Born in 1553, she was the wife of Hyakutake Tomokane, the castellan of Kamafunatsu castle. Hyakutake (meaning "100 warriors"), who served the Ryūzōji clan, was given his last name because his valour in battle was so great that he was said to have the skill of 100 warriors.
During battles against the Ōtomo clan, Miyohime wielded a naginata and led soldiers into battle herself in order to defend their castle. In 1570, Miyohime assisted Nabeshima Naoshige in defending Saga Castle when it was surrounded by a 60,000-man Ōtomo clan army, and it is said that she commanded standing soldiers at the door.
When Ryūzōji Takanobu attacked the Arima clan in 1582, Shimazu Yoshihisa declared war against the Ryūzōji clan. In the Battle of Okitanawate on May 3, 1584, the Shimazu and Arima army commanded by Shimazu Iehisa marched to Shimabara. The Ryūzōji army was well armed with muskets and intimidated the enemy. Miyohime and her husband were part of the siege defense.[1] When the Shimazu enticed the Ryūzōji into a false retreat, Takanobu led his troops to pursue the Shimazu. Many Shimazu soldiers attacked Takanobu from behind and beheaded him. Tomokane died in the battle.[2] Miyohime heard the death of Takanobu first, and believed it was certain that her husband had also been killed. She became a Buddhist nun and changed her name to Enkyū-ni. However, Naoshige ordered her to defend her husband's castle, so she re-entered Kamafunatsu castle with a small garrison. In September, Tachibana Dōsetsu and Takahashi Jōun rebelled against Ryūzōji clan. Miyohime successfully defended Kamafunatsu castle, clearing the enemy with reinforcements from Nakano Kiyoaki. After the victory, on the grounds that being a nun made her unsuitable to be castellan, she renounced her role of castellan.
After resigning her military career, she probably lived as a Buddhist nun until the last day of her life. Enkyū-ni survived the entire Period of Warring States, dying on August 16, 1615, months after the Siege of Osaka, the final battle that ended the Sengoku period and initiated the Tokugawa shogunate.[3]
miyohime, confused, with, kiyohime, 美代姫, enkyū, myōgetsu, 圓久妙月, japanese, onna, musha, from, late, sengoku, period, retainer, ryūzōji, clan, after, husband, ryūzōji, takanobu, were, slain, battle, okitanawate, became, head, kamafunatsu, castle, hyakutake, clan. Not to be confused with Kiyohime Miyohime 美代姫 or Enkyu Myōgetsu 圓久妙月 was a Japanese Onna musha from the late Sengoku period She was a retainer of Ryuzōji clan After her husband and Ryuzōji Takanobu were slain in the Battle of Okitanawate she became the head of Kamafunatsu castle and Hyakutake clan Enkyu Myōgetsu圓久妙月Castellan of Kamafunatsu castleIn office 1584Preceded byHyakutake TomonakePersonal detailsBorn1553 1553 Died1615 1615 00 00 aged 61 62 Military serviceAllegianceRyuzōji clanUnitHyakutake clanBattles warsSiege of SagaSiege of Kumafunatsu Contents 1 Biography 2 See also 3 References 4 BibliographyBiography editBorn in 1553 she was the wife of Hyakutake Tomokane the castellan of Kamafunatsu castle Hyakutake meaning 100 warriors who served the Ryuzōji clan was given his last name because his valour in battle was so great that he was said to have the skill of 100 warriors During battles against the Ōtomo clan Miyohime wielded a naginata and led soldiers into battle herself in order to defend their castle In 1570 Miyohime assisted Nabeshima Naoshige in defending Saga Castle when it was surrounded by a 60 000 man Ōtomo clan army and it is said that she commanded standing soldiers at the door When Ryuzōji Takanobu attacked the Arima clan in 1582 Shimazu Yoshihisa declared war against the Ryuzōji clan In the Battle of Okitanawate on May 3 1584 the Shimazu and Arima army commanded by Shimazu Iehisa marched to Shimabara The Ryuzōji army was well armed with muskets and intimidated the enemy Miyohime and her husband were part of the siege defense 1 When the Shimazu enticed the Ryuzōji into a false retreat Takanobu led his troops to pursue the Shimazu Many Shimazu soldiers attacked Takanobu from behind and beheaded him Tomokane died in the battle 2 Miyohime heard the death of Takanobu first and believed it was certain that her husband had also been killed She became a Buddhist nun and changed her name to Enkyu ni However Naoshige ordered her to defend her husband s castle so she re entered Kamafunatsu castle with a small garrison In September Tachibana Dōsetsu and Takahashi Jōun rebelled against Ryuzōji clan Miyohime successfully defended Kamafunatsu castle clearing the enemy with reinforcements from Nakano Kiyoaki After the victory on the grounds that being a nun made her unsuitable to be castellan she renounced her role of castellan After resigning her military career she probably lived as a Buddhist nun until the last day of her life Enkyu ni survived the entire Period of Warring States dying on August 16 1615 months after the Siege of Osaka the final battle that ended the Sengoku period and initiated the Tokugawa shogunate 3 See also editList of female castellans in JapanReferences edit Frederic Louis 2002 Japan Encyclopedia Harvard University Press ISBN 9780674017535 Turnbull Stephen R 2000 The samurai sourcebook London Cassell ISBN 1854095234 OCLC 44910809 百武志摩守と圓久尼Bibliography edit佐賀新聞社 2006 12 五州二島の太守龍造寺隆信 ISBN 4882981610 nbsp This biography of a Japanese noble is a stub You can help Wikipedia by expanding it vte nbsp This biographical article related to the military of Japan is a stub You can help Wikipedia by expanding it vte Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Miyohime amp oldid 1222883742, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
