Ishikawa Goemon

Jan

**Ishikawa Goemon**  (石川 (いしかわ)五右衛門 (ごえもん), *****Ishikawa Goemon*****? Ishikawa Goemon) is a character in Jangoku Hime.

## Introduction

**Jan Goku Hime:**

どこからともなく現れてはお宝を盗んでいく神出鬼没の泥棒。まだみぬお宝を自分のものにするために全国各地を廻っている。
ひょんなことから、颯馬が大名から大層なお宝を得たとの情報を得た五右衛門は、一丁その大層なお宝とやらを拝ませてもらい、
自分のものにさせてもらおかと、颯馬の部屋へと忍び込もどしていた。

## Historial Infomation

Ishikawa Goemon (石川 五右衛門, Ishikawa Goemon, August 24, 1558 – October 8, 1594) was a legendary Japanese outlaw hero who stole gold and other valuables to give to the poor. He and his son were boiled alive in public after their failed assassination attempt on the Sengoku period warlord Toyotomi Hideyoshi. His legend lives on in contemporary Japanese popular culture, often giving him greatly exaggerated ninja skills.

There are many versions of Goemon's background and accounts of his life. According to one of them, he was born as Sanada Kuranoshin in 1558 to a samurai family in service of the powerful Miyoshi clan in Iga Province. In 1573, when his father (possibly Ishikawa Akashi) was killed by the men of Ashikaga shogunate (in some versions his mother was also killed), the 15-year-old Sanada swore revenge and began training the arts of Iga ninjutsu under Momochi Sandayu (Momochi Tamba). He was however forced to flee when his master discovered Sanada's romance with one of his mistresses (but not before stealing a prized sword from his teacher). Some other sources state his name as Gorokizu (五郎吉) and say he came from Kawachi Province and was not a nukenin (runaway ninja) at all. He then moved to the neighbouring Kansai region, where he formed and led a band of thieves and bandits as Ishikawa Goemon, robbing the rich feudal lords, merchants and clerics, and sharing the loot with the oppressed peasants. According to another version, which also attributed a failed poisoning attempt on Nobunaga's life to Goemon, he was forced to become a robber when the ninja networks were broken up.
There are also several conflicting accounts of Goemon's public execution by boiling in front of the main gate of the Buddhist temple Nanzen-ji in Kyoto, including but not limited to the following ones:
Goemon tried to assassinate Hideyoshi to avenge the death of his wife Otaki and the capture of his son, Gobei. He sneaked into Fushimi Castle and entered Hideyoshi's room but knocked a bell off a table. The noise awoke the guards and Goemon was captured. He was sentenced to death by being boiled alive in an iron cauldron along with his very young son, but was able to save his son by holding him above his head. His son was then forgiven.
Goemon wanted to kill Hideyoshi because he was a despot. When he entered Hideyoshi's room, he was detected by a mystical incense burner. He was executed on October 8 along with his whole family by being boiled alive.
Goemon at first tried to save his son from the heat by holding him high above, but then suddenly plunged him deep into the bottom of the cauldron to kill him as quickly as possible. Then he stood with the body of the boy held high in the air in defiance of his enemies, until he eventually succumbed to pain and injuries and sank into the pot.
Even the date of his death is uncertain, as some records say this took place in summer, while another dates it at October 8 (that is after middle of Japanese autumn). Before he died, Goemon wrote a famous farewell poem, saying that no matter what, thieves would always exist. A tombstone dedicated to him is located in Daiunin temple in Kyoto. A large iron kettle-shaped bathtub is now called a goemonburo ("Goemon bath").