Shimazu Yoshihisa His childhood name was " Torajumaru " ( 虎寿丸 ) but went by the name of " Matasaburo " ( 又三郎 ) . On his genpuku , he took the name of " Tadayoshi " ( 忠良 ) but after receiving a kanji from the shogun Ashikaga Yoshiteru , changed to " Yoshitatsu " ( 義辰 ) . He later changed his name to " Yoshihisa " . He married an aunt and after her death , married a daughter of Tanegashima Tokiaki . In 1566 , he succeeded as the head of Shimazu clan after his father to become the sixteenth leader . Working together with his brother Yoshihiro , Toshihisa , and Shimazu Iehisa , he launched a campaign to unify Kyūshū . Starting in 1572 with the win against Ito clan at the battle of Kizaki , Yoshihisa would win victories after victories . In 1578 , he defeated the Ōtomo clan at the battle of Mimigawa , in 1583 against Ryūzōji clan , and on 1584 against Aso clan . By the middle of 1580s , the Shimazu clan would control most of Kyūshū with the exception of Otomo ' s domain and a unification was not far into the future . However , in 1587 Toyotomi Hideyoshi launched a campaign to pacify Kyūshū with an overwhelming force of over 200 , 000 , at least five times the number under Yoshihisa ' s troops , and Shimazu troop was driven back to Satsuma province where they were forced to surrender . Most of domains they had conquered were divided by Hideyoshi and the Shimazu clan managed to retain only Satsuma Province and Osumi Province . Yoshihisa shaved his head to surrender showing that he would become a Buddhist monk if his life was spared . His name as a monk was " Ryuhaku " ( 龍伯 ) but it is unclear whether he retired to have Yoshihiro rule . As a retainer under Hideyoshi , his younger brother Yoshihiro controlled troops , but it is believed that Yoshihisa still managed day - to - day affairs in the domain . Yoshihisa did not have a son to succeed him , so he had Yoshihiro ' s son , Shimazu Tadatsune marry the third daughter " Kameju " ( 亀寿 ) and adopted him as the successor . After Hideyoshi made decision on Yoshihisa ' s domain , Yoshihisa was invited by Tokugawa Ieyasu to Fushimi Castle . It is said that after asked repeatedly by Ieyasu and his retainers on how he almost unified Kyūshū , Yoshihisa finally relented and said " My three younger brothers led by Yoshihiro as well as retainers like Niiro Tadamoto fought so well united under the same goal , I never had a chance to show bravery in a battle . I only had to wait in the Kagoshima Castle for news brought by messengers of their victories . " After Yoshihisa left , Ieyasu told his retainers that " ( Yoshihisa had , as ) a general let retainers under him work to the best of their abilities . This is how a great general should be . " He died of an illness in 1611 . His posthumous name was 貫明存忠庵主 . He was buried at what had once been the site of Fukushoji in Kagoshima , Kagoshima and there is still a tombstone along with all other leaders of the clan . There are also monuments built in his memory at Kokubun city , " Ima Kumano Kannonji " ( 今熊野観音寺 ) in Kyoto , and Koyasan . There is no portrait of Yoshihisa remaining but in Taiheiji at Kawauchi , Kagoshima , there is a bronze figure of Yoshihisa of the surrender against Hideyoshi that was made after he died . His knowledge of culture is not widely known but he had Hosokawa Yusai teach him classic literatures and Kampaku Konoe Wakihisa who was skilled in , but not limited to waka and renga was said to have frequented Yoshihisa ' s house .