Oniwabanshu
Encyclopedia
The was a group of onmitsu government-employed undercover agents established by the 8th Tokugawa
shogun
, Tokugawa Yoshimune
(1684–1751). They are sometimes described as "ninja
".
, onmitsu (the term meaning a spy or an undercover detective) acted as secret agents in security
and espionage
functions, mainly intelligence and information gathering, sometimes with aid of kobushikata, small groups of lower-class agents posing as mobile manual laborers and working under Iga
ninja supervisors. The oniwaban followed a strict set of regulations, which, in some cases, forbade them from socializing with the general public.
Tokugawa Yoshimune established the Oniwabanshu as an elite cadre of originally about 20 handpicked onimitsu, providing him with information about daimyo
feudal lords and shogunate officials, while also protecting high-ranking officials of the government and acting as security guards in the Edo Castle
. They were possibly quartered in the garden of the castle, hence the name.
According to some sources, during the tumultuous time of the Bakumatsu revolution the oniwaban were even sent to the United States
to spy not only on the shogun's opposition, but on the Americans as well.
(an undercover group of secret agents, including Isaka Jūzō, Jūmonji Koyata, Konami and others) and Shōgun no Onmitsu! Kage Jūhachi
(the group of Kanō Ametarō: Miki, Otojirō and Inokichi, brought together by Tokugawa Munetada
) and in the film Oniwaban (known in English as Demon Spies). They were also featured in the TV series Abarenbō Shōgun
(being the spies and bodyguards for Yoshimune, including Akane, Ayame, Gorōta, Hayate, Osono, Jūmonji Hayato, Koyuki, Kaede, Nagisa, Ōtsuki Hanzō, Saizō, Satsuki and Sukehachi), as well as in the manga/anime series Ga-rei
(Hattori Naizou, a member of the Judgement Day brigade, was a Oniwabanshu in life), Gin Tama (Ayame Sarutobi, Zenzo Hattori and Jiraia), Lone Wolf and Cub
, Peace Maker (Shinsengumi
member Yamazaki Ayumu), The Dagger of Kamui
(the oniwaban monk Tenkai) and Yoshimune
(the character Kunoichi, in love with the titular character).
Some depictions feature the oniwaban in a time period following end of the shogunate, like the manga/anime series Rurouni Kenshin
(featuring the now-unemployed Oniwabanshu group including Aoshi Shinomori, Beshimi, Han'nya, Hyottoko, Okina, Shikijō and Makimachi Misao
) and Yokujō Climax (Hayato); others take place in an altogether fictional alternative worlds, even in the futuristic science fiction
setting, such as in the case of the anime Chou SD Sengokuden Bushin Kirahagane
(Jyuuha Gundam
), the video game Red Earth (Oniwabanshu leader Kenji) and the miniatures game Inifinity. In the anime series Sailor Moon
the name of the villain of the week
Oniwabandana (renamed Ninjana in the English version) is also an obvious pun on the oniwaban.
The first Shadow Warriors TV series has Oniwaban existing under Tokugawa Ietsuna, the 4th Tokugawa Shogun, but they are Kouga Ninja working against the Iga Ninja.
Tokugawa clan
The was a powerful daimyo family of Japan. They nominally descended from Emperor Seiwa and were a branch of the Minamoto clan by the Nitta clan. However, the early history of this clan remains a mystery.-History:...
shogun
Shogun
A was one of the hereditary military dictators of Japan from 1192 to 1867. In this period, the shoguns, or their shikken regents , were the de facto rulers of Japan though they were nominally appointed by the emperor...
, Tokugawa Yoshimune
Tokugawa Yoshimune
was the eighth shogun of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan, ruling from 1716 until his abdication in 1745. He was the son of Tokugawa Mitsusada, the grandson of Tokugawa Yorinobu, and the great-grandson of Tokugawa Ieyasu.-Lineage:...
(1684–1751). They are sometimes described as "ninja
Ninja
A or was a covert agent or mercenary of feudal Japan specializing in unorthodox arts of war. The functions of the ninja included espionage, sabotage, infiltration, and assassination, as well as open combat in certain situations...
".
History
During the Edo periodEdo 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....
, onmitsu (the term meaning a spy or an undercover detective) acted as secret agents in security
Security agency
A security agency is a governmental organization which conducts intelligence activities for the internal security of a nation. They are the domestic cousins of foreign intelligence agencies...
and espionage
Espionage
Espionage or spying involves an individual obtaining information that is considered secret or confidential without the permission of the holder of the information. Espionage is inherently clandestine, lest the legitimate holder of the information change plans or take other countermeasures once it...
functions, mainly intelligence and information gathering, sometimes with aid of kobushikata, small groups of lower-class agents posing as mobile manual laborers and working under Iga
Iga-ryu
Iga-ryū 伊賀流 is a historical school of ninjutsu. It became one of the two most well-known ninja schools in Japan, along with the Kōga-ryū. The Iga-ryū originated in the Iga Province in the area around the towns of Iga and Ueno...
ninja supervisors. The oniwaban followed a strict set of regulations, which, in some cases, forbade them from socializing with the general public.
Tokugawa Yoshimune established the Oniwabanshu as an elite cadre of originally about 20 handpicked onimitsu, providing him with information about daimyo
Daimyo
is a generic term referring to the powerful territorial lords in pre-modern Japan who ruled most of the country from their vast, hereditary land holdings...
feudal lords and shogunate officials, while also protecting high-ranking officials of the government and acting as security guards in the Edo Castle
Edo Castle
, also known as , is a flatland castle that was built in 1457 by Ōta Dōkan. It is located in Chiyoda in Tokyo, then known as Edo, Toshima District, Musashi Province. Tokugawa Ieyasu established the Tokugawa shogunate here. It was the residence of the shogun and location of the shogunate, and also...
. They were possibly quartered in the garden of the castle, hence the name.
According to some sources, during the tumultuous time of the Bakumatsu revolution the oniwaban were even sent to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
to spy not only on the shogun's opposition, but on the Americans as well.
In popular culture
The Oniwaban have been depicted as the main characters in the television series Ōedo SōsamōOedo Sosamo
and are long-running prime time television jidaigeki programs that originally aired from 1970 to 1992. The series was broadcast on TV Tokyo . The title literally translates as "Oedo Dragnet"...
(an undercover group of secret agents, including Isaka Jūzō, Jūmonji Koyata, Konami and others) and Shōgun no Onmitsu! Kage Jūhachi
Shōgun no Onmitsu! Kage Jūhachi
is a television jidaigeki series. It ran in prime time on the TV Asahi network in Japan. The first episode aired on January 27, 1996, and the 19th and final installment was broadcast on June 29 of that year. The series starred Kunihiko Mitamura with Yoko Minamino, Yūji Kishimoto, and Bengal as the...
(the group of Kanō Ametarō: Miki, Otojirō and Inokichi, brought together by Tokugawa Munetada
Tokugawa Munetada
was a Japanese samurai of the mid-Edo period who was the founder of the Hitotsubashi-Tokugawa family, one of the Gosankyō, the three lesser branches of the Tokugawa family. He was the fourth son of Tokugawa Yoshimune, the eighth shogun. Munetada's wife was Tomohime , the daughter of the imperial...
) and in the film Oniwaban (known in English as Demon Spies). They were also featured in the TV series Abarenbō Shōgun
Abarenbo Shogun
is a Japanese television program on the TV Asahi network. Set in the eighteenth century, it showed fictitious events in the life of Yoshimune, the eighth Tokugawa shogun. The program started in 1978 under the title Yoshimune Hyōbanki: Abarenbō Shōgun...
(being the spies and bodyguards for Yoshimune, including Akane, Ayame, Gorōta, Hayate, Osono, Jūmonji Hayato, Koyuki, Kaede, Nagisa, Ōtsuki Hanzō, Saizō, Satsuki and Sukehachi), as well as in the manga/anime series Ga-rei
Ga-rei
, also simply known as Ga-rei, is a supernatural action manga by . It has been serialized by Kadokawa Shoten in the magazine Monthly Shōnen Ace and collected in twelve tankōbon volumes...
(Hattori Naizou, a member of the Judgement Day brigade, was a Oniwabanshu in life), Gin Tama (Ayame Sarutobi, Zenzo Hattori and Jiraia), Lone Wolf and Cub
Lone Wolf and Cub
is a manga created by writer Kazuo Koike and artist Goseki Kojima. First published in 1970, the story was adapted into six films starring Tomisaburo Wakayama, four plays, a television series starring Yorozuya Kinnosuke, and is widely recognized as an important and influential work.Lone Wolf and Cub...
, Peace Maker (Shinsengumi
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...
member Yamazaki Ayumu), The Dagger of Kamui
The Dagger of Kamui
is a Japanese novel series by Tetsu Yano released by Kadokawa Shoten from 1984 to 1985.The series was adapted in 1985 into an anime film directed by Rintaro and animated by Madhouse and Toei Animation. The screenplay was adapted by Mori Masaki, and character designs were created by Moribi Murano,...
(the oniwaban monk Tenkai) and Yoshimune
Yoshimune (anime)
is a Japanese anime series produced by Gonzo, and directed by Hiroaki Sato. It is based on a pachislo game by Daito Giken.- Synopsis :The story is set in a parallel world which combines elements of the Edo Era such as samurai and the modern, such as disco halls and motorbikes. The kingdom is...
(the character Kunoichi, in love with the titular character).
Some depictions feature the oniwaban in a time period following end of the shogunate, like the manga/anime series Rurouni Kenshin
Rurouni Kenshin
, also known as Rurouni Kenshin and Samurai X, is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Nobuhiro Watsuki. The fictional setting takes place during the early Meiji period in Japan. The story is about a fictional assassin named Himura Kenshin, from the Bakumatsu who becomes a wanderer to...
(featuring the now-unemployed Oniwabanshu group including Aoshi Shinomori, Beshimi, Han'nya, Hyottoko, Okina, Shikijō and Makimachi Misao
Makimachi Misao
, known as Misao Makimachi in the Media Blasters dub, is a fictional character in the manga and anime series Rurouni Kenshin created by Nobuhiro Watsuki....
) and Yokujō Climax (Hayato); others take place in an altogether fictional alternative worlds, even in the futuristic science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
setting, such as in the case of the anime Chou SD Sengokuden Bushin Kirahagane
Chou SD Sengokuden Bushin Kirahagane
is the eighth work of the Musha Gundam series. The title of the Comic Bom Bom version is . Running period, 1996 to 1997.- Outline :The series name is changed to "Chou SD Sengokuden". The characters for this chapter are derived from mobile weapons of New Mobile Report Gundam W...
(Jyuuha Gundam
Gundam
The is a metaseries of anime created by Sunrise studios that features giant robots called "Mobile Suits" ; usually the protagonist's MS will carry the name Gundam....
), the video game Red Earth (Oniwabanshu leader Kenji) and the miniatures game Inifinity. In the anime series Sailor Moon
Sailor Moon
Sailor Moon, known as , is a media franchise created by manga artist Naoko Takeuchi. Fred Patten credits Takeuchi with popularizing the concept of a team of magical girls, and Paul Gravett credits the series with "revitalizing" the magical-girl genre itself...
the name of the villain of the week
Villain of the week
"Villain of the week" is a term that describes the nature of one-use antagonists in episodic fiction, especially ongoing American genre-based television series...
Oniwabandana (renamed Ninjana in the English version) is also an obvious pun on the oniwaban.
The first Shadow Warriors TV series has Oniwaban existing under Tokugawa Ietsuna, the 4th Tokugawa Shogun, but they are Kouga Ninja working against the Iga Ninja.