Forty-seven Ronin

The tale of the Forty-Seven Ronin (also known as the Forty-Seven Samurai, the Ak? vendetta, or in Japanese as the "ak? r?shi" (???? Ak? Masterless Samurai)?or the "genroku ak? jiken" (?????? Genroku Ak? Incident)) is a prototypical Japanese story. Described by one noted Japan scholar as the country's "national legend" http://www.columbia.edu/~hds2/chushinguranew/kanadehon/Index.htm, it recounts the most famous case involving the samurai code of honor, bushido, and vividly expresses a significant part of the traditional Japanese world-view.

The original events

NOTE: The version given here is based upon Mitford, which is now known to contain numerous historical errors. A major re-write of the article is in preparation. In the meantime the entire section describing the historical events should not be relied on, as it contains major errors.

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Note: The story was popularized in numerous plays including bunraku and kabuki; because of the censorship laws of the shogunate which forbade portrayal of current events, the names were changed. The names given in the account below are those of the real people.

Related Topics:
Bunraku - Kabuki - Shogunate

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Furthermore, those works are dramatic, without pretense to historical accuracy, and the most popular (the Chushingura) takes numerous liberties with the events. While the version given by the playwrights may have come to be accepted as historical fact by some, the Chushingura was written some 50 years after the fact, and numerous historical records about the actual events which pre-date the Chushingura survive. While sources do differ as to some of the details, the version given below is carefully assembled from a large range of historical sources, including some still-extant eye-witness accounts of various portions of the saga.

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Background events

In 1701 (by the Western calendar), two daimyo, Asano Takumi-no-Kami Naganori, the young daimyo of Ak? (a small fiefdom or han in western Honshu), and Kamei Sama, were ordered to arrange a fitting reception for the envoys of Emperor Higashiyama of Japan in Edo, during their sankin kotai service of greetings to the Shogun.

Related Topics:
1701 - Daimyo - Asano Takumi-no-Kami Naganori - Ak? - Fiefdom - Han - Honshu - Emperor Higashiyama of Japan - Edo - Sankin kotai - Shogun

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They were to be given instruction in the necessary court etiquette by Kira Kozuke-no-Suke Yoshinaka, a powerful official in the hierarchy of Tokugawa Tsunayoshi's shogunate. He became upset at them, allegedly because of either the small presents they offered him (in the time-honored compensation for such an instructor), or because they would not offer bribes as he wanted. Other sources say that he was a naturally rude and arrogant individual, or that Kira was corrupt, which offended Asano, a rigidly moral Confucian. In any event, he treated them poorly, insulting them and not bothering to teach them their duties properly.

Related Topics:
Tokugawa Tsunayoshi - Confucian

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While Asano bore all this stoically, Kamei Sama became enraged, and prepared to kill Kira to avenge the insults. However, the quick thinking counsellors of Kamei Sama averted disaster for their lord and clan (for all would have been punished if Kamei Sama killed Kira) by quietly giving Kira a large bribe; Kira thereupon began to treat Kamei Sama very nicely, which calmed his anger.

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However, Kira continued to treat Asano harshly, because he was upset that the latter had not emulated his companion; Kira taunted and humiliated him in public. Finally, Kira insulted Asano as a country boor with no manners, and Asano could restrain himself no longer. He lost his temper, and attacked Kira with a dagger, but only wounded him in the face with his first strike; his second missed and hit a pillar. Guards then quickly separated them.

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Kira's wound was hardly serious, but the attack on a shogunate official within the boundaries of Edo castle, the Shogun's residence, was a grave offense; any kind of violence, even drawing a sword, was completely forbidden there. (Some sources say that Asano's crime was that he damaged a celebrated golden sliding door when he threw his wakizashi at Kira.) Therefore Asano was ordered to commit seppuku that same day, his goods and lands were to be confiscated after his death, his family ruined, and his retainers made ronin.

Related Topics:
Edo castle - Wakizashi - Seppuku - Ronin

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This news was carried to ?ishi Kuranosuke Yoshio, Asano's principal counsellor, who took command and moved the Asano family away, and handed over the castle to the agents of the government.

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The ronin plot revenge

Of Asano's over three hundred men, forty-seven (some sources say there were more than fifty, originally) -- and especially their leader ?ishi -- refused to allow their lord to go unavenged, even though revenge had been prohibited in the case. They banded together, swearing a secret oath to avenge their master by killing Kira, even though they knew they would be severely punished for doing so.

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However, Kira was well guarded, and his residence had been fortified, to prevent just such an event. They saw that they would have to put him off his guard before they could succeed. To quell the suspicions of Kira and other shogunate authorities, they dispersed and became tradesmen or monks. ?ishi himself took up residence in Kyoto, and begun to frequent brothels and taverns, as if nothing were further from his mind than revenge. Kira still feared a trap, and sent spies to watch the former retainers of Asano.

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One day, as ?ishi returned drunk from some haunt, he fell down in the street and went to sleep, and all the passers-by laughed at him. A Satsuma man, passing by, was infuriated by this behaviour on the part of a samurai - both by his lack of courage to avenge his master, as well as his current debauched behaviour. The Satsuma man abused and insulted him, and kicked him in the face (to even touch the face of a samurai was a great insult, let alone strike it), and spat on him.

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Not too long after, ?ishi's loyal wife of twenty years went to him and complained that he seemed to be taking his act too far. He divorced her on the spot, and sent her away with their two younger children; the oldest, a boy, Chikara, remained with his father. In his wife's place, the father bought a pretty young concubine.

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Kira's agents reported all this to Kira, who became convinced that he was safe from the retainers of Asano, who must all be bad samurai indeed, without the courage to avenge their master, and were harmless; he then relaxed his guard.

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The rest of the faithful retainers now gathered in Edo, and in their roles as workmen and merchants, gained access to Kira's house, becoming familiar with the layout of the house, and the character of all within. One of the retainers (Kinemon Kanehide Okano) went so far as to marry the daughter of the builder of the house, to obtain plans. All of this was reported to ?ishi. Others gathered arms and secretly transported them to Edo, another offense.

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The attack

In 1702, when ?ishi was convinced that Kira was thoroughly off his guard, and everything was ready, he fled from Kyoto, avoiding the spies who were watching him, and the entire band gathered at a secret meeting-place in Edo, and renewed their oaths.

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Early in the morning of December 15, in a driving wind during a heavy fall of snow, ?ishi and the ronin attacked Kira Yoshinaka's mansion in Edo. According to a carefully laid-out plan, they split up into two groups and attacked, armed with swords and bows. One group, led by ?ishi, was to attack the front gate; the other, led by his son, ?ishi Chikara, was to attack the house via the back gate. A drum would sound the simultaneous attack, and a whistle would signal that Kira was dead.

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Once he was dead, they planned to cut off his head, and lay it as an offering on their master's tomb. They would then turn themselves in, and wait for their expected sentence of death. All this had been confirmed at a final dinner, where ?ishi had asked them to be careful, and spare women, children and other helpless people.

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?ishi had four men scale the fence and enter the porter's lodge, capturing and tying up the guard there. He then sent messengers to all the neighbouring houses, to explain that they were not robbers, but retainers out to avenge the death of their master, and no harm would come to anyone else; they were all perfectly safe. His neighbours, who all hated Kira, did nothing.

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After posting archers (some on the roof), to prevent those in the house (who had not yet woken up) from sending for help, ?ishi sounded the drum to start the attack. Ten of Kira's retainers held off the party attacking the house from the front, but ?ishi Chikara's party broke into the back of the house.

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Kira, in terror, took refuge in a closet in the verandah, along with his wife and female servants. The rest of his retainers, who slept in a barracks outside, attempted to come into the house to his rescue. After overcoming the defenders at the front of the house, the two parties of father and son joined up, and fought with the retainers who came in. The latter, perceiving that they were losing, tried to send for help, but their messengers were killed by the archers posted to prevent that.

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Eventually, after a fierce struggle, the last of Kira's retainers was subdued; in the process they killed sixteen of Kira's men and wounded twenty-two, including his grandson. Of Kira, however, there was no sign. They searched the house, but all they found were crying women and children. They began to despair, but ?ishi checked Kira's bed, and it was still warm, so he knew he could not be far.

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The death of Kira

A renewed search disclosed an entrance to a secret courtyard hidden behind a large scroll; the courtyard held a small building for storing charcoal and firewood, where two more hidden armed retainers were overcome and killed. A search of the building disclosed a man hiding; he attacked the searcher with a dagger, but was easily disarmed.

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He refused to say who he was, but the searchers felt sure it was Kira, and sounded the whistle. The ronin gathered, and ?ishi, with a lantern, saw that it was indeed Kira - as a final proof, his head bore the scar from Asano's attack.

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At that, ?ishi went on his knees, and in consideration of Kira's high rank, respectfully addressed him, telling him they were retainers of Asano, come to avenge him as true samurai should, and inviting Kira to die as a true samurai should, by killing himself. ?ishi indicated he personally would act as a second, and offered him the same dagger that Asano had used to kill himself.

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However, no matter how much they entreated him, Kira crouched, speechless and trembling. At last, seeing it was useless to ask, ?ishi ordered the ronin to pin him down, and killed him by cutting off his head with the dagger. They then extinguished all the lamps and fires in the house (lest any cause the house to catch fire, and start a general fire that would harm the neighbours), and left, taking the head. One of the ronin, the youngest, was ordered to travel to Ak? and inform them that their revenge had been completed.

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The aftermath

As day was now breaking, they quickly carried Kira's head to their lord's grave in Sengaku-ji temple, causing a great stir on the way. The story quickly went around as to what had happened, and everyone on their path praised them, and offered them refreshment.

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On arriving at the temple, the remaining forty-six ronin washed and cleaned Kira's head in a well, and laid it, and the fateful dagger, before Asano's tomb. They then offered prayers at the temple, and gave the abbot of the temple all the money they had left, asking him to bury them decently, and offer prayers for them. They then turned themselves in; the group was broken into four parts and put under guard of four different daimyos.

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During this time, two friends of Kira came to collect his head for burial; the temple still has the original receipt for the head, which the friends and the priests who dealt with them all signed.

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The shogunate officials were in a quandary. The samurai had followed the precepts of bushido (by avenging the death of their lord) but also defied shogunate authority (by exacting revenge which had been prohibited). In addition, the Shogun received a number of petitions from the admiring populace on behalf of the ronin. However, as expected, they were sentenced to death, but the Shogun had finally resolved the quandary by ordering them to honorably commit seppuku, instead of having them executed as criminals.

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The forty-six ronin did so on February 4, 1703. (This has caused a considerable amount of confusion ever since, with some people referring to the "forty-six ronin"; this refers to the group put to death by the Shogun, the actual attack party numbered forty-seven.) They were also buried in Sengaku-ji temple, as they had requested, in front of the tomb of their master. The forty-seventh ronin eventually returned from his mission, and was pardoned by the Shogun (some say on account of his youth). He lived until the age of seventy-eight, and was then buried with his comrades.

Related Topics:
February 4 - 1703

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The clothes and arms they wore are still preserved in the temple to this day, along with the drum and whistle; the armor was all home-made, as they had not wanted to possibly arouse suspicion by purchasing any.

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The tombs became a place of great veneration, and people flocked there to pray. One of those who came was a Satsuma man, the same one who had mocked and spat on ?ishi as he lay drunk in the street. Addressing the grave, he begged for forgiveness for his actions, and for thinking that ?ishi was not a true samurai. He then committed suicide, and is buried next to the graves of the ronin.

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Re-establishment of the Asano's lordship

Though this act is often viewed as an act of loyalty, there had been a second goal, re-establishing the Asano's lordship and finding a place to serve for fellow samurai. Hundreds of samurai who had served under Asano had been left workless and many were unable to find a job as they had served for a disgraced family. Many lived as farmers or did simple handcrafts to make ends meet. The 47 ronin's act cleared their names and many of the unemployed samurai found a job offering soon after the ronin had been sentenced to an honorable end. Asano Daigaku Nagahiro, Takuminokami's young brother and adopted son as heir was allowed by Tokugawa Shogunate to establish his name, though his territory was reduced to a tenth of the original.

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