Kaihime
Encyclopedia
, speculated to have been born in 1572, was the daughter of Narita Ujinaga, retainer of the Late Hōjō clan
in the Kantō region
. She is known as the legendary woman who helped her father's resistance at Oshi Castle against Toyotomi Hideyoshi's
army during the Siege of Odawara
. Though known for her bravery and beauty, modern historians are unsure if she actually performed the deeds in the tales surrounding her and it is highly likely that many of her feats stem from contemporary historical novels
or folklore from the Edo period
.
In June 1590, Ishida Mitsunari
led a 20,000-man army to take Oshi Castle. Owing to lack of foresight and planning, his army was devastated by a water attack. Kaihime was said to have volunteered to rout the remaining soldiers, donning armor and riding on horseback with 200 men. When Ishida was reinforced by Sanada Masayuki
, Sanada Nobushige
and Asano Nagamasa
, she was said to have slain the Sanada retainer, Miyage Takashige. When Odawara Castle surrendered, her father also chose to do the same with the hope of ending warfare.
She and her father were put under Gamō Ujisato
's care for a time. Sometime when her father was away, an internal rebellion was caused by Hamada Shugen and his younger brother (historical records suggest that the revolt was actually started by Ujinaga's brothers). During this time, Kaihime's mother-in-law was killed. As soon as she heard about the incident, Kaihime brandished a sword and sought to end the rebels. She slew the instigator and two followers, effectively repressing the bloodshed. As a result, her father became one of Hideyoshi's trusted generals. He was rewarded with Karasuyama Castle and 20,000 koku
.
Much later, near the end of the Siege of Osaka
Summer Campaign, she is said to have fled with Toyotomi Hideyori
's concubine and Hideyori's daughter, Nāhime. The three of them became nuns at Tōkei-ji
.
, where her weapon is a sword-whip, and in the video game Takeda 3
, as a general named Narita Kaihime. She also appears as a character in Irem's trading card video game Sengoku Efuda-yugi: Hotogisu Ran.
Late Hojo clan
The ' was one of the most powerful warrior clans in Japan in the Sengoku period and held domains primarily in the Kantō region.The clan is traditionally reckoned to be started by Ise Shinkurō, who came from a branch of the prestigious Ise clan, a family in the direct employment of the Ashikaga...
in the Kantō region
Kanto region
The is a geographical area of Honshu, the largest island of Japan. The region includes the Greater Tokyo Area and encompasses seven prefectures: Gunma, Tochigi, Ibaraki, Saitama, Tokyo, Chiba, and Kanagawa. Within its boundaries, slightly more than 40 percent of the land area is the Kantō Plain....
. She is known as the legendary woman who helped her father's resistance at Oshi Castle against Toyotomi Hideyoshi's
Toyotomi Hideyoshi
was a daimyo warrior, general and politician of the Sengoku period. He unified the political factions of Japan. He succeeded his former liege lord, Oda Nobunaga, and brought an end to the Sengoku period. The period of his rule is often called the Momoyama period, named after Hideyoshi's castle...
army during the Siege of Odawara
Siege of Odawara (1590)
The third ' occurred in 1590, and was the primary action in Toyotomi Hideyoshi's campaign to eliminate the Hōjō clan as a threat to his power. The months leading up to it saw hasty but major improvements in the defense of the castle, as Hideyoshi's intentions became clear...
. Though known for her bravery and beauty, modern historians are unsure if she actually performed the deeds in the tales surrounding her and it is highly likely that many of her feats stem from contemporary historical novels
Historical novel
According to Encyclopædia Britannica, a historical novel is-Development:An early example of historical prose fiction is Luó Guànzhōng's 14th century Romance of the Three Kingdoms, which covers one of the most important periods of Chinese history and left a lasting impact on Chinese culture.The...
or folklore from the Edo period
Edo period
The , or , is a division of Japanese history which was ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family, running from 1603 to 1868. The political entity of this period was the Tokugawa shogunate....
.
In June 1590, Ishida Mitsunari
Ishida Mitsunari
Ishida Mitsunari was a samurai who led the Western army in the Battle of Sekigahara following the Azuchi-Momoyama period of the 17th century. Also known by his court title, Jibunoshō...
led a 20,000-man army to take Oshi Castle. Owing to lack of foresight and planning, his army was devastated by a water attack. Kaihime was said to have volunteered to rout the remaining soldiers, donning armor and riding on horseback with 200 men. When Ishida was reinforced by Sanada Masayuki
Sanada Masayuki
was a Japanese Sengoku period daimyo. He was the third son of Sanada Yukitaka, a vassal daimyo to the Takeda family in Shinano province. He is known as a master strategist. Sanada Nobuyuki and Sanada Yukimura were his sons.-Biography:...
, Sanada Nobushige
Sanada Yukimura
was a Japanese samurai, second son of the Sengoku period daimyo Sanada Masayuki . His proper name was Sanada Nobushige , named after Takeda Shingen's younger brother Takeda Nobushige, who was a brave and respected warrior. He and his father were known as being excellent military tacticians...
and Asano Nagamasa
Asano Nagamasa
was the brother-in-law of Toyotomi Hideyoshi and one of his chief advisors. Asano also fought for Hideyoshi in a number of campaigns during the Sengoku period of the 16th century of Japan....
, she was said to have slain the Sanada retainer, Miyage Takashige. When Odawara Castle surrendered, her father also chose to do the same with the hope of ending warfare.
She and her father were put under Gamō Ujisato
Gamo Ujisato
was a Japanese daimyo of the Sengoku and Azuchi-Momoyama periods. The heir and son of Gamō Katahide, lord of Hino Castle in Ōmi Province, he later held Matsusaka and finally Aizuwakamatsu Castle in Mutsu Province...
's care for a time. Sometime when her father was away, an internal rebellion was caused by Hamada Shugen and his younger brother (historical records suggest that the revolt was actually started by Ujinaga's brothers). During this time, Kaihime's mother-in-law was killed. As soon as she heard about the incident, Kaihime brandished a sword and sought to end the rebels. She slew the instigator and two followers, effectively repressing the bloodshed. As a result, her father became one of Hideyoshi's trusted generals. He was rewarded with Karasuyama Castle and 20,000 koku
Koku
The is a Japanese unit of volume, equal to ten cubic shaku. In this definition, 3.5937 koku equal one cubic metre, i.e. 1 koku is approximately 278.3 litres. The koku was originally defined as a quantity of rice, historically defined as enough rice to feed one person for one year...
.
Much later, near the end of the Siege of Osaka
Siege of Osaka
The was a series of battles undertaken by the Tokugawa shogunate against the Toyotomi clan, and ending in that clan's destruction. Divided into two stages , and lasting from 1614 to 1615, the siege put an end to the last major armed opposition to the shogunate's establishment...
Summer Campaign, she is said to have fled with Toyotomi Hideyori
Toyotomi Hideyori
was the son and designated successor of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the general who first united all of Japan. His mother, Yodo-dono, was the niece of Oda Nobunaga....
's concubine and Hideyori's daughter, Nāhime. The three of them became nuns at Tōkei-ji
Tokei-ji
, also known as or ), is a Buddhist temple and a former nunnery, the only survivor of a network of five nunneries called , in the city of Kamakura in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. It is part of the Rinzai school of Zen's Engaku-ji branch, and was opened by Hōjō Sadatoki in 1285. It is best known as...
.
In popular culture
Kaihime appears as Kai in Koei's video game Samurai Warriors 3Samurai Warriors 3
is the third installment in the Samurai Warriors series, created by Tecmo Koei and Omega Force. The game was released in Japan on December 3, 2009, Europe on May 28, 2010, Australia on June 10, 2010, and in North America on September 27, 2010 for the Wii....
, where her weapon is a sword-whip, and in the video game Takeda 3
Takeda (video game)
Takeda is a Personal computer game based on the life of Takeda Shingen. It is a real-time tactics game.Takeda was developed by Magitech Corporation.-Sequels:...
, as a general named Narita Kaihime. She also appears as a character in Irem's trading card video game Sengoku Efuda-yugi: Hotogisu Ran.