Date Masamune
As a legendary warrior and leader, Masamune is a character in a number of Japanese period dramas. He was played by Ken Watanabe in the popular 1987 NHK series "Dokuganryū Masamune". Early life. Date Masamune was born as Bontenmaru (梵天丸) later Tojiro (藤次郎) the eldest son of Date Terumune, born in Yonezawa Castle (in modern Yamagata Prefecture). At the age of 14 in 1581, Masamune led his first campaign, helping his father fight the Sōma clan. In 1584, at the age of 17, Masamune succeeded his father, Terumune, who chose to retire from his position as "daimyō". Masamune 's army was recognized by its black armor and golden headgear. Masamune is known for a few things that made him stand out from other "daimyōs" of the time. In particular, his famous crescent-moon-bearing helmet won him a fearsome reputation. As a child, smallpox robbed him of sight in his right eye, though it is unclear exactly how he lost the organ entirely. Various theories behind the eye's condition exist. Some sources say he plucked out the eye himself when a senior member of the clan pointed out that an enemy could grab it in a fight . Others say that he had his trusted retainer Katakura Kojūrō gouge out the eye for him, making him the "One-Eyed Dragon" of Ōshu. Early rise. The Date clan had built alliances with neighboring clans through marriages over previous generations, but local disputes remained commonplace. Shortly after Masamune's succession in 1584, a Date retainer named Ōuchi Sadatsuna defected to the Ashina clan of the Aizu region. Masamune declared war on Ōuchi and the Ashina for this betrayal, and started a campaign to hunt down Sadatsuna. Formerly amicable alliances were cast aside as he began to attack and conquer the  lands of Sadatsuna's allies in pursuit, even those of his kin in Mutsu and Dewa Provinces. In the winter of 1585, one of these allies, Nihonmatsu Yoshitsugu felt defeat was approaching and chose to surrender to the Date instead. Masamune agreed to accept the surrender, but on the heavy condition that the Nihonmatsu give up most of their territory to the Date. This resulted in Yoshitsugu kidnapping Masamune's father Terumune during their meeting in Miyamori Castle, where Terumune was staying during the time. The incident ended with Terumune and Yoshitsugu killed as the fleeing Nihonmatsu party clashed with  the pursuing Date troops near the Abukuma River. Due to the death of Date Terumune by the hands of Nihonmatsu Yoshitsugu, Masamune swore vengeance. In January 1586, Masamune had his revenge by launching an attack against the Nihonmatsu at the Battle of Hitotoribashi. Various records of the event exist, although they present different accounts of its circumstances. The Date clan fought many battles with their neighbours afterwards, including the Battle of Koriyama in 1588, the Siege of Kurokawa and the Battle of Suriagehara in 1589. After defeating the Ashina clan, Masamune made Kurokawa Castle in Aizu domain his base of  operations. Service under Hideyoshi. In 1590, Toyotomi Hideyoshi seized Odawara Castle and compelled the Tōhoku-region "daimyōs" to participate in the campaign. Although Masamune refused Hideyoshi's demands at first, he had no real choice in the matter since Hideyoshi was the virtual ruler of Japan. Masamune still delayed, infuriating Hideyoshi. Expecting to be executed, Masamune, wearing his finest clothes and showing no fear, faced his angry overlord. Not wanting further trouble, Hideyoshi spared his life, saying that "He could be of some use." In 1591, Masamune forfeited the ancestral land of the Date Clan (present day Date City, Kawamata , Koori, and Kunimi) to Hideyoshi, causing widespread riots. He never regained the territory. He was given Iwatesawa and the surrounding lands as his home domain. Masamune moved there, rebuilt the Iwadeyama Castle, renamed it Iwadeyama, and encouraged the growth of a town at its base. Masamune stayed at Iwadeyama for 13 years and turned the region into a major political and economic center. Being a major power in northern Japan, Masamune was naturally viewed with suspicion, as any potential rival would be viewed. Toyotomi Hideyoshi reduced the size of his land holdings after his tardiness in coming to the Siege  of Odawara against Hōjō Ujimasa. He and his men served with distinction in the fight against Kunohe Rebellion and Hideyoshi Korean invasions and, after Hideyoshi's death, he began to support Tokugawa Ieyasu—apparently at the advice of Katakura Kojūrō. Service under Ieyasu. Tokugawa Ieyasu awarded Masamune the lordship of the huge and profitable Sendai Domain, which made Masamune one of Japan's most powerful "daimyōs". Tokugawa had promised Masamune a one-million "koku" domain, but, even after substantial improvements were made, the land only produced 640,000 "koku", most of which was used to feed the Edo region. In 1604 , Masamune, accompanied by 52,000 vassals and their families, moved to what was then the small fishing village of Sendai. He left his fourth son, Date Muneyasu, to rule Iwadeyama. Masamune would turn Sendai into a large and prosperous city. Although Masamune was a patron of the arts and sympathized with foreign causes, he was also an aggressive and ambitious "daimyō". When he first took over the Date clan, he suffered a few major defeats from powerful and influential clans such as the Ashina. These defeats were arguably caused by recklessness on Masamune's part. Later in his life, after Toyotomi  Hideyoshi died, Tokugawa Ieyasu increased the size of his lands again, but was constantly suspicious of Masamune and his policies. Although Tokugawa Ieyasu and other Date allies were always suspicious of him, Date Masamune for the most part served the Tokugawa and Toyotomi loyally. Under Tokugawa, He fought in Sekigahara Campaign at Siege of Shiroishi and Siege of Hasedo. In 1615 he fought in the Osaka campaigns. When Tokugawa Ieyasu was on his deathbed, Masamune visited him and read him a piece of Zen poetry. Masamune was highly respected for his ethics; a still-quoted aphorism is, "Rectitude carried to  excess hardens into stiffness; benevolence indulged beyond measure sinks into weakness." Patron of culture and Christianity. Masamune expanded trade in the northeastern Tōhoku region. Although initially faced with attacks by hostile clans, he managed to overcome them after a few defeats and eventually ruled one of the largest fiefdoms of the later Tokugawa shogunate. He built many palaces and worked on many projects to beautify the region. He is also known to have encouraged foreigners to come to his land. Even though he funded and promoted an envoy to establish relations with the Pope in Rome, he was likely motivated  at least in part by a desire for foreign technology, similar to that of other lords, such as Oda Nobunaga. Further, once Tokugawa Ieyasu outlawed Christianity, Masamune reversed his position, and though disliking it, let Ieyasu persecute Christians in his domain. For 270 years, Tōhoku remained a place of tourism, trade, and prosperity. Matsushima, for instance, a series of tiny islands, was praised for its beauty and serenity by the wandering haiku poet Matsuo Bashō. He showed sympathy for Christian missionaries and traders in Japan. In addition to allowing them to come and preach in his province, he also released  the prisoner and missionary Padre Sotelo from the hands of Tokugawa Ieyasu. Date Masamune allowed Sotelo as well as other missionaries to practice their religion and win converts in Tōhoku. Masamune notably funded and backed one of Japan's few journeys of far-flung diplomacy and exploration in this period. He ordered the building of the exploration ship "Date Maru" or "San Juan Bautista", using foreign (European) ship-building techniques. He sent one of his retainers, Hasekura Tsunenaga, Sotelo, and an embassy numbering 180 on a successful voyage to establish relations with the Pope in Rome. This expedition visited such  places as the Philippines, Mexico, Spain and Rome. Previously, Japanese lords had never funded this sort of venture, so it was probably the first successful voyage. At least five members of the expedition stayed in Coria (Seville) of Spain to avoid the persecution of Christians in Japan. 600 of their descendants, with the surname Japón (Japan), are now living in Spain. When the Tokugawa government banned Christianity, Masamune had to obey the law. However, some sources suggest that Masamune's eldest daughter, Irohahime, was a Christian. In popular culture. Like many figures of the Sengoku period, Date Masamune has been  featured in literature, film, manga, anime, video games, and other media. There are a few prominent and notable examples. In the Ivar P. Cooper "1632" series book "", Masamune is a prominent character in the short novel "Rising Sun" which is set in the North Pacific region focusing on Japan's expansion into North America. Masamune is the protagonist of the anime series "Masamune Datenicle", produced by the city of Date in collaboration with Fukushima Gainax in order to promote the city's historic connection to the Date Clan. In this series, he is depicted as a child taking on the  role of leader of his clan for the first time. Previous leaders of the Date Clan manifest in order to help him prepare for his first battle. In the video game series "Samurai Warriors" (Koei) Masamune Date is featured as a playable character. In his first appearance, he was a very young man and fought with dual wooden swords, later, his appearance was changed to be a bit older and his weapons were switched out for a more European style sword and a pair of pistols. He is also a prominent character in the "Sengoku Basara" series (Capcom), and has  been featured in every major release, portrayed as a reckless, but astute general with a penchant for using humorous English verses, he is also notable for carrying six katanas, which he can equip as "dragon's claws", wielding them between his fingers, three in each hand. The professional wrestling organization Osaka Pro Wrestling featured two wrestlers using the ring names Masamune and Hideyoshi, who together form the tag team "Sengoku". In "Oda Cinnamon Nobunaga", Masamune is reincarnated as a French bulldog nicknamed Boo in modern-day Japan. In "Ginga Densetsu Weed: Orion" Masamune's dog version is the main antagonist . His father, Terumune and Kojuuruu also play roles in the comic. In a popular Netflix miniseries "", Date Masamune is portrayed by the actor Hideaki Itō. In the video game "Persona 5 Strikers" (known as "Persona 5 Scramble: The Phantom Strikers" in Japan), Masamune is referenced multiple times upon the cast arriving in Sendai. The statue at Aobayama Park is visited immediately upon arriving in the city, and a shrine that appears similar to his gravesite also appears. In the video game "", the protagonist, Kaname Date, has his left eye removed prior to the game's story, which is likely a  reference to Masamune, himself. Ken Watanabe played the role of Date Masamune in the 1987 NHK Taiga drama Dokuganryū Masamune.