* Image is for illustrative purposes only.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
Description
Life
Nihonmatsu Yoshitsugu (1552–1585) 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 thank him for having mediated the peace settlement. 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 cremated and buried at Shifuku-ji, 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 Hitotoribashi the following month.
Legacy
This violent end, which drew in Terumune, the former head of the Date house, 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.
Related Warriors
板垣信方
Sengoku PeriodItagaki Nobukata
One of Takeda's Twenty-Four Generals, Trusted Right-Hand of Shingen Who Led the Conquest of Shinano
寿桂尼
Sengoku PeriodJukei-ni
Principal Wife of Imagawa Ujichika and the 'Ama-midai,' the 'Female Sengoku Daimyo' Who Assisted Imagawa Governance Across Four Generations
お市の方
Sengoku PeriodOichi no Kata
Younger Sister of Oda Nobunaga, Renowned as the Greatest Beauty of the Sengoku Era, Who Experienced the Fall of Two Castles
武田義信
Sengoku PeriodTakeda Yoshinobu
Heir of Takeda Shingen, the Disinherited Tragic Successor