It was during Hisamitsu's return from a stay in Edo, when three Englishmen on horseback offended his retainers by refusing to dismount or stand aside.

Hisamitsu remained at the core of the kōbu-gattai movement in Kyoto, until Satsuma's secret alliance with men of Chōshu.

In the Meiji era, he was given the rank of duke (kōshaku (公爵)), the highest of the newly created kazoku nobility and which was awarded for his clan's participation during the Restoration.

In September of the same year, the separation family was created Tamagi Shimazu house。 In Meiji 6 (1873), he served as a cabinet adviser to the government.

For 7 years, he served as Minister of left and proposed to restore old customs, but he was completely excluded from the government's policy decision.

In the 8th year of Meiji (1875), he resigned as Minister of left and lived a secluded life in Kagoshima, concentrating on compiling and collecting the history books handed down by the Shimazu family.