Taira no Noritsune

Taira no Noritsune was the second son of Taira no Norimori and was known as "Noto-dono" ("Lord of Noto") after being appointed Noto no Kami. The Heike Monogatari praises him for never having suffered a setback in any of his many battles and as the finest strong-bow warrior in the capital, and he repeatedly appears as the most formidable general of the Taira clan. At the Battle of Ichi-no-Tani in 1184, he took up position in the Yamanote defenses together with his elder brother Tsunemori. However, after Yoshitsune's "reverse descent of Hiyodorigoe" (Hiyodorigoe no sakaotoshi), the Taira forces collapsed entirely, and Noritsune too was forced to flee.

In the following Battle of Yashima in 1185, he is also said to have shot down Yoshitsune's retainer Satō Tsugunobu with his bow, and he showed outstanding ability in the Taira defense. Despite this hard fighting, the Taira's disadvantage could not be reversed, and the clan was driven back to Dan-no-ura in Nagato Province. The Battle of Dan-no-ura on March 24 of the same year became the final stage of Noritsune's life. He pressed toward Minamoto no Yoshitsune's ship and nearly cornered him, but Yoshitsune evaded him by leaping from boat to boat in the "hassōtobi" (the "eight-boat leap"), and Noritsune was unable to kill him. Realizing that all was lost, Noritsune threw away his weapons and armor, seized two warriors of the Minamoto side (traditionally said to be the brothers Aki Tarō and Jirō), one under each arm, and threw himself into the sea with them, as the Heike Monogatari recounts in its chapter "Death of the Lord of Noto."

Renowned as a master archer who also fought fiercely with his favored long sword in close combat, he is said to have remained undefeated throughout his life, and his martial skill was passed down in later ages as one of the ideals of the warrior. The scene "Death of the Lord of Noto" is one of the most celebrated passages in the Heike Monogatari, and he is still beloved today as a tragic, formidable general who stands as a counterpart to the sympathetically regarded Yoshitsune. In addition, the Azuma Kagami records that Noritsune had already died in the Battle of Ichi-no-Tani, before Dan-no-ura, and historical research has pointed out that the dramatic episode of "Death of the Lord of Noto" may contain literary embellishment added in later times.