Western Army · Shimazu
Shimazu Yoshihiro
“The Demon Shimazu”
Second of the four Shimazu brothers and the embodiment of the clan's martial spirit. At Kizakibaru he beat a much larger Itō army; at Mimigawa and Okitanawate the feigned-retreat ambush made his name. In Korea he drove off a huge Ming and Korean army at Sacheon. At Sekigahara he stood with the Western Army and, with defeat certain, charged straight through the enemy front and made it home to Satsuma.
- Epithet
- “The Demon Shimazu”
- Rank / office
- Governor of Hyōgo
- Domain / base
- Satsuma
- Banner / crest
- Cross in a circle
- Side
- Western Army
- Lived
- 1535–1619 (aged 85)
To break through the enemy: that is the pride of the men of Satsuma.
Attributed to Shimazu Yoshihiro
Life
- Genki 3 Battle of Kizakibaru Beat a large Itō army with a handful of men, earning the name "the Okehazama of Kyushu."
- Tenshō 6 Mimigawa Played the bait in the feigned retreat and led the Ōtomo army to annihilation.
- Keichō 3 Battle of Sacheon In Korea, defeated tens of thousands of Ming and Korean troops with a small force.
- Keichō 5 The Shimazu breakout With the Western Army collapsing, broke through the enemy centre and returned to Satsuma.
Battles in this archive2 battles
- Battle of Mimigawa 12th day of the 11th month, Tenshō 6 Takajō River plain, Hyūga Province Played the "bait" in the centre, deliberately giving way to draw the Ōtomo on. Twenty-two years before his breakout at Sekigahara. Watch ▸
- Battle of Sekigahara October 21, Keichō 5 Sekigahara, Mino Province Held back in the centre of the line, then after the defeat broke straight through the enemy, escaped along the Ise Road and returned alive to Satsuma. Watch ▸
Related sites
- Sekigahara battlefield (site of the Shimazu breakout)
- Myōen-ji (Hioki)