Hosokawa Takakuni (, 1484 – 17 July 1531) was the most powerful military commander in the

Muromachi period The is a division of Japanese history running from approximately 1336 to 1573. The period marks the governance of the Muromachi or Ashikaga shogunate (''Muromachi bakufu'' or ''Ashikaga bakufu''), which was officially established in 1338 by ...

under

Ashikaga Yoshiharu was the twelfth ''shōgun'' of the Ashikaga shogunate from 1521 through 1546 during the late Muromachi period of Japan.Ackroyd, Joyce. (1982). ''Lessons from History: The Tokushi Yoron'', p. 332. He was the son of the eleventh ''shōgun'' Ash ...

, the twelfth ''

shōgun , officially , was the title of the military dictators of Japan during most of the period spanning from 1185 to 1868. Nominally appointed by the Emperor, shoguns were usually the de facto rulers of the country, though during part of the Kamaku ...

''. His father was Hosokawa Masaharu, a member of the branch of the

Hosokawa clan The is a Japanese Samurai kin group or clan. Ancestors # Emperor Jimmu # Emperor Suizei # Emperor Annei # Emperor Itoku # Emperor Kōshō # Emperor Kōan # Emperor Kōrei # Emperor Kōgen # Emperor Kaika # Emperor Sujin # Emperor Sui ...

. His childhood name was Rokuro (六郎). In 1507,

Hosokawa Masamoto was a deputy-'' shōgun'' of the Hosokawa clan of Japan, and son of Hosokawa Katsumoto. Masamoto was appointed to this rank during 1486. For a brief period this title was lost by Hatakeyama Masanaga but was regained in time. When Ashikaga Yo ...

was killed by his foster son,

Hosokawa Sumiyuki Hosokawa (typically ja, 細川, meaning "narrow river" or "little river") is a Japanese surname. People with the name include: *Bill Hosokawa (1915–2007), Japanese American author and journalist * Chieko Hosokawa (born 1929), a Japanese manga ...

who had been disinherited by Masamoto. Takakuni supported

Hosokawa Sumimoto was a samurai commander in the Muromachi period during the 16th century of Japan. Sumimoto was one of the few sons of Hosokawa Yoshiharu and an adopted son of Hosokawa Masamoto, who was the Kanrei of the Ashikaga shogunate. His roots was the Ho ...

and got credit for putting down Sumiyuki. Because of that, he got involved with the

Muromachi shogunate The , also known as the , was the feudal military government of Japan during the Muromachi period from 1336 to 1573.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Muromachi-jidai''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia'', p. 669. The Ashikaga shogunate was establis ...

. In 1508, when

Ōuchi Yoshioki became a ''sengoku daimyō'' of Suō Province and served as the 15th head of the Ōuchi clan. Yoshioki was born early in the Sengoku period, the son of Ōuchi Masahiro, ''shugo'' of Suō Province and the 14th head of the Ōuchi clan. The fir ...

marched his armies into

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 c ...

with

Ashikaga Yoshitane , also known as , was the 10th ''shōgun'' of the Ashikaga shogunate who headed the shogunate first from 1490 to 1493 and then again from 1508 to 1521 during the Muromachi period of Japan. Yoshitane was the son of Ashikaga Yoshimi and grandson ...

(the former ''

'' who had escaped to

Suō Province was a province of Japan in the area that is today the eastern part of Yamaguchi Prefecture. It was sometimes called . Suō bordered on Aki, Iwami, and Nagato Provinces. The ancient provincial capital was in Hōfu. Suō was ruled for much ...

), Takakuni conspired with them and purged the shogun

Ashikaga Yoshizumi was the 11th ''shōgun'' of the Ashikaga shogunate who reigned from 1494 to 1508 during the Muromachi period of Japan. He was the son of Ashikaga Masatomo and grandson of the sixth ''shōgun'' Ashikaga Yoshinori.Titsingh, Isaac. (1834). His chi ...

and Sumimoto to

Ōmi Province was a province of Japan, which today comprises Shiga Prefecture. It was one of the provinces that made up the Tōsandō circuit. Its nickname is . Under the '' Engishiki'' classification system, Ōmi was ranked as one of the 13 "great countr ...

. Takakuni and Yoshioki took hold of the Muromachi shogunate. Takakuni took over as head of the Hosokawa family and became ''

Kanrei or, more rarely, ''kanryō'', was a high political post in feudal Japan; it is usually translated as ''shōguns deputy''. After 1349, there were actually two ''Kanrei'', the ''Kyoto Kanrei'' and the ''Kantō Kanrei''. Originally, from 1219 until ...

''. In addition, he also held the post 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 ...

'' 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 ...

Tanba Province was a province of Japan in the area of central Kyoto and east-central Hyōgo Prefectures. Tanba bordered on Harima, Ōmi, Settsu, Tajima, Wakasa, and Yamashiro Provinces. Its abbreviated form name was . In terms of the Gokishichidō sys ...

Sanuki Province was a province of Japan in the area of northeastern Shikoku. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Sanuki''" in . Sanuki bordered on Awa to the south, and Iyo to the west. Its abbreviated form name was . In terms of the Gokishichidō system ...

and Tosa Province. In 1518, he monopolized the powers of the shogunate after Yoshioki went back to his domain. In 1521, Yoshitane hated to be a puppet shogun, and escaped to Awa Province. Takakuni made

, son of Yoshizumi, take up the post of shogun. Takakuni took Yanagimoto Kataharu, the younger brother of

Kozai Motomori Kozai may refer to: * Kozai-Lidov mechanism, a dynamical phenomenon in celestial mechanics * 3040 Kozai, an asteroid Persons with the surname Kozai * Yoshihide Kozai (1928–2018), Japanese astronomer * Kazuteru Kozai (born 1986), Japanese badmi ...

, chief vassal of the Hosokawa people, as his ''wakashū'' and the two swore eternal love to each other. Kataharu, even after reaching adulthood, remained a favorite vassal. However, as a result of a calumny by his own cousin, Takakuni felt obliged to have Motomori killed. Though initially appeased by his lord, Yanagimoto shortly after joined with another brother against the cousin to avenge Motomori's death.Watanabe, Tsuneo and Jun'ichi Iwata. ''The Love of the Samurai: A Thousand Years of Japanese Homosexuality''. p. 51. In 1527, he was purged from Kyoto by

Miyoshi Motonaga Miyoshi may refer to: Places * Miyoshi, Aichi, a city in Aichi Prefecture *Miyoshi, Chiba, a former village in Chiba Prefecture * Miyoshi, Hiroshima, a city in Hiroshima Prefecture * Miyoshi, Saitama, a town in Saitama Prefecture * Miyoshi, Tokushi ...

and Hosokawa Harumoto. In 1531, his army was defeated, and he hid in a store room for alcoholic beverage at

Amagasaki 270px, Amagasaki Castle 270px, Aerial view of Amagasaki city center 270px, Amagasaki Station is an industrial city located in Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 455,555 in 223812 households, and a population de ...

, Settsu Province. When he was detected, he committed suicide.

Family

* Father: Hosokawa Masaharu (1456–1518) * Foster Father:

* Wife: daughter of Hosokawa Masakata * Children: ** Hosokawa Tanekuni (1508–1525) ** daughter married Kitabatake Harutomo ** daughter married Yamana Toyosada ** Hosokawa Takayori ** Hosokawa Suminori ** Ankokuji Shinkuno

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hosokawa, Takakuni 1484 births 1531 deaths 16th-century LGBT people Hosokawa clan Keichō-Hosokawa clan Samurai