Lady Ichikawa
Lady Ichikawa (市川局 Ichikawa no Tsubone, d. April 5, 1585) was a Japanese female warrior (Onna-musha) from the Sengoku period who helped drive out Ouchi and the Otomo clan from Chugoku.[1] She was the wife of Ichikawa Tsuneyoshi, a samurai warlord and retainer of Mōri Motonari. She defended Konomine castle from the attack by Ōuchi.[2][3][4]
Siege of Konomine castle[edit]
Ōuchi Teruhiro sided with Ōtomo Sōrin, a daimyo Christian in Bungo Province, after Mori Motonari's troops assassinated Sue Harukata at the Battle of Itsukushima. In 1569, Ōuchi Teruhiro led an attack on the Konomine castle. At this time Ichikawa Tsuneyoshi was fighting against the Otomo clan, in order to capture Tachibana Castle in Kyushu. When Ōuchi Teruhiro invaded the Ichikawa clan area, Lady Ichikawa remained as leader and prepared to defend the Konomine castle.[5][6]
Lady Ichikawa's ladies-in-waiting prepared to fight, and armed themselves with swords.[7] She led her women - and the few remaining castle soldiers - in defending the castle, including making a sortie out past the walls in a full frontal attack against Ouchi Teruhiro's army.[2][1] In the fierce 10-day battle the castle's defense remained strong and Teruhiro fled. Teruhiro was defeated in front of the Mori army that had left of Kyushu and killed himself. Due to this achievement, Lady Ichikawa received a letter of appreciation from Mōri Terumoto on July 6 in 1577.[1]
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ a b c Snodgrass, Mary Ellen (2023-12-20). Women Warriors in History: 1,622 Biographies Worldwide from the Bronze Age to the Present. McFarland. ISBN 978-1-4766-5032-6.
- ^ a b 日本人名大辞典+Plus,朝日日本歴史人物事典, デジタル版. "市川局(いちかわのつぼね)とは". コトバンク (in Japanese). Retrieved 2019-04-26.
- ^ Potholm, Christian P. (2021-10-22). Hiding in Plain Sight: Women Warriors Throughout Time and Space. Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 978-1-5381-6272-9.
- ^ 川村一彦. 大友宗麟の群像 (in Japanese). 歴史研究会.
- ^ Turnbull, Stephen (2012-01-20). Samurai Women 1184–1877. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84603-952-2.
- ^ Sylvester, Kate (2022-11-30). Women and Martial Art in Japan. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 978-1-000-79790-9.
- ^ Boer, Jojanneke (2023-11-19). Samurai women. LIBRI DAILUOGHI.
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