In 1615, however, Naokatsu handed over his position as the lord of the Hikone domain to his younger brother Naotaka Ii by the order of the bakufu (Japanese feudal government headed by a shogun).
しかし、1615年（元和(日本)元年）幕命により弟の井伊直孝に彦根藩主の座を譲った。