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 ...

of the

Kamakura period The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first ''shōgun'' Minamoto no Yoritomo after the conclusion of the Genpei War, which saw the struggle bet ...

remembered as the ideal of samurai loyalty. Kusunoki fought for

Emperor Go-Daigo Emperor Go-Daigo (後醍醐天皇 ''Go-Daigo-tennō'') (26 November 1288 – 19 September 1339) was the 96th emperor of Japan, Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'')後醍醐天皇 (96) retrieved 2013-8-28. according to the traditional order ...

in the

Genkō War The , also known as the , was a civil war fought in Japan between the Emperor Go-Daigo and the Kamakura Shogunate from 1331 to 1333. The Genkō War was named after Genkō, the Japanese era corresponding to the period of 1331 to 1334 when the ...

to overthrow the

Kamakura shogunate The was the feudal military government of Japan during the Kamakura period from 1185 to 1333. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Kamakura-jidai''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia'', p. 459. The Kamakura shogunate was established by Minamoto no Y ...

and restore power in Japan to the Imperial Court. Kusunoki was a leading figure of the

Kenmu Restoration The was a three-year period of Imperial rule in Japanese history between the Kamakura period and the Muromachi period from 1333 to 1336. The Kenmu Restoration was an effort made by Emperor Go-Daigo to overthrow the ruling Kamakura Shogunate a ...

in 1333 and remained loyal to the unpopular Emperor Go-Daigo after

Ashikaga Takauji was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Ashikaga shogunate."Ashikaga Takauji" in ''The New Encyclopædia Britannica''. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 15th edn., 1992, Vol. 1, p. 625. His rule began in 1338, beginning the Muromac ...

began to reverse the restoration in the Nanboku-chō wars three years later. Kusunoki attacked Takauji in

Settsu is a city located in Osaka Prefecture, Japan. As of 2017, the city has an estimated population of 85,290 and a population density of 5,664 people per km². The total area is 14.88 km². Surrounding municipalities *Osaka Prefecture **Higa ...

at the command of the Emperor, an act of obedience surely to result in defeat, and died at the

Battle of Minatogawa The Battle of Minatogawa (), also known as the Battle of Minato River, was a battle of the Nanboku-chō Wars fought near the Minato River in Settsu Province (present day Kobe, Hyōgo Prefecture) on 5 July 1336. The Imperial forces loyal to Em ...

in 1336. Kusunoki became a popular

legend A legend is a Folklore genre, genre of folklore that consists of a narrative featuring human actions, believed or perceived, both by teller and listeners, to have taken place in human history. Narratives in this genre may demonstrate human valu ...

in Japan representing loyalty and

virtue Virtue ( la, virtus) is moral excellence. A virtue is a trait or quality that is deemed to be morally good and thus is valued as a foundation of principle and good moral being. In other words, it is a behavior that shows high moral standard ...

, and associated with the phrase "Would that I had seven lives to give for my country!" (七生報國; "''Shichishō Hōkoku!''"). Kusunoki was posthumously awarded the highest court rank in Japan,

Senior First Rank The court ranks of Japan, also known in Japanese as ''ikai'' (位階), are indications of an individual's court rank in Japan based on the system of the state. ''Ikai'' as a system was originally used in the Ritsuryo system, which was the politi ...

(''shō ichi-i)'', by the

Meiji government The was the government that was formed by politicians of the Satsuma Domain and Chōshū Domain in the 1860s. The Meiji government was the early government of the Empire of Japan. Politicians of the Meiji government were known as the Meiji o ...

in 1880, over 500 years after his death.

Early life

Kusunoki Masashige's origin has not been validated and it was merely six years between the start of his military campaign in 1331 and his demise in 1336. Kusunoki is believed to have been born in 1294 in

Kawachi Province was a province of Japan in the eastern part of modern Osaka Prefecture. It originally held the southwestern area that was split off into Izumi Province. It was also known as . Geography The area was radically different in the past, with Kawachi ...

as a "well-to-do member of the rural

gentry Gentry (from Old French ''genterie'', from ''gentil'', "high-born, noble") are "well-born, genteel and well-bred people" of high social class, especially in the past. Word similar to gentle imple and decentfamilies ''Gentry'', in its widest ...

" and claimed descent from Tachibana Moroe, "a great nobleman" of the eighth century. His birthplace has been linked to the village of Chihaya-Akasaka where a small monument called the "Nanko Tanjochi" can be found. Kusunoki was a "scholar and a devout

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

" with much of his early education taking place at

Kanshin-ji is a Buddhist temple located in the Teramoto neighborhood of the city of Kawachinagano, Osaka Prefecture, in the Kansai region of Japan. It is one of the head temples of the Kōyasan Shingon-shū branch of Shingon Buddhism. The temple ha ...

Temple in Kawachinagano, in present-day southern

Osaka Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Osaka Prefecture has a population of 8,778,035 () and has a geographic area of . Osaka Prefecture borders Hyōgo Prefecture to the northwest, Kyoto Prefecture ...

. Later in his life, Kusunoki would arrange for considerable renovations to the temple. While studying at Kanshin-ji, he would make regular trips to central Kawachinagano to study strategy under the tutelage of a man named Oe Tokichika. According to legend, Emperor Go-Daigo had a dream in which he was sheltering under a

camphor tree ''Camphora officinarum'' is a species of evergreen tree that is commonly known under the names camphor tree, camphorwood or camphor laurel. Description ''Camphora officinarum'' is native to China south of the Yangtze River, Taiwan, southe ...

("''kusunoki''" in

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

), and that this dream led him to the surname of the warrior who would support him.

Military career

A brilliant tactician and strategist, Kusunoki's cunning defense of two key Loyalist fortresses at Akasaka, the

Siege of Akasaka The siege of Akasaka was one of the earlier battles of the Genkō War between the figurehead Emperor Godaigo and the largely Hōjō controlled Kamakura shogunate during the final years of the Kamakura period in Japan. The battle in question was ...

, and Chihaya, the

Siege of Chihaya The 1333 siege of Chihaya took place during the final year of Japan's Kamakura period. It was one of several battles of the Genkō War, in which Emperor Go-Daigo sought to eliminate the power of the Hōjō clan regents. Chihaya-jō (千早城, C ...

, helped allow Go-Daigo to briefly return to power. He lived during the

. In 1333, Go-Daigo rewarded Masashige with governorship of

Settsu Province was a province of Japan, which today comprises the southeastern part of Hyōgo Prefecture and the northern part of Osaka Prefecture. It was also referred to as or . Osaka and Osaka Castle were the main center of the province. Most of Setts ...

and

. Furthermore, he was promoted to Fifth Rank. Later he was appointed to the Records Office and Settlements Board. However, one of the loyalist generals,

, betrayed Go-Daigo and led an army against Kusunoki and the remaining loyalists. Takauji was able to take Kyoto, but only temporarily before

Nitta Yoshisada was a samurai lord of the Nanboku-chō period Japan. He was the head of the Nitta clan in the early fourteenth century, and supported the Southern Court of Emperor Go-Daigo in the Nanboku-chō period. He famously marched on Kamakura, besieging ...

and Masashige were able to dislodge Takauji, forcing him to flee to the west. By 1336 however, Takauji was a threat to Kyoto again. Kusunoki suggested to the Emperor that they take refuge on sacred

Mount Hiei is a mountain to the northeast of Kyoto, lying on the border between the Kyoto and Shiga Prefectures, Japan. The temple of Enryaku-ji, the first outpost of the Japanese Tendai (Chin. Tiantai) sect of Buddhism, was founded atop Mount Hiei by S ...

and allow Takauji to take

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 ...

, only to swoop down from the mountain, and with the help of the monks of Mount Hiei, trap Takauji in the city and destroy him. Go-Daigo was unwilling to leave the capital however, and insisted that Kusunoki meet Takauji's superior forces in the field in a pitched battle. Kusunoki, in what would later be viewed as the ultimate act of samurai loyalty, obediently accepted his Emperor's foolish command and knowingly marched his army into almost certain death. The battle, which took place at Minatogawa in modern-day Chūō-ku,

Kobe Kobe ( , ; officially , ) is the capital city of Hyōgo Prefecture Japan. With a population around 1.5 million, Kobe is Japan's seventh-largest city and the third-largest port city after Tokyo and Yokohama. It is located in Kansai region, whic ...

, was a tactical disaster. There are two accounts of the proposal made by Kusunoki Masashige to the emperor Go-Daigo, the

Taiheiki The (Chronicle of Great Peace) is a Japanese historical epic (see ''gunki monogatari'') written in the late 14th century and covers the period from 1319 to 1367. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Taiheiki''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia'', pp. 923� ...

and the ''Baisho Ron''. One was that they regroup and attack from two sides, the other was that they bring back general Takauji to their side thus balancing the scales. Both arguments were ignored. Kusunoki, his army completely surrounded, was down to only 50 of the original 700 horsemen. According to legend, his brother Masasue's last words were ''Shichishō Hōkoku!'' (七生報國; "Would that I had seven lives to give for my country!") and Kusunoki Masashige agreed. Upon his death, his head was removed and sent to

where it was buried in a

kubizuka Kubizuka (首塚, literally ''neck mound'' in Japanese, often translated as ''head tomb'') is a burial mound built in Japan with purpose of rest for the souls whose heads were severed because they were killed in battles and fights, captured, or pu ...

He is also thought to have built a number of smaller castles throughout southern Osaka, particularly within what is now the city of

Kawachinagano is a city located in Osaka Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 101,649 in 47493 households and a population density of 930 persons per km². The total area of the city is . Geography Kawachinagano is located in the sout ...

. Eboshigata Castle and Ishibotoke Castle were both built along the route of the Koya Kaido, a popular pilgrimage trail stretching between Kyoto and Koyasan. These castles were designed not only to protect the trail from bandits but also as an important source of income and intelligence as travelers were obliged to pay a toll and the garrison would listen out for rumours and news from around Japan.

Legacy

His son,

Kusunoki Masatsura , along with his father Masashige and brothers Masanori and Masatoki, was a supporter of the Southern Imperial Court during Japan's Nanbokucho Wars. Masatsura was one of the primary military leaders who revived the Southern Court in the 1340s. ...

, served the emperor's successor, the 12-year-old Go-Murakami, in a relationship of reciprocal trust and devotion mirroring the figure of his father Kusunoki and keeping the flame of loyalist resistance alive. Masatsura died alongside his brother Masatoki and cousin Wada Takahide in a battle that saw the end of the Kusunoki clan and there followed a less-than-ideal scramble for power and gain among the Courts. Kusunoki "stands in the history of his country as the ideal figure of a warrior, compact of civil and military virtues in a high degree." The parting of Masashige with his son "used to be included in all elementary school readers and was the subject of a patriotic song which was popular in Japanese schools before

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 ...

Legend

After the full-scale introduction of

Neo-Confucianism Neo-Confucianism (, often shortened to ''lǐxué'' 理學, literally "School of Principle") is a moral, ethical, and metaphysical Chinese philosophy Chinese philosophy originates in the Spring and Autumn period () and Wa ...

as a state philosophy by the

Tokugawa shogunate The Tokugawa shogunate (, Japanese 徳川幕府 ''Tokugawa bakufu''), also known as the , was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Tokugawa-jidai''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia ...

, Kusunoki Masashige, once called a traitor by the

Northern Court The , also known as the Ashikaga Pretenders or Northern Pretenders, were a set of six pretenders to the throne of Japan during the Nanboku-chō period from 1336 through 1392. The present Imperial House of Japan is descended from the Northern Cou ...

, was resurrected with

as a precursor of Sinocentric absolutists, based upon the Neo-Confucian theories. During the

Edo period The or is the period between 1603 and 1867 in the history of Japan, when Japan was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the country's 300 regional '' daimyo''. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengoku period, the Edo period was characteriz ...

, scholars and samurai who were influenced by the Neo-Confucian theories popularized the legend of Kusunoki and enshrined him as a patriotic hero, called Nankō (楠公) or Dai Nankō (大楠公), who epitomized

loyalty Loyalty, in general use, is a devotion and faithfulness to a nation, cause, philosophy, country, group, or person. Philosophers disagree on what can be an object of loyalty, as some argue that loyalty is strictly interpersonal and only another h ...

, courage, and

devotion Devotion or Devotions may refer to: Religion * Faith, confidence or trust in a person, thing, or concept * Anglican devotions, private prayers and practices used by Anglican Christians * Buddhist devotion, commitment to religious observance * Cat ...

to the Emperor. In 1871

Minatogawa Shrine is a Shinto shrine in Chūō-ku, Kobe, Japan, roughly on the site of the Battle of Minatogawa established in 1872. The enshrined kami is the spirit of Masashige Kusunoki, a military commander. It is one of the Fifteen Shrines of the Kenmu Resto ...

is established in order to enshrine the

kami are the deities, divinities, spirits, phenomena or "holy powers", that are venerated in the Shinto religion. They can be elements of the landscape, forces of nature, or beings and the qualities that these beings express; they can also be the sp ...

spirit of Kusunoki Masashige. Kusunoki later became a patron saint of sorts to

kamikaze , officially , were a part of the Japanese Special Attack Units of military aviators who flew suicide attacks for the Empire of Japan against Allied naval vessels in the closing stages of the Pacific campaign of World War II, intending to d ...

, who saw themselves as his spiritual heirs in sacrificing their lives for the Emperor.

Family

Children: *

Kusunoki Masanori was a samurai who fought for the Southern Court in Japan's Nanboku-chō Wars, and is famed for his skills as a leader and military strategist, though he later sought a diplomatic solution and was regarded a traitor by many of his comrades. He was ...

* Kusunoki Masatoki

Honours

(July 20, 1880; posthumous)

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kusunoki, Masashige 1294 births 1336 deaths Samurai Genkō War People from Ibaraki, Osaka Deified Japanese people