Takasago Uragorō

was a Japanese sumo wrestler from , Kazusa Province (now Tōgane, Chiba Prefecture). His highest rank was ''maegashira'' 1.

Although he never reached a high rank in professional sumo, Takasago is a personality known for having led the first social movements of sumo wrestlers in Japan and for having founded the eponymous stable which is still active and still bears his name.

Career

Early life and career

Yamasaki was the third son of a farmer. He joined the Edo-based sumo association at the age of twenty-one, in 1859, under the recommendation of an influential moneylender. He joined Chiganoura stable, where he was stablemate with Raiden Shin'emon. Later, he was given the , or ring name, , a name inspired by Mount Takami. Around 1865, he came to wrestle under the patronage of the Himeji Domain, along with Raiden and future- Ayasegawa (then known as Aioi). In November 1869, he debuted in the division at the age of thirty-two, because of his late recruitment in professional sumo. Although he achieved consistent results, Takamiyama never broke through to the upper echelons of the rankings, remaining a for the rest of his career.

At the end of the Edo period, the promotion system was decided by the tournament organizers who then distributed the profits to the elders who then redistributed funds to their wrestlers, with the wrestlers under the protection of the local lords receiving bonuses and having financial security and the others being kept in a situation of poverty. With the Meiji Restoration and the abolition of the han system, sumo wrestlers lost the patronage of the lords, who could no longer maintain households of their own and financial support from organizers gradually dried up.

It was during this period that Takamiyama first became involved in a reform movement aimed at improving the remuneration of wrestlers. However, the Himeji Domain had to simultaneously stop paying its wrestlers due to the abolition of their privileges, and Takamiyama and the other wrestlers found themselves without a stable source of remuneration in their turn. Out of filial piety, however, Takamiyama made the other wrestlers and himself swear an oath to always remain loyal to the Sakai clan (lords of the Himeji Domain). In 1870, Ayasegawa nevertheless ceded, and agreed to wrestle for the Yamauchi clan (Tosa Province). Enraged by the betrayal, Takamiyama went to Ayasegawa's residence sword in hand, intent on killing him. Eventually, the situation calmed down with the help of the elders of the Tokyo Sumo Association. For his deeds of loyalty, Takamiyama was rewarded by the Sakai clan, who gave him 75 and later gave him his definitive name of , a clan legacy inspired by the , a famous beach in Harima Province (now Takasago in Hyōgo Prefecture) known for having been visited by Emperor Daigo and for being the inspiration of a play in noh classical dance-drama.

Secessionist incident

In 1873, Takasago was still an active wrestler when he placed himself at the head of a group of some forty high-ranking wrestlers, again calling for reforms in the Tokyo-based sumo association. This second movement, launched in the middle of a joint tournament with the Osaka-based sumo association, immediately halted matches, threatening all wrestlers with a return to Tokyo without a participation bonus. Faced with this financial risk, some wrestlers denounced Takasago and the wrestlers who had followed him to the Tokyo elders, who later expelled all the strikers from the association.

Takasago and the other dismissed wrestlers joined forces with other wrestlers from the Osaka and Kyoto sumo associations to form the , with great wrestlers of the time such as Zōgahana and and promising new recruits including future- Nishinoumi I and future- Ōdate. The group toured the western part of the country for several years before reaching back Tokyo in 1876, settling in Kanda, Tokyo and challenging the Tokyo-based association. Between 1876 and 1878, Tokyo thus had two rival sumo associations, a situation that came to an end in early 1878 when the Tokyo Metropolitan Police issued a requirement for local government authorization to organize as a sports association, and Takasago, who was then on tour, arrived too late to assert his right. After several months of negotiation, the Takasago Kaisei-Gumi, strong of a hundred wrestlers, was reinstated in the Tokyo-based sumo association. The movement formed a stable and became Takasago stable, which still exists today. Following this merger, the sumo association carried out several reforms long requested by Takasago, including the presence of a high-ranking wrestler from each side of the to examine the promotions and demotions and the election of association directors, with low-ranking wrestlers delegating their voting rights to their stablemasters. Takasago himself was elected director in 1883. During his years in this position, he emerged as a key figure in the association, rivalled only by Ikazuchi (former Umegatani I).

Power struggles within the Tokyo Sumo Association

Takasago had a prolific career as a stablemaster, raising Ōdate to the rank of (before the latter left the stable after clashing with his master). He also raised Nishinoumi and Konishiki I to the rank of , and Asashio I and Ichinoya to the rank of .

Takasago took great liberties with the traditional organization of tournaments and rankings. In 1890, he specifically requested that the rank of , which until then had been more of a status than an actual rank, be noted as such on the , so that his disciple Nishinoumi would not have to be treated as a . Having a say in the organization of the rankings, Takasago began to abuse his position to favor his wrestlers. At the 1895 summer tournament, he himself tried to overturn a 's decision to declare Nishinoumi the winner in his match against then- Hōō. The , to avoid conflict with both parties, declared the match a hold. In January 1896, he tried to rank Konishiki on the same side of the as Hōō, so that Konishiki would not face Tokyo's rising star. This change led to the resignation of several wrestlers associated with the Tatsunami (or clan) and a protest movement (called the Nakamurarō incident) led by Oguruma stable's wrestlers Ōtohira and Ōzutsu. As the protest grew, wrestlers from Takasago's own clan began to criticize him too, leading to his resignation in February 1896.

Takasago continued to train his wrestlers at the head of his stable until his death in April 1900. One of his disciples, (who had previously taken the elder name "Ōnomatsu" as its fifth-generation) succeeded him.

Takasago's tomb is located at the Enryū-in temple , in Kōtō, Tokyo.

Legacy

Takasago's previous (ring name) of Takamiyama is considered a prestigious legacy in Takasago stable. The name is traditionally bestowed to promising wrestlers such as former Takamiyama Torinosuke. Hawaiian Takamiyama Daigorō was named after him but is actually the third Takamiyama Daigorō and the seventh Takamiyama .

Top division record

*''The actual time the tournaments were held during the year in this period often varied.''

''*Championships for the best record in a tournament were not recognized or awarded before the 1909 summer tournament and the above championships that are labelled "unofficial" are historically conferred. For more information see yūshō.''

See also

*Glossary of sumo terms
*List of past sumo wrestlers

References

Notes

Bibliography

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External links

biography of Takasago Uragorō
on the official Takasago stable website.

{{DEFAULTSORT:Takasago, Uragorō
1838 births
People from Tōgane
Japanese sumo wrestlers
Sumo people from Chiba Prefecture
1900 deaths