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→Early Life
* ''Born: [[1828]]''
* ''Born: [[1828]]''
* ''Died: [[1877]]/9/24''
* ''Died: [[1877]]/9/24''
*''Other Names'': 古吉 ''(Kokichi)'', 吉之助 ''(Kichinosuke)'', 南洲 ''(Nanshuu)'', 南洲翁 ''(Nanshuu Ou)''
*''Other Names'': 古吉 ''(Kokichi)'', 吉之助 ''(Kichinosuke)'', 南洲 ''(Nanshuu)'', 南洲翁 ''(Nanshuu Ou)'', [[菊池]] 源吾 ''(Kikuchi Gengo)''
* ''Japanese'': [[西郷]] 隆盛 ''(Saigou Takamori)''
* ''Japanese'': [[西郷]] 隆盛 ''(Saigou Takamori)''
==Early Life==
==Early Life==
Saigô was born in [[1828]] in the Shita-Kajiya-machi neighborhood of [[Kagoshima]]. His childhood name was Kokichi. He was also known as Kichinosuke, and later took on the [[art-name|pseudonym]] (''gô'') Nanshû. As a youth, he served as ''nise gashira'' (youth leader), and submitted opinions on agricultural administration which attracted the attention of Lord [[Shimazu Nariakira]], who then made Saigô one of his advisors in [[1854]].
Saigô was born in [[1828]] in the Shita-Kajiya-machi neighborhood of [[Kagoshima]], the eldest of seven children of a low-ranking samurai family. His father's name was Kichibei, and his mother's name was Masa.<ref name=tatsugo>Gallery labels, Amami Tatsugô Shima Museum.[https://www.flickr.com/photos/toranosuke/49490995216/sizes/3k/][https://www.flickr.com/photos/toranosuke/49491207387/sizes/4k/][https://www.flickr.com/photos/toranosuke/49490995216/sizes/k/][https://www.flickr.com/photos/toranosuke/49491206592/sizes/h/]</ref> The eldest child of four brothers and three sisters, his childhood name was Kokichi.<ref>His siblings included [[Saigo Kichijiro|Kichijirô]], [[Ichiki Koto|Koto]], [[Mihara Taka|Taka]], [[Oyama Yasu|Yasu]], [[Saigo Tsugumichi|Tsugumichi]], and [[Saigo Kohei|Kohei]]. Gallery labels, Amami Tatsugô Shima Museum.[https://www.flickr.com/photos/toranosuke/49491207387/sizes/4k/]</ref> He was also known as Kichinosuke, and later took on the [[art-name|pseudonym]] (''gô'') Nanshû. As a youth, he studied at the [[Zoshikan|Zôshikan]], but suffered a serious injury at age 13, and turned away from martial arts, towards a greater focus on academic study. He later served as ''nise gashira'' (youth leader). Around age 17, he submitted opinions on agricultural administration which attracted the attention of Lord [[Shimazu Nariakira]], who then made Saigô one of his advisors in [[1854]].<ref>"His Big Eyes Saw the Winds of Change," plaque at site of Saigô's birthplace, Kagoshima.[https://www.flickr.com/photos/toranosuke/21357493630/sizes/k/]</ref> Nariakira dispatched Takamori to [[Edo]] in [[1857]] to help [[Matsudaira Yoshinaga]], lord of [[Fukui han]], in his efforts to get [[Tokugawa Yoshinobu]] named shogunal heir.<ref>Ishin Shiryô Kôyô 維新史料綱要, vol 2, University of Tokyo Shiryôhensanjo (1937), 456.</ref>
When Nariakira died suddenly in [[1858]], Saigô joined the monk [[Gessho|Gesshô]] in a desperate act of loyalty, as both attempted to drown themselves in Kinko Bay in order to [[junshi|join their lord in death]]. Saigô survived, however, and was then exiled to [[Amami Oshima|Amami Ôshima]]. In [[1862]]/2, he was called to the capital, but was exiled again, to [[Tokunoshima]] in the sixth month, and then to [[Okinoerabu Island]] in the 8th month.<ref name=death>Plaque at site of Saigô's death, Shiroyama, Kagoshima.[https://www.flickr.com/photos/toranosuke/19641624728/sizes/k/]</ref>
When Nariakira died suddenly in [[1858]], Saigô joined the monk [[Gessho|Gesshô]] in a desperate act of loyalty, as both attempted to drown themselves in Kinko Bay in order to [[junshi|join their lord in death]].<ref>Ishin Shiryô Kôyô 維新史料綱要, vol 3, University of Tokyo Shiryôhensanjo (1937), 100.</ref> Saigô survived, however, and was then exiled to [[Amami Oshima|Amami Ôshima]] in [[1859]]. While on Amami, he took on the name Kikuchi Gengo<ref name=tatsugo/> and married a local woman named [[Ryu Aiko|Ryû Aiko]] (aka Aikana), with whom he had two children: a daughter named [[Oyama Kikuko|Kikuko]] and a son, [[Saigo Kikujiro|Saigô Kikujirô]].<ref name=tatsugo/> Initially living for 2 years, 8 months in one of the highest-ranking homes in the Tatsugô neighborhood where Aikana's family was prominent and influential, Saigô built a new home several blocks away following the birth of their first child, Kikujirô.<ref>"Sego-don Yukari Map," plaque in Tatsugô, Amami.[https://www.flickr.com/photos/toranosuke/49490498438/sizes/k/]</ref>
In [[1862]]/2, he was called to the capital, but was exiled again, to [[Tokunoshima]] in the sixth month, and then to [[Okinoerabu Island]] in the [[Japanese calendar|intercalary]] 8th month.<ref name=death>Plaque at site of Saigô's death, Shiroyama, Kagoshima.[https://www.flickr.com/photos/toranosuke/19641624728/sizes/k/]</ref> He remained there roughly a year and a half, until the 2nd month of [[1864]].<ref>"Saigo Takamori and Okinoerabu Island," plaque, Amami Nature and Culture Center, Amami Ôshima.[https://www.flickr.com/photos/toranosuke/49490487423/]</ref>
==Bakumatsu==
==Bakumatsu==
After returning from his exile in [[1864]], Saigô took up an official military position in the Satsuma domain government, and also joined [[Okubo Toshimichi|Ôkubo Toshimichi]] and others in agitating for the toppling of the [[Tokugawa shogunate]]. The following year he became head of the guard (''Ôban-no-kami''). Saigô then met with [[Katsura Kogoro|Katsura Kogorô]] in [[1866]] to negotiate and establish the [[Sat-Cho Alliance|Sat-Chô Alliance]] between Satsuma and [[Choshu han|Chôshû domains]].
After returning from his exile in [[1864]], Saigô took up an official military position in the Satsuma domain government, and also joined [[Okubo Toshimichi|Ôkubo Toshimichi]] and others in agitating for the toppling of the [[Tokugawa shogunate]]. The following year he became head of the guard (''Ôban-no-kami''). That same year, [[1865]], he married a woman named [[Saigo Ito|Ito]] (or Itoko), with whom he later had three sons: [[Saigo Torataro|Toratarô]], [[Saigo Umajiro|Umajirô]], and [[Saigo Torazo|Torazô]].<ref name=tatsugo/>
Saigô then met with [[Katsura Kogoro|Katsura Kogorô]] in [[1866]] to negotiate and establish the [[Sat-Cho Alliance|Sat-Chô Alliance]] between Satsuma and [[Choshu han|Chôshû domains]].
Saigô then went on to be one of the chief leaders of both the political/ideological and military campaigns against the shogunate, and was directly involved in negotiating the peaceful surrender of [[Edo castle]] in [[1868]]/4.
Saigô then went on to be one of the chief leaders of both the political/ideological and military campaigns against the shogunate, and was directly involved in negotiating the peaceful surrender of [[Edo castle]] in [[1868]]/4.
He has become one of the most lionized and celebrated figures in Japanese history. Despite his opposition to the State, the Empire, in the end, he is nevertheless celebrated for his bravery, his devotion to his ideals, and his willingness to die for those ideals in 1877, as well as for his successful negotiation of the bloodless transfer of Edo in 1868, where the wars of the Restoration could have otherwise been so much more lengthy and bloody than they were.
He has become one of the most lionized and celebrated figures in Japanese history. Despite his opposition to the State, the Empire, in the end, he is nevertheless celebrated for his bravery, his devotion to his ideals, and his willingness to die for those ideals in 1877, as well as for his successful negotiation of the bloodless transfer of Edo in 1868, where the wars of the Restoration could have otherwise been so much more lengthy and bloody than they were.
A statue of Saigô, designed by [[Takamura Koun|Takamura Kôun]] and erected in [[Ueno Park]] in [[1898]], faces towards the [[Tokyo Imperial Palace]], celebrating him as the leader of the armies which took [[Edo castle]] in 1868; it does not face away from the castle, least of all facing towards Kagoshima, which might suggest Saigô's betrayal of the Imperial state and loyalty to his Satsuma samurai roots.<ref>Takashi Fujitani, ''Splendid Monarchy'', University of California Press (1996), 91-92.</ref>
A statue of Saigô, designed by [[Takamura Koun|Takamura Kôun]] and erected in [[Ueno Park]] in [[1898]], faces towards the [[Tokyo Imperial Palace]], celebrating him as the leader of the armies which took [[Edo castle]] in 1868; it does not face away from the castle, least of all facing towards Kagoshima, which might suggest Saigô's betrayal of the Imperial state and loyalty to his Satsuma samurai roots.<ref>Takashi Fujitani, ''Splendid Monarchy'', University of California Press (1996), 91-92.</ref> Saigô was posthumously pardoned, along with a number of other "enemies of the Court" in [[1889]].<ref>Sven Saaler, "Public Statuary and Nationalism in Modern and Contemporary Japan," ''Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus'' 15:20:3 (Oct 15, 2017), 3.</ref>
Another significant statue of Saigô was erected in Kagoshima in 1937, and still stands today. Over five meters tall, it was designed by Kagoshima native Andô Teru, who was later killed in air raids in 1945.<ref>Plaques at statue of Saigô Takamori in Kagoshima.[https://www.flickr.com/photos/toranosuke/15230386161/sizes/l][https://www.flickr.com/photos/toranosuke/15046901998/sizes/h/]</ref>
Another significant statue of Saigô was erected in Kagoshima in 1937, and still stands today. Over five meters tall, it was designed by Kagoshima native Andô Teru, who was later killed in air raids in 1945.<ref>Plaques at statue of Saigô Takamori in Kagoshima.[https://www.flickr.com/photos/toranosuke/15230386161/sizes/l][https://www.flickr.com/photos/toranosuke/15046901998/sizes/h/]</ref>