, also known as , 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 ...
warrior of 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 ...
. He was especially known as the leading general on the defending side of 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 sie ...
.
Yukimura was called "A Hero who may appear once in a hundred years", "Crimson Demon of War" and "The Last Sengoku Hero". The famed veteran of the
invasion of Korea
An invasion is a military offensive in which large numbers of combatants of one geopolitical entity aggressively enter territory owned by another such entity, generally with the objective of either: conquering; liberating or re-establishing con ...
,
Shimazu Tadatsune
was a ''tozama daimyō'' of Satsuma, the first to hold it as a formal fief (''han'') under the Tokugawa shogunate, and the first Japanese to rule over the Ryūkyū Kingdom. As lord of Satsuma, he was among the most powerful lords in Japan at ...
, called him the .
Early life
He was the second son of
Sanada Masayuki (1547–1611). His elder brother was
Sanada Nobuyuki. He was married to
Chikurin-in
(1579/80 – June 27, 1649) was a Japanese noble lady of the late Azuchi-Momoyama through early Edo period. She was Ōtani Yoshitsugu's daughter, then she was adopted by Toyotomi Hideyoshi, before marrying Sanada Yukimura (Nobushige). She is des ...
(Akihime),
Ōtani Yoshitsugu
was a Japanese samurai of the Sengoku period through the Azuchi-Momoyama Period. He was also known by his court title, . He was born in 1558 to a father who was said to be a retainer of either Ōtomo Sōrin or Rokkaku Yoshikata. He became one ...
's daughter and adopted daughter of
Toyotomi 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 Cour ...
.
Three other wives of Yukimura were his first wife the daughter/sister of Hotta Sakubei, who lost her status to Chikurin-in; Takanashi Naiki's daughter and Ryūsei-in (a daughter of
Toyotomi Hidetsugu
was a daimyō during the Sengoku period of Japan. He was the nephew and retainer of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the unifier and ruler of Japan from 1590 to 1598. Despite being Hideyoshi's closest adult, male relative, Hidetsugu was accused of atrocities ...
).
In 1575, the
Battle of Nagashino
The took place in 1575 near Nagashino Castle on the plain of Shitaragahara in the Mikawa Province of Japan. Takeda Katsuyori attacked the castle when Okudaira Sadamasa rejoined the Tokugawa, and when his original plot with Oga Yashiro for t ...
claimed the lives of two of Sanada Masayuki's elder brothers. Masayuki, previously serving
Takeda Shingen
, of Kai Province, was a pre-eminent ''daimyō'' in feudal Japan. Known as the "Tiger of Kai", he was one of the most powerful daimyō with exceptional military prestige in the late stage of the Sengoku period.
Shingen was a warlord of great ...
and
Takeda Katsuyori
was a Japanese ''daimyō'' of the Sengoku period, who was famed as the head of the Takeda clan and the successor to the legendary warlord Takeda Shingen. He was son in law of Hojo Ujiyasu.
Early life
He was the son of Shingen by the daughter ...
as a retainer, inherited the Sanada clan and left for
Ueda Castle
is a Japanese castle located in Ueda, northern Nagano Prefecture, Japan. At the end of the Edo period, Ueda Castle was home to a cadet branch of the Matsudaira clan, ''daimyō'' of Ueda Domain, but the castle is better known for its association ...
. Yukimura also went, taking the Sanada name as well.
By 1582, the
Oda-
Tokugawa forces had destroyed the
Takeda clan
The was a Japanese samurai clan active from the late Heian period until the late 16th century. The clan was historically based in Kai Province in present-day Yamanashi Prefecture. The clan reached its greatest influence under the rule of Taked ...
. The Sanada initially surrendered to
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 ...
, but, after the
incident at Honnō-ji, it became independent again, drifting between stronger ''
daimyō
were powerful Japanese magnates, feudal lords who, from the 10th century to the early Meiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast, hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to the shogun and nominall ...
s'' such as the
Uesugi clan
The is a Japanese samurai clan which was at its peak one of the most powerful during the Muromachi and Sengoku periods (14th to 17th centuries). Appert, Georges. (1888) ''Ancien Japon,'' p. 79./ref> At its height, the clan had three main branc ...
, the
Later Hōjō clan
The was one of the most powerful samurai families in Japan in the Sengoku period and held domains primarily in the Kantō region. Their last name was simply Hōjō (北条) but in order to differentiate between the earlier Hōjō clan with the s ...
, and the Tokugawa clan. Eventually, the Sanada clan became a vassal of
Toyotomi 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 Cour ...
.
Sekigahara campaign
In 1600, before 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 ...
,
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 fello ...
rallied various ''daimyōs'' to attack
Uesugi Kagekatsu. The Sanada clan complied as well, but when
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 ...
decided to challenge Ieyasu, Masayuki and Yukimura joined the western forces, parting ways with Masayuki's eldest son and Yukimura's brother, Nobuyuki, who joined the eastern forces. It has been said that at first Yukimura followed Ieyasu but, after Ieyasu tried to seize his territory he betrayed Ieyasu. The true motive of Masayuki and Yukimura's decision is disputed with many theories, but there are two main schools of thought: in one, Masayuki made the decision (and Yukimura agreed); he expressed the willingness to take a gamble, so that if he were to join the weak side and win the battle, the Sanada would gain much more power. The other theory is the opposite where they planned a safety net; Masayuki, Yukimura, and Nobuyuki discussed the situation when Ieyasu asked them to state their allegiance clearly, and they decided to join separate sides, so that, regardless of the outcome of the battle, the Sanada clan would survive.
Siege of Ueda and Exile
The Sanada retreated and fortified Ueda Castle. When
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 ...
marched a sizable army on the
Nakasendō
The , also called the ,Richard Lane, ''Images from the Floating World'' (1978) Chartwell, Secaucus ; pg. 285 was one of the five routes of the Edo period, and one of the two that connected Edo (modern-day Tokyo) to Kyoto in Japan. There were 69 ...
, the Sanada resisted and were able to fight Hidetada's 40,000 men with only 2,000. However, as the castle did not fall in the short time that he expected, Hidetada gave up and joined the main Tokugawa army, too late however, to participate in the crucial
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 ...
. After the battle Masayuki's territory was seized and he and Yukimura were exiled to
Mt. Koya in the Kii Peninsula. Ueda was given to Nobuyuki. Yukimura rose against the Tokugawa when the Winter Battle of
Osaka Castle
is a Japanese castle in Chūō-ku, Osaka, Japan. The castle is one of Japan's most famous landmarks and it played a major role in the unification of Japan during the sixteenth century of the Azuchi-Momoyama period.
Layout
The main tower ...
broke out in 1614.
Osaka campaign
The
Siege of Osaka Castle was a series of battles undertaken by the Tokugawa shogunate against the Toyotomi clan, and ending in that clan’s destruction. Divided into two stages (Winter Campaign and Summer Campaign), lasting from 1614 to 1615, the siege put an end to the last major armed opposition to the shogunate’s establishment. The end of the conflict is sometimes referred to as the Genna Armistice (Genna Embu), because the era name was changed from
Keichō to
Genna
was a coming after '' Keichō'' and before '' Kan'ei.'' This period spanned the years from July 1615 to February 1624. The reigning emperor was .
Change of era
* 1615 : The era name was changed to mark the enthronement of Go-Mizunuoo and be ...
immediately following the siege.
Winter Siege of Osaka Castle
The winter campaign began on November 19, 1614; Osaka Castle siege commenced on December 4, 1614, and lasted until January 22, 1615, when truce was reached.
On November 19, Tokugawa forces (approx. 3,000 men) attacked a fort across the Kizu River, destroying it. A week later, Tokugawa forces attacked the village of Imafuku with 1,500 men against a defending force of 600. With the aid of a squad of
arquebus
An arquebus ( ) is a form of long gun that appeared in Europe and the Ottoman Empire during the 15th century. An infantryman armed with an arquebus is called an arquebusier.
Although the term ''arquebus'', derived from the Dutch word ''Haakbus ...
iers, the Tokugawa claimed victory once again. Several more small forts and villages were attacked before the siege on Osaka Castle itself began on December 4, 1614. Yukimura built a
small fortress called
Sanada-maru in the southwest corner of Osaka Castle. The Sanada-maru was an earthwork
barbican
A barbican (from fro, barbacane) is a fortified outpost or fortified gateway, such as at an outer defense perimeter of a city or castle, or any tower situated over a gate or bridge which was used for defensive purposes.
Europe
In the Middle A ...
defended by 7,000 men under Yukimura's command. From there, he defeated the Tokugawa forces (approx. 30,000 men) with groups of 6,000 arquebusiers. The Shōgun's forces were repeatedly repelled, and the Sanada troops launched a number of attacks against the siege lines, breaking through three times. Ieyasu then resorted to
artillery
Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during si ...
, which included 17 imported European cannons and domestic wrought iron cannons, as well as
sapper
A sapper, also called a pioneer or combat engineer, is a combatant or soldier who performs a variety of military engineering duties, such as breaching fortifications, demolitions, bridge-building, laying or clearing minefields, preparin ...
s employed to dig under the walls of the fortress. The fortress was impregnable; the Tokugawa suffered many losses.
Ieyasu gave up trying to destroy the castle during this battle, and sued for peace with Toyotomi Hideyori. He proposed a condition for the reconciliation, i.e. to destroy the outer moat of the castle. When his envoy entered the castle grounds, they destroyed not only the outer moat but the inner moat as well.
Summer Siege of Osaka Castle and Death
On June 3, 1615 (6th day of 5th month of 20 year of Keicho era), at the
Battle of Dōmyōji
On June 5, 1615, the Eastern Army of Tokugawa Ieyasu and the Osaka Army of Toyotomi Hideyori clashed in battle at Dōmyōji (道明寺の戦い; Dōmyōji no tatakai), Osaka. This battle was one of Japan's major historical battles between samur ...
, Sanada Yukimura was in command of the Osaka Army on the right wing and engaged in a battle with Date Masamune forces in the area of Emperor Ōjin's Tomb and Konda Hachiman Shrine. This fight took place at around 12:00 and by 5:00 PM Sanada Yukimura made the decision to retreat towards Osaka Castle.
On June 3, 1615 (7th day of 5th month of 20 year of Keicho era), at the
Battle of Tennōji
The was fought on 3 June, 1615 between the forces of Tokugawa Ieyasu and Toyotomi Hideyori. Tokugawa was besieging Osaka, and Hideyori had planned a counterattack. Both sides were plagued by mistakes until Hideyori's side finally fell. He pre ...
after hurrying back to Osaka castle, Yukimura found the massive Tokugawa force of nearly 150,000 moving into positions in order to make their final assault on the castle. As the Tokugawa units were still moving into formation, the Toyotomi forces launched a last ditch offensive with their approximate 54,000 to 60,000 troops that hoped to take the still loose Tokugawa formations off-guard. As the vanguard of the Tokugawa left flank under Matsudaira Tadanao marched to their positions, Yukimura's troops charged down from Chausuyama (茶臼山) and fought with desperate abandon together with Mori Katsunaga's contingent. As Matsudaira’s line began to crumble, Ieyasu rushed his personal body of troops up to support Matsudaira and Yukimura saw his chance to smash through the center. If he could keep the center of the Tokugawa forces tied up long enough for Hideyori to sally out of the castle and lead a general charge on the exposed Tokugawa flank, the Toyotomi forces might have a chance at victory—or so he hoped. Thus, at this moment, Yukimura dispatched his son, Sanada Daisuke back to the castle to urge Hideyori to seize the moment and sally forward. But Hideyori was too late. As the fighting raged around him, the exhausted Yukimura collapsed on a camp stool. According to legend, Yukimura's last words were along the lines of "Who dares to take my head?" Nishio Nizaemon, a Tokugawa samurai, recognized Yukimura and charged forward, issuing a challenge. Unable to muster the strength to fight, Yukimura acknowledged who he was and took off his helmet. Seconds later, his life came to an abrupt end.
The spot where Sanada Yukimura was killed is located in
Yasui Shrine located to the west of
Shitennoji Temple in Osaka, and his grave is in
Zenmyosho-In in Ueda.
Family
Parents
* Father:
Sanada Masayuki
* Mother: Kanshō-in (1549?-1613)
Siblings
* Muramatsu-dono
*
Sanada Nobuyuki
* Sanada Nobukatsu
* Sanada Masachika
Children
* Sue/Kiku (すへ/菊) (name meaning "chrysanthemum"). Yukimura's oldest daughter, her mother was Yukimura's original legal wife and first wife Hotta Sakubei's sister/daughter. Sue/Kiku was adopted by Hotta Sakubei.
* Ichi (市). Yukimura's second daughter, her mother was either Yukimura's first wife Hotta Sakubei's sister or his second wife Takanashi Naiki's daughter, died in the exile in Kudoyama.
*
Sanada Daisuke Sanada is a Japanese surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Asami Sanada (born 1977), Japanese voice actress
*, Japanese shogi player
* Juzo Sanada (1923–1994), Japanese baseball player
* Hiroki Sanada (born 1984), Japanese basebal ...
(
真田 大助) (1600/1603?–1615). Yukimura's and Chikurin-in's oldest child and eldest son. Born in exile on Mount Kudo. He was born around 1600-1602. He fought with his father in the Osaka Winter Battle to defend the
Sanada Maru
The was a small fortification attached to Osaka castle. It is famous for being impregnable and playing a key role in defending the castle in the winter of 1615. Later, it was forcefully destroyed despite being exempt from the reconciliation con ...
fortress. When Osaka castle fell, Yukimasa committed seppuku with
Toyotomi Hideyori
was the son and designated successor of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the general who first united all of Japan. His mother, Yodo-dono, was the niece of Oda Nobunaga.
Early life
Born in 1593, he was Hideyoshi's second son. The birth of Hideyori cr ...
. He was also known as "Sanada Yukimasa" (真田 幸昌 a wordplay on the name of his grandfather Masayuki 昌幸 - Yukimasa is written with the kanji for Masayuki in reverse).
* Oume (阿梅) (1604-1681) (name meaning "plum"). Yukimura and Chikurin-in's daughter, born on Mount Kudo. After the fall of Osaka castle, she married
Katakura Shigenaga, son of
Katakura Kagetsuna. Thanks to Oume, the surviving members of the Sanada clan and all of their retainers were able to find refuge in the Katakura clan. The Katakura crest was even changed to show the 6 coin symbol of the Sanada.
* Naho (also known as Den, Oden) (なほ/御田) (1604-1635). Yukimura and Ryūsei-in's daughter.
* Akuri (あくり) (dates unknown) (name meaning "chestnut"). Yukimura and Chikurin-in's daughter. Akuri was adopted by Takigawa Kazuatsu, a Tokugawa vassal, after the fall of Osaka castle. Yukimura's sister was married to Kazuatsu. Akuri married Gamou Genzaemon. She was the daughter that was captured along with Chikurin-in by Asano Nagaakira's troops, but both were spared.
* Oshobu (阿菖蒲) (160?–1635) (name meaning "iris"). Oshobu was Yukimura and Chikurin-in's daughter. Born on Mount Kudo. She was adopted by
Katakura Shigenaga and married to Tamura Sadahiro, a retainer of
Date Masamune
was a regional ruler of Japan's Azuchi–Momoyama period through early Edo period. Heir to a long line of powerful ''daimyō'' in the Tōhoku region, he went on to found the modern-day city of Sendai. An outstanding tactician, he was made ...
.
* Okane (おかね) (dates unknown). Yukimura and Chikurin-in's daughter. Born on Mount Kudo. She married Ishikawa Sadakiyo. It's said that Sadakiyo changed his name to Sourin, moved to Kyoto and became a master of the tea ceremony. Chikurin-in came to live with Okane after losing her husband. Sourin and Okane had a memorial built for Yukimura and Chikurin-in in Kyoto.
*
Sanada Daihachi (
真田 大八) (1612–1670). Yukimura and Chikurin-in's second son. He was born on Mount Kudo. He was adopted by
Katakura Shigenaga, and became "Katakura Morinobu" (片倉 守信). However, the Sanada name was restored to his line generations later.
*
Miyoshi Yukinobu (
三好 幸信) (1615–1667). Yukimura and Ryūsei-in's son. He was born two months after the death of his father He hesitated to use Sanada name and used the Miyoshi clan name instead, which was the original family name of his maternal grandfather Hidetsugu; he called himself as Sajiro MIYOSHI.
*
Sanada Yukichika (
真田 之親) (1615-1670). Born shortly after his father's death, to Chikurin-in. He is not mentioned in historical records, and appears only in folk tales. He is also known as "Sanada Gonzaemon". In one of the tales, it is said that he is a son of Chikurin-in and Yukimura and that he was born in 1615. He supposedly died in 1670 (真田 権左衛門).
Legends and popular depiction
According to primary historical sources and personal letters, he was never referred to as Yukimura. That name surfaced in a military novel written 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 character ...
and has since been popularized in modern plays, books, novels, and different media of entertainment. The historical documents use his historical name "Nobushige".
A legend says that Yukimura had ten heroes who took an active role at the battles at Osaka Castle. They were called the
Sanada Ten Braves
The are a legendary group of ninja that assisted the warlord Sanada Yukimura during the Warring States era of Japan; that is, the late Sengoku period and its immediate aftermath, also known as the Azuchi–Momoyama and the early Edo periods.
Th ...
, a group of ninja.
A myth says he indeed managed to kill Ieyasu, but the Ogoshō was replaced by a ''
kagemusha
is a 1980 jidaigeki film directed by Akira Kurosawa. It is set in the Sengoku period of Japanese history and tells the story of a lower-class criminal who is taught to impersonate the dying ''daimyō'' Takeda Shingen to dissuade opposing lords fr ...
'' (a decoy or
doppelganger) called Ogasawara Hidemasa. This myth is a testimony to the respect modern Japanese have for Yukimura's skills as a military commander.
Another legend states that in the Winter of 1614, Tokugawa Ieyasu sent an envoy to Yukimura with a notice that, if he were to abandon the Toyotomi cause, that he would give his entire prefecture of Shinano and 400,000 koku. Yukimura laughed and posted the notice on the wall for all in the castle to see.
Popular culture
See also
*
Sanada Taiheiki, a Japanese drama in 1985, played by
Masao Kusakari
*
Sanada Maru
The was a small fortification attached to Osaka castle. It is famous for being impregnable and playing a key role in defending the castle in the winter of 1615. Later, it was forcefully destroyed despite being exempt from the reconciliation con ...
, a Japanese
Taiga drama in 2016, played by
Masato Sakai
is a Japanese actor. He won the award for best actor at the 31st Yokohama Film Festival for ''The Wonderful World of Captain Kuhio'' and ''The Chef of South Polar'' and the award for best supporting actor at the 2008 Nikkan Sports Film Award, at ...
*''
Samurai Warriors: Spirit of Sanada'', a hack and slash video game that focuses on the Sanada clan
References
Further reading
* ''Osaka 1615: The Last Battle of the Samurai'': Stephen Turnbull
* ''Samurai Warlords: The Book of the Daimyo'': Stephen Turnbull
External links
Sanada Yukimura entry at Samurai WikiStatue of Sanada Yukimura in Osaka, Japan*http://okada-akira.jp/history/vol22.html (list with information about the fate of Yukimura's children in particular the Sendai children)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sanada, Yukimura
1567 births
1615 deaths
Japanese warriors killed in battle
16th-century Japanese people
17th-century Japanese people
Samurai
Sanada clan