Chiba Jūtarō

Chiba Jūtarō (born on the 1st day of the 3rd month of Bunsei 7 (1824); died May 7, 1885) was a swordsman active from the late Edo period into the Meiji era. The eldest son of Chiba Sadakichi, who founded the Hokushin Ittō-ryū “Okechō Chiba” dojo, he is said to have been the de facto instructor of Sakamoto Ryōma in his swordsmanship training.

Life

He was born as the eldest son of Sadakichi and studied swordsmanship under his father from childhood. In Kaei 6 (1853), when his father was appointed swordsmanship instructor to the Tottori domain and became busy, Jūtarō took on the central role in running the Okechō dojo and instructing its students. The training of Sakamoto Ryōma, who entered the dojo that same year, is also thought to have been given mainly by Jūtarō.

Plot to Assassinate Katsu Kaishū

In Bunkyū 2 (1862), Jūtarō is said to have resented Katsu Kaishū, a shogunal retainer who advocated opening the country, and to have planned with Ryōma to assassinate Katsu. However, when he actually met Katsu, he was so moved by Katsu's insight that he instead became his disciple. This anecdote is widely known.

Service in the Tottori Domain

Around Man'en 1 (1860), he entered the service of the Tottori domain and thereafter worked as a domain retainer. For several months from the 1st month of Bunkyū 4 (1864), he harbored loyalist activists, including Kitagaki Shintarō and Hara Rokurō, who had been defeated in the previous year's Ikuno Incident. It is said that the senior councillor (rōjū) Itakura Katsukiyo valued his character and therefore he escaped the shogunate's pursuit. During the Boshin War, he worked together with Kawada Sakuma and others of the Tottori domain to train the volunteer farmers' corps, the Yamakuni-tai.

Involvement with the Sword

Jūtarō was in effect running his father's dojo. Opinions on his skill as a swordsman are divided, but it is said that the popularity of the Okechō dojo did not decline even after the main line's Genbukan declined. He passed on Hokushin Ittō-ryū techniques to many students, including Sakamoto Ryōma.

Later Reputation

After the Meiji Restoration, he served as an official in Tottori Prefecture, Kyoto Prefecture, and the Hokkaido Development Commission (Kaitakushi), among others. It is said that the activists he had harbored during the Ikuno Incident later became successful politicians and businessmen, and supported Jūtarō and his family. In Meiji 40 (1907), in recognition of his achievements, he was posthumously conferred the Senior Fifth Rank. He is a figure who frequently appears in fictional works depicting Sakamoto Ryōma.