- Title: Kuranosuke
- Distinction: Chosokabe retainer
Chikanao was a retainer of Chosokabe Motochika and the latter's son, Morichika. He assumed control of his family when his elder brother Hisatake Chikanobu was killed fighting at Okayama castle in Iyo province in 1579. An adroit schemer, Chikanao ingratiated himself with Motochika and played a role in the naming of Morchika as heir to the Chosokabe in 1587 (following the death of Morchika's elder brother in battle in 1586). He convinced Morichika to have Kira Chikazane, one of Chikanao's rivals and an outspoken opponent of Morichika's succession, put to death in 1600, evidently through slander that suggested that Chikazane was in league with the Tokugawa. When the Chosokabe were deprived of their Tosa domain shortly afterwards, Chikanao, to the chagrin of many of his fellow retainers, went off to serve the Katô of Higo province.
References
- Initial text from Sengoku Biographical Dictionary (Samurai-Archives.com) FWSeal & CEWest, 2005