The Town Where True Samurai Honed His Spirit

Kudoyama Sanada Museum

(Kudoyama Town, Wakayama Prefecture)

【Tsuwamono (兵)】 refers to a samurai soldier in Japanese, especially one who is strong on the battlefield. Yukimura Sanada is known as the best samurai soldier (Tsuwamono) in Japan. His father, Masayuki Sanada, was also a well-known samurai who used ingenious stratagems. The father and son were strong opponents of Shogun Ieyasu Tokugawa. Despite being a small clan, they made the powerful Tokugawa clan suffer on the battlefields with their military tactics.

One notable battle occurred during the Warring States period in the 16th century when local lords fought for supremacy. The Sanada clan ruled the Ueda region, the eastern part of what is now Nagano Prefecture. This region had military tension because it faced the territories of three powerful lords. In 1585, the Tokugawa clan invaded the area with 7,000 men. The Sanada clan only had 2,000 men, less than one-third of Tokugawa’s troops.

Masayuki Sanada lured Tokugawa’s troops deep into their castle. When Tokugawa’s soldiers reached the second citadel of the castle, Masayuki initiated fierce attacks from inside. The Tokugawa’s men were trapped in narrow streets within the castle, pushed away by enemies from the front, while friendly reinforcements from the back pushed them further inside, causing the troops to fall into disarray. After struggling to escape from the castle, they ran into a river where their friendly position was located on the other side. The housemen of the Sanada clan pursued and attacked them. Half of those trying to cross the river drowned. Due to the heavy losses, the Tokugawa army retreated to their own territory.

As time went on, Ieyasu Tokugawa unified Japan. Since Masayuki and Yukimura Sanada were opponents of the Tokugawa, they were placed in confinement in Kudoyama, Wakayama, in a deep mountain area. However, their fighting spirits as samurai had not diminished. They lived in this village, devising war strategies to defeat the Tokugawa.

During their stay in the village, they introduced the villagers to making flat woven cotton bands for their living income. These are called Sanada bands, which are used for various purposes such as banding a sword, tying a Japanese sash, or securing a box.

As time went on, Masayuki Sanada passed away with dreams of defeating Tokugawa. He is enshrined at a temple in this village. History enthusiasts visit this temple to honor the samurai renowned as the greatest military strategist.

His son, Yukimura, was still alive. The time for revenge against the Tokugawa clan came after 14 years of confinement. The anti-Tokugawa forces had simmered and rallied at Osaka Castle. Yukimura sneaked out of the village and joined the final battle against Shogun Ieyasu. His army, wearing red armor, frightened the enemies. Despite having fewer troops, Yukimura charged several times at Shogun Ieyasu’s stronghold, causing Ieyasu to abandon his battle position and leave his Shogun’s flag. Yukimura was the samurai who cornered Shogun Ieyasu the most. Despite his fierce fighting, the outnumbered Ant-Tokugawa forces were swallowed up by the Tokugawa troops. The story of his indomitable fighting spirit and masterful tactics as a true samurai (Tsuwamono) has been the subject of novels, comics, TV dramas and movies for generations.

In this village, there is a hole called the loophole of Sanada. The legend said that this hole led to Osaka Castle. Yukimura might have used this path to appear on the battlefield of Osaka.

* Please refer to the Kudoyama Sanada Museum official site here.