Katsura Kōgorō

Katsura Kōgorō (1833-1877), later renamed Kido Takayoshi, was a Choshu domain samurai counted among the "Three Heroes of the Meiji Restoration" alongside Saigo Takamori and Okubo Toshimichi—a politician and warrior of the Bakumatsu and Meiji periods. He was also a swordsman trained in the Shinto Munen-ryu school, surviving the turbulent era from Perry's arrival to the Meiji Restoration.

Born in 1833 into the family of a Choshu domain physician, Kōgorō traveled to Edo to study Shinto Munen-ryu at Saito Yagoro's Renpeikan dojo, attaining a level of skill sufficient to receive the school's license. At the same time, he studied at Yoshida Shoin's Shoka Sonjuku, deepening his commitment to sonnō jōi ideology.

During the Kinmon Incident (Hamaguri Gate Incident) of 1864, the Choshu forces suffered defeat in Kyoto and the domain was branded an imperial enemy. Katsura escaped from Kyoto and endured a period of hardship moving from province to province, earning the nickname "Fleeing Kōgorō." However, during this period of patience, he planned the reconstruction of the Choshu domain and worked to establish the Satchō Alliance (1866) through Sakamoto Ryōma's mediation—a decisive turning point in the movement to overthrow the shogunate.

In his connection to swords, Kōgorō had deep knowledge of swords as a legitimate successor to Shinto Munen-ryu. The swordsmanship he honed at the Renpeikan dojo became the foundation for overcoming numerous dangers as a Bakumatsu activist. His swords are passed down as famous blades of the Choshu domain, held today in several museums. After the Meiji Restoration, as Kido Takayoshi he became a pillar of the new government, involved in drafting the Charter Oath and laying the foundations of modern Japan.