Shimazu Tadahisa

Shimazu Tadahisa (1179–1227) was a Kamakura-period warrior and the founder of the Shimazu clan. Though island traditions claim he was an illegitimate son of Minamoto no Yoritomo, no contemporary documents confirm this; he is now generally regarded as a son of Koremune Hirotō. In 1185, Yoritomo appointed him as the jito (steward) of Shimazu-no-sho, a vast estate spanning present-day Miyazaki, Kagoshima, and Kumamoto, from which he took the Shimazu surname. In 1197 he was appointed shugo (military governor) of Satsuma and Osumi provinces, establishing the foundation of Shimazu rule in southern Kyushu. His lineage governed southern Kyushu for nearly seven centuries until the Meiji Restoration, making the Shimazu one of Japan's longest-ruling warrior houses. His grave is preserved in Kamakura.