was the son of

Shō Taikyū was a king of the Ryukyu Kingdom, the sixth ruler of the first Shō dynasty. His reign saw the construction of many Buddhist temples, the casting of the , and the battle between the lords Gosamaru and Amawari. Life and reign Shō Taikyū was t ...

and last king of the

First Shō Dynasty First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and reco ...

. He came to power as a young man in a kingdom whose treasury had been depleted. He engaged in efforts to conquer islands between Ryukyu and Japan and took the

Mitsudomoe , commonly translated as "comma", is a comma-like swirl symbol used in Japanese (roughly equivalent to a heraldic badge or charge in European heraldry). It closely resembles the usual form of a . The appears in many designs with various use ...

, the symbol of

Hachiman In Japanese religion, ''Yahata'' (八幡神, ancient Shinto pronunciation) formerly in Shinto and later commonly known as Hachiman (八幡神, Japanese Buddhist pronunciation) is the syncretic divinity of archery and war, incorporating elements f ...

, as his banner to emphasize his martial spirit. In 1466, he led an invasion on

Kikai Island is one of the Satsunan Islands, classed with the Amami archipelago between Kyūshū and Okinawa. The island, in area, has a population of approximately 7,657 persons. Administratively the island forms the town of Kikai, Kagoshima Prefectur ...

, which strained the Ryukyuan treasury with little benefit. He either died young or was possibly killed by forces within the kingdom as details are somewhat unclear. As is common for rulers who preside over the end of a dynasty, moralists portrayed him as cruel, violent, and lacking in virtue.Visions of Ryukyu: identity and ideology in early-modern thought and politics by Gregory Smits, pgs 60–61
/ref>

Family

* Father:

* Mother: Miyazato Agunshitari-agomoshirare * Wife: daughter of Gushikawa Aji * Concubine: daughter of Yabiku Aji * Children: ** Shō Shashiki ** Shō Urasoe ** Shō Daiyako, descendant was Minshikameya Family ** Shō Koban

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sho Toku Kings of Ryūkyū First Shō dynasty 1441 births 1469 deaths 15th-century Ryukyuan monarchs