was a Japanese

samurai were the hereditary military nobility and officer caste of medieval and early-modern Japan from the late 12th century until their abolition in 1876. They were the well-paid retainers of the '' daimyo'' (the great feudal landholders). They h ...

in the service of the ''

daimyō were powerful Japanese magnates, feudal lords who, from the 10th century to the early Meiji era, Meiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast, hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to the shogun and n ...

'' Mōri Takachika of Chōshū as a senior retainer. Also known as Tomosuke (朝相), Chikasuke (親相), and Kumanosuke (熊之助). Second son of Chōshū retainer Takasu Mototada, he was adopted by the heirless Kunishi Michinori (5600 koku stipend). Succeeded to family headship in 1847, serving in the clan administration as ''Ōkumigashira'' (大組頭). He was known for wisdom beyond his years, and thus in 1863 was appointed as an autopsy director under another Chōshū retainer, Nagai Gagaku. In May 1863, he joined Kusaka Genzui and others in the bombing of an American warship. Rewarded for this success, he was made director of defenses at Shimonoseki. But in August, because of political issues, Chōshū was driven out of Kyoto, and at the same time, he was promoted to the status of senior retainer. Though he led a punitive force to Kyoto along with Masuda Kanenobu, Fukuhara Echigo, and

Kijima Matabei , also known as Masahisa (政久), was a Japanese samurai who served as a retainer to Lord Mōri of Chōshū. Though his name was Masahisa, he is known by his "common" name of Matabei. While his income (a stipend of 59 koku) may not have been p ...

, they were turned around by the combined Aizu-Satsuma army, and forced to retreat to Chōshū. The First Anti-Chōshū Expedition soon followed, led by Tokugawa Yoshikatsu of the Owari domain and Saigō Takamori of

Satsuma Satsuma may refer to: * Satsuma (fruit), a citrus fruit * ''Satsuma'' (gastropod), a genus of land snails Places Japan * Satsuma, Kagoshima, a Japanese town * Satsuma District, Kagoshima, a district in Kagoshima Prefecture * Satsuma Domain, a sout ...

. Eventually, with the Shogunate forcing Chōshū to submit, three men were chosen to take responsibility for the domain's actions: Masuda, Kunishi, and Fukuhara; all three men committed suicide, with Kunishi Shinano's being at Chōsenji Temple, ending his life at the young age of 22.

References

* Japanese Wikipedia bio of Kunishi Shinano
Grave of Kunishi Shinano
1864 deaths Samurai 1842 births {{samurai-stub