Hizen Nagoyajo Castle

Connection to Swords

Hizen Nagoyajo Castle was the center of the Bunroku and Keicho campaigns, one of the most dramatic turning points in the history of the Japanese sword, and discussing this castle is tantamount to discussing the transformation of sword culture from the late Sengoku period into the early Edo period. Toyotomi Hideyoshi assembled approximately 160,000 troops at this castle. Warriors led by various daimyo carried uchigatana and wakizashi forged by master swordsmiths of the day across to the Korean peninsula. Swordsmiths in Kyoto, Osaka, and Hakata mass-produced blades to meet military demand, and a distribution center for swords and armor was established in the Nagoyajo castle town. Most of the forces led by Kyushu daimyo such as Kato Kiyomasa, Konishi Yukinaga, and Kuroda Nagamasa passed through Nagoyajo Castle, and many of the swords transmitted through these daimyo houses have connections to the Korean campaigns. Particularly noteworthy among the influences the Korean campaigns had on the Japanese sword is the influx of Korean and Ming sword-making techniques. The Korean-style straight blades that returning warriors brought back provided research materials for hamon and jihada to some swordsmiths, contributing to the diversification of sword design in the early Edo period. Just as potters brought from Korea (the so-called "pottery raids") became the origin of Arita and Satsuma ware, a number of sword-making artisans were also brought to Japan and are said to have influenced sword production throughout the country. Hizen (Saga and Nagasaki) developed through the Edo period as a major production center for Hizen blades, and the lineages of Hizen swordsmiths such as Tadayoshi and Masahiro were transmitted until the end of the shogunate. Nagoyajo Castle is a historical starting point with direct connections to the flourishing of Hizen sword culture.