was a prominent Japanese

master Master or masters may refer to: Ranks or titles * Ascended master, a term used in the Theosophical religious tradition to refer to spiritually enlightened beings who in past incarnations were ordinary humans *Grandmaster (chess), National Master ...

aikido Aikido ( , , , ) is a modern Japanese martial art that is split into many different styles, including Iwama Ryu, Iwama Shin Shin Aiki Shuren Kai, Shodokan Aikido, Yoshinkan, Renshinkai, Aikikai and Ki Aikido. Aikido is now practiced in around 1 ...

.Pranin, S. A. (''c.'' 2009)
Encyclopedia of Aikido: Ueshiba, Kisshomaru
Retrieved on March 1, 2010. He was the son of

Morihei Ueshiba was a Japanese martial artist and founder of the martial art of aikido. He is often referred to as "the founder" or , "Great Teacher/Old Teacher (old as opposed to ''waka (young) sensei'')". The son of a landowner from Tanabe, Ueshiba st ...

, founder of aikido, and became the international leader of aikido after his father's death.Goldsbury, P. (1999)
Obituary: Doshu Kisshomaru Ueshiba
Retrieved on March 2, 2010.

Early life

Ueshiba was born on June 27, 1921, in the city of

Ayabe is a city located in Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 31,082 in 13660 households and a population density of 90 persons per km². The total area of the city is . Geography Ayabe is situated in the mountains of ...

, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan.Aikikai Foundation: Doshu chronology
Retrieved on February 28, 2010. He was the third son and fourth child of Morihei Ueshiba and Hatsu Ueshiba (née Itokawa).Dang, P. T., & Seiser, L. (2006): ''Advanced Aikido'' (p. 3). Tokyo: Tuttle. ()Pranin, S. A. (1993)

Retrieved on March 11, 2010. Ueshiba began training under his father around 1937.

Aikido career

In 1942, while he was still studying at

Waseda University , abbreviated as , is a private university, private research university in Shinjuku, Tokyo. Founded in 1882 as the ''Tōkyō Senmon Gakkō'' by Ōkuma Shigenobu, the school was formally renamed Waseda University in 1902. The university has numerou ...

, Morihei Ueshiba (who was retiring to Iwama) appointed him the head of the Kobukan Dojo in

Shinjuku is a special ward in Tokyo, Japan. It is a major commercial and administrative centre, housing the northern half of the busiest railway station in the world (Shinjuku Station) and the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, the administration ...

, Tokyo. He saved the ''dojo'' from fire bombing several times during the

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. Ueshiba graduated from Waseda University, Faculty of Economics and Political Science with a degree in economics in 1946. Speaking about the period just after World War II,

Moriteru Ueshiba is a Japanese master of aikido. He is a grandson of Morihei Ueshiba, founder of aikido, and son of Kisshomaru Ueshiba. Ueshiba is the third and current ''Doshu'' (hereditary head) of the Aikikai. Biography Ueshiba was born on April 2, 1951, in ...

said, "there was not yet much activity at the Hombu Dojo. For a time my father isshomaru Ueshibawas actually in Iwama instead ... starting around 1949, he worked for about seven years at a company called Osaka Shoji. He had no other choice. Even if you have a dojo, you can't make a living if nobody is coming to train, which was largely the case after the war. So, he took a job as an ordinary company employee during the day and taught only in the mornings and evenings."Pranin, S. A. (1999)
Interview with Moriteru Ueshiba
Retrieved on February 28, 2010. Beginning in 1948, Ueshiba oversaw the development of the Aikikai Honbu organization (and eventually the tearing down of the Kobukan Dojo in 1967 to construct the Aikikai headquarters). In 1952, Ueshiba became a founding member and appointed head of the Aikido Division of the Kokusai Budoin (International Martial Arts Federation) by

Prince Kaya Tsunenori , was the second head of the Kaya-no-miya collateral branch of the Japanese imperial family. A general in the Imperial Japanese Army, he was first cousin to Empress Kōjun (Nagako), the wife of Emperor Shōwa (Hirohito). Early life Prince Ka ...

to help spread aikido worldwide. In 1969, Kisshomaru Ueshiba assumed the title of Doshu with the passing of the

Founder Founder or Founders may refer to: Places *Founders Park, a stadium in South Carolina, formerly known as Carolina Stadium * Founders Park, a waterside park in Islamorada, Florida Arts, entertainment, and media * Founders (''Star Trek''), the ali ...

Later life

After Morihei Ueshiba's death in 1969, Kisshomaru Ueshiba took on the mantle of ''

Doshu was a Provinces of Japan, province of Japan in the area of southern Shikoku.Louis-Frédéric, Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Tosa''" in . Tosa bordered on Awa Province (Tokushima), Awa to the northeast, and Iyo Province, Iyo to the no ...

'' (hereditary head).Dang, P. T., & Seiser, L. (2003): ''Aikido basics'' (p. 22). Boston, MA: Tuttle. () In 1986, in recognition of his contributions to the public good through the development and growth of Aikido, Kisshomaru Ueshiba received the Medal of Honor with Blue Ribbon from the Japanese Government. In 1990, In recognition of his distinguished services and contributions to cultural exchange between France and Japan, Ueshiba received a gold medal Sports Merit award from the French government. This is the first time a Japanese citizen has received this medal. In 1995, Ueshiba received the Third Order of the Sacred Treasure Award from the

Japanese government The Government of Japan consists of legislative, executive and judiciary branches and is based on popular sovereignty. The Government runs under the framework established by the Constitution of Japan, adopted in 1947. It is a unitary state, c ...

. By 1998, Ueshiba's health had declined and this necessitated visits to hospital. Ueshiba died around 5:30 PM on January 4, 1999, in a Tokyo hospital. The cause of death was respiratory failure.Obituary - Doshu Kisshomaru
Written by Peter Goldsbury, 1 February 1999 As his father was the first ''Doshu'', he was the second ''Doshu'', and after his death, his son

became the third ''Doshu'', following the ''

iemoto is a Japanese term used to refer to the founder or current Grand Master of a certain school of traditional Japanese art. It is used synonymously with the term when it refers to the family or house that the iemoto is head of and represents. Th ...

'' system.

Publications

* Kisshomaru Ueshiba, ''A Life in Aikido: The Biography of Founder Morihei Ueshiba'' (2008), Kodansha International,

* Kisshomaru Ueshiba, ''The Art of Aikido: Principles and Essential Techniques'' (2004) Kodansha International, * Kisshomaru Ueshiba, ''Best Aikido: The Fundamentals'' (2002) Kodansha International,

* Kisshomaru Ueshiba, ''The Spirit of Aikido'' (1987), Kodansha International,

* Kisshomaru Ueshiba, ''Aikido'' (1985), Japan Publications Trading,

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ueshiba, Kisshomaru 1921 births 1999 deaths Japanese aikidoka Martial arts writers People from Kyoto Prefecture People from Tokyo Waseda University alumni