Hattori Hanzō
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or ''Second Hanzō'', nicknamed , was a famous
samurai The samurai () were members of the warrior class in Japan. They were originally provincial warriors who came from wealthy landowning families who could afford to train their men to be mounted archers. In the 8th century AD, the imperial court d ...
of the Sengoku era, who served the
Tokugawa clan The is a Japanese dynasty which produced the Tokugawa shoguns who ruled Japan from 1603 to 1868 during the Edo period. It was formerly a powerful ''daimyō'' family. They nominally descended from Emperor Seiwa (850–880) and were a branch of ...
as a general, credited with saving the life of
Tokugawa Ieyasu Tokugawa Ieyasu (born Matsudaira Takechiyo; 31 January 1543 – 1 June 1616) was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan, which ruled from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was the third of the three "Gr ...
and then helping him to become the ruler of united Japan. He is often a subject of various portrayals in modern
popular culture Popular culture (also called pop culture or mass culture) is generally recognized by members of a society as a set of cultural practice, practices, beliefs, artistic output (also known as popular art
f. pop art F is the sixth letter of the Latin alphabet. F may also refer to: Science and technology Mathematics * F or f, the number 15 (number), 15 in hexadecimal and higher positional systems * ''p'F'q'', the hypergeometric function * F-distributi ...
or mass art, sometimes contraste ...
. Hanzō was known as an expert tactician and a master of sword fighting, and was included in cultural sobriquet as one of Tokugawa's 16 divine generals (''Tokugawa jūrokushinshō''). He became known as the ''Second Hanzō''. He would later earn the nickname because of the fearless tactics he displayed in his operations; this moniker also distinguished him from Watanabe Hanzō ( Watanabe Moritsuna), who is nicknamed .


Biography

Hattori Hanzō was born the son of , the ''First Hanzō'', a minor samurai in the service of the Matsudaira (later Tokugawa) clan. Stephen Turnbull, ''Ninja AD 1460–1650'' (2003), p. 12Joel Levy, ''Ninja: The Shadow Warrior'' (2008), pp. 157–158 His real name was . Despite being born in
Mikawa Province was an Provinces of Japan, old province in the area that today forms the eastern half of Aichi Prefecture.Louis-Frédéric, Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Mikawa''" in . Its abbreviated form name was . Mikawa bordered on Owari Province, O ...
(now Iga-chō,
Okazaki, Aichi is a Cities of Japan, city located in Aichi Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 386,999 in 164,087 households, and a population density of 999 persons per km2. The total area of the city was . Geography Okazaki is in the ...
), he often paid visits to
Iga Province was a Provinces of Japan, province of Japan located in what is today part of western Mie Prefecture.Louis-Frédéric, Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Iga" in . Its abbreviated name was . Iga is classified as one of the provinces of the T ...
, home of the Hattori clan. At the age of 15, his first battle was a nighttime attack during the siege of Uto castle in 1557. In 1561, Hanzō served
Tokugawa Ieyasu Tokugawa Ieyasu (born Matsudaira Takechiyo; 31 January 1543 – 1 June 1616) was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan, which ruled from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was the third of the three "Gr ...
(who at the time was still called Matsudaira Motoyasu) and has great contribution with Ieyasu's rise to power, helping the future shogun bring down the Imagawa clan. After Imagawa Ujizane had held Tokugawa's wife and son as hostages, Hanzō made a successful hostage rescue of Tokugawa's family at Kaminogo castle in 1562. In 1563, a major incident occurred which involved Hanzō. The
Ikkō-ikki were armed military leagues that formed in several regions of Japan in the 15th-16th centuries, composed entirely of members of the Jōdo Shinshū sect of Buddhism. In the early phases, these ''ikki'' leagues opposed the rule of local Shugo, go ...
followers had rebelled in Mikawa and fought against Ieyasu. Moreover, the majority of the Tokugawa clan's vassals were followers of the Ikko sect. Honda Masanobu and most of the vassals joined the Ikko Ikki and began to take hostile action against Ieyasu. During that time, Hanzō, who was also a follower of the Ikkō-ikki, instead kept his loyalty to the Tokugawa clan and supported Ieyasu to fight the rebels. In 1569, Hanzō went on to lay siege to Kakegawa castle against the Imagawa clan. From 1570 to 1573, Hanzō served with distinction at the battles of Anegawa and Mikatagahara respectively; it was during this conflict that Hanzō received the nickname ''Oni no Hanzō''. According to the ''Kansei Chōshū Shokafu'', Hattori Hanzō rendered meritorious service during the Battle of Mikatagahara and became commander of an Iga unit consisting of one hundred fifty men. He captured a Takeda spy named Chikuan, and when Takeda's troops invaded Totomi, Hanzō counterattacked with only thirty warriors at the Tenryū River. He and Watanabe Moritsuna performed with exceptional skill with their spears. This prompting Moritsuna to gain a nickname of ''Yari no Hanzō'' (Spear Hanzo) while Hanzō being nicknamed as ''Oni no Hanzō'', (Hanzō the demon). In 1575, he married the daughter of fellow military commander Nagasaka Nobumasa. His son would be born around a year later. In 1579, After Matsudaira Nobuyasu was accused of treason and conspiracy by
Oda Nobunaga was a Japanese ''daimyō'' and one of the leading figures of the Sengoku period, Sengoku and Azuchi-Momoyama periods. He was the and regarded as the first "Great Unifier" of Japan. He is sometimes referred as the "Demon Daimyō" and "Demo ...
and was ordered to commit
seppuku , also known as , is a form of Japanese ritualistic suicide by disembowelment. It was originally reserved for samurai in their code of honor, but was also practiced by other Japanese people during the Shōwa era (particularly officers near ...
by his father, Ieyasu, Hanzō was called in to act as an official to assist the seppuku procession, but he refused to take the sword on the blood of his own lord. Ieyasu valued his loyalty after hearing of Hanzō's ordeal and was noted to have said "Even a demon can shed tears". In 1580, another incident involving Hanzō and the Hattori clan occurred. During that time, a military commander of the Oda clan was staying in Hamamatsu Castle in preparation to assist the Oda-Tokugawa alliance to attack Takatenjin Castle, which belonged to the Takeda clan's forces. However, a friction happened between the commander of the castle with a Tokugawa retainer over a trivial matter. Hanzō was trying to resolve the matter. However, the Ōgaki clan's retainers who were on the side of the castle commander attacked Hanzo, which caused the members of Hattori clan to fight them back, resulting in casualties on both sides. As a result of this incident, the Ōgaki clan demanded Hanzō to be held responsible executed. Ieyasu, then managed to trick the Oda clan by pretending to arrest Hanzō at first. Then as Ieyasu allowed Hanzō to escape from his prison in Hamamatsu castle along with his wife and children. After that, Ieyasu deceived the Ōgaki clan by presenting them with a head of someone else, while claiming it was Hanzō's head.


Journey through Iga province

In the middle of June 1582, after the Honnō-ji incident, Tokugawa Ieyasu escaped from Sakai to return into Mikawa, in order to prevent capture from
Akechi Mitsuhide , first called Jūbei from his clan and later from his title, was a Japanese ''samurai'' general of the Sengoku period. Mitsuhide was originally a bodyguard of the last Ashikaga shogunate, Ashikaga ''shōgun'' Ashikaga Yoshiaki and later, one of ...
and his troops. Ieyasu had only 34 companions with him, including Hanzō. The journey they took was particularly dangerous due to the existence of '' Ochimusha-gari'', or "samurai hunting" gangs. Ieyasu and his party, therefore, chose the shortest route back to the Mikawa Province by crossing through the
Iga Province was a Provinces of Japan, province of Japan located in what is today part of western Mie Prefecture.Louis-Frédéric, Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Iga" in . Its abbreviated name was . Iga is classified as one of the provinces of the T ...
, which differed in many versions according to primary sources such as the records of ''Tokugawa Nikki'' or ''Mikawa Todai-Hon'': * The ''Tokugawa Nikki'' theory stated that Ieyasu took the roads to Shijonawate and Son'enji, then followed the Kizu stream until they spent a night in Yamaguchi castle. The next day, they reached a stronghold of the Kōka ikki clan of Tarao who allowed them to take refuge for the night. Then in the last day, Ieyasu's group used a ship from Shiroko to reach
Okazaki Castle is a Japanese castle located in Okazaki, Aichi Prefecture, Japan. At the end of the Edo period, Okazaki Castle was home to the Honda clan, ''daimyō'' of Okazaki Domain, but the castle is better known for its association with Tokugawa Ieyasu ...
. However, The ''Tokugawa Nikki'' theory is doubted by modern historians, since it was not actually the shortest route for Ieyasu to reach Mikawa from his starting position at
Sakai is a city located in Osaka Prefecture, Japan. It has been one of the largest and most important seaports of Japan since the medieval era. Sakai is known for its '' kofun'', keyhole-shaped burial mounds dating from the fifth century. The ''kofun ...
, while on the other hand, it was also considered a very risky path due to the existence of
Iga ikki The Iga ''ikki'', full name ''Iga Sokoku Ikki'', also known as the Iga Republic, Iga Confederacy, or Iga Commune, was a republic-style military confederation of ninjas (then known as ''shinobi'') based in Iga Province during the Sengoku period o ...
clans which were hostile to the Oda and Tokugawa clans. * The ''Mikawa Toda-Hon'' stated that Ieyasu went north from Ogawadate, crossed Koka, and entered Seishu Seki from Shigaraki, passed through Aburahi and entered Tsuge in Iga. This theory was championed by modern Japanese historians such as Tatsuo Fujita from Mie University, who had expressed doubts about the credibility of the story regarding Hattori Hanzō's ninja helping Ieyasu, given that the story does not appear until the 18th century during the rule of Tokugawa Yoshimune. Some people claiming to be descendants of Kōka ikki clans also supported this route theory, and before they reached Kada pass where they could be escorted by the Kōka clan
Jizamurai The were lower-ranking provincial samurai that emerged in 15th-century Japan Muromachi period. The definition was rather broad and the term ''jizamurai'' included landholding military aristocracy as well as independent peasant farmers. They alt ...
, Ieyasu mostly depended on his high-rank vassals for his protection, particularly the four Shitennō generals, rather than the popular theory about the help of "Iga ninja" clans. Regardless of which theory is true, historians agreed that the trek ended at Kada (a mountain pass between Kameyama town and Iga). Tokugawa's group suffered a last attack by the ochimusha-gari'' outlaws at Kada pass where they reached the territory of the Kōka ikki clan of
Jizamurai The were lower-ranking provincial samurai that emerged in 15th-century Japan Muromachi period. The definition was rather broad and the term ''jizamurai'' included landholding military aristocracy as well as independent peasant farmers. They alt ...
who were friendly to the Tokugawa clan. The Koka ikki samurai assisted Ieyasu to eliminate the threats of raiders and escorted them until they reached
Iga Province was a Provinces of Japan, province of Japan located in what is today part of western Mie Prefecture.Louis-Frédéric, Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Iga" in . Its abbreviated name was . Iga is classified as one of the provinces of the T ...
, where they were further protected by other allied clans from
Iga ikki The Iga ''ikki'', full name ''Iga Sokoku Ikki'', also known as the Iga Republic, Iga Confederacy, or Iga Commune, was a republic-style military confederation of ninjas (then known as ''shinobi'') based in Iga Province during the Sengoku period o ...
which accompanied the Ieyasu group until they safely reached Mikawa. Portuguese missionary Luís Fróis had recorded in his work ''History of Japan'', that during this journey, Tokugawa retainers such as Sakai Tadatsugu, Ii Naomasa, Honda Tadakatsu, Sakakibara Yasumasa, and many others fought their way out against the raids and harassments of ''ochimusha-gari'' outlaws during their march escorting Ieyasu, while sometimes also paying bribes of gold and silver to those which they could negotiate with. Matsudaira Ietada recorded in his journal, ''Ietada nikki'' (家忠日記), that the escorts of Ieyasu had suffered around 200 casualties during their journey due to the raids from bandits and outlaws.


Further service under Tokugawa clan

According to Iga's history book (伊賀者由緒書) compiled during the
Edo period The , also known as the , is the period between 1600 or 1603 and 1868 in the history of Japan, when the country was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and some 300 regional ''daimyo'', or feudal lords. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengok ...
, the Iga clan ninja which Hanzō hailed from never missed a single battle which involved the Tokugawa clan, from the Battle of Izu Nirayama in 1582, to the Summer Siege of Osaka in 1615. In late June 1582, a triangle conflict which was dubbed as the Tenshō-Jingo war broke out between the Tokugawa clan,
Uesugi clan The is a Japanese samurai clan which was at its peak one of the most powerful during the Muromachi period, Muromachi and Sengoku periods (14th to 17th centuries).Georges Appert, Appert, Georges. (1888) ''Ancien Japon,'' p. 79./ref> At its heigh ...
, and Hōjō clan. Hanzō participated in this conflict on the side of Tokugawa Ieyasu as he deployed his forces in various forts in the Kōfu basin against Ujinao, who camped his army in the area of present-day Hokuto city. Hanzō led the Iga clan warriors to Katsuyama castle (Kamisone-cho, Kofu city), Misakuchi castle, and Kotohirayama castle (Misakuchi-cho, Kofu city), where he monitored the Nakamichi road connecting Kai and Suruga. At the same time, a Tokugawa army detachment from the
Iga Province was a Provinces of Japan, province of Japan located in what is today part of western Mie Prefecture.Louis-Frédéric, Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Iga" in . Its abbreviated name was . Iga is classified as one of the provinces of the T ...
commanded by Hanzō invaded Saku District, where they were also aided by Shinano local samurai warriors from the Tsugane clan led by Ōbi Sukemitsu. In early September, Hanzō and Sukemitsu launched a night attack on Egusuku castle (also known as Shishiku castle) and successfully captured it, under the cover of heavy rain. Later, he also took the Sanogoya castle in Izu Province under cover of heavy rain. Hanzō was praised by Ieyasu for this achievement. In 1584, Hattori Hanzō continued to serve Ieyasu at the Battle of Komaki and Nagakute. During this battle, Hanzo marched to Ise commanding 100 warriors of Iga and Kōka ninja as reinforcements from Matsugashima Castle. His troops used rifles in defending the castle from the attacking Toyotomi forces. In 1590, Hattori Hanzō participated in the Odawara campaign, where he led a troop of 50 members of Negoro-shū, a group of mercenaries using firearms that originated in Kii Province. After this conflict, Hanzō was awarded 8,000 ''
koku The is a Chinese-based Japanese unit of volume. One koku is equivalent to 10 or approximately , or about of rice. It converts, in turn, to 100 shō and 1,000 gō. One ''gō'' is the traditional volume of a single serving of rice (before co ...
'' of domain for his service. By the time Ieyasu relocated to
Kantō region The is a geography, geographical region of Honshu, the largest island of Japan. In a common definition, the region includes the Greater Tokyo Area and encompasses seven prefectures of Japan, prefectures: Chiba Prefecture, Chiba, Gunma Prefe ...
, Hanzō was given an additional 8,000 ''koku'' worth of domain, along with the command of 30 '' yoriki'' officers and 200 civil officials. In 1597, Hanzō died on 2 January, succumbing to an unspecified illness.


Legacy

Hanzō's reputation as a samurai leader who commanded a 200-men strong unit of Iga warriors has grown to legendary proportions. Tales of Hattori's exploits often attributed various supernatural abilities, such as teleportation,
psychokinesis Telekinesis () (alternatively called psychokinesis) is a purported psychic ability allowing an individual to influence a physical system without physical interaction. Experiments to prove the existence of telekinesis have historically been cri ...
, and
precognition Precognition (from the Latin 'before', and 'acquiring knowledge') is the purported psychic phenomenon of seeing, or otherwise becoming directly aware of, events in the future. There is no accepted scientific evidence that precognition is a ...
. After his death in 1597, Hattori Hanzō was succeeded by his son, whose name was also Masanari (third Hanzō), though written with different
kanji are logographic Chinese characters, adapted from Chinese family of scripts, Chinese script, used in the writing of Japanese language, Japanese. They were made a major part of the Japanese writing system during the time of Old Japanese and are ...
(正就 instead of 正成). He was given the title ''Iwami no Kami'' (石見守) and his Iga men would act as guards of Edo Castle, the headquarters of the government of united Japan. "Hanzō" is actually a name passed down through the leaders of the Hattori family, meaning his father was also called Hanzō and so was his successor. Indeed, there were at least five people known as Hattori Hanzō throughout history. To this day, artefacts of Hanzō's legacy remain.
Tokyo Imperial Palace is the main residence of the Emperor of Japan. It is a large park-like area located in the Chiyoda, Chiyoda, Tokyo, Chiyoda district of the Chiyoda, Tokyo, Chiyoda ward of Tokyo and contains several buildings including the where the Emperor h ...
(formerly the ''shōgun''s palace) still has a gate called Hanzō's Gate (Hanzōmon), and the Hanzōmon subway line which runs from Hanzōmon Station in central
Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...
to the southwestern suburbs is named after the gate, where his house was once located. The neighbourhood outside Hanzō's Gate is known as Wakaba, but before 1943 was named Iga-chō ("Iga Town"). Hanzō's remains now rest in the Sainen-ji temple cemetery in Yotsuya, Tokyo. The temple also holds his favourite spear and ceremonial battle helmet. The spear, originally 14 '' shaku'' (424 cm) long, 7.5 kg in weight, and given to him by Ieyasu, was donated to the temple by Hanzō as a
votive offering A votive offering or votive deposit is one or more objects displayed or deposited, without the intention of recovery or use, in a sacred place for religious purposes. Such items are a feature of modern and ancient societies and are generally ...
, but was damaged during the bombing of Tokyo in 1945. Some of his other belongings are still in relatively good condition and can be viewed, but most other weapons, armour, and letters of commendation were lost due to a fire in Edo castle in 1606 that burned down his former quarters, the removal of his son from military command, and the chaos of the Siege of Osaka.


Modern and popular culture

As a vassal of Tokugawa Ieyasu, Hanzō was more popularly known in modern era as archetypical ninja figure and is featured in many fictional works. However, Hanzō was not featured in the first ninja boom of the Taishō era (1912-1926), as during that era, the ninja archetype figure in fictional works were more dominated by Sarutobi Sasuke and Kirigakure Saizō. Hanzō only started to gain his acknowledgement as legendary ninja in fictional works in the 1950s in various mediums such as novels,
manga are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long history in earlier Japanese art. The term is used in Japan to refer to both comics ...
,
anime is a Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, , in Japan and in Ja ...
,
Japanese television drama , also called or J-drama, are television programs that are a staple of Television in Japan, Japanese television and are broadcast daily. Format All major Television networks, TV networks in Japan produce a variety of Drama (genre), drama serie ...
, movies, and
theatre of Japan Traditional Japanese theatre is among the oldest theatre traditions in the world. Traditional theatre includes Noh, a spiritual drama, and its comic accompaniment ; kabuki, a dance and music theatrical tradition; , puppetry; and , a spoken drama ...
. Important works in the process of creating "Ninja Hattori Hanzo" reputation include Shibata Renzaburo's "Akai Kageboshi" (1960) and Yamada Futaro's short story "Ninja Hattori Hanzo" (1964). The former portrays Hanzō as a central character who is deeply involved with the protagonist and runs through the story. The latter is a work that shows that "Hattori Hanzo" does not refer to a specific person, but is a name that is passed down.


See also

* Fūma Kotarō


Appendix


Footnotes


References


Secondary sources

* *
Sainenji, a buddhist temple that houses the spear of the famous samurai and ninja Hattori Hanzo also known as the “Demon Hanzo”
* containing references from: ** Kudo Akioki, "Tokugawa Ieyasu and the Warring States Period: Ieyasu's Agent, Hattori Hanzo Masanari," 2015 (工藤章興 「〈徳川家康と戦国時代〉家康のエージェント 服部半蔵正成」 2015年) ** Yamakita Atsushi, "Illustrated Ninja," Shinkigensha, 2015 (山北篤『図解 忍者』 新紀元社 2015年) ** Kubo Fumitake, "Iga History: A Study," Iga Local History Research Association, 1986 (久保文武 『伊賀史叢考』 伊賀郷土史研究会 1986年) ** Mie Prefecture website, "Historical Information Storehouse: Hattori Hanzo and Ieyasu" (三重県HP 「歴史の情報蔵 服部半蔵と家康」) ** Shinjuku Ward website, "The Origin of the Name Hanzomon Gate - Hattori Hanzo and the Iga Police Officers" (新宿区HP 「半蔵門の名前の由来ー服部半蔵と伊賀同心ー」)


Popular cultures


Hattori Hanzô (Character)
at the
Internet Movie Database IMDb, historically known as the Internet Movie Database, is an online database of information related to films, television series, podcasts, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and biograp ...

Hattori Hanzo – Vintage Ninja


External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hattori, Hanzo 1540s births 1597 deaths Japanese ninjutsu practitioners Japanese spies Ninja People from Okazaki, Aichi People of the Azuchi–Momoyama period People of the Muromachi period Samurai