Tōshōin (洞松院, born in the 1460s) or Akamatsu Tōshōin was a Japanese noble who acted as the

power behind the throne The phrase "power behind the throne" refers to a person or group that is understood to ''de facto'' wield the power of a high-ranking official (originally, and hence the name, a monarch), or whose support must be maintained to continue in office. ...

or '' de facto''

daimyo were powerful Japanese magnates, feudal lords who, from the 10th century to the early Meiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to the shogun and nominally to ...

of the Akamatsu clan during the

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 ...

. She was the daughter of

Hosokawa Katsumoto was one of the Kanrei, the deputies to the Ashikaga shogunate, Shōgun, during Japan's Muromachi period. He is famous for his involvement in the creation of Ryōan-ji, a temple famous for its rock garden, and for his involvement in the Ōnin War ...

, sister of

Hosokawa Masamoto was a deputy-'' shōgun,'' daimyo and shugo of the Hosokawa clan of Japan, and son of Hosokawa Katsumoto. Masamoto was appointed to the rank of deputy-shogun in 1486, but lost this status to his rival Hatakeyama Masanaga. His childhood name ...

, and wife of Akamatsu Masanori. Tōshōin was a ''de facto''

Daimyo were powerful Japanese magnates, feudal lords who, from the 10th century to the early Meiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to the shogun and nominally to ...

who supported the Akamatsu clan as a guardian of Akamatsu Yoshimura. She took explicit control of the clan as the leader in 1521, after Yoshimura was assassinated.

Biography

Tōshōin was the daughter of Hosokawa Katsumoto, the Kanrei (Shogun's Deputy) of the Muromachi Shogunate and became a Buddhist nun at Ryōan-ji Temple due to her unconventional appearance. At the behest of her younger brother, Matsumoto, she returned to secular life. On April 20, 1493 (May 5, 1493), at the age of 30, 31, or 33, she married Akamatsu Masanori, the governor of

Harima Province or Banshū (播州) was a province of Japan in the part of Honshū that is the southwestern part of present-day Hyōgo Prefecture. Harima bordered on Tajima, Tanba, Settsu, Bizen, and Mimasaka Provinces. Its capital was Himeji. During th ...

. This marriage was made possible through the strong efforts of Uehara Motohide, a retainer of the

Hosokawa clan The is a Japanese samurai kin group or Japanese clan, clan. The clan descends from the Seiwa Genji, a branch of the Minamoto clan, and ultimately from Emperor Seiwa, through the Ashikaga clan. It produced many prominent officials in the Ashikaga ...

, and Sueshi Noriharu, a retainer of the Akamatsu clan, despite Masanori being away on military campaign in Sakai at the time. A popular poem circulating in Kyoto at the time reads, "A celestial being whom I once thought of as a demon, has descended upon the shores of Sakai," signifying the marriage's unusual circumstances. Two days later, the Meio Political Incident erupted. Tōshōin bore a daughter (Ko-meshi) with Masanori. In 1496, Masanori died, leaving no male heir. Consequently, the son of Akamatsu Masanori's collateral relative, Akamatsu Masaaki, later known as Dōsōshō Maru, became Ko-meshi's husband and assumed the name Akamatsu Yoshimura. Initially, the elderly retainer Uragami Norimune wielded significant influence over the Akamatsu clan as Yoshimura's guardian. In 1499, tensions within the Akamatsu clan erupted into the East-West Conflict (Tōzai Torihō) when Uragami Norimune's opponents, led by Uragami Murakuni, supported Akamatsu Katsunori as the head of the clan. During this turmoil, influenced by Sueshi Noriharu's advice, Tōshōin was elevated as the leader of a third faction. Ultimately, although Yoshimura retained his position as clan head, Tōshōin began issuing documents in her own name, marking the emergence of her influence.

Rise to Power

In 1502, after the death of Norimune, Tōshōin assumed the role of guardian for Yoshimura, her son-in-law, with the support of her brother Matsumoto and the Akamatsu retainers. Over the next two decades, all grants of land and exemptions within the Akamatsu clan's three provinces—Harima, Bizen, and Mimasaka—were made with Tōshōin's "Tsubone" signature and black seal, as documented in Tōshōin's Nun Seal Letters (Tōshōin Ni-in Hanjō). In 1507, when Matsumoto was assassinated, a dispute arose over the succession for head of the Hosokawa clan between Yoshimura and Hosokawa Sumimoto. Sumimoto, allied with former Shogun Ashikaga Yoshitane, ousted Yoshimura and Ashikaga Yoshizumi from Kyoto. However, Tōshōin supported Yoshimura and sheltered Ashikaga Yoshiteru (later known as Ashikaga Yoshiharu), the legitimate heir of Yoshizumi, within the Akamatsu clan. Subsequently, Yoshimura rebelled, aligning himself with Yoshizumi and Ashikaga Yoshitsuna, and clashed with the Western daimyo Ōuchi Yoshitaka at the Battle of Funao. Following a decisive defeat at the Battle of Funaokayama, Tōshōin personally negotiated a peace settlement with Akamatsu Yoshimura.

Consolidation of Power

As Yoshimura grew older, he came to view Tōshōin's guardianship as an obstacle, leading to frequent conflicts. Consequently, Tōshōin allied with her retainer Uragami Murakuni to plot Yoshimura's removal. Ultimately, Yoshimura rebelled against them, but he was defeated and imprisoned by Uragami Murakuni twice. His son Harumasa succeeded him as clan head. In 1521, Yoshimura was assassinated by assassins sent by Murakuni. Tōshōin continued to wield ''de facto'' authority over the Akamatsu clan, along with her daughter and Murakuni, cooperating with Akamatsu Takanori, and exerting dominance over the clan's territories.

References

Sources

* Akira Imatani "Study of Akamatsu Masanori and Hosokawa Toshoin" ("Yokohama City University Ronso"). * Daimon Watanabe, A Study of Akamatsu in the Sengoku Period, Iwata Shoin, 2010. * Daimon Watanabe, The Akamatsu Clan in the Late Middle Ages: From the Perspectives of Politics, Historical Materials, and Culture, Japanese Historical Materials Research Group, 2011. {{DEFAULTSORT:Toshoin 1460s births Year of birth uncertain Year of death unknown Keichō-Hosokawa clan Daimyo Women of the Sengoku period 16th-century women rulers 16th-century women politicians Japanese women in politics 15th-century Japanese people 15th-century Japanese women 16th-century Japanese nobility 16th-century Japanese women Samurai

Biography

Rise to Power

Consolidation of Power

See also

References

Sources