Katsura Tadaakira
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Katsura Tadaakira (?-?) was a retainer beneath the clan of Shimazu throughout the latter Sengoku Period of Feudal Japan. Initially beginning his service to the Shimazu at a variable time that remains unknown, Tadaakira possessed Hirose castle as his domain of power and general base of strategic advantage. For this vital reason, Tadaakira became a more respectable figure beneath Shimazu Yoshihisa as the years passed on, and soon the year of 1587 would arrive -- a year in which Toyotomi Hideyoshi invaded their land of Kyūshū and threatened their domains. In response to this, Tadaakira became a primary defender tasked by Yoshihisa, and he was ultimately to protect the position of Hirose castle and ensure that the Toyotomi forces would not be able to effectively breach into the city district of Kagoshima. Unfortunately however, many openings layed within the armor of the Shimazu's defense, and they were able to eventually pour into the province of Satsuma, initially forcing both Tadaakira and the people of Shimazu to offer surrender to Hideyoshi, who in return treated them with generosity. The life of Tadaakira is unknown from this point onward, but by way of his moral obligation to reciprocate the kindness that Hideyoshi had shown him--and following the will of his fellow retainers of Shimazu--he more than likely was able to live up to the 1600 Sekigahara Campaign, where he supported the 'eastern' forces under Ishida Mitsunari, either losing his life in the attempt, or remaining a figure of humiliation as he stepped into the Edo Period.
[edit] References
- Katsura Tadaakira - SamuraiWiki. (Samurai Archives) FWSeal & CEWest, 2005
