was a Japanese samurai commander in the

Genpei War The was a national civil war between the Taira and Minamoto clans during the late Heian period of Japan. It resulted in the downfall of the Taira and the establishment of the Kamakura shogunate under Minamoto no Yoritomo, who appointed himself ...

, the great conflict between the

Minamoto was one of the surnames bestowed by the Emperors of Japan upon members of the imperial family who were excluded from the line of succession and demoted into the ranks of the nobility from 1192 to 1333. The practice was most prevalent during the ...

and

Taira The Taira was one of the four most important clans that dominated Japanese politics during the Heian, Kamakura and Muromachi Periods of Japanese history – the others being the Fujiwara, the Tachibana, and the Minamoto. The clan is divided i ...

clans.Nussbaum, Louis Frédéric ''et al'' (2005). "Sasaki Takatsuna" in An infant at the time of the Heiji Rebellion (1159–1160), Takatsuna was spared the destruction of his family several years later. He grew up with an aunt in Kyoto, and joined the forces of

Minamoto no Yoritomo was the founder and the first shogun of the Kamakura shogunate of Japan, ruling from 1192 until 1199.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Minamoto no Yoriie" in . He was the husband of Hōjō Masako who acted as regent (''shikken'') after his ...

in 1180, when Yoritomo called for aid against the Taira. Takatsuna saved Yoritomo's life at the

battle of Ishibashiyama The was the first in which Minamoto no Yoritomo, who became ''shōgun'' less than a decade later, was commander of the Minamoto forces. The battle was fought on September 14, 1180, in the southwest of present-day Odawara, Kanagawa Prefecture, ...

, and aided in the destruction of the Taira following the end of the war. As a result, he was rewarded with the position of ''

shugo , commonly translated as “(military) governor,” “protector,” or “constable,” was a title given to certain officials in feudal Japan. They were each appointed by the ''shōgun'' to oversee one or more of the provinces of Japan. The pos ...

'' or governor of

Nagato province , often called , was a province of Japan. It was at the extreme western end of Honshū, in the area that is today Yamaguchi Prefecture. Nagato bordered on Iwami and Suō Provinces. History Although the ancient capital of the province was Shimono ...

. In 1195, Takatsuna retired to

Mount Koya Mount is often used as part of the name of specific mountains, e.g. Mount Everest. Mount or Mounts may also refer to: Places * Mount, Cornwall, a village in Warleggan parish, England * Mount, Perranzabuloe, a hamlet in Perranzabuloe parish, ...

to become a

Shingon file:Koyasan (Mount Koya) monks.jpg, Shingon monks at Mount Koya is one of the major schools of Buddhism in Japan and one of the few surviving Vajrayana lineages in East Asia, originally spread from India to China through traveling monks suc ...

priest. He left his son with his title, land, and all his material possessions. He is said to have died in 1214 in

Matsumoto, Nagano is a city located in Nagano Prefecture, Japan. Matsumoto is designated as a core city since 1 April 2021. , the city had a population of 239,466 in 105,207 households and a population density of 240 persons per km2. The total area of the city ...

(then

Shinano Province or is an old province of Japan that is now Nagano Prefecture. Shinano bordered on Echigo, Etchū, Hida, Kai, Kōzuke, Mikawa, Mino, Musashi, Suruga, and Tōtōmi Provinces. The ancient capital was located near modern-day Matsumoto, whi ...

Nogi Maresuke Count , also known as Kiten, Count Nogi (December 25, 1849September 13, 1912), was a Japanese general in the Imperial Japanese Army and a governor-general of Taiwan. He was one of the commanders during the 1894 capture of Port Arthur from Chin ...

was one of his descendants. When depicted in tales or in art, Takatsuna is often shown racing

Kajiwara Kagesue , was a samurai in service to the Minamoto clan during the Genpei War of Japan's late Heian period.Nussbaum, Louis Frédéric ''et al'' (2005). "Kajiwara Kagetoki" in The ''Heike monogatari'' records an anecdote about a friendly competition wi ...

across the River Uji atop Shōgun

Yoritomo was the founder and the first shogun of the Kamakura shogunate of Japan, ruling from 1192 until 1199.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Minamoto no Yoriie" in . He was the husband of Hōjō Masako who acted as regent (''shikken'') after hi ...

's white horse,

Ikezuki Ikezuki (池月)is the name of a white horse that belonged to Shōgun Yoritomo and also makes an appearance in the Tale of Heike, being ridden by Sasaki Takatsuna, as well as other appearances throughout the Genpei War. Ikezuki was well known fo ...

, to be the first to engage in battle at the 1184 battle of Uji.Kitagawa, Hiroshi ''et al.'' (1975). ''The Tale of the Heike,'' pp. 511-513; Varley, Paul. (1994).

Notes

References

* Kitagawa, Hiroshi and Burce T. Tsuchida, ed. (1975). ''The Tale of the Heike.'' Tokyo:

University of Tokyo Press The is a university press affiliated with the University of Tokyo in Japan. It was founded in 1951, following the post-World War II reorganization of the university. Honors * Japan Foundation: Special Prize, 1990. Location The headquarters of t ...

.
OCLC 164803926
* Nussbaum, Louis Frédéric and Käthe Roth. (2005). ''Japan Encyclopedia.'' Cambridge:

Harvard University Press Harvard University Press (HUP) is a publishing house established on January 13, 1913, as a division of Harvard University, and focused on academic publishing. It is a member of the Association of American University Presses. After the retirem ...

.
OCLC 48943301
*Sasaki Takatsuna. (1985). ''Kodansha Encyclopedia of Japan.'' Tokyo: Kodansha Ltd. * Varley, Paul. (1994). ''Warriors of Japan as Portrayed in the War Tales.'' Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press. ; ; {{DEFAULTSORT:Sasaki, Takatsuna 1160 births 1214 deaths Samurai

See also

Notes

References