Yanagawa Castle

Connection to Swords

The outstanding military commander Tachibana Muneshige forms the core of sword culture in Yanagawa Castle. Muneshige possessed numerous famous blades befitting his martial renown as "the peerless warrior of the west," and his commitment to swords reflected his conviction as a samurai. Marume Kurando Sakanaga, who served as Muneshige's swordsmanship instructor, inherited and developed the Shinkage-ryū directly transmitted by Ueizumi Nobutsuna, and founded the Taidō-ryū, becoming the highest-ranking swordmaster in Kyushu whose profound influence shaped Muneshige's sword aesthetics. Muneshige's sword, which demonstrated unparalleled prowess across all battlefields during the Bunroku and Keichō campaigns, was naturally considered to be among the finest blades of that era. The Raikirimaru (Lightning Cutter), inherited from Tachibana Dōsetsu to Muneshige, stands in a class of its own among the swords transmitted to the present day as the greatest family treasure of the Tachibana clan. According to legend, when Tachibana Dōsetsu was struck by lightning, he cut it down with his sword, and thereafter this blade came to be called the "Raikirimaru." Dōsetsu cherished this legendary sword as his constant companion throughout his life, and after it passed to Muneshige, it continued to be treasured as the protective sword of the Tachibana house. The Raikirimaru is currently preserved at a facility in Fukuoka Prefecture associated with the Tachibana family, and as a sacred blade of the samurai, it continues to be revered. The swordsmiths of the Yanagawa domain also possessed their own lineage and forged practical combat blades using iron sand from Chikugo Province. The Tachibana family prioritized the collecting of swords across generations, and carefully preserved foreign blades and sword fittings acquired during the Korean campaigns as family treasures. At the Yanagawa Domain Tachibana Family Museum and "Ohana" (the former Tachibana villa), swords, armor, and battle dress transmitted from the Tachibana family are displayed, allowing visitors to encounter the actual implements used by Muneshige himself. The sword culture of the Tachibana family embodies the aesthetic sensibility of a military commander who survived the transitional period of Japanese sword culture from the late Sengoku period to the early Edo period, and its legacy still lives on in the waters of Yanagawa.