Possessed by: Ashina Moriuji
Former Prime Minister and leader of a powerful political faction (the Hirabayashi Group) within the ruling party of the House of Representatives of the Japanese National Diet. He is described as a small, middle-aged man with a long narrow face and white hair.
Also known as: Kotenmyou Hiragumo (古天明平蜘蛛)
Lit.: "flat spider"/"ancient dawn flat spider": a priceless Sengoku-era tea kettle owned by tea-master Matsunaga Hisahide which Oda Nobunaga coveted, so named because it was shaped like a crouched spider. The hiratagumo (written with the same characters) is a type of spider (uroctea compactilis) found throughout Japan.
When Nobunaga besieged Hisahide's castle at Shigisan with 20,000 troops, he declared, "If you should give the Hiragumo kettle over to me, I shall spare your life"—to which Hisahide replied, "Nobunaga shall have neither my head nor the Hiragumo kettle!"
Hisahide smashed the kettle before he committed seppuku to prevent Nobunaga from taking possession of it (another account says that he filled it with gunpower and blasted it along with his head over the castle walls).
(Though in the present era rare tea implements are valued highly, in the Sengoku era they were worth entire fiefdoms. One could not be a first-class tea master without owning one of these items.)
A station on the north/south-bound railway line located in Yamato-Kooriyama, Nara, operated by Kintetsu Corporation. It open in 1915 and served around 4500 people per day in 2005.
A river that flows around Aoba Castle and Sendai City.
Also known as: Hiroshima, Carp, Koi ("carp" in Japanese)
A baseball team in the Japanese Central League, founded in 1949 and based in Hiroshima City. The team was founded with the name "Hiroshima Carp"; the "Touyou" part of the name came from the Touyou Kougyou Company (now Mazda), which became the team's chief sponsor in 1968.
Hiroshima Port is an important harbor located on the Seto Inland Sea which supports marine transportation and trade logistics, and provides access to tourist destinations such as Itsuku Island Shrine and the Atomic Dome.
The City of Hiroshima is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture and the largest city in the Chuugoku region of western Honshuu. Its name means "Broad Island," and was established on the delta coastline of the Seto Inland Sea in 1589 by the powerful daimyo Mouri Terumoto, who made it his capital. He built Hiroshima Castle there and moved in five years later, in 1593.
Hiroshima became a major urban center during the imperial period, and later a major port city. The city was a key shipping center during World War II, and became known as the first city in history to be targeted by a nuclear weapon when the US Air Force dropped an atomic bomb there on August 6, 1945.
Race: Human
Yuuri meets Hiscruyff on the ship to Van der Veer Island during his quest for the demon sword Morgif. Hiscruyff introduces himself as being from Missinai. He has a beige mustache and wears a wig of the same color. He has a daughter around five years of age named Beatrice.
Yuuri later learns that Hiscruyff is actually the former crown prince of Cavalcade who eloped with a merchant girl from Hildyard. After his younger brother dies of illness without an heir, he is called back by the royal family and his daughter given the right to inherit the throne.
An ancient province of Japan which bordered on the provinces of Iwashiro, Iwaki, Shimousa, and Shimotsuke. It is called Ibaraki Prefecture today.
Lit.: "human pillar"; human sacrifices made to the gods during the construction of dikes, bridges, castles, etc. with the hope that the building would be protected against floods, invaders, and the like. The sacrifice is made by burying the person alive.
A battle fought between Date Masamune's 13,000 warriors and the 30,000 combined forces of the Hatakeyama, Satake, Ashina, Souma, and other clans in the neighboring area in Masamune's first years as the head of his clan. The Date warriors were driven back from Hitotori Bridge on the Seto River to Motomiya Castle, where, on the verge of annihilation, they prepared to make a last stand. However, in the night Satake Yoshishige's forces were miraculously called away by an invasion on the Satake's own land, and the rest of the clans retreated.
One of the most renowned universities for the social sciences (especially commerce, economics, and sociology) in Japan, located in Tokyo.
A third-year at Hanayama Girls' School whose class field trip coincides with Takaya's at Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park. She is possessed by Lady Tomo as 'Youhiki' and flies away in the form of a red phoenix. Her friend Matsuyama Satsuki believes she was kidnapped.
The area of north-central Japan on the island of Honshuu along the Sea of Japan comprised of the prefectures of Toyama, Ishikawa, and Fukui. Niigata is sometimes also included.
Can indicate the head temple or the residence of the head priest in a temple complex.
Son of Honjou Saneyori who, like his father, served Uesugi Kenshin. He was made master of Numata Castle.
After Kenshin's death, he took Uesugi Kagetora's side in the Otate no Ran. He escaped just before the surrender of the castle to Uesugi Kagekatsu. Afterwards, he continued to oppose Kagekatsu with Kanamari Chikatsuna of Sanjou Castle. In 1580, when Tochio Castle fell, he fled into the Aizu.
Also known as: Honjou Yoshihide (本庄慶秀)
A vassal of the Nagao/Uesugi Clan from the time of Nagao Harukage. He was one of Uesugi Kenshin's teachers in military strategy and played a large role in Kenshin's growth to adulthood.
He wielded tremendous power as one of Kenshin's most trusted advisors along with Naoe Sanetsuna. There are theories that he died in 1575 or followed Kenshin in death in 1578.
His son, Honjou Hidetsuna, also served Kenshin.
One of Uesugi Kenshin's most experienced but most troublesome retainers. His father, Honjou Fusanaga, was the head of the Honjou Clan, but his castle was stolen away by his younger brother Ogawa Nagasuke just before Shigenaga was born. He died soon after. Shigenaga became the head of his clan at a very young age with his uncle as his guardian. Shigenaga was said to have a strong, daring temperment from childhood. On the 13th anniversary of his father's dead, he had his uncle Nagasuke seized and drove him to suicide, thereby taking back the real power of the clan.
Though in the beginning he was hostile towards Nagao Kagetora (Uesugi Kenshin), whom his uncle had supported, he became one of Kenshin's vassals in 1558 and fought in many of his battles, including the Battles of Kawanakajima. However, Shigenaga had a strong tendency towards independence; in 1568 he schemed with Takeda Shingen to declare his independence from Kenshin. The rebellion was put down by Kenshin, and Shigenaga surrendered with the intercession of Ashina Moriuji. His son and heir Honjou Akinaga was given as hostage, and Shigenaga was forgiven.
After Kenshin's death, he initially supported Uesugi Kagetora in the Otate no Ran, but surrendered to Uesugi Kagekatsu and later served him.
A Nichirenshu Buddhist temple located in Kyoto, famous for being the site at which Oda Nobunaga was betrayed and murdered by his vassal Akechi Mitsuhide.
A brief list of honorifics used in address:
san (さん) - the most common honorific, usually used to address someone outside one's immediate circle with respect
kun (君) - usually used towards boys and men of junior status or equal age and status
chan (ちゃん) - a diminutive used mainly towards children, and intimate friends, especially women; also used as an endearment for girls
sama (様) - the formal form of "san", showing a high level of respect
senpai (先輩) - used to refer to someone with a more senior status, such as a freshman towards a senior
sensei (先生) - often translated as "teacher", but can actually be used to show respect for anyone with superior knowledge in a field, including doctors and writers
dono/tono (殿) - an antiquated term which roughly translates to "lord", used to show great respect for the addressee, who can be of equal or higher status than the speaker
uji/shi (氏) - in ancient times, carried the meaning "of the ~ clan" or "of the ~ surname"; now used in formal speech and writing to refer to someone unfamiliar to the speaker.
hime (姫) - used to denote a princess or lady of higher/noble birth
Also known as: The Mainland
Lit.: "Main State", the largest and most populous island of Japan, comprising of about 60% of its total area. It has five regions: Chuugoku, Kansai, Chuubu, Kantou, and Touhoku. Three-fourths of the major cities of Japan and 34 out of its 47 prefectures are located on this island.
A vassal of the Uesugi Clan, master of Samegao Castle.
At the outbreak of the Otate no Ran after Uesugi Kenshin's death, he fought on the side of Uesugi Kagetora with his troops. After the surrender of the clan's main castle, Kasugayama Castle, to Uesugi Kagekatsu, he welcomed Kagetora and his family into Samegao Castle, from which they would attempt to escape into Sagami. But by the time they entered the castle he had already made a secret pact with Yasuda Akimoto to set fire to the outer citadel once Kagetora was in the castle and evacuate. Kagetora and his wife and children committed suicide during Kagekatsu's general offensive thereafter, ending the war.
There have been no records found of what happened to Horie Munechika after the war other than the fact that his territory was seized.
Lit.: "Seal of the Law", a title given to Buddhist clergy of the highest rank.
Also known as: 北条菊寿丸, Houjou Nagatsuna (北条長綱)
Historically: A warlord of the Houjou clan in the Sengoku province of Sagami, the fourth and youngest son of Houjou Souun and a concubine from the influential Katsurayama Clan. He entered Kongouou Temple, the bettou-ji (administrative temple) of Hakone Shrine, at a young age and later became its head. He took the name of Gen'an (lit. Phantom hermitage) upon his retirement.
He had three sons, all of whom died before him, and two daughters. He adopted Houjou Saburou (Uesugi Kagetora) as his heir, but the adoption was annulled when Kagetora was sent to Echigo. His grandson Ujitaka (son of his second son) later became his heir.
Houjou Genan was described as a master of horsemanship and archery who led armies, but also a man of culture who was skilled with his hands. He became elder statesman and trusted adviser to Ujiyasu and Ujimasa. He was 97 when he died (though opinions differ); eight months later, the Houjou clan was attacked by Toyotomi Hideyoshi and destroyed.
Also known as: Ise Moritoki (伊勢盛時), Ise Souzui (伊勢宗瑞), Shinkurou (nickname—新九郎), Souunansouzui (Buddhist—早雲庵宗瑞)
Houjou Souun was the founder of the Later Houjou Clan, but he was never known as "Houjou Souun" during his lifetime. His son Houjou Ujitsuna, who succeeded him as clan head, adopted the clan name of Houjou and posthumously named his father Houjou Souun.
Though popularly portrayed as a humble masterless samurai, Souun's father, Ise Morisada, held an important post as an official of the shogunate according to modern-era research. The name of Ise Shinkurou Moritoki appears in written records from 1481, when he was appointed to a company of troops by Ashikaga Yoshihisa. Souun initially served his brother-in-law, Imagawa Yoshitada, and after his death, help his young son Imagawa Ujichika become the next head of the clan. In gratitude, Ujichika gave him Kokokuji Castle and the "uji" character in his name.
Souun took advantage of general unrest in the Eastern Provinces to take Izu Province for himself in 1493 (an event that many scholars mark as the beginning of the Sengoku), then Odawara Castle and Sagami Province in 1495. He died in 1519, leaving his new terrorities and the clan to his son Houjou Ujitsuna.
Also known as: Houjou Tsunanari, Kushima Tsunashige (福島綱成)
Houjou Tsunashige was born son of Kushima Masashige, a vassal of the Imagawa Clan. Most of his family was killed in battle with Hara Toratane of the Takeda Clan in 1521. A family vassal escaped with Tsunashige to Odawara, where he entered the service of Houjou Ujitsuna. His father was killed in the Iwagawa internal discord of 1536 between Imagawa Yoshimoto and his half brother Genkou Etan (there are also accounts that he escaped safely and joined Tsunashige).
Tsunashige found favor with Houjou Ujitsuna, who married one of his daughters to him and bequeathed him the Houjou name. The "tsuna" part of his name also came from Ujitsuna.
When the Houjou began fighting the Uesugi Clan in 1537, Tsunashige participated in many of battles. He continued to be a trusted commander of the clan after Ujitsuna died in 1541 and Houjou Ujiyasu became clan head. In 1546, during the siege and battle at Kawagoe Castle, he held out against an overwhelming enemy force for many months, finally achieving an astounding victory for the Houjou Clan.
In 1571 at the death of Ujiyasu, Tsunashige retired and gave over the family to his son, cutting off his hair and adopting a Buddhist name. He died in 1587 of illness.
Also known as: Fujita Awa-no-Kami (藤田安房守), Fujita Ujikuni (藤田氏邦)
Title: Awa-no-Kami
Houjou Ujikuni was the fourth-born son of Houjou Ujiyasu (third son to survive childhood), younger brother of Houjou Ujimasa and Houjou Ujiteru, and older brother of Houjou Ujinori, Houjou Ujitada, Houjou Saburou (Uesugi Kagetora), and Houjou Ujimitsu.
He married Ofukugozen, daughter of Fujita Yasukuni of Musashi (a vassal of the Houjou Clan who had years before submitted under attack) and was adopted as heir to the Fujita Clan. He later adopted his older brother Ujimasa's 6th son, Houjou Naosada.
Like his brother Ujiteru, Ujikuni was known for his courage and wise governance. He was entrusted with the military affairs of the front line of the North Kantou, Kouduke-no-kuni and distinguished himself in battles leading to the expansion of the Houjou territory, though was defeated at the Battle of Mimasetoge in 1569 by Shingen.
Ujikuni's quick temper was said to be one of the contributing factors to the fall of the Houjou Clan. In 1578, he poisoned his brother-in-law Fujita Juuren to ensure his own position, thus earning the hatred of his other brother-in-law, Fujita Nobuyoshi, who entered the service of Takeda Katsuyori and later Uesugi Kagekatsu.
When Odawara Castle fell to Toyotomi Hideyoshi in the Siege of Odawara in 1590, Ujikuni cut off his hair and begged for his life, which he was granted with a fief of 1000 koku in Noto. He lived until the age of 57, when he died of illness at Kanazawa in Kaga (there are also theories that he killed himself).
Title: Sagami no Kami
Also known as: Matsuchiyomaru (松千代丸—childhood), Shinkurou (新九郎—nickname), 慈雲院松巌傑公 (posthumous)
Ujimasa was born in 1538 as the second son of Houjou Ujiyasu and his principle wife Zuikeiin, daughter of Imagawa Ujichika, and was older brother of Houjou Ujiteru, Houjou Ujikuni, Houjou Ujinori, Houjou Ujitada, Houjou Saburou (Uesugi Kagetora), and Houjou Ujimitsu. He became heir to the clan when his older brother Shinkurou died before reaching adulthood.
Ujimasa married Oubaiin, eldest daughter of Takeda Shingen and Sanjou-no-Kata, on the occasion of the three-way alliance between the Takeda, Imagawa, and Houjou clans in 1554. Their marriage was thought to be a happy one.
Ujimasa succeeded his father as the fourth head of the Sagami Houjou Clan in 1559 upon Ujiyasu's retirement. His first task upon becoming heir of the clan, per clan convention, was a a land survey evaluating how the Houjou lands were being used and the condition of the people serving on those lands. His relationship with his brothers was good throughout, and they were be a huge help to him in the governing of the clan.
In 1561, Uesugi Masatora (Uesugi Kenshin) of Echigo laid siege to Odawara Castle with a huge army gathered from the Kantou and south Mutsu. Under the leadership of his father Ujiyasu, Ujimasa was able to drive back the army. After the Fourth Battle of Kawanakajima, he was able to take back a large part of North Kantou from the Uesugi in concert with Shingen.
In 1568, seizing the opportunity presented by the decline of the Imagawa Clan after Imagawa Yoshimoto's death at Oda Nobunaga's hand, Takeda Shingen invaded Suruga, laying siege to Yoshimoto's heir, Imagawa Ujizane in Kakegawa Castle. Ujimasa led the Houjou forces to repel the Takeda army and formed an alliance with Tokugawa Ieyasu of Mikawa in order to rescue Ujizane (his brother-in-law by way of his younger sister Hayakawadono). Ujimasa then had Ujizane adopt his son Ujinao as his heir, thus giving the Houjou Clan a legitimate claim to the territory of Suruga. In order to hold back Takeda, he formed an alliance with his old enemy Uesugi Kenshin, giving his younger brother Saburou (Uesugi Kagetora) as hostage. The severing of ties with the Takeda Clan, however, meant the dissolution of his marriage with his beloved wife Oubaiin.
In 1569, Takeda Shingen laid siege to Odawara Castle, delivering a crushing defeat to the Houjou Clan (though recent analysis by historians indicate that Shingen lost a great many men as well). In 1570, Suruga belonged almost wholly to Shingen.
In October of 1571 upon his father's death, Ujimasa broke off his alliance with Kenshin and reformed the alliance with Shingen in accordance with his father's will, after which fighting between the Houjou and Uesugi clans flared up again.
Kenshin's death in 1578 triggered a fight for succession to the Uesugi Clan between his two adopted sons, Uesugi Kagekatsu and Uesugi Kagetora (the Otate no Ran). Ujimasa was tied up at that time in a confrontation with Satake Yoshishige and Utsunomiya Kunitsuna in Shimotsuke, so sent his brother Houjou Ujikuni to their brother's aid in his place while asking Takeda Katsuyori for reinforcements. Katsuyori betrayed the Houjou and formed an alliance with Uesugi Kagekatsu, and the Otate no Ran ended with Kagetora's death and Kagekatsu's succession.
Ujimasa broke off the alliance with the Takeda clan a second time and formed an alliance with Oda Nobunaga and Tokugawa Ieyasu to attack the Takeda territory in a pincer movement, but shifting alliances and hard fighting left the conclusion unclear. In 1580 Ujimasa proposed to Oda Nobunaga, who had just taken Ishiyama Hongan Temple, that the Houjou Clan become a vassal of the Oda Clan, but Takeda Katsuyori managed to form an alliance with Oda first. Ujimasa retired from the position of clan head in the same year, but like his father before him still held onto the government and military affairs of the clan.
In the following years, the Houjou Clan managed to gain control over a vast territory: Sagami, Izu, Musashi, Shimousa, Kazusa, Hitara, Shimotsuke, and a part of Suruga. Interestingly, however, Ujimasa did not seem to hold the ambition of ruling the entire country, a tradition passed down from the founder of the Late Houjou Clan, Houjou Souun. Instead, Ujimasa concentrated on independence for the 8 Kantou provinces under Houjou rule and alliances with other strong warlords such as Tokugawa Ieyasu and Date Masamune.
In 1589, using Ujimasa's refusal to proceed to the capital to attend him as pretext, Toyotomi Hideyoshi gathered an army of 220,000 to lay siege to Odawara Castle. It overran castles in the Houjou territory in quick succession. The siege against Odawara Castle lasted from May to August. On August 4, Ujimasa offered to surrender his life for the lives of his men. Toyotomi demanded the lives of both Ujimasa and his brother Ujiteru, as well as the lives of their vassals Matsuda Norihide and Daidouji Masashige. Ujimasa and Ujiteru committed seppuku on August 10.
Ujimasa left behind the following tanka verses for his death poem:
「雨雲の おほえる月も 胸の霧も はらいにけりな 秋の夕風」
「我身今 消ゆとやいかに おもふへき 空よりきたり 空に帰れば」
translated (Sadler 1978, pp. 160–161):
Autumn wind of eve,
blow away the clouds that mass
over the moon's pure light
and the mists that cloud our mind,
do thou sweep away as well.
Now we disappear,
well, what must we think of it?
From the sky we came.
Now we may go back again.
That's at least one point of view.
There is another verse which is sometimes attributed to his brother Ujiteru, but is most often attributed to Ujimasa:
「吹くと吹く 風な恨みそ 花の春 もみじの残る 秋あればこそ」
which may be translated:
The wind's resentment—
Oh, see how it blows against
The flowering spring.
Yet it will leave us anon
The bright colors of autumn.
Houjou Ujimitsu was the eighth (maybe ninth)-born son of Houjou Ujiyasu (or possibly his younger brother Houjou Ujitaka), seventh son to survive childhood, younger brother of Houjou Ujimasa, Houjou Ujiteru, Houjou Ujikuni, Houjou Ujinori, and Houjou Saburou (Uesugi Kagetora). His wife was the daughter of Houjou Genan, (formerly wife of Saburou), and he was adopted by Genan as inheritor to the Musashi-Kodukue territory.
Ujimitsu served in the border defense between Suruga and Sagami. After the Siege of Odawara in 1590, he was exiled along with the rest of the Houjou to Mt. Kouya, and died there under house arrest.
His son Houjou Ujinori became a direct vassal to Tokugawa Ieyasu.
Houjou Ujinao was the eldest son and heir of Houjou Ujimasa. His mother was Ujimasa's principle wife, Oubaiin, daughter of Takeda Shingen. He became the fifth head of the Later Houjou Clan in 1580 when his father retired. He married Tokuhime, daughter of Tokugawa Ieyasu, in 1583 after a year of battles between the Houjou and Tokugawa armies over the provinces of Kouzuke, Shinano, and Kai, left masterless after the deaths of both Takeda Katsuyori and Oda Nobunaga.
After the Siege of Odawara in 1590, Toyotomi Hideyoshi spared Ujinao's life in part because he was Ieyasu's son-in-law. He was exiled to Mt. Kouya along with his brothers, uncles, and retainers. There he lived under house arrest until the beginning of 1591, when Toyotomi granted him a fief of 10,000-koku in Osaka and allowed his wife to join him there. However, he died there in November of the same year of smallpox at the age of 30.
Houjou Ujinori was the fifth-born son of Houjou Ujiyasu (fourth son to survive childhood), younger brother of Houjou Ujimasa, Houjou Ujiteru, and Houjou Ujikuni, and older brother of Houjou Ujitada, Houjou Saburou (Uesugi Kagetora), and Houjou Ujimitsu. He was the master of Misaki Castle in Sagami and chamberlain of Nirayama Castle in Izu. He married Kougen'in, the daughter of Houjou Tsunashige.
As a child, Ujinori was sent to Suruga as a hostage of Imagawa Yoshimoto. It was said that he became friends with Tokugawa Ieyasu, who was also a hostage in Suruga at the time, during this period. He returned to the clan somewhere in the period between 1558-1570, and in 1571 was again sent as hostage to the Takeda Clan in Kai along with his younger brother Houjou Ujitada.
Though his brothers Ujiteru and Ujikuni were known for their diplomatic skills, Ujinori surpassed both of them. This finesse was evident in his negotiations with Uesugi Kenshin and Takeda Katsuyori, and later in alliances with Tokugawa Ieyasu, Date Masamune, and the Ashina Clan. Tokugawa Ieyasu saw Ujinori as his window into the Houjou Clan, and communicated with him extensively.
Ujinori journeyed to the capital several times to negotiate with Toyotomi Hideyoshi as his brother Ujimasa's representative, but these negotiations failed, and Hideyoshi attacked Odawara Castle in 1590. Ujinori withstood siege from Hideyoshi's army for 3 months, but finally surrendered on Ieyasu's recommendation. He was also given the role of persuading his brother Ujimasa to surrender.
After the battle, Ujinori followed Houjou Ujinao to Mt. Kouya. He was pardoned in 1591 by Hideyoshi and given a territory of 2000-koku, then 6,980-koku in Kawachi and Sayama Castle in 1594. He died of illness at the age of 60, and his son Houjou Ujimori was allowed the continued governance of Sayama-han. His line continued until the Meiji Restoration.
Also known as: Sano Ujitada
Houjou Ujitada was the sixth-(possibly seventh-) born son of Houjou Ujiyasu (or possibly his brother Houjou Ujitaka), fifth son to survive childhood, younger brother of Houjou Ujimasa, Houjou Ujiteru, Houjou Ujikuni, and Houjou Ujinori, and older brother of Houjou Saburou (Uesugi Kagetora) and Houjou Ujimitsu. (There are also theories that he was the son of Houjou Ujitaka, Ujiyasu's younger brother). He married Jousan'in (sp?—乗讃院), daughter of Sano Munetsuna in 1586 upon Munetsuna's death in battle against Nagao Akinaga and became the head of the Sano Clan. (Later, however, the Sano Clan was absorbed by the mighty Houjou.)
During the Siege of Odawara, Ujitada barricaded himself in Odawara Castle. After the battle, he followed Houjou Ujinao to Mt. Kouya and later lived a reclusive life in Izu. After his death in 1593, Toyotomi Hideyoshi allowed his uncle-in-law Sano Fusatsuna to assume the title of clan head of the Sano Clan.
Houjou Ujitaka was the son of Houjou Tsunashige and grandson of Houjou Gen'an. He was the master of Kuno Castle in Sagami.
In January 1570, when Ujitaka's father died, Houjou Gen'an adopted him as heir in place of Uesugi Kagetora, who was adopted into the Uesugi Clan by Uesugi Kenshin.
After the destruction of the Houjou Clan, Ujitaka followed Houjou Ujinao to Mt. Kouya. He later served the Ikoma Clan of Takamatsu-han and became a monk, though he resided in Kyoto.
Title: Mutsu-no-Kami
Also known as: Houjou Genzou (北条源三), Ooishi Genzou (大石源三)
Ujiteru was the third-born son (second to survive to adulthood) of Houjou Ujiyasu, younger brother of Houjou Ujimasa, and older brother of Houjou Ujikuni, Houjou Ujinori, Houjou Ujitada, Houjou Saburou (Uesugi Kagetora), and Houjou Ujimitsu. He was widely extolled for his courage and wisdom.
In 1559, he married Hisa, the daughter of Ooishi Sadahisa, master of Takiyama Castle in Musashi, and became Ooishi's adopted son and heir. (Later, Ooishi became a vassal of the Houjou clan, and Ujiteru regained the Houjou surname.)
In the following years, Ujiteru followed his father into several battles with neighboring clans, which greatly increased the Houjou sphere of influence. He also excelled at diplomacy, and maneuvered the alliance between the Houjou and Uesugi clans into place in 1569. He also secretly built up diplomatic relations with the Date Clan. Though he wanted the clan to form an alliance with the Oda Clan during Oda's period in power, the plan fell through because of opposition within the family and Oda's death.
In 1569, while the Takeda army was en route to a siege of Odawara Castle, a detachment of the Takeda army led by Oyamada Nobushige attacked Takiyama Castle, penetrating all the way to the outermost wall. Ujiteru crossed spears with Takeda Katsuyori during the battle. Ujiteru's forces managed to stave them off, but dissatisfied with Takiyama's defenses, Ujiteru abandoned it in favor of Hachiouji Castle.
In September of 1579, Ujiteru and his younger brother Ujikuni went to the aid of their brother Uesugi Kagetora in the Otate no Ran, but were stopped short by snow and hard-fought battles.
In 1590, during Toyotomi Hideyoshi's Siege of Odawara, he entrusted his main castle, Hachiouji Castle to a loyal vassal and barricaded himself in Odawara. Due to that fact, Toyotomi saw him as one of the pro-resistance leaders, and demanded his death along with his brother Ujimasa's. Ujiteru committed seppuku with Ujimasa on August 10.
He wrote as his death poem:
「天地の 清き中より 生まれきて もとのすみかに 帰るべらなり」
which may be translated thus:
We are born into
the brightness betwixt heaven
and earth; yet there is
another dwelling to which
we must all someday return.
Ujiteru's tomb 
is located near Hachiouji Castle.
Also known as: Ise Ujitsuna (伊勢氏綱)
Houjou Ujitsuna was born eldest son and heir of Ise Moritoki. He became the second head of the Later Houjou Clan in 1518 upon the retirement of his father, though it is possible that his father had transferred the rule of the clan to him long before or ruled in concert with him.
Born Ise Ujitsuna, he changed his family name to Houjou after the line of regents of the Kamakura shogunate and also adopted their family crest of three fish scales (three triangles forming a large triangle) in 1523. He posthumously gave his father the name of Houjou Souun.
In Souun's time, the Houjou main castle was Nirayama Castle in Izu Province. Ujitsuna made Odawara Castle in Sagami his stronghold.
As clan head, Ujitsuna greatly expanded the Houjou Clan's influence in the Kantou. He took both Edo Castle (1524) and Kawagoe Castle (1537) in Musashi from the Uesugi Clan. He initially formed an alliance with Imagawa Ujichika in Suruga, but it broke apart upon an alliance between Suruga and Kai.
Ujitsuna collapsed and died of illness in the summer of 1541 during the long war with Suruga that followed. He was succeeded by his eldest son and heir, Houjou Ujiyasu.
Title: Sagami-no-Kami
Also known as: The Tiger of Sagami, The Lion of Sagami
Son of Houjou Ujitsuna and third head of the Late Houjou Clan, one of the greatest daimyo of the Sengoku in both military and political arenas. He expanded the Houjou holdings to five territories and battled both Takeda Shingen and Uesugi Kenshin over the Kantou and Suruga regions.
He retired in 1560 and handed over the clan to his eldest son Houjou Ujimasa, but continued to guide the clan until his death of palsey or stomach cancer in 1571. He made an alliance with the Takeda Clan in 1562 and gave over his 7th son, Houjou Saburou, to Takeda Shingen for adoption.
Houjou Ujiyasu was a great admirer of poetry, culture and learning as well as a outstanding administrator who created unique bureaucratic organizations such as litigation processes for the ruling of his lands. He was much beloved of his people and widely mourned at his death.
Houjunin was daughter of Houjou Ujitsuna and second wife of Ashikaga Haruuji. Her son Ashikaga Yoshiuji succeeded his father as Koga Kubou.
Lit. "ritual art": the magic of the humans, which among other things can be used to seal Majutsu.
Also known as: Toyokuni Shrine (豊国神社)
A Shinto shrine built in 1599 in Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto to commemorate and enshrine Toyotomi Hideyoshi, who died in Kyoto on September 18, 1598. The shrine in Kyoto holds Toyotomi's tomb, though there exist other Toyokuni shrines dedicated to Toyotomi in Osaka, Kanazawa, Nagoya, and Hatsukaichi.
Large festivals were held at the shrine to celebrate the anniversary of Toyotomi's apotheosis until June 1615, when Tokugawa Ieyasu closed the shrine "to discourage these unseemly displays of loyalty to a man he had eclipsed". The Meiji Emperor had the shrine restored in 1868, when it was slightly expanded to annex the nearby Houkou Temple, which Toyotomi had ordered to be constructed.
The shrine's Kara Mon (gate), a National Treasure of Japan, was said to have been moved from Fushimi Castle.
A Tendai Buddhist temple constructed from 1586 - 1588 in Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto at the command of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, who wanted a "giant Buddha" temple in the capital city to rival that of Nara.
The temple has been destroyed by fire, lightning, and earthquake and rebuilt several times. During the Meiji era its land was subdivided and allocated to Kyoumei Shrine to its south and adjacent Houkoku Shrine, thus greatly reducing the size of the temple.
Also known as: Houryuu Gakumonji (法隆学問寺), Ikaruga-dera (斑鳩寺)
Built by Prince Shoutoku in 607, Houryuu Temple is one of Japan's most celebrated temples and contains some of the oldest wooden structures in the world. It is a National Treasure of Japan and listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Also known as: Ratnaketu Tathagata
Ratnaketu is the one of the Five Wisdom Buddhas of the Womb Realm mentioned in the Golden Light Sutra, an early Mahayana text. He is the Buddha of the East and represents the heart awakened to enlightenment.
Race: Human
One of the five children in the first village (composed of human refugees) Yuuri passes through in Shinma Kingdom, a boy of about ten who seems terrified that the King will cut off their heads and burn down their houses.
A theme park located in Sasebo, Nagasaki Prefecture that features many Dutch old-style buildings as well as canals, windmills, and amusement rides. It opened in March 1992.
A bridge across the Hirose River in Sendai which first spanned the river in 1636.
