or Hōjō Tsunanari also known as "Jio

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 ...

", was a samurai commander with great skill under the Hōjō clan. The brother in law of

Hōjō Ujiyasu was a ''daimyō'' (warlord) and third head of the Odawara Hōjō clan. Known as the "Lion of Sagami", he was revered as a fearsome samurai and a cunning man. He is famous for his strategies of breaking the siege from Takeda Shingen and Uesugi ...

. Around the Kantō region, he fought in many battles supporting the Hōjō, also contributing to the expansion of the domain of Hōjō, he was well known for his fighting skill and also an excellent diplomat.

Biography

Tsunashige's childhood name was 'Katsuchiyo'. His father was Kushima Masashige, a vassal of the Imagawa clan. Tsunashige was the stepson of

's brother, Tamemasa, and son-in-law of Hōjō Ujitsuna. He was fought for Hōjō from 1537 and known as 'Jio Hachiman' (God of worriers with yellow flags) for his soldiers yellow uniforms, along with outstandingly creative banners. Tsunashige was the

castellan A castellan, or constable, was the governor of a castle in medieval Europe. Its surrounding territory was referred to as the castellany. The word stems from . A castellan was almost always male, but could occasionally be female, as when, in 1 ...

(castle lord) in command of

Tamanawa Castle was a castle structure in Tamanawa ward of Kamakura, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. The adopted brother of Hōjō Ujiyasu, Hōjō Tsunashige, was commander of the castle. History Hōjō Sōun who had been fighting with the Miura clan built the c ...

and Kawagoe Castle. In 1545, during the Siege of Kawagoe Castle, despite an overwhelming attacking force, numbering around 85,000, the 3,000 men Kawagoe Castle's garrison under Hōjō Tsunashige, held off the siege until the Hojo Ujiyasu relief force arrived. He attained fame by defeating the siege. In 1551, he fought in Siege of Hirai castle against

Uesugi Norimasa was a ''daimyō'' of feudal Japan from Yamanouchi branch Uesugi clan and held the post of Kantō Kanrei, the ''shōgun''s deputy in the Kantō region. He was the adoptive father of Uesugi Kenshin, one of the most famous warlords in Japanese his ...

. In 1561, he fought in the first Siege of Odawara against

Uesugi Kenshin , later known as , was a Japanese ''daimyō'' (magnate). He was born in Nagao clan, and after adoption into the Uesugi clan, ruled Echigo Province in the Sengoku period of Japan. He was one of the most powerful ''daimyō'' of the Sengoku period ...

. In 1564, he fought in the second Battle of Konodai against Satomi Yoshihiro. In 1567, he fought in Battle of Numajiri against Satake Yoshishige. In 1571, Fukazawa Castle that Tsunashige defended was surrounded by

Takeda Shingen was daimyō, daimyo of Kai Province during the Sengoku period of Japan. Known as "the Tiger of Kai", he was one of the most powerful daimyo of the late Sengoku period, and credited with exceptional military prestige. Shingen was based in a p ...

's large army. Tsunashige held off well but was forced to surrender. Then, he withdrew to his

. After the Siege of Fukazawa Castle, Tsunashige retired from public life, and he died in 1587. Tsunashige's tomb is at Ryūhō-ji Temple near the Tamanawa castle.

Biography

References

Further reading