Asakura Takakage (7th head)

Asakura Takakage was the head of the Echizen Asakura clan and a warrior based at Ichijōdani. He was born in 1428 (Ōei 35) and died in 1481 (Bunmei 13) at the age of 54. He is also known as Eirin Takakage and Asakura Toshikage.

From Deputy Governor to Control of Echizen

At first he was a leading retainer of the Shiba family and served as deputy governor (shugodai) of Echizen. He played a central role on the deputy's side in the Chōroku War. At the start of the Ōnin War he sided with the Western Army, but in 1471 (Bunmei 3) he changed sides to the Eastern Army. After that he came to hold almost all of Echizen Province.

The Asakura Takakage Jōjō

He is credited with the Asakura Takakage Jōjō, a house code also called the Seventeen Articles of Asakura Toshikage. The original has been lost, and several later copies survive, with wording that differs in places. The articles call for judging situations on their merits rather than relying on superstitions about good and bad omens, and for not appointing incompetent men as administrators even if their family is old. Some regard it as a family precept rather than a legal code, and doubts about its authorship have also been raised.

Ichijōdani

It was long held that Takakage made Ichijōdani his base. However, that claim rests only on the popular text of the Asakura Shiji-ki, and records such as the Chikamoto Nikki show that the Asakura had a base at Ichijōdani before his time. His tomb, Eirin-zuka, is in Fukui City near the Ichijōdani Asakura Family Ruins.

Succession

After his death, his eldest son Ujikage unified Echizen.