Akai Teruko (赤井輝子, November 6, 1514 – December 17, 1594) or Myoin-ni (妙印尼) was a late-
Sengoku period
The was the period in History of Japan, Japanese history in which civil wars and social upheavals took place almost continuously in the 15th and 16th centuries. The Kyōtoku incident (1454), Ōnin War (1467), or (1493) are generally chosen as th ...
Onna-musha
is a term referring to female warriors in pre-modern Japan, who were members of the ''bushi'' (warrior) class. They were trained in the use of weapons to protect their household, family, and honour in times of war; many of them fought in battle ...
warrior. Teruko was a woman trained in
ko-naginata, fought in many battles when younger and commanded three thousand soldiers in
Kanayama castle
was a Sengoku period ''yamashiro''-style castle located on top of Mount Kanayama in what is now Ōta, Gunma Prefecture, Japan. The site has been protected as a National Historic Site since 1990. The castle was also known as ''Ōta Kanayama Cas ...
at 70 years old.
She was a daughter of
Akai Terumitsu, spouse of
Yura Shigeru, a retainer of the
Hōjō clan
The was a Japanese samurai family who controlled the hereditary title of '' shikken'' (regent) of the Kamakura shogunate between 1203 and 1333. Despite the title, in practice the family wielded actual political power in Japan during this perio ...
, and grandmother of
Kaihime
("hime" means lady, princess, woman of noble family), speculated to have been born in April 15, 1572, was a Japanese female warrior, onna-musha from the Sengoku Period. She was a daughter of and granddaughter of Akai Teruko, retainers of the La ...
.
In contrast to her famous granddaughter, Kaihime, who was known as "The most beautiful woman in east Japan" (東国無双の美人), Teruko was known as
''The strongest woman in the Warring States Period'' (戦国時代最強の女丈夫).
Early life
Teruko was born as the daughter of
Tatebayashi Castle lord Akai Terumitsu. According to legend, Teruko's father saved a young fox from naughty children, and then in the evening an
Inari appeared and recommended a location for his castle, drawing a design for the fortifications on the ground by its tail. The castle that Teruko lived during her early life was the target of constant threats from the
Uesugi,