Kobori Masakazu

• Birth: 1579
• Death: 1647
• Title: Tôtômi no kami
• Distinction: Tea master

Masakazu served Tokugawa Ieyasu and in 1600 received a 10,000-koku fief in Ômi province at Komuro. He became well-know for his cultural talents, which included painting, poetry, and flower arrangement. He was perhaps most renowned for his skill at the tea ceremony, which led to his style becoming known as the enshû-ryu (Enshû was the Chinese name for Tôtômi province). In view of his ability, Masakazu was tasked with instructing shôgun Tokugawa Iemitsu in the ways of the tea ceremony.

References

• Initial text from Sengoku Biographical Dictionary (Samurai-Archives.com) FWSeal & CEWest, 2005