also a hereditary family along with the Mizuno and Matsudaira families, that has served the Tokugawa family for generations.

In 1715, he inherited the domain of 100,000 koku at the young age of 16 upon the death of his father Masakuni. In 1745, at age 47, he was appointed as the Osaka Jodai, or castle keeper, of the Osaka Castle, an area under direct control of the shogunate. With this appointment, the Abe family gained a foothold in the shogunate, as a hereditary distinguished family.

n 1748, he inherited the domain of 100,000 koku at age 25. Later, he began to serve under the shogunate, after being appointed Sojaban, or master of ceremonies, in 1752 at age 29, and thereafter as Kyoto Shoshidai, or Kyoto deputy, and as Roju, or member of shogun’s council of elders. During his 20-year term of office as daimyo, he held important positions in the shogunate for 17 years.

In 1769, at age 25, he inherited the domain of Masasuke. After assuming the position of daimyo, his challenge in the domain administration was to overcome the financial difficulties that had existed since the previous generation. Further, the Fukuyama region had experienced a series of bad harvests, and a peasant’s revolt broke out in 1770, the year after he took over the domain. From the end of 1786 to 1787, the Tenmei Famine again led to a peasant’s revolt. Masamichi resigned as Roju after only 11 months in office, after which he began to focus on reforming the domain government.

n 1803, he inherited the domain at the late middle age of 30. His basic policy for domain administration was to carry on the policies of his predecessor, Masatomo, which focused on rebuilding the finances of the domain, especially in rural areas.
In 1805, together with Shaso in Fuchu City and Hoko in Fukatsu County, the Fukuyama Domain Giso, or reserves, was established as a domain-wide institution for the relief of rural devastation by the wealthy farmer and merchant class.。

In 1826, he inherited the domain of his father Masakiyo at age 18. However, due to natural disasters such as a major flood that occurred during the first few years his reign, the domain fell into a state of sudden financial difficulty.
Because of his poor health by nature, he yielded his position as head of the family to his younger brother Masahiro in 1836. He was relatively long-lived among the Abe family of the Fukuyama domain, as he died in 1870 at the age of 61.

Born in 1819 as the sixth son of Masayasu in Edo daimyo residence, he became the adoptive heir of his elder brother Masayasu in 1836. He was then appointed Governor of Ise Province, ranked Jugoinoge (junior fifth rank, lower grade) in the same year, succeeding Masayasu as head of the family at age 18.
He returned to Fukuyama in 1837, but stayed there for only a little more than two months. Upon his return to Edo, he was soon appointed Sojaban, or master of ceremonies, and in 1840 he was also appointed Commissioner of temples and shrines. In 1843, at the young age of 25, he was selected as Roju, or member of shogun’s council of elders, and ranked Jushiinoge (junior fourth rank, lower grade). In 1844, he became a senior councilor.
In 1853, when Perry arrived in Uraga, he was in charge of affairs related to the opening of the country up to the conclusion of the Japan-US Treaty of Peace and Amity in 1854 (the first year of Ansei) as senior councilor. Masahiro also led the conclusion of the Treaty of Peace and Amity with Great Britain, Russia, and the Netherlands, as well as the Shimoda Treaty, but in 1857 (the fourth year of Ansei), at the age of 39, he died of illness. He remained in the position of Roju until his final days, indicating that he took the helm of Japan until the very end of his life.
While Asian countries were being colonized through wars with Western powers, he is highly regarded for his proactive efforts to gather information and for his ability to peacefully advance the path toward opening the country to the outside world, giving due consideration to situations in other countries.
Moreover, he worked with Tokugawa Nariaki, Matsudaira Yoshinaga, Shimazu Nariakira, and others, transcending the boundaries of Shinpan (relatives of the Tokugawa family), Fudai (hereditary) daimyo, and Tozama (nonhereditary) daimyo to advance shogunate administration and diplomacy in light of public opinion, and he promoted the appointment of such talents as Takashima Shuhan, Kawaji Toshiakira, and Katsu Kaishu without regard to status, thereby creating a spirit of innovation rarely seen in shogunate politics.
In the course of promoting education in both literary and military arts, he established Seishikan, a Fukuyama domain school of literary and military arts, which opened in Edo in 1854 and in Fukuyama in 1855. “In order to acquire a pioneering spirit here ahead of other domains, and to promote both literary and military excellence,” he believed that “the school system should be reformed first and foremost.” Based on this belief, he set a precedent for nurturing and promotion of human resources by promoting people according to their abilities without regard to their status.

In 1857, he inherited Masahiro’s domain of 110,000 koku at age 19. Following Masahiro’s will, he encouraged the retainers to master both literary and military skills, while also initiated reforms of the domain administration including in the field of naval defense, such as initiation of building a Western-style ship, which Masahiro had originally planned. However, he died of illness in 1861 at the young age of 23. Therefore, his reign lasted only three years.

In 1861, he inherited his elder brother Masanori’s domain of 110,000 koku at age 14. After 1864, at the young age of only 17, he led the Fukuyama domain soldiers in the First and Second Choshu Expetidions. In the Second Choshu Expedition, he entered Iwami Province to fight against the Choshu forces led by Omura Masujiro, but in 1866, he became ill and was forced to return to his castle. In 1867 (the third year of Keio), he became ill and ended his turbulent life at the age of only 21.

After the unexpected death of Masakata, the former daimyo, the Fukuyama domain was left without its daimyo for a while. In 1868 (the fourth year of Keio), Motojiro, the younger brother of Asano Nagakoto, daimyo of the Hiroshima domain, was adopted as Masakata’s son, then he married Masahiro’s sixth daughter, Hisako.
He thus became the tenth Abe daimyo, the last daimyo of the Fukuyama domain by a twist of fate, and inherited the domain of 110,000 koku.
In 1869, the daimyo of the Fukuyama domain petitioned the new government for “return of the domain’s land and people”. Masatake, thus became the former daimyo of the Fukuyama domain, was appointed governor of the domain and initiated reforming the domain administration. Following the abolition of feudal domains and establishment of prefectures in 1871, Fukuyama domain became Fukuyama Prefecture, and Masatake was removed from his position as a domain governor and moved to Tokyo.