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The legendary warriors of Japan and the swords they cherished
Discover the sword culture of Japan's great fortresses
Legendary blades that shaped history
523 entries
Ando Chikasue
The "Northern Star" Who Reunited the Ando Clan of Dewa
Ando Chikasue was a Sengoku daimyo of northern Dewa Province (present-day northern Akita Prefecture)...
Ankokuji Ekei
The Diplomat-Monk of the Mōri Clan Who Foresaw Nobunaga's Fall and Hideyoshi's Rise — Executed After Sekigahara
## Life Ankokuji Ekei is said to have been born around 1537 or 1539 into the Takeda clan of Aki Prov...
Henmi Sōsuke
Son of the Tatsumi-ryū Head Who Built Metropolitan Police Swordsmanship, Praised by Yamaoka Tesshū as a Master of "True Swordsmanship"
## Life Henmi was born in 1843 (by another account, 1834), the son of Henmi Nobutaka, a retainer of ...
Itabeoka Kōsetsusai
Diplomat-Monk Who Served Three Generations of the Later Hōjō, Remembered Through His Sword Kōsetsu Samonji
## Life He is said to have been born in 1537 (by another account, 1536) as the son of Tanaka Yasuyuk...
Mori Ranmaru
Oda Nobunaga's page—the young hero who fell with his lord during the Honnō-ji Incident
## The Page Most Favored by Nobunaga Mori Ranmaru (Nagasada), born in Eiroku 8 (1565), served Oda No...
Kirino Toshiaki (Nakamura Hanjirō)
One of the "Four Great Assassins" of the Bakumatsu Era, Imperial Army Major General
## Life Born in 1838 in Kagoshima, Satsuma Province, as the third son of Nakamura Yoemon (also known...
Matsubayashi Henyasai
Founder of the Musō Gan-ryū, Nicknamed "the Bat" for His Freely Leaping Swordsmanship
## Origins Matsubayashi Henyasai is said to have been born in 1593 in Kaizu, Shinano Province (prese...
Shimada Toranosuke
One of the three great swordsmen of the Bakumatsu era and teacher of Katsu Kaishū
## Origins and Training Shimada Toranosuke (1814-1852) was a swordsman of the late Edo period. Born...
Nene (Kōdai-in)
The Consort Who Outlasted an Era
## The Birth of Kita no Mandokoro Nene (later Kōdai-in), born in Owari Province in Tenbun 18 (1549),...
Terao Magonojō
Chief Disciple of Miyamoto Musashi Who Received the Book of Five Rings Shortly Before Musashi's Death, Second Grandmaster of the Niten Ichi-ryū
## Life Born in 1611 as the son of a warrior serving the Hosokawa house, then lords of Buzen Kokura ...
Uesugi Ujinori (Zenshū)
Kantō Kanrei and Head of the Inukake Uesugi — Leader of the Uesugi Zenshū Rebellion Against the Kamakura Kubō
## Life Uesugi Ujinori, known by his Buddhist name Zenshū, was born as the son of Uesugi Tomomune, h...
Ukita Naoie
The Dark Strategist of Bizen
## The Birth of a Kyōyū Born in Bizen Province in Kyōroku 2 (1529), Ukita Naoie was a kyōyū (a ruthl...