The various roads that make up the Five Routes existed in some form before becoming an official set of routes. Tokugawa Ieyasu began work on the routes shortly after becoming "shōgun" in 1600. The official creation of the Five Routes began with the shogunate taking government control of the post stations along the existing routes. Before this intervention, the post stations provided places for travelers to rest and ran a courier system. After the official takeover, the Shogunate required that these stations give preferential treatment to those on official business or be forced to cease activity. In the 1640s, "shōgun" Tokugawa Iemitsu closed down all but the necessary stations, which would be the last major change during the Edo period.