Shimazu Toyohisa

Shimazu Toyohisa was born in 1570 as Shimazu Iehisa's child. Houjumaru was his childhood name, and he was originally called Shimazu Tadatoyo before changing his name to Toyohisa. On June 1, 1583, Uwai Satokane traveled to Sadowara, but his father, Iehisa, was not there. And before he received his genpuku, Toyohisa was regarded as a full-fledged military commander.

When Toyohisa was 14 years old in 1583 (Tensho 11), the Shimazu clan's chief vassal, Uwai Satokane, paid a visit to Sadowara Castle, which was his home. Since his father, Shimazu Iehisa, was not present at the time, it is said that Toyohisa, who was standing in front of his genpuku, replied. About the fact that he had not yet had his manhood ceremony, he defeated one of the enemy's leaders when under the guardianship of Niiro Tadamoto. Toyohisa also made his first appearance before his genpuku.

Tomb of Shimazu Toyohisa

On May 12, 1600, he left Sadowara to work in Fushimi and went to Osaka on June 5 to demand time for his return home. On August 1 of the same year, he joined the Western Army together with Yoshihiro and participated in the Battle of Fushimi-jo Castle. After the fall of Fushimi-jo Castle, on August 15 of the same year, he went from Fushimi to Sawayama, the castle of Ishida Mitsunari, and departed for the front in Mino Province. Based on the information that the East Army will attack Gifu Castle, Ishida Mitsunari asks Toyohisa to defend Etonowatari. On August 23 of the same year, he took control of Gifu Castle, but when he heard that the enemy was trying to block the back, he retreated to Gakuta outside Ogaki Castle.

When the Battle of Sekigahara broke out, he joined the Western Army together with his uncle Yoshihiro. It is said that Yoshihiro sent Toyohisa to Mitsunari Ishida's headquarters on September 14, 1600, and proposed a night attack against the Kanto army while in Akasaka, but Mitsunari rejected the proposal because his army was a horde and he decided to fight in Hirono during the day. However, it was said that Yoshihiro did not participate in the battle because he was distrustful of the Western Army who did not listen to the night attack proposed by him, but this anecdote was written in a secondary compilation called "ochko Shu"(collection of collected land), and since there are almost no articles on night attack in the historical materials of the Shimazu side, it can not be said that it is a historical fact. That night, the camp was changed to Sekigahara, and the camp was formed about a town from Ishida's camp in a dense fog under the rain before dawn on September 15. Then, Yoshihiro also took up his position at a distance of about a quarter. When Chōjuin Moriatsu came to prepare for Toyohisa, he asked for leave on horseback. Toyohisa said, 'Today, I'm sure that today's Mounted Warriors will attack each other.' and they split up laughing. It is said that when Sukenzaemon Yasoshima, a vassal of Ishida Mitsunari, came to Edo as an envoy to ask for help, the retainers scolded 'Okago' when he did not go down from the horse, and Toyohisa, who was furious at the attitude of the envoy, shouted 'Today's ceremony will be a success depending on the achievements of the envoy, and all of you will have good intentions,' and sent him back.

It is said that Toyohisa, who lost sight of Yoshihiro once in the middle of the battle, was worried about what he would do with his tears, and that he was able to join Yoshihiro after that. Later, when the Eastern Army became dominant in the battle, the Shimazu Army became isolated in the battlefield, and Yoshihiro was forced to commit seppuku when he refused to retreat. However, Toyohisa felt that his uncle Yoshihiro needed to return alive to face the difficult situation that came after the war, and said, 'The existence of the Shimazu family depends on Yoshihiro. You must survive.' Fighting is clear. I will die here. Yoshihiro should lead his army back to Satsuma. The existence of the nation was entirely dependent on the Lord (Yoshihiro)," he said, and urged his uncle to withdraw. Yoshihiro decided to withdraw to the direction of Ise-kaido Road without knowing Ieyasu's headquarters. Toyohisa served as the rear guard in this battle, but the Eastern army fiercely chased the Shimazu army, and the Shimazu army also suffered many casualties. Naomasa Ii's forces approached, and fired a volley once, resulting in a battle. Toyohisa, who became a scapegoat for Yoshihiro, rushed into the army with 13 horsemen including Gensuke Nakamura, Sadaemon Uehara, and Shodayu Toyama and died in battle. According to Sappan Kyuki-zatsuroku (Miscellaneaous Records of old Satsuma), 'He defeated Naomasa Ii with a gun and drove off the punitive force of the East Army. There is a description of Shimazu Toyohisa and a large amount of bleeding.'

According to one theory, Toyohisa followed Yoshihiro for nearly nine kilometers while he was seriously injured, and the chief priests and chief village officers of Ruriko-ji Temple held him, but he died around Kashiwara in Kamishizu, was cremated and buried in the nearby Ruriko-ji Temple, and a grave is still in existence at the temple. It is also said that a horse of Toyohisa was found in the saddle with a pool of blood and a main part of the horse was lost quite early. In any case, Toyohisa and others did die hard and Yoshihiro was able to return to Satsuma safely. However, it seems that the Shimazu side did not have any proof of the death of Toyohisa, and Shimazu Yoshihiro made Oshikawa Kinchika call himself Sankokuzo-mairi to investigate the safety of Toyohisa, and Kinchika traveled around the country for three years. Toyohisa's Buddhist name was 'Tenshin Shoun.' Incidentally, "Sekigahara Battle Picture Folding Screen" owned by Gifu City Museum of History depicts the figure of Toyohisa, who is in command of the horse.

After the war, Sadowara, his territory, was temporarily confiscated by the Tokugawa family for the extinction of the family line, and Shoda Yasuhisa, a yoriki (a police sergeant) of Yamaguchi Naotomo, was appointed to the post, and later Shimazu Mochihisa, a member of the family, entered the post. Toyohisa had no children, and his niece's husband, Kiiri Tadahide, succeeded the family. However, the line was discontinued in 1624. Hisao, the son of Shimazu Iehisa (Tadatsune), the 18th family head, became his heir and remained as the Nagakichi Shimazu family.

Moreover, Shimazu Hisatoshi, a nephew born in 1602, and Shimazu Hisanobu, Hisatoshi's father and Toyohisa's younger brother-in-law, declined to succeed to the lord of the Sadowara Domain after Yoshihisa's death.

It is said that Toyohisa's armor was obtained by Shimazu Hisayoshi, the head of the Nagayoshi-Shimazu family, in 1777 and stored in Tensho-ji Temple, the family temple of the Nagayoshi-Shimazu clan, and now it is kept in Shoko Shusei-kan Hall, where a copy of it is exhibited at Heki City Central Community Center.

According to the historical materials of the Satsuma Domain, "Shizumi no Madake" (The Dance of Yamato), which describes the young Toyohisa who led the vanguard in the first battle, describes him as a boy who was not only beautiful but also beautiful and brave," and also beautiful as a boy who excelled in both intelligence and bravery.'

Kumagusu Minakata was also told by Miharu Arakawa, a diplomat from Satsuma, that he was a Beautiful Boy besides Toyohisa Shimazu. In the face of the Seikan no eki (conquest of Korea), he called the brave warriors in the family to the front of each and every one of them.Therefore, he thought that the Lord loved all the fierce warriors, and he told everyone to fight hard at once.'

In the Battle of Sekigahara, he was called off and joined by Shimazu Yoshihiro just before he returned to Sadowara from Kyoto while he was staying, but it is not that his personal connection with Yoshihiro was deeply engraved in the materials.

• Shimazu Toyohisa (voiced by Yūichi Nakamura) is the main character in Hirano Kouta's Drifters, where he fights alongside Oda Nobunaga, Nasu no Yoichi, and other historical figures in a fantasy world.
• He is also a playable character in Koei Tecmo's Samurai Warriors 4, where he is part of the Shimazu clan.