Amakusa Shiro (あまくさしろう, 1621? - April 12, 1638), whose real name was Masuda Tokisada, and later changed his name to Amakusa Tokisada, was the leader of the Kyushu Shimabara Rebellion (1637) in the Edo period of Japan. December 11, 1638 - April 12, 1638).
Life
Amakusa Shiro, also written as Oyano Shiro or Ebe Shiro in some records. According to research, his original name should be Masuda, and he was a retainer of Konishi Yukinaga. The son of Masuda Koji. His real name is Masuda Tokisada, and his father Masuda Yoshiji is a retainer of Konishi Yukinaga. Later, Tokisada was adopted to Amakusa Jinbei and was renamed Amakusa Tokisada. Amakusa has been extremely smart since she was a child, known as a child prodigy, and has a handsome appearance. A fortune teller once said to Amakusa: "Your Excellency is a noble Prime Minister. He should have controlled the world, but it is a pity that he was born in the Tokugawa period and could not achieve great things." After the war of Sekigahara, Yukinagako Konishi was beheaded, the territory was reorganized, and the retainers dispersed. Becoming a ronin, it is said that Shiro Tokisada has lived in Nagasaki Port since he was a child, devoutly believed in Catholicism, and learned Western medical skills from the Dutch living in Japan - the so-called magical power, the ability to reanimate the dead, flesh and bones, is probably not completely groundless. .
Let’s say that Itakura Shigemasa came to Shimabara Castle and gathered surrounding princes including Matsukura Katsuie, Nabeshima Katsushige, Arima Toyoji, etc., gathered troops and horses, and launched a fierce attack on Hara Castle. Chongchang did not take Ikkui seriously at first, thinking that the rebellious peasants had no fists and no courage, and did not know how to fight. How could they be the opponents of the shogunate army? However, two general attacks failed to succeed, and his own side suffered heavy losses. Chongchang couldn't help but sweat, realizing that there must be someone who was well versed in the art of war in the original city.
The Kitakyushu region was the center of the spread of Catholicism. In the late Warring States Period, a large number of civilians and even samurai converted to Catholicism. These people were forced to hide after the "Great Martyrdom" and took advantage of the turmoil again. look up. Therefore, it was not just tens of thousands of farmers who clung to the original city, but also many Catholic ronin. Shiro Tokisada was first of all the leader of these ronin.
The following year was the fifteenth year of Kanei (1638). On New Year's Day, Itakura Shigemasa gritted his teeth and launched the third general attack, but was shot in the lower body of Hara Castle and died. As a result, Ikkei's morale was high, and rumors spread everywhere that powerful feudal lords such as Shimazu and Date would rise up in response and eliminate the Tokugawa shogunate that persecuted Catholics in one fell swoop. General Iemitsu sent a second coalition commander, Matsudaira Izu Morinobu Tsuna, an important minister of the clan.
Matsudaira Nobutsuna was known as "Smart Izu" because of his resourcefulness. After carefully observing the situation on the front line, he realized that the Hara Castle's defense was strong and his troops fought bravely, so they could never attack forcefully. So Nobutsuna commanded the coalition forces of more than a dozen princes including Kuroda, Nabeshima, Tachibana, Hosokawa, Mizuno, and Arima, and firmly blocked the Hara Castle from the land route, cut off supplies, and tried to trap all Ikaku to death. starve.
Shiro Tokisada also hoped that the Dutch in Nagasaki would come to the rescue. However, under the instruction of Matsudaira Nobutsuna, the Dutch gunboats sailed to the sea near Hara Castle on January 11, and then headed into the city. Fired several shots. On the one hand, this is to tell Yikui in the city that the sea has been blocked by the shogunate, and no one can escape. On the other hand, it also hopes to psychologically disintegrate Yikui's fighting spirit - how can Catholicism be trusted? What use is God? Aren’t the Dutch, who also believe in the so-called “God”, also your enemies?
Matsudaira Nobutsuna's strategy was effective. There was less and less food and grass in the original city. Ikku was forced to open the city to attack the shogunate army camp at night. Because Nobutsuna had been prepared for it, he suffered a disastrous defeat. Not only that, Matsudaira Nobutsuna learned the inside story of the city by interrogating prisoners, and launched the first general attack on February 28.
Under the desperate resistance of Yikui Shi, the shogunate army paid a heavy price of 3,000 deaths and tens of thousands of injuries. However, the original city was finally captured. The remaining 20,000 people in the city, regardless of Men, women, old and young were all brutally massacred - Shirou Tokisada and others were among them, and almost no one could escape with their lives.
Literary description
"Demon World Reincarnation" is based on the Shimabara Rebellion and is set more than ten years after the Shimabara Rebellion by the Japanese writer Yamada Futaro. It tells the magical story of Shiro Amakusa and his follower Apin who were angry at God's silence after the city fell, fell into the devil world after death, and returned to the human world through reincarnation to cause trouble. On the one hand, the two jointly coveted the throne of Tokugawa Yorinobu, the lord of the Kishu domain. On the other hand, they summoned the demons with magical powers, hoping to overthrow Tokugawa Iemitsu, the mastermind behind the suppression of the Shimabara Rebellion. The people in the demon world who were summoned by Shiro were all swordsmen who were still alive or dying and had unfulfilled ambitions, including Araki Mataemon, who killed 36 people in a row in the battle of "Kagetaya no Tsuji" [2], and those who pursued the ultimate skill of using spears. Hohoin Inei[3], the greatest swordsman in history Miyamoto Musashi[4], Tokugawa family swordsman Yagyu Tajima Mamoru[5], and Tokugawa Ieyasu, the first shogun of the Tokugawa shogunate[6], etc.
The biggest enemy Amakusa Shiro, who carries the blood debt of his believers, is not the Tokugawa shogunate, but the swordsman Yagyu Jubei[7]. Yagyu Jubei will prevent the reincarnation of the demon world. Amakusa Shiro and the Demons….
Two movies based on the story of "Makai Kinsei" are worth mentioning. The older one was directed by Kinji Fukasaku in 1981 and starred Hiroyuki Sanada, Kenji Sawada, Shinichi Chiba, and Ou. Starring Xingquan and others. The other recent one was in 2003 directed by Hideyuki Hirayama and starring Yosuke Kubotsuka and Hiroshi Sato.
Characters in the novel "Story of Grace".
Historical Quotes
Shiro Amakusa (leader of the Edo Period Uprising in Japan, a famous handsome man): Those who defend this city now will always be friends in the next life.