Nakano Takeko

Nakano Takeko
Nakano Takeko, the woman warrior of Aizu
Native name 中野 竹子
Born April 1847 (1847)
Edo, Japan
Died October 16, 1868(1868-10-16) (aged 21)
Aizu, Japan
Buried head: Hōkai-ji, Aizubange, Fukushima, Japan
Allegiance Aizu Domain
Service/branch Jōshitai
Years of service 1868
Battles/wars Battle of Aizu
Memorials Nakano Takeko Monument
Statue of Nakano Takeko
Relations Nakano Heinai (father)
Takako (mother)
Nakano Toyomi (brother)
Nakano Yūko (sister)
Akaoka Daisuke (adoptive father)

Nakano Takeko (中野 竹子, April 1847 – 16 October 1868) was a Japanese female warrior of the Aizu Domain, who fought and died during the Boshin War.

History

Nakano, born in Edo, was the eldest daughter of Nakano Heinai, an Aizu official and his wife Takako. She was thoroughly trained in the martial and literary arts, and was adopted by her teacher Akaoka Daisuke (Tadayoshi).[1] After working with her adoptive father as a martial arts instructor during the 1860s, Nakano entered Aizu for the first time in 1868.[1]

During the Battle of Aizu, she fought with a naginata (a Japanese polearm) and was the leader of an ad hoc corps of female combatants who fought in the battle independently, as the senior Aizu retainers did not allow them to fight as an official part of the domain's army.[2] This unit was later retroactively called the Jōshitai (娘子隊, Women's Army).

Death

While leading a charge against Imperial Japanese Army troops of the Ōgaki Domain,[3] she was fatally shot in the chest. Rather than let the enemy capture her head as a trophy, she asked her sister, Yūko, to cut it off and have it buried. It was taken to Hōkai Temple (in modern-day Aizubange, Fukushima) and buried under a pine tree.[1]

Monument

Nakano Takeko Monument at Hōkai-ji, Aizubange, Fukushima, Japan

A monument to her was erected beside her grave at Hōkai Temple; Aizu native and Imperial Japanese Navy admiral Dewa Shigetō was involved in its construction.[1]

Photo of unknown onna bugeisha (most likely an actress) who was often mistakenly identified as Nakano Takeko
Nakano Takeko Statue at Hōkai-ji, Aizubange, Fukushima, Japan

Legacy

Nakano had a kill count of 172 samurai.

During the annual Aizu Autumn Festival, a group of young girls wearing hakama and shiro headbands take part in the procession, commemorating the actions of Nakano and her band of women fighters of the Joshigun.


References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Yamakawa Kenjirō; Munekawa Toraji (1926). Hoshū Aizu Byakkotai jūkyūshi-den. Wakamatsu: Aizu Chōrei Gikai. pp. 63–64.
  2. ↑ Hoshi Ryōichi (2006). Onnatachi no Aizusensō. Tokyo: Heibonsha. p. 80.
  3. ↑ Yamakawa Kenjirō; Munekawa Toraji (1926). Hoshū Aizu Byakkotai jūkyūshi-den. Wakamatsu: Aizu Chōrei Gikai. p. 69.

Further reading

  • Hoffman, Michael (October 9, 2011). "Women warriors of Japan". The Japan Times.
  • Kincaid, Chris (August 9, 2015). "Japan's Warrior Women". Japan Powered. (incl. "The Women's Army – the Joshigun")
  • Smithsonian Institution (2015). "Samurai Warrior Queens". Smithsonian Channel.
  • Szczepanski, Kallie (April 1, 2017). "Images of Samurai Women". ThoughtCo.
  • "The Last Woman Samurai". Womankind (# 3). February–April 2015.
  • Samurai Warrior Queens TRAILER. Urban Canyons. YouTube.
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