- Born: 1179
- Died: 1227/6/18
- Titles: shugo of Satsuma; "Lord of the Twelve Southern Islands"
- Japanese: 島津忠久 (Shimazu Tadahisa)
Shimazu Tadahisa was the founder of the Shimazu clan, and of the clan's claims to both Satsuma province and the Ryukyu Islands. He was named shugo (military governor) of Satsuma by Shogun Minamoto Yoritomo in 1187, and was named "Lord of the Twelve Southern Islands", an oblique reference to the Ryukyus, in 1206[1]. The Shimazu would never actually exercise any direct administration or governance in, nor receive any taxes or tribute from, the Ryukyus until after 1609, but this centuries-old claim to the territory nevertheless was employed by the Shimazu in their justifications for the invasion of Ryukyu in that year.
Tadahisa was the son of Koremune Hironobu; his mother was the younger sister of Hiki Yoshikazu[2]. According to some accounts, he was adopted into the Koremune family[3]. His father was the head of the Imperial Guard (Konoe); Tadahisa took the name "Shimazu" from the name of his family's manor[2].
He was once believed to be an illegitimate son of Minamoto no Yoritomo, but this theory or myth is no longer widely held as fact by scholars[4].
Tadahisa first took up residence in Satsuma in 1196, building a castle there and subsuming Ôsumi province and parts of Hyûga province into his domain[3]; the Edo period han of Satsuma would prove to cover roughly the same territory.
His grave yagura can be found in Kamakura, a few hundred yards from the grave of Minamoto no Yoritomo, and alongside those of Ôe no Hiromoto and the founder of the Môri clan, Môri Suemitsu[5].
References
- ↑ Turnbull, Stephen. The Samurai Capture a King: Okinawa 1609. Oxford: Osprey Publishing, 2009. p7.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Shimazu Tadahisa." Kamakura-burabura.com. Accessed 20 November 2009.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Kerr, George. Okinawa: The History of an Island People. Revised Edition. Tokyo: Tuttle Publishing, 2000. pp56-58.
- ↑ "Shimazu". Sengoku Biographical Dictionary (Samurai-Archives.com) FWSeal & CEWest, 2005
- ↑ 大江広元の墓、島津・毛利氏祖の墓. ("Grave of Ôe no Hiromoto, Graves of the founders of the Môri and Shimazu clans"). Kamakura-burabura.com. Accessed 20 November 2009.