| 西郷の局 Saigō-no-Tsubone |
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|---|---|
Portrait of Lady Saigo, Houdai-in, Shizuoka, Japan. |
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| Born | Tozuka Masako (戸塚昌子) 1552 Nishikawa Castle, Mikawa, Japan |
| Died | July 1, 1589 (aged ~37 years) Sunpu Castle, Suruga, Japan |
| Cause of death | unknown |
| Resting place | Houdai-in, Shizuoka city |
| Religion | Buddhism |
| Partner | Tokugawa Ieyasu |
| Children |
Sons: Saigo Katsutada, Tokugawa Hidetada, Matsudaira Tadayoshi |
| Parents | Tozuka Tadaharu and mother |
| Relatives |
Saigo clan |
Saigō-no-Tsubone (西郷の局 or 西郷局) (1552 – 1 July 1589), or "Lady Saigo", also known as Oai, was an important and influential figure during the late Age of Warring States in Japan. She was the first consort and trusted confidant of Tokugawa Ieyasu and mother of the second shogun of the Edo Period, Tokugawa Hidetada.
During Ieyasu's rise to power in the 1570s, he sought Lady Saigo's counsel and valued her advice. Her influence on his philosophies, his choice of allies, and future policies indirectly influenced the course of events leading to the Tokugawa Shogunate and the beginning of the Edo Period. Although there is less known of her than other figures of the era, and sources are conflicted over some details of her early life, she is nonetheless regarded as the "power behind the throne" and her life has been called a "Cinderella story" in feudal Japan. Her contributions were considered so significant that she was posthumously inducted to the Senior First Rank of the Imperial Court, the highest honor that could be conferred by the Emperor of Japan.
Once she was in a respected and secure position, Lady Saigo used her influence and wealth for charitable purposes. A devout Buddhist, she donated money to temples in Suruga province, where she resided as the consort of Ieyasu, first in Hamamatsu Castle and later in Sunpu Castle. It is believed that Lady Saigo was terribly near-sighted, and because of this affliction, she established a charitable organization that assisted visually impaired women with no other means of support. Lady Saigo died at a fairly young age, under somewhat mysterious circumstances. Although murder was suspected, no culprit was identified.
Lady Saigo bore a total of four children during her life: she had a son and a daughter (Saigo Katsutada and Tokuhime) while married, and she later bore two sons as the consort of Tokugawa Ieyasu: Tokugawa Hidetada and Matsudaira Tadayoshi. Hidetada would become the second shogun of the new Tokugawa bakufu. Among the descendants of Lady Saigo was the Empress Meishō (1624–1696), one of very few women to accede the Chrysanthemum Throne as empress regnant.
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The term "Saigo-no-Tsubone", used in most historical texts, is actually an official title rather than a name. As an adult she was adopted into the Saigo clan and as the first consort of Tokugawa Ieyasu, the title "tsubone" (pronounced tsu-BO-neh) was appended to the surname. The title is related to feudal nobility, and was one of several titulary suffixes conferred on high ranking women (the others include -kata and -dono). The bestowal of a title depended on individual position and circumstances and the relationship to a high-ranking samurai (whether she was a legitimate wife or a concubine). Although the exact details of position and nuance produce exacting interpretations of the three terms, any of them can be translated to the English title "Lady". The term Saigō-no-Tsubone literally means "Lady of the Saigo" and, in English, can thus be shortened to "Lady Saigo".[1]
Though Lady Saigo's given name does not appear in surviving documents from the time, there is good evidence it was Masako (昌子), but this name is very rarely used. Her most commonly used name was Oai (お愛 or 於愛, meaning "love") and most sources agree this was a nickname she gained as a child. Intimate friends and family would call her Oai throughout her life, and it is the name most often used in modern popular cultural references. Following death, she was bestowed with a Buddhist posthumous name, and an abbreviation of that name, Houdai-in (宝台院), is sometimes used out of pious respect.[2]
The Saigo family was one branch of the distinguished Kikuchi clan of Kyushu that had migrated northward to Mikawa Province in the 15th century. In 1524, following defeat at Yamanaka Castle, the third clan lord, Saigo Nobusada, submitted to the Matsudaira clan.[3] Following the untimely death of Matsudaira Kiyoyasu (1511–1536) and ineffectual leadership and early death of Matsudaira Hirotada (1526–1549), the leaderless clan finally submitted to Imagawa Yoshimoto (1519–1560) of Suruga Province, east of Mikawa. Following the Battle of Okehazama (1560), the Saigo clan, under Saigo Masakatsu, attempted to re-assert its independence while yielding some concessions to the Imagawa. In 1562 the Imagawa launched punitive invasions of the area and attacked the two main Saigo castles. Masakatsu was killed in the battle of Gohonmatsu Castle; his eldest son Motomasa was killed during the battle for Wachigaya Castle.[4] Clan leadership was passed to Masakatsu's son, Saigo Kiyokazu (1533–1594), who pledged his loyalty to Tokugawa Ieyasu in their mutual struggle against the Imagawa. In 1569, the power of the Imagawa ended with the Siege of Kakegawa Castle.[5][6]
The name of Lady Saigo's mother, along with her birth and death dates, are not recorded in any existing documents, though it is known that she was the elder sister of Saigo Kiyokazu.[7] Lady Saigo's father was Tozuka Tadaharu of Tōtōmi Province, under direct control of the Imagawa clan. The marriage between Tadaharu and his wife was very likely arranged by the Imagawa clan.[2]
Lady Saigo was born in 1552 at Nishikawa Castle, then part of Mikawa province, and very likely given the name of Masako or, if she were allowed the use of her father's surname, Tozuka Masako.[8][9] Japanese marriages are not usually matrilocal,[10] but Tadaharu may have been assigned to Nishikawa Castle as an agent of the Imagawa. Masako spent her childhood with her two siblings in the rustic environs of the area, and at some point gained the nickname Oai. In 1554, her father Tadaharu died in the Battle of Enshu-Omori, between the Imagawa and the Hōjō clans.[11] Two years later her mother married Hattori Masanao; the union would produce four children.[12][13]
Some sources state that upon reaching adulthood Oai married, but was widowed soon after. Other sources do not mention the marriage, or suggest that there never was an earlier, "first" marriage. It is known with certainty that in 1567, Oai married her cousin, Saigo Yoshikatsu, son of Motomasa, who had two children by his late wife.[12][13][14] Oai bore two children by Yoshikatsu: their son, Saigo Katsutada, was born about 1570; they also had a daughter, possibly named Tokuhimea.[14][15][16]
In 1571, Saigo Yoshikatsu was killed at the Battle of Takehiro, against the invading forces of the Takeda clan led by Akiyama Nobutomo.[17] Soon after Yoshikatsu's death, Oai was formally adopted by her uncle, Saigo Kiyokazu, then the head of the Saigo clan, though she chose to live with her mother in the house of her stepfather.[12][18]
Oai first met Tokugawa Ieyasu at about the age of 17 or 18, when he happened to visit the Saigo family and Oai served him tea.[19] It is believed she caught his eye on that occasion, but as she was still married, nothing came of it at the time. Later, during the 1570s, it is believed that friendship and genuine affection developed between the two.[18] This view contradicts a common impression which maintains that Ieyasu was a ruthless leader who treated all the women in his life, and all of his offspring, as commodities to be used as needed to serve the clan or his own ambitions; however, it is also known that he valued personal merit over bloodlines.[20] During this time, Ieyasu had a house built in eastern Mikawa, far from the residence of his wife in Okazaki.[21][22] The marriage between Ieyasu and Lady Tsukiyama had been arranged by her uncle, Imagawa Yoshimoto, ostensibly to help cement ties between the two clans, though Ieyasu found it difficult to live with his wife's jealousy, tempestuous moods, and eccentric habits.[23][24]
Starting around the time of the Battle of Mikatagahara (1573), perhaps in its aftermath, Ieyasu began to confide in Oai and sought her counsel on various matters. It may have been during this period that the two commenced an amorous relationship. Oai is credited with advising Ieyasu as the Battle of Nagashino (1575) approached, a major turning point in Ieyasu's career, and in the history of Japan.[25] It is also thought that Ieyasu continued to seek her advice concerning other battles and alliances, even as late as the Komaki-Nagakute Campaign (1584).[26]
In the spring of 1578, Oai moved to Hamamatsu Castle, where she took over management of the kitchen, and became very popular with the unit of warriors from her native province who not only admired her beauty, but regarded her as a gentle and virtuous example of the women of Mikawa.[26] While her manners and gentility were exemplary, she could, when the occasion warranted, be outspoken or sarcastic in speech, the probable result of growing up around rustic warriors in a remote castle outpost.[2] With her move to the court of Ieyasu, Oai entered a bitter arena where prospective concubines schemed and competed with each other for a chance to bear Ieyasu's child.[19][27] Bearing the child of a powerful samurai, especially a son, was one way an ambitious young woman of the period could elevate her status, ensure a comfortable life, and guarantee the prosperity of her family.[28] These women usually relied on their physical attributes and sexual prowess to keep their lord's attention, and some resorted to the use of aphrodisiacs.[18] Unlike these courtesans, Oai already had the attention of Ieyasu, which would have undermined the ambitions of some and very likely made her a target of resentment, hostility, and the intrigues that were common in Japanese harems.[18][28][29]
While Ieyasu's marriage was arranged for political reasons, and many of his later concubines were chosen in the same spirit, it is thought that he chose his relationship with Lady Saigo.[18] Despite the image of Ieyasu as a calculating and stoic warlord,[20] it should be pointed out that there was no new political advantage to the match, as the Saigo were already loyal vassals,[3] and thus texts about Lady Saigo refer to her as the "most beloved" of Ieyasu's women.[2][18][26] Moreover, Ieyasu valued her for her intelligence and sound advice and it is believed that he enjoyed her company, her calm demeanor, and their common background in Mikawa province.[18] On May 2, 1579, Oai gave birth to Ieyasu's third son, who would become known as Tokugawa Hidetada. The news was probably a shock to all who had an interest in Ieyasu, but with the event, Oai's position became more secure and she was accepted as the first consort of Ieyasu.[2][19] Based on this relationship, and out of respect for her gentle manner and devotion to Ieyasu, she became known by the respectful title of Saigō-no-Tsubone, or Lady Saigo.[2][30]
In the same year, Oda Nobunaga was informed that Lady Tsukiyama, Ieyasu's wife, had conspired against him with the Takeda clan. Although evidence was weak, Ieyasu re-assured his ally by having his wife executed by the shore of Lake Sanaru in Hamamatsu.[19][31] Tokugawa Nobuyasu, Ieyasu's first son by Lady Tsukiyama, was held in confinement until Ieyasu ordered him to commit seppuku. With their deaths, Lady Saigo's position at court was unassailable. While there has never been a suggestion that Lady Saigo had anything to do with the deaths of Lady Tsukiyama or her son, it was a disconcerting coincidence that the executions occurred within months of the birth of Hidetada. With the death of Nobuyasu, Hidetada became Ieyasu's heir apparent.b[32][33]
Ieyasu's fourth son, the second by Lady Saigo, was born on October 18, 1580. He was later adopted into a branch family, and was known as Matsudaira Tadayoshi.[34] In the same year, Lady Saigo had a temple founded in her mother's memory, indicating she had passed away by that point.[21] In 1586, Lady Saigo was at the side of Ieyasu when he entered the newly re-constructed Sunpu Castle in triumph. This was a highly symbolic moment of his victories over his enemies and the subjugation of the region, but it was also a visible and symbolic gesture to Lady Saigo, a way that Ieyasu could credit her for her assistance, and publicly demonstrate the esteem in which he regarded her.[21]
While at Sunpu Castle, Lady Saigo worshipped at a Buddhist temple called Ryusen-ji. She became devoted to the teachings of the Pure Land sect and was known for her piety and charity.[21] Because she suffered a high degree of myopia, she often donated money, clothing, food, and other necessities to blind women and organizations that assisted them.[35] She eventually founded a co-operative school with living quarters near Ryusen-ji that assisted indigent blind women women by teaching them how to play the shamisen (traditional stringed instrument) as a vocation, and helped them to find employment. On her deathbed, Lady Saigo wrote a letter pleading for the continued maintenance of the organization.[36]
Within a short time after taking up residence in Sunpu Castle, Lady Saigo's health began to deteriorate. It was said that physical and emotional hardships were taking their toll on her health, but nothing could be done to help her. Lady Saigo died on July 1, 1589, at the age of 37.[21] The cause of her early death was never determined, and while murder was suspected at the time, no culprit was identified. It was later suggested that she was poisoned by a maidservant devoted to Ieyasu's late wife, the Lady Tsukiyama.[37]
By the time of her death, Lady Saigo was treated as Ieyasu's wife in deed if not in word.[38] The remains of Lady Saigo were interred at Ryusen-ji.[26] At her death, a number of blind women reportedly gathered in front of the temple and prayed.[39]
Tokugawa Ieyasu continued his campaigns allied with Toyotomi Hideyoshi. After their victory at the Siege of Odawara Castle in 1590, Ieyasu agreed to relinquish all of his domains to Hideyoshi in exchange for the Kantō region to the east.[40] Hideyoshi died in 1598 and by 1603, Ieyasu had recovered Sunpu Castle, completed his unification of Japan, and was named shogun by the Emperor.[41] The following year, he had Ryusen-ji moved from Yuunoki to Kounaya village near Sunpu Castle and attended Buddhist funeral rites conducted in honor of the late Lady Saigo on the anniversary of her death. To mark the occasion, Ieyasu presented the temple priests with the katana he inherited from his father, and a portrait of himself as he looked at the time. These items can still be viewed at the temple in Shizuoka city.[26]
In 1628, Tokugawa Hidetada, by then the retired second shogun, attended ceremonies conducted in honor of his late mother on the anniversary of her death.[35] These ceremonies were meant to help her spirit achieve buddha status. He also saw to it that she was made the honored tutelary patron of the temple by having her posthumous name changed and the first three characters appended to the name of the temple. Today, the temple Ryusen-ji is known mainly by that appellation, Houdai-in (宝台院).[26] At the same time, the Emperor Go-Mizunoo conferred the name Minamoto Masako (源晶子) upon Lady Saigo, in effect posthumously adopting her into the Minamoto clan, the extended family of the Imperial line.[42] The new name was then inducted into the Lower First Rank of the Imperial Court.[26][35] Her status was later upgraded to Senior First Rank, the highest and most prominent award, then or now, bestowed by the Emperor to few subjects outside the Imperial family who had significantly and positively affected the history of Japan.[43]
In 1938, the mausoleum of Lady Saigo at Houdai-in, which consisted of a five-tiered stupa over her grave and a sanctuary for the veneration of her spirit, was designated an Important Cultural Property. The designation was rescinded after the entire temple complex was destroyed in the Great Shizuoka Fire on January 15, 1940.[42] The stupa remains, though evidence of the damage suffered when it toppled over is plainly visible. Many of the treasures of the temple, including a portrait of Lady Saigo and the sword and portrait bequeathed by Tokugawa Ieyasu in 1604, were saved by the priests who flung the objects out of windows and doorways before fleeing the burning temple. The temple was re-built using steel-reinforced concrete in 1970. Historical artifacts saved from the fire of 1940 are on display at the new Houdai-in temple in Shizuoka city.[26]
Lady Saigo was the ancestral mother to the line of shoguns that began with the second Edo Period shogun, Tokugawa Hidetada, and ended with the seventh shogun, Tokugawa Ietsugu (1709–1716).[44] Aside from this, Lady Saigo also became connected to the Imperial line. In 1620, Hidetada's daughter, Tokugawa Masako (1607–1678), married Emperor Go-Mizunoo and entered the Imperial palace.[45][46] As empress consort, Masako would have a positive impact on the maintenance of the Imperial Court, significantly influenced the next three monarchs (all children of Go-Mizunoo), and was known as a patron of the arts.[47][48] The daughter of Masako, and thus great-granddaughter of Lady Saigo, was Princess Okiko (1624–1696),[49] who acceded to the Chrysanthemum Throne in 1629 as Empress Meishō.[50] She reigned for fifteen years as the 109th monarch of Japan, the seventh of only eight empresses regnant in the history of Japan, until she abdicated in 1643.[51][52]