was a deputy-''

shōgun , officially , was the title of the military dictators of Japan during most of the period spanning from 1185 to 1868. Nominally appointed by the Emperor, shoguns were usually the de facto rulers of the country, though during part of the Kamakur ...

'' of the

Hosokawa clan The is a Japanese Samurai kin group or clan. Ancestors # Emperor Jimmu # Emperor Suizei # Emperor Annei # Emperor Itoku # Emperor Kōshō # Emperor Kōan # Emperor Kōrei # Emperor Kōgen # Emperor Kaika # Emperor Sujin # Emperor Sui ...

of Japan, and son of

Hosokawa Katsumoto was one of the Kanrei, the Deputies to the Shōgun, during Japan's Muromachi period. He is famous for his involvement in the creation of Ryōan-ji, a temple famous for its rock garden, and for his involvement in the Ōnin War, which sparked the 1 ...

. Masamoto was appointed to this rank during 1486. For a brief period this title was lost by

Hatakeyama Masanaga was a ''daimyō'' of the Hatakeyama clan and, according to some accounts, invented the '' horo'', a stiffened cloak used by messengers and bodyguards to improve their visibility on the battlefield, and to act as an arrow-catcher. Masanaga is mos ...

but was regained in time. When

Ashikaga Yoshihisa was the 9th ''shōgun'' of the Ashikaga shogunate who reigned from 1473 to 1489 during the Muromachi period of Japan.Ackroyd, Joyce. (1982) ''Lessons from History: The Tokushi Yoron'', p. 331. Yoshihisa was the son of the eighth ''shōgun'' Ashi ...

died childless during the year of 1489, Masamoto supported the nomination of

Ashikaga Yoshizumi was the 11th ''shōgun'' of the Ashikaga shogunate who reigned from 1494 to 1508 during the Muromachi period of Japan. He was the son of Ashikaga Masatomo and grandson of the sixth ''shōgun'' Ashikaga Yoshinori.Titsingh, Isaac. (1834). His chi ...

as successor in opposition to

Ashikaga Yoshitane , also known as , was the 10th ''shōgun'' of the Ashikaga shogunate who headed the shogunate first from 1490 to 1493 and then again from 1508 to 1521 during the Muromachi period of Japan. Yoshitane was the son of Ashikaga Yoshimi and grandson ...

. Masamoto thought that the post of deputy-shogun would return to Hosokawa Masanaga due to Yoshitane's closeness with Hatakeyama Masanaga and his own objections to Yoshitane's rise. During Masanaga's struggle with a rival branch of the

Hatakeyama clan The was a Japanese samurai clan. Originally a branch of the Taira clan and descended from Taira no Takamochi, they fell victim to political intrigue in 1205, when Hatakeyama Shigeyasu, first, and his father Shigetada later were killed in battle ...

, Yoshitane led troops to the assistance of Masanaga. Masamoto then assisted his force to the Hatakeyama, ultimately defeating those of Masanaga and Yoshitane. Masanaga killed himself during the battle and Yoshitane became a prisoner at

Kyoto Kyoto (; Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Located in the Kansai region on the island of Honshu, Kyoto forms a part of the Keihanshin metropolitan area along with Osaka and Kobe. , the ci ...

. His childhood name was Sumiakamaru (聡明丸). Masamoto exiled Yoshitane and made Ashikaga Yoshizumi the successor. However, Yoshizumi would be played as one of Masamoto's puppets. The same year Masamoto led a campaign against his opponents of

Yamashiro Province was a province of Japan, located in Kinai. It overlaps the southern part of modern Kyoto Prefecture on Honshū. Aliases include , the rare , and . It is classified as an upper province in the ''Engishiki''. Yamashiro Province included Kyoto its ...

. Masamoto who was childless (many who thought was a homosexual) then adopted Sumiyuki and Sumimoto as his sons. The retainers of Hosokawa then disputed for very long to who the successor of the Hosokawa would be. In 1504, Masamoto eliminated Yakushiji Motoichi who was a follower of Sumimoto (whom he did not want as successor). In 1506, Masamoto was threatened by an army led by Miyoshi Yukinaga, another supporter of Sumimoto. Due to Masamoto then choosing someone else as the successor, Kosai Motonaga, along with Sumiyuki, broke into the house of Masamoto during the year 1507 and killed him while he was taking a bath.

Family

* Father:

* Mother: daughter of

Yamana Sōzen was originally before becoming a monk. Due to his red complexion, he was sometimes known as ''Aka-nyūdō'', "the Red Monk". He was one of the ''daimyōs'' who fought against Hosokawa Katsumoto during the Ōnin War in Heian-kyō. Biography Yam ...

*Sister:

Tōshōin Tōshōin (洞松院, born in the 1460s) or Akamatsu Tōshōin was a Japanese noble who acted as the power behind the throne or ''de facto'' daimyo of the Akamatsu clan during the Sengoku period. She was the daughter of Hosokawa Katsumoto, sister ...

* Adopted Sons: ** Hosokawa Sumiyuki (1489–1507) **

Hosokawa Sumimoto was a samurai commander in the Muromachi period during the 16th century of Japan. Sumimoto was one of the few sons of Hosokawa Yoshiharu and an adopted son of Hosokawa Masamoto, who was the Kanrei of the Ashikaga shogunate. His roots was the Hos ...

Hosokawa Takakuni Hosokawa Takakuni (, 1484 – 17 July 1531) was the most powerful military commander in the Muromachi period under Ashikaga Yoshiharu, the twelfth ''shōgun''. His father was Hosokawa Masaharu, a member of the branch of the Hosokawa clan. His ch ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hosokawa, Masamoto 1466 births 1507 deaths Daimyo Keichō-Hosokawa clan Japanese murder victims People murdered in Japan