Hirano Nagayasu

平野長泰

One of the Seven Spears of Shizugatake — the sole member who never rose to daimyo

Era

Azuchi-Momoyama to Early Edo period

Lifespan

1559-1628

Description

Career

Hirano Nagayasu (1559–1628) was a samurai who served Toyotomi Hideyoshi. For his military merit at the Battle of Shizugatake (1583), where he charged at the vanguard together with Fukushima Masanori and others, he was counted among the "Seven Spears of Shizugatake." Hideyoshi praised his performance as a "first spear" (ichiban-yari), and it is said that he was granted 3,000 koku.

The Only One Who Failed to Become a Daimyo

While the other six later rose to become daimyo with more than 10,000 koku, Nagayasu was the only one who remained a hatamoto with 5,000 koku for his entire life. He fought with the Eastern Army at the Battle of Sekigahara, but he joined Tokugawa Hidetada's Nakasendō army and did not arrive in time for the main battle. He had no notable military achievements there, and his domain was merely confirmed as it was.

Later Assessment

Although he did not become a daimyo, he maintained his family name as a hatamoto under the Tokugawa shogunate and died in 1628. The life of Nagayasu, who was left behind in advancement despite being one of the Seven Spears, is told as an example of the discrepancy between military merit and the art of getting along in the transition from the Sengoku period to an age of peace.