Known also as Shijuushichi Shi (47 Warriors) or more famous as
the story of Chuushingura
Although they were not participating in the Bakumatsu
but their story is as famous as the Shinsengumi.
Even some Shinsengumi fans called them as "Shinsengumi's Ancestor".
So then I think it'll be incomplete if I didn't write about their glorious
heroism (Man, I really admire them!).
The story began in 1701 when the daimyo of Akou domain in Harima, Lord Asano Takumi no Kami was sentenced to commit seppuku at Lord's Tamura residence. It happened when Lord Asano was provoked by an insult into drawing his katana in the Edo palace. This quarrel involved Lord Kira Kotzuke no Suke (the court Master of Ceremonies at the time) and caused a deep wound on Kira's shoulder. Actually there was a strict rule that it was not allowed to draw sword in the court. Well of course there is a reason for this, it was seventeen years before when a similar incident had taken place in the same room. It had been Shogun Tsunayoshi's own prime minister who had been struck down at the time, instantly killed by a junior member of the court, and during all those years Shogun Tsunayoshi had been haunted by it.
By the death of Lord Asano, Shogun
Tsunayoshi ordered that the Asano's castle to be confiscated and
the clan was disbanded. This was the beginning of the Akou roushi, since
the disband of the clan, all retainer of Asano's clan became roushi/ronin
(masterless samurai). Among the Akou roushi, the most well known was the
chief retainer, Oishi Kuranosuke. In my source book, The
47 Ronin Story by John Allyn (a genius novel, mind you) Oishi
was said to be a handsome man in his early forties with a high-domed forehead
and a square jaw, and an air of quite authority. He was, no doubt, the
key of the Akou Roushi from the beginning 'til the very end.
Later on Oishi received a letter from Lord
Asano that was delivered by Hara. There is an amazing record about
the delivery of this letter (taken from Everyday
Life in Traditional Japan by Charles J. Dunn), :
"As soon as the sentence on Lord Asano was passed, one of the retainer (Hara) went from Edo to the home castle (Akou) and covered the 400 miles in palanquin in FIVE DAYS! an ordinary traveler would have taken at least 17 days and even an express messenger would have needed eight (Eeek!). Hara is said to have been unable to let go of the strap when he reached his destination, so stiffened was he by the rigorous of the forced march. The chairmen had, of course, been relieved at short intervals, at the post town stationed along the Tokaido."
The letter told about Lord Asano's annoyance against Lord Kira. Well Lord Kira's a son of a b*tch indeed, he was not even of daimyo rank, having no fief of his own and being ruler of nothing. But the fact that he had been sent to Kyoto some years before to study ceremonial procedure at the court of the Emperor gave him prestige and power that he had since used to good advantage in exacting bribes from those who had to depend on his tutelage. The letter said (based on The 47 Ronin Story, Gosh! I like this novel so much):
"Kira is the man to watch out for. He enjoys the confidence of the Shogun and appears to be faithful servant, but in truth he is an unscrupulous bribetaker and uses his office solely for his own ends. There is seemingly no way of dealing with such men except to play their game, but I refuse to do. Consequently, Kira is giving me a rough time of it, even with only one day to go. Regardless of what happens, however, I will not pay Kira for his services, which are supposed to be supplied by the court. This may be a stubborn attitude, but as far as I am concerned it is only honorable one for a samurai to take. I do not expect that I alone can turn back the wave of decadence that seems to have engulfed the court, but I can try to hold my head above the dirty water as long as there is a breath left in me."
Now it's clear why Kira hated Lord Asano more than any other members of the court, but the acme happened on March 14, 1701. Again I took it from The 47 Ronin Story (it's a fan-fiction, so I couldn't be bothered for the truth):
Lord Asano had troubled his ears as Kira spoke "You could have saved yourself all this trouble, you know" he said insinuatingly. "If your money means so much to you, there are other ways to satisfy my taste for delicacies. I hear you have a pretty wife with a round moonlike face..." (BASTARD!!! Kira you deserved to die!). Lord Asano could take no more. The blood drained from his face and pounded in his chest, and his sword arm jerked to the hilt of his weapon. Kira's hand went instinctively to his own sword, although he had no attention of drawing it, but it was a tragic mistake. Lord Asano saw the move as an acceptance of his challenge and his sword blade flashed naked as he raised it high and slashed down in blind fury. Kira, struck high on the shoulder, stumbled and fell (Eat that, bloodsucker!). Lord Asano raised his arm to strike again but Lord Date and some of the others rushed forward to seize him.
There
you go, Kira the bastard son didn't die but Lord Asano was then sentenced
to commit seppuku (Life is so unfair, desu ne?). By this letter, Oishi
and the rest of the ex-retainer decided to make a count on Kira, in a
simpler word: REVENGE. The Akou roushi was filled with hatred and decided
to kill Kira as soon as possible. Oishi, somehow, had a different thought,
he decided to write a petition to the Shogun's representatives requesting
leniency for the survivors of the Asano's clan - that they be allowed
to keep their land and other possessions because of the Shogun and his
ancestor before him (what a prudent and wise man he was....).
However after a long long time of waiting for the reply and there's not even a sign of affirmation, the Akou roushi decided to play their own game. In their last meeting in Edo, each man signed his name in blood. There were forty-seven signers to this document, including one man in his seventies; five in their sixties, including Yoshida and Onodera; four in their fifties, including Hara; four in their forties, including Oishi; eighteen in their thirties, including Kataoka and Horibe; thirteen in their twenties, including Onodera's son Koemon; and Yato and Chikara (Oishi's son), who were both seventeen (these are the men who later remained as the 47 Akou Roushi). Each was handed detailed instructions as to armor, weapons, signals, meeting places, and names of their immediate leaders. The actual time and place of the attack remained to be set, all else were decided.
Oishi's final plan was simple: a simultaneous attack on both Kira's front and rear gates with full force. Once the gates were taken, the older men would stay by them to guard against outside interference while the younger ones would enter the house to find their man. Oishi would lead the assault on the front gate and the subsequent invasion of the house itself; Hara would be in charge at the rear and Onodera and Yoshida would command the forces outside. Weapons and uniforms had all been obtained and would be donned just before the attack. It was said in one of my source site that the Akou roushi wore a similar uniform with the Shinsengumi. It was often performed in drama or tv shows, the uniform was the one that Sanada Kojirou (from Last Blade 2) wears. In case you didn't know him, you can take a look at a picture on the right side of this text. As you can see, the design motif was the same with Shinsengumi's, only a difference in the color. If the Shinsengumi wore the light blue (or some others said it's yellow) haori, meanwhile the Akou roushi wore a black of dark blue haori. But in my other sources it's said that the wore a uniform that was actually belonged to the fire fighter at the time. In The 47 Ronin Story the uniform was written pretty detailed:
"Over wadded silk undergarments they put on cloth shirts that fastened close to the wrist. Next came a bloomerlike skirt that afforded great flexibility of movement. Over these came a coat of mail covered with satin and on top of this each man wore a lacquered-scaled breastplate with cross-stitching of silk cord and a great gold crest. A mantel and hood of broadcloth which could easily be tossed off gave them the appearance of officers of the fire brigade, a disguise they hoped would permit them to go unchallenged on their march through the streets."
Talk about Kira, after the incident he was retired from his position as court's master of ceremony. In that case he had to leave the Shogun's palace, now Kira felt worry of his own security. He knew that the Asano's men will commit revenge, so then he ran to Lord Uesugi's residence. There he was given enough men to guard him but somehow he still felt insecure. And his insecurity was proved as the Akou roushi on December 14, 1702 set their onslaught to his house. The order for all (the Akou roushi) were to find Kira without delay, engage in no unnecessary combat and kill no one who did not offer resistance. They knew from their map which room was supposed to be Kira's, but at the sound of an alarm he might head for a safer place.
The ambush made a chaos that caused servants from some of neighboring houses were approaching in curiosity about the commotion and Onodera had to convince them that it was a private affair. In answer to their questions he displayed the placard that Oishi had prepared :
"We, the roushi serving Asano Takumi no Kami, this night will break into the mansion of Kira Kotzuke no Suke to avenge our master. Please be assured that we are neither robbers nor ruffians and no harm will be fall the neighboring property ."
Finally the battle between Oishi and Kira was unavoidable as the met and set the swordsfight Of course the victory was in Oishi (nice guys finish last, desu yo?) and Kira's bloody head then was wrapped in a sleeve of his robe, and tied to the point of Mimura's spear which he held high in front of him as the group marched out. All were present; none had been killed, although six men were wounded, including Hara, and the pace was kept deliberately slow to accommodate them. Kira's head then was carried to the Sengakuji where Lord Asano ashes was buried, and washed in a well there. They presented the head as a sign of their loyalty to their beloved master, this is a real shocking when roushi who were masterless still keep showing up their loyalty though their master's dead. And this was what made the Akou Roushi remained as the "Loyal League", they held up the samurai code 'til the very end of their life.
At the time, considered to the taught of Buddhism, it was not allowed to revenge by any kind of means. So they knew the consequences of their act, early in February the four daimyo who were keeping Oishi and his men in custody were notified that sentence had finally been passed by the shogun's Council and that representatives of the censor's office would be sent to carry it out. Lord Sengoku immediately notified Oishi that even the Abbot of Ueno had felt powerless to do other than to let the law take its course, and they were accordingly sentence to death. Oishi knew this was what he had expected all along. But he was due for a surprise when Lord Sengoku told him the manner in which they were to die. Although lordless men and hence not legally entitled to such treatment, they were to be allowed to disembowel themselves in the noble ceremony of seppuku. Okay here comes my most fave part, I cried as I red this (you can laugh at me it's fine, but this story is really touching and heart moving) :
"It was a clear cold winter's day, much like the one on which Lord Asano had died. Oishi thought of this as he walked slowly and with dignity to his place on the platform before which the ceremonial dirk was laying. He thought, too, of his wife's tears and Okaru's (his mistress) laughter and his son's bravery and the limitless loyalty of such men as Hara, Kataoka, Mimura, Yoshida, Onodera, and the rest. Then this mind came back to himself. There was only one thing left now and he would have done all that was expected of him. As he poised the dirk for the last swift thrust he thank gods of heaven and earth for the chance he had had to prove himself as a samurai. In the end this was all that mattered, for a man will only be as long as his life but his name will be for all time." (cry...cry...;_;)
The men from Akou had defiantly disregarded the Shogun's law, but dying for their lord they showed their devotion to what they considered the higher morality. The 47 roushi were buried at Sengakuji temple in a special plot adjacent to the tomb of their beloved master. Lady Asano's tomb is also there facing the markers of the loyal followers' graves. One can also view the well where Kira's head was washed and nearby there is a museum containing relics of the armor and weapons actually used by the men of Akou. Sengakuji is only a short ride by bus or electric train from the bustling center of Tokyo but inside the temple grounds it is surprisingly easy to go back in spirit to feudal times. The scent of antiquity hangs over Sengakuji, as well as the odor of the incense burning before the graves in what has become a national shrine (I wish I could be there -_-).
Makoto's note: I still couldn't find 'til this very day, the manga or anime which is related to the Akou Roushi. So if you ever witnessed any manga, anime, novels, movie or anything else about the Akou Roushi, please please please ^_^ let me know
Acknowledgments
:
1. Allyn,
John. The 47 Ronin Story: Twenty-fourth printing. Tuttle Publishing:
Boston; Rutland, Vermont; Tokyo. 2000
2. Dunn, C. J. Everyday Life in Traditional Japan: The Fourteenth Printing.
Tuttle Publishing: Boston; Rutland, Vermont;
Tokyo. 2000.
3.
The Japanese Heroes website, all you need to know about the Japanese
Heroes of all time.