Harada Sanosuke
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Harada Sanosuke (原田 左之助, 1840 - July 6, 1868) was the 10th unit captain of the Shinsengumi which were a special police force for the Tokugawa regime.
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[edit] Background
He was a samurai born in Matsuyama-han in the Iyo Province (now the city of Matsuyama, Ehime Prefecture in Japan) in the Bakumatsu or the end of the Edo era. He was a low-class samurai like many of the political active samurai during this period. When he was younger he worked as a chugen which is like a servant to a samurai.
He was a spear user of the Hozoin-ryu style and he usually used that weapon in battle instead of a sword. He was fearless in battle but he had a short temper. Once, he tried to commit suicide by seppuku after a small argument but failed. It left a scar on his abdomen. It is said that he was very caring towards his subordinates and his wife Masa and their child Shigeru (named after taking the kanji for 'mochi' of the 14th Shogun Tokugawa Iemochi).
[edit] Shinsengumi period
He was friends with Kondo Isami when he was running the Shieikan dojo in Edo (now Tokyo.) In 1863 he and Kondo joined Kiyokawa's Roushigumi along with Hijikata Toshizo, Okita Soji, and Nagakura Shinpachi. Shortly after, Kondo separated from the Roushigumi along with Serizawa Kamo and formed a group which became the Shinsengumi.
Harada later became the tenth Unit Captain of the Shinsengumi. He trained briefly under a dojo run by Tani Sanjurou, whom he introduced into the Shinsengumi. In 1865, Tani became the seventh Unit Captain. Harada was very trusted by vice-commander Hijikata. He was involved in many of the crucial missions the group faced and was very likely involved in the Serizawa Kamo (original commander of the Shinsengumi) assassination. He was involved in the Uchiyama Hikojiro assassination, the Ikedaya Affair, and the elimination of Ito Kashitaro's Kodaiji faction.
At one time he was accused as the assassin of the famous Sakamoto Ryoma. Officially, it is still a mystery, but it is more likely that the Mimawarigumi was behind Sakamoto's assassination.
Two months after the Battle of Toba-Fushimi in 1868, Harada left the old Shinsengumi with Nagakura Shinpachi, after disagreements with long-time comrades, Kondo and Hijikata, right after the Battle of Kōshū.
[edit] Death
Harada wished to return to Edo to be with his wife and child. He therefore split from the Seiheitai which he formed with Nagukura and joined the Shogitai which also sided with the Tokugawa regime. He died on July 6 1868, from injuries received during the Battle of Ueno.
There is a rumor that Harada did not die in 1868, but he survived and travelled to China and became a leader for a horse-riding military group. There was an old man in the military during the First Sino-Japanese War who named himself to be Harada Sanosuke. This was reported in a newspaper in 1965, but it is considered to be historically inaccurate.
[edit] Harada in Fiction
Harada Sanosuke appears in Shiba Ryoutarou's novels Moeyo Ken and Shinsengumi Keppuroku.
He is depicted in NHK's Taiga drama series Shinsengumi! (played by Yamamoto Taro.)
In addition, Harada appears in the anime series Peacemaker Kurogane, as well as in the manga it was originally based on, Shinsengumi Imon PEACE MAKER and Peacemaker Kurogane. He is also featured in Kaze Hikaru (manga), Getsumei Seiki (manga) and Bakumatsu Renka Shinsengumi (video game series.)
Harada is shown in flashback sequences in Rurouni Kenshin/Samurai X. (The character designs for him and the character based on him, Sagara Sanosuke, are similar.)
[edit] References
- Shinsengumi Encyclopedia. Tokyo: Shin Jinbutsu Oraisha, 1978.
- Yamamura, Tatsuya. Shinsengumi Kenkyaku-Den. Tokyo: PHP Interface, 1998. ISBN 4569601766
