Takenaka Hanbei
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(also Shigeharu 重治 1544-1579) was a Japanese samurai of the Sengoku Period. He served the Saito clan of Mino, but later plotted an uprising and took over the Saito castle at Inabayama. Toyotomi Hideyoshi was so impressed by this tactic that he invited Hanbei to join his forces as a strategist. Hanbei made many contributions to Hideyoshi with his exceptional talent in that field.
He died during the conquest of the central regions of Japan. Takenaka Shigekado, a successor of Hanbei, fought on the side of Tokugawa Ieyasu at the Battle of Sekigahara, and was thus awarded the rank of hatamoto and a 5000 koku fief, at which point the Takenaka family moved from their old castle at Bodaisan to Iwate Castle.
In the mid-19th century, Hanbei's descendant Takenaka Shigekata served as commander of the Tokugawa forces in Fushimi at the Battle of Toba-Fushimi.
Trivia
- Hanbei is often likened to Zhuge Liang of Romance of Three Kingdoms. This is mostly due to a romanticized tale of Hideyoshi whereas he had to visit Hanbei several times before he gains his services, much similar to Liu Bei's three visits on Zhuge Liang.
- Hanbei is featured in the upcoming game Sengoku Basara 2 by Capcom. Voice actor Akira Ishida will be voicing him.
References
- [Japanese Wikipedia article on Takenaka Hanbei]
- [Information on Iwate Castle]
- [Information on Bodaisan Castle]
- [Woodblock print of Takenaka Hanbei]
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