Lady Acha or Acha no Tsubone (阿茶局, March 16, 1555 - February 16, 1637) was a Japanese noble woman from the

Sengoku period The was a period in History of Japan, Japanese history of near-constant civil war and social upheaval from 1467 to 1615. The Sengoku period was initiated by the Ōnin War in 1467 which collapsed the Feudalism, feudal system of Japan under the ...

to the early

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 ...

. She was a concubine of

Tokugawa Ieyasu was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa Shogunate of Japan, which ruled Japan from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was one of the three "Great Unifiers" of Japan, along with his former lord Oda Nobunaga and fellow ...

, the founder of 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 ...

. Due to her intelligence, Ieyasu entrusted her with management of the family's affairs, sending her to negotiate peace during the

Siege of Osaka The was a series of battles undertaken by the Japanese Tokugawa shogunate against the Toyotomi clan, and ending in that clan's destruction. Divided into two stages (winter campaign and summer campaign), and lasting from 1614 to 1615, the siege ...

. Her contributions to the stabilization of the Tokugawa shogunate and service to the country were notable for the court; being enducted to the Junior First Rank of the Imperial Court the second highest honor that could be conferred by the

Emperor of Japan The Emperor of Japan is the monarch and the head of the Imperial House of Japan, Imperial Family of Japan. Under the Constitution of Japan, he is defined as the symbol of the Japanese state and the unity of the Japanese people, and his positio ...

Early life

Lady Acha's first name was Suwa. Her pseudonym was Acha no Tsubone, Minbukyo, Yegonvie, Unko-in, Kamio Ichii and Ichii no ama (first nun). Suwa was born in 1555 as daughter of Iida Naomasa who served the Takeda clan. Then she became a wife of Kamio Tadashige, a retainer of the Imagawa clan. During the marriage she had two sons, after the death of her husband, she was called by Ieyasu. In May 1579, Ieyasu invited Suwa to a meeting at

Hamamatsu Castle is a replica ''hirayama''-style Japanese castle. It was the seat of various ''fudai daimyō'' who ruled over Hamamatsu Domain, Tōtōmi Province, in what is now central Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan under the Edo period Tokugawa shogunat ...

. He offered to have her join the Tokugawa family as his concubine. Suwa accepted and became a member of the Tokugawa clan, Ieyasu gave Suwa the name ''Acha no Tsubone''. She controlled the housekeeping of the Tokugawas.

In the Tokugawa clan

Under the influence of

Oda Nobunaga was a Japanese ''daimyō'' and one of the leading figures of the Sengoku period. He is regarded as the first "Great Unifier" of Japan. Nobunaga was head of the very powerful Oda clan, and launched a war against other ''daimyō'' to unify ...

, the ''First great unifier of Japan'', the Tokugawa clan participated in several conflicts against the Takeda clan until the last resistance of Takeda Katsuyori in the

Battle of Tenmokuzan The 1582 in Japan, also known as the Battle of Toriibata, is regarded as the last stand of the Takeda clan. This was the final attempt by Takeda Katsuyori to resist the combined forces of Tokugawa Ieyasu and Oda Nobunaga, who had been campaignin ...

. Due to her ties to the Takeda clan, Lady Acha used her influence in the Tokugawa clan to employ former servants of Takeda. According to "Kanei shoka keizuden" and "Kansei-fu", Tsuchiya Tadanao, leader of the

Tsuchiya clan is a Japanese samurai kin group. Papinot, Jacques Edmond Joseph. (1906). ''Dictionnaire d’histoire et de géographie du Japon''; Papinot, (2003)"Yūki," ''Nobiliare du Japon'', p. 66 retrieved 2013-5-17. History The Tsuchiya clan descend from ...

, was raised by Lady Acha after he and his mother escaped to Kiyonji Temple in

Suruga Province was an old province in the area that is today the central part of Shizuoka Prefecture. Suruga bordered on Izu, Kai, Sagami, Shinano, and Tōtōmi provinces; and was bordered by the Pacific Ocean through Suruga Bay to the south. Its abbrevia ...

after the fall of the Takeda clan. She introduced Tadanao to Ieyasu, so he was employed and later became a page of

Tokugawa Hidetada was the second ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa dynasty, who ruled from 1605 until his abdication in 1623. He was the third son of Tokugawa Ieyasu, the first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate. Early life (1579–1593) Tokugawa Hidetada was bo ...

, second shogun of the Tokugawa lineage. In 1583 Lady Acha's two sons were employed as officers at a salary of 3,000 koku. Eventually, Lady Acha became more important as a retainer than as a concubine. She served Tokugawa Ieyasu in several of his military campaigns. In 1584, after Oda Nobunaga's death, the Tokugawa Army and

Oda Nobukatsu was a Japanese samurai of the Azuchi–Momoyama period. He was the second son of Oda Nobunaga. He survived the decline of the Oda clan from political prominence, becoming a ''daimyō'' in the early Edo period. Though often described as an inco ...

's combined forces clashed with

Hashiba Hideyoshi , otherwise known as and , was a Japanese samurai and ''daimyō'' ( feudal lord) of the late Sengoku period regarded as the second "Great Unifier" of Japan.Richard Holmes, The World Atlas of Warfare: Military Innovations that Changed the Co ...

(the future Toyotomi Hideyoshi), who was the Battle of Komaki and Nagakute. At that time, Lady Acha that she was pregnant, she accompanied the army and went to the battlefield, due to the tensions in battle she accidentally miscarried after the war and she never had a child with Ieyasu. Shortly thereafter, Ieyasu allies with Hideyoshi in his campaign to unify Japan. In 1589, after the death of Lady Saigo, Acha become adopted mother of

and

Matsudaira Tadayoshi was the fourth son of Tokugawa Ieyasu with his concubine Saigo-no-Tsubone. His Childhood name was Fukumatsumaru (福松丸). When his mother died, he and his brother were adopted by Acha no Tsubone (1555-1637). His full brother, Tokugawa Hid ...

. Since then, Lady Acha has repeatedly acted as a messenger in various positions. She was chosen by Ieyasu to employ new talents to serve the Tokugawa clan. She responded to Ieyasu's confidence in political aspects by becoming chief secretary.

Sekigahara Campaign

After the death of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the power of the

Toyotomi clan The was a Japanese clan that ruled over the Japanese before the Edo period. Unity and conflict The most influential figure within the Toyotomi was Toyotomi Hideyoshi, one of the three "unifiers of Japan". Oda Nobunaga was another primary un ...

declined and Japan would go to war again. Ieyasu had been chosen by Hideyoshi as member of the

Council of Five Elders The Council of Five Elders (Japanese: :jp:五大老, 五大老, ''Go-Tairō'') was a group of five powerful feudal lords (Japanese: 大名, ''Daimyō'') formed in 1598 by the Regent (Japanese: 太閤 ''Sesshō and Kampaku, Taikō'') Toyotomi Hideyo ...

to act as regent for his son ( Toyotomi Hideyori) with Yodo-dono ( Oichi's daughter and Oda Nobunaga niece). Due to accusations that Ieyasu wanted to usurp Hideyori's throne, Ieyasu came into conflict with

Ishida Mitsunari Ishida Mitsunari (, 1559 – November 6, 1600) was a Japanese samurai and military commander of the late Sengoku period of Japan. He is probably best remembered as the commander of the Western army in the Battle of Sekigahara following the A ...

and others loyal to the Toyotomi clan. In 1600, the

Battle of Sekigahara The Battle of Sekigahara (Shinjitai: ; Kyūjitai: , Hepburn romanization: ''Sekigahara no Tatakai'') was a decisive battle on October 21, 1600 (Keichō 5, 15th day of the 9th month) in what is now Gifu prefecture, Japan, at the end of ...

officially began, commanded by Ishida Mitsunari in the western army against the eastern army of Tokugawa Ieyasu. Ieyasu defeated Mitsunari and gained great power and influence. Most of Mitsunari's allies had their land confiscated, further weakening Toyotomi's power. In 1603, Senhime, daughter of Tokugawa Hideta, married Toyotomi Hideyori and lived with him in Osaka Castle along with his mother, Yodo-dono, who was sister to Oeyo, mother of Senhime. This marriage was only of a political nature to fortify the alliance between the two most powerful samurai clans at the time. The political alliance formed by Senhime was not enough to stabilize the relations between the two clans. Toyotomi clan members often clashed with those who were loyal to the Tokugawa clan.

Siege of Osaka

Lady Acha was employed to ease rifts between the clans. In 1613, she served as the Tokugawa representative to resolve escalating conflicts with the Toyotomi clan during the Great Bronze Bell Incident. Hideyori's mother, Yodo-dono, who acted as the de facto leader of the Toyotomi clan, stirred up intrigues with the Tokugawa, she refused several offers made by Ieyasu and expelled the pro-Tokugawa servants from Osaka Castle. In 1614, once again Lady Acha accompanied Ieyasu and the entire Tokugawa army into battle with the Toyotomi. Ieyasu trusted her faithfully because of her wisdom. She served as an envoy for peace negotiations at the time of the

. Lady Acha was accompanied by Honda Masazumi to meet

Kyōgoku Tadataka was a Japanese noble and the ''daimyō'' and head of the of Japan during the Tokugawan power grab of the early 17th century. Life His Childhood name was Kumamaro (熊麿). Kyōgoku Tadataka was a member and head of the powerful Kyōgoku cla ...

, son of Ohatsu, younger sister of Yodo-dono. During the meeting, Lady Acha assured Ohatsu that Ieyasu had no ill will towards Hideyori and that he wished to forgive him, but Hidetada was stubborn about taking the castle. They ensured that Ieyasu would allow Hideyori to keep Osaka as his manor, but if he wanted to leave he would give another one with a higher income, plus all his captains and soldiers would have free transit at the exit or they could stay indoors if they wanted to, but he I would need a few hostages as a sign of goodwill. Ohatsu transmitted the terms to Yodo-dono who, terrified, asked

Ōno Harunaga was a general under Toyotomi Hideyori, and fought in the Siege of Osaka in 1615. He became lord of Osaka castle after the Battle of Sekigahara. Ono led forces against those of Wakayama Castle in the Battle of Kashii, also the Battle of Shigin ...

and Hideyori's seven top advisers to accept the terms of the surrender. Lady Acha went to the enemy headquarters and hold again a peace conference with Ohatsu and Okurakyo no Tsubone, maid of Yodo-dono. The conference was held by women only. She was told that the outer ditch should be filled by Ieyasu's men. The peace treaty was successfully carried out, but in 1615 once again the Toyotomi clan rebelled with the Tokugawa clan. As a result, Hideyori and Yodo-dono committed suicide in the flames of Osaka castle.

Later

After Ieyasu's death, she moved to Edo, she gained a mansion and 300 koku. Since she served as Moriyaku (guardian) at the time when

Tokugawa Kazuko , also known as Kazu-ko, was the Empress consort of Japan as wife of Emperor Go-Mizunoo. She was a prominent and influential figure the Imperial-shogunate ties and relations, because of her collaboration with her parents Oeyo and Tokugawa Hidetad ...

(Empress consort of Japan at this time) entered into court, she was granted Juichii (Junior First Rank) by Emperor Gomizunoo. After the death of Hidetada, she entered into priesthood and called herself as Unkōin (雲光院). Died in 1637 at the age of 83, and buried in Unkōin (Miyoshi, Koto Ward, Tokyo).

Honours

* Junior First Rank (Juichii)

References

Bibliography

* * Davis, Paul K. (2001). "Besieged: 100 Great Sieges from Jericho to Sarajevo." Oxford: Oxford University Press. * 戦況図録大坂の陣―永き戦乱の世に終止符を打った日本史上最大規模の攻城戦(2004) 新人物往来社 * Sansom, George (1961). ''A History of Japan, 1334–1615''. Stanford:

Stanford University Press Stanford University Press (SUP) is the publishing house of Stanford University. It is one of the oldest academic presses in the United States and the first university press to be established on the West Coast. It was among the presses officially ...

. . {{DEFAULTSORT:Acha, Lady 1637 deaths Tokugawa clan Japanese concubines 16th-century Japanese women 17th-century Japanese women Samurai 16th-century Japanese people People of Muromachi-period Japan People of Azuchi–Momoyama-period Japan People of Edo-period Japan 17th-century Japanese people Japanese Buddhist clergy Deified Japanese people 1555 births