Nihonmatsu Yoshitsugu

二本松義継

The lord of Nihonmatsu Castle who took Date Terumune's life along with his own in the Awa-no-su Incident

Era

Sengoku period

Lifespan

生年不詳-1585

Associated Sword Tradition

Description

Life

Nihonmatsu Yoshitsugu (d. 1585) was head of the Hatakeyama (Nihonmatsu) clan, lords of Nihonmatsu Castle in Mutsu Province. When Date Masamune attacked Ōuchi Sadatsuna alongside his father-in-law Tamura Kiyoaki, Yoshitsugu — related to Sadatsuna by marriage — also came under attack. Yoshitsugu offered to surrender, but Masamune confiscated nearly all his territory, pushing him toward losing his standing as a daimyo altogether.

The Awa-no-su Incident

On the eighth day of the tenth month of 1585, Yoshitsugu visited Miyamori Castle, where Terumune was staying, to convey his surrender. As he took his leave and Terumune saw him off, Yoshitsugu and his retainers seized and abducted him. Word reached Masamune, whose troops overtook the party at Takadahara on the border with Nihonmatsu territory and cut down Yoshitsugu's men, killing Terumune along with them.

Anecdote and Aftermath

Terumune's body was carried back to Obama, while Yoshitsugu's remains were reportedly hacked apart, then strung back together with wisteria vine and hung up on display. The incident decisively worsened Masamune's relations with surrounding powers and set off the Battle of Hitadorihashi the following month.

Legacy

This violent end, which drew in the head of the very Date house he had served, is remembered as the culmination of the desperation and ruthless political maneuvering among local lords in southern Oshu during the closing years of the Sengoku period.