Nagakura Shinpachi
Encyclopedia
was the captain of the 2nd troop of the Shinsengumi
.
's "kami-yashiki" (upper residence) in Edo
on the 11th day of the fourth month of Tenpō
10 (1839.) His father, Nagakura Kanji, was a retainer of the Matsumae clan, with a 150 koku stipend. Like Okita Sōji
, Nagakura was a true product of the Edo period
-- being a son of a retainer (of a domain he had never seen), who had lived in Edo his entire life.
Nagakura's father spelled the family name with the "naga" meaning "long", but Nagakura later spelled it with the "naga" meaning "eternity". At eight, Nagakura entered Okada Juusuke Toshisada's Shindō Munen-ryū dojo; at age eighteen he reached mokuroku (6th dan), and received the menkyo kaiden certification. At age nineteen he left the service of the Matsumae clan in order to travel and improve his technique. He spent some time at Yurimoto Shuuzou's Shintō Munen Ryu dojo. Nagakura also spent time at Tsubouchi Shume's Shingyoto Ryu dojo, where he met Shimada Kai, the future vice-captain of the Shinsengumi 2nd unit. Around 1861, he started "taking his meals" at Kondō Isami
's Shieikan.
. Upon arrival in Kyoto, joined Kondō, Serizawa Kamo
, and co. in staying in Kyoto while the rest of the Roshigumi returned to Edo. One of the charter members of the Mibu Roushigumi, formed by the Kyoto Shugoshoku ("Kyoto Protector") Matsudaira Higo no Kami (Katamori, of Aizu
), and headed by Kondō and Serizawa.--After the events of the 18th day of the 8th month (September 18, 1863), the group became known as "Shinsengumi."
Nagakura became a fukuchou jokin (assistant vice commander) in 1863, then became the captain of the 2nd unit in 1865. Together with the rest of the Shinsengumi, he became a hatamoto
in 1867.
Right after the Battle of Kōshū in April 1868, Nagukura left the old Shinsengumi with Harada Sanosuke
and formed the Seiheitai (after disagreements with long-time comrades, Kondo and Hijikata.)
Later, Nagakura held requiems for his past comrades' souls. Some four years before his death, he gave an oral background of the Shinsengumi to a journalist for a newspaper. It is believed that since the reports were given half a century after the events, the accounts are more for pleasing crowds than a faithful record.
Nagakura did, however, keep memoirs that can testify first hand to the bloody lifetime of the Shinsengumi. These memoirs were lost for decades before being found and published in book form in 1998.
For example, Nagakura is featured in Peacemaker Kurogane
(anime/manga), Hakodate Youjin Buraichou Himegami (manga), Kaze Hikaru
(manga), Getsumei Seiki (manga), 2004 NHK
Taiga drama series Shinsengumi!
, Shinsengumi Gunrou-den (video game series), and Bakumatsu Renka Shinsengumi (video game series.), Shimura Shinpachi from the manga/anime Gintama
is loosely based on Nagakura Shinpachi, Also Hakuouki (video game series and 2010 anime)..
4404026706
Shinsengumi
The were a special police force of the late shogunate period.-Historical background:After Japan opened up to the West following U.S. Commodore Matthew Perry's visits in 1853, its political situation gradually became more and more chaotic...
.
Background
Nagakura Shinpachi Noriyuki, known as Eikichi or Eiji during his childhood, was born in the Matsumae clanMatsumae clan
The was a Japanese clan which was granted the area around Matsumae, Hokkaidō as a march fief in 1590 by Toyotomi Hideyoshi, and charged with defending it, and by extension all of Japan, from the Ainu 'barbarians' to the north. The clan was originally known as the Kakizaki clan who settled...
's "kami-yashiki" (upper residence) in Edo
Edo
, also romanized as Yedo or Yeddo, is the former name of the Japanese capital Tokyo, and was the seat of power for the Tokugawa shogunate which ruled Japan from 1603 to 1868...
on the 11th day of the fourth month of Tenpō
Tenpo
was a , also known as Tempō, after Bunsei and before Kōka. The period spanned the years from December 1830 through December 1844...
10 (1839.) His father, Nagakura Kanji, was a retainer of the Matsumae clan, with a 150 koku stipend. Like Okita Sōji
Okita Soji
, was the captain of the first unit of the Shinsengumi, a special police force in Kyoto during the late shogunate period. He was one of the best swordsmen of the Shinsengumi, along with Saito Hajime and Nagakura Shinpachi....
, Nagakura was a true product of 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....
-- being a son of a retainer (of a domain he had never seen), who had lived in Edo his entire life.
Nagakura's father spelled the family name with the "naga" meaning "long", but Nagakura later spelled it with the "naga" meaning "eternity". At eight, Nagakura entered Okada Juusuke Toshisada's Shindō Munen-ryū dojo; at age eighteen he reached mokuroku (6th dan), and received the menkyo kaiden certification. At age nineteen he left the service of the Matsumae clan in order to travel and improve his technique. He spent some time at Yurimoto Shuuzou's Shintō Munen Ryu dojo. Nagakura also spent time at Tsubouchi Shume's Shingyoto Ryu dojo, where he met Shimada Kai, the future vice-captain of the Shinsengumi 2nd unit. Around 1861, he started "taking his meals" at Kondō Isami
Kondo Isami
was a Japanese swordsman and official of the late Edo Period, famed for his role as commander of the Shinsengumi.-Background:Isami, who was first known as Katsugorō, was born to Miyagawa Hisajirō, a farmer residing in Kami-Ishihara village in Musashi Province, now in the city of Chōfu in Western...
's Shieikan.
Shinsengumi Period
Bunkyū 3 (1863)- Nagakura and Kondō's group in joined the RoshigumiRoshigumi
The Rōshigumi , the "Kyoto Defenders", was a group of 234 masterless samurai , founded by Kiyokawa Hachirō in 1863. Loyal to the Bakufu, they were supposed to act as the protectors of the Tokugawa shogun....
. Upon arrival in Kyoto, joined Kondō, Serizawa Kamo
Serizawa Kamo
Serizawa Kamo was a samurai known for being the original lead commander of the Shinsengumi. He trained in and received a licence in the Shindō Munen-ryū. "Kamo" means goose or duck in Japanese which was an odd name to call oneself at the time...
, and co. in staying in Kyoto while the rest of the Roshigumi returned to Edo. One of the charter members of the Mibu Roushigumi, formed by the Kyoto Shugoshoku ("Kyoto Protector") Matsudaira Higo no Kami (Katamori, of Aizu
Aizu
is an area comprising the westernmost third of Fukushima Prefecture in Japan. The principal city of the area is Aizuwakamatsu.During the Edo period, Aizu was a feudal domain known as and part of Mutsu Province.-History:...
), and headed by Kondō and Serizawa.--After the events of the 18th day of the 8th month (September 18, 1863), the group became known as "Shinsengumi."
Nagakura became a fukuchou jokin (assistant vice commander) in 1863, then became the captain of the 2nd unit in 1865. Together with the rest of the Shinsengumi, he became a hatamoto
Hatamoto
A was a samurai in the direct service of the Tokugawa shogunate of feudal Japan. While all three of the shogunates in Japanese history had official retainers, in the two preceding ones, they were referred to as gokenin. However, in the Edo period, hatamoto were the upper vassals of the Tokugawa...
in 1867.
Right after the Battle of Kōshū in April 1868, Nagukura left the old Shinsengumi with Harada Sanosuke
Harada Sanosuke
was a Japanese warrior who lived in the late Edo period. He was the 10th unit captain of the Shinsengumi, and died during the Boshin War.-Background:...
and formed the Seiheitai (after disagreements with long-time comrades, Kondo and Hijikata.)
After the Meiji Restoration
Nagakura changed his name to Sugimura Yoshie in the Meiji era once he was adopted into his wife's family. The Sugimura were the doctors serving the Matsumae daimyo.Later, Nagakura held requiems for his past comrades' souls. Some four years before his death, he gave an oral background of the Shinsengumi to a journalist for a newspaper. It is believed that since the reports were given half a century after the events, the accounts are more for pleasing crowds than a faithful record.
Nagakura did, however, keep memoirs that can testify first hand to the bloody lifetime of the Shinsengumi. These memoirs were lost for decades before being found and published in book form in 1998.
Death
Nagakura Shinpachi died from natural causes in 1915. He was seventy-six. Coincidentally, in this same year, Saito Hajime, another former Shinsengumi captain, died at the age of seventy-one from a stomach ulcer.Nagakura in Fiction
Accounts of Nagakura's time before and during his Shinsengumi period appear in novels, period dramas and anime/manga series.For example, Nagakura is featured in Peacemaker Kurogane
Peacemaker Kurogane
is a historical fiction manga series written and illustrated created by . It is unrelated to the Peace Maker manga by Ryōji Minagawa. The story begins in 19th century Japan before the Meiji Restoration, a chain of events that led to enormous changes in Japan's political and social structure while...
(anime/manga), Hakodate Youjin Buraichou Himegami (manga), Kaze Hikaru
Kaze Hikaru
is a Japanese manga series by Taeko Watanabe.Kaze Hikaru is set in the bakumatsu. After her father and older brother are murdered, Tominaga Sei decides to pose as a boy named so that she can join the Mibu-Roshigumi and avenge their deaths...
(manga), Getsumei Seiki (manga), 2004 NHK
NHK
NHK is Japan's national public broadcasting organization. NHK, which has always identified itself to its audiences by the English pronunciation of its initials, is a publicly owned corporation funded by viewers' payments of a television license fee....
Taiga drama series Shinsengumi!
Shinsengumi!
is a Taiga drama television series produced by Japanese broadcaster NHK. It was a popular drama about shinsengumi, the Japanese special police from the Shogun period....
, Shinsengumi Gunrou-den (video game series), and Bakumatsu Renka Shinsengumi (video game series.), Shimura Shinpachi from the manga/anime Gintama
Gintama
, also known as Gintama, is a Japanese manga written and illustrated by Hideaki Sorachi and serialized, beginning on December 8, 2003, in Shueisha's Weekly Shōnen Jump...
is loosely based on Nagakura Shinpachi, Also Hakuouki (video game series and 2010 anime)..
Recommended Reading
- Kimura, Sachihiko. Shinsengumi Nikki. Tokyo: PHP Interface. 2003. ISBN 4569630081
- Nagakura, Shinpachi. "Shinsengumi Tenmatsuki". Tokyo: Shin Jinbutsu Oraisha, 1998. ISBN
4404026706