Shima Sakon

Shima Sakon (birth year unknown-1600) was one of the foremost warriors of the Sengoku period. His real name was Shima Kiyooki, and he was known by his common name, Sakon. As the verse goes, 'Mitsunari has two things too good for him: Shima Sakon and Sawayama Castle,' he is known as a fierce warrior whom Ishida Mitsunari took into his service on extraordinary terms.

Sakon had originally served the Tsutsui clan of Yamato Province (Nara Prefecture), but in Tenshō 16 (1588) he left Tsutsui Sadatsugu and became a rōnin. Mitsunari recruited Sakon on the unusual condition of giving him half of his own fief. His ferocity was feared by the other generals.

At the Battle of Sekigahara (1600), he fought valiantly with Ishida Mitsunari's Western Army. In the early stages of the battle, he put up a fight that was equal to or better than that of the Eastern Army forces, including Kuroda Nagamasa and Tanaka Yoshimasa. However, as the battle turned unfavorable, Sakon is said to have charged into enemy lines and met a fierce end. There are various theories about his death, and some hold that he actually survived.

His daughter Tama became the second wife of Yagyū Toshitoshi. Yagyū Toshikane, renowned as a swordsman, was Sakon's maternal grandson. In addition, a helmet said to have been used by Sakon is held in the Kunōzan Tōshōgū Museum (in Shizuoka).