Matsudaira Tadayori (1582 - October 26, 1609) The Daimyo Matsudaira Tadayori was was a highly ranked vassal of the Tokugawa clan, born in the year Oda Nobunaga was killed, 1582, and killed in an argument following a tea ceremony in Edo in 1609. During the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600, he was entrusted [...]
Ashikaga Yoshiakira, Second Ashikaga Shogun (July 4, 1330 – December 28, 1367) Ashikaga Yoshiakira, the second Ashikaga Shogun The second Ashikaga Shogun, Ashikaga Yoshiakira was born the son of the founding first Shogun, Ashikaga Takauji, and Akahashi (Hojo) Toshi. The politically powerful Hojo clan had been hereditary regents since [...]
Ashikaga Yoshihisa, The 9th Ashikaga Shogun (December 11, 1465 - April 26, 1489) Ashikaga Yoshihisa was the 9th Shogun of the Ashikaga Shogunate. The birth of Ashikaga Yoshihisa in late 1465 would lead to the Onin War, and the Sengoku period. Ashikaga Yoshihisa, The 9th Ashikaga Shogun [...]
Ashikaga Yoshinori, the 6th Ashikaga Shogun (July 12, 1394 – Assassinated July 12, 1441) Ashikaga Yoshinori was the son of the Third Shogun, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu. Yoshinori was invested with the title of the sixth Shogun on the day of his predecessor, Yoshimochi’s death through a lottery-like system where the [...]
Saito Dosan, The Viper of Mino (1494 - killed by his son, May 28, 1556) Saito Dosan, the Viper of Mino Saito Dosan, the “Viper of Mino”, was originally not a samurai, but a monk. Dosan is said to have been born in Yamashiro Province (southern Kyoto region), [...]
Yamanami Keisuke (1833?-March 20, 1865) Yamanami Keisuke was second in charge of the Shinsengumi, the late Edo period special police force, when he suddenly committed seppuku on March 20, 1865, aged 32. Yamanami was born in Sendai in 1833, the son of a sword instructor. He attained the rank of Sensei of the Hokushin [...]
Horio Yoshiharu (1542 - July 26, 1611) Horio Yoshiharu was born in Niwa-gun, Owari (Aichi Prefecture) in 1542. Yoshiharu, also known as Horio Mosuke, was called “Hotoke no Mosuke”, or “The Buddha Mosuke”, after the enlightened god, Hotoke, because of his serene demeanor, and ability to remain calm even under intense pressure. His father [...]
Kujo (Fujiwara) Yoritsune, the 4th Kamakura Shogun, (February 12, 1218 - October 14, 1252) The 4th Kamakura Shogun, Kujo Yoritsune was born February 12, 1218, in the Year of the Tiger, in the Month of the Tiger and on the Day of the Tiger, and so his parents named him Mitora (Three Tigers). He [...]
Ko Morofuyu (?? - February 13, 1351) Ko Morofuyu One of the most important generals in the service of the first Ashikaga Shogun, Ashikaga Takauji, Ko Morofuyu was the administrative governor of Mikawa Province (Aichi Prefecture) and the military governor of Musashi Province (Saitama Prefecture) and later governor of [...]
Yamaga Soko (September 21, 1622 - October 23, 1685) Yamaga Soko Yamaga Soko was a samurai strategist, philosopher and scholar, and in later life, a ronin, noted for his significant contributions defining the role of the Tokugawa period samurai. Born September 21, 1622, in Aizu Wakamatsu, Yamaga is known [...]