Date Masamune

In 1567, Date Masamune was born at Yonezawa Castle in Dewa Province (present-day Yonezawa, Yamagata Prefecture).
He was roughly 30 years younger than Nobunaga, Hideyoshi, and Ieyasu, born as the Sengoku period was nearing its end.
His father was Date Terumune, the 16th head of the Date clan, and his mother was the daughter of Mogami Yoshimori, a Sengoku daimyo of Dewa Province.

As a child, when he called himself “Bontenmaru,” he contracted smallpox and lost sight in his right eye.
Smallpox was a terrifying viral infection that caused pustules across the body, and at the time is said to have killed 40%–50% of those infected.
He survived, but is believed to have gone blind due to pustules around the eye.
Feeling self-conscious about his blindness, Masamune became a shy boy.

What changed him was Kosai Soitsu, invited by his father Date Terumune.
As a mentor in the arts, Kosai taught him Buddhism, Chinese learning, and literature, and also showed him how to live as a warrior.
Exposed to learning from a young age, Masamune developed deep cultural knowledge in Chinese poetry, waka, and Noh, and became someone others took notice of even as a boy.

In 1577, upon coming of age, he was named “Date Tojiro Masamune.”
“Jiro” was a name traditionally used by successive heads of the Date clan, while “Masamune” is said to have been taken from Date Masamune, the 9th head who restored the clan when it had declined.

In 1579, when Masamune was 13, he married Megohime, the daughter of Tamura Kiyoaki, lord of Miharu in Tamura District (present-day Miharu, Fukushima Prefecture).
Megohime’s biological mother was the daughter of Soma Akitane, the 14th head of the Soma clan, which repeatedly clashed with the Date. The marriage was political, aimed at weakening the Soma side.

After the marriage, Megohime spent much of her life moving from place to place as Masamune’s hostage to maintain good relations with the ruling power of the day.
Though they were apart more than they were together, Masamune and Megohime had four children.

In 1590, Toyotomi Hideyoshi launched the Odawara Campaign to destroy the Hojo clan.
Masamune also received a letter from Hideyoshi ordering him to join. He was 23 at the time.

However, the Hojo were a major Kanto power, and had been allied with the Date since the days of Masamune’s father, Date Terumune.
So Masamune faced two choices.
One, “ally with the Hojo and fight, even if it means total defeat.”
Two, “join Hideyoshi for now and look for an opening.”

Choosing to submit to Hideyoshi, Masamune arrived in Odawara in June.
But by then the Hojo defeat was all but certain, and Masamune’s late arrival angered Hideyoshi.
As a result, while the Date avoided being the next target after the Hojo, Hideyoshi confiscated part of Masamune’s lands, including Aizu.

After Toyotomi Hideyoshi’s death, Masamune served Tokugawa Ieyasu.
In 1599, Masamune’s eldest daughter Irohahime was engaged to Ieyasu’s sixth son, Matsudaira Tadateru, showing Masamune’s intent to deepen ties with the Tokugawa.
This can be seen as contributing to the foundations of the future Edo shogunate.

When the Battle of Sekigahara broke out in 1600, Masamune fought Naoe Kanetsugu of the Yonezawa Domain in the Tohoku region.
Around this time, Ieyasu granted him an “approval for one million koku,” allowing Masamune to claim any territory he won in battle.
However, Masamune was later found to have secretly encouraged uprisings to expand his lands, and he ultimately secured only a 620,000-koku domain.
Even after Ieyasu’s death, Masamune served the Tokugawa for three generations—Hidetada and Iemitsu—showing steady loyalty.

After securing a 620,000-koku domain from the Tokugawa, Masamune moved his base to Sendai Castle.
There, he became the first lord of the Sendai Domain.

Masamune gave up on taking national power and focused on developing new rice fields in Sendai.
He also worked to improve shrines and temples and raise living standards, and by advancing civil engineering projects he helped build routes to transport crops to Edo.
Rice produced in the Sendai Domain flowed to Edo, and it is even said that one-third of the rice consumed in Edo was Oshu rice from Sendai.

After devoting himself to governing the Sendai Domain, Masamune’s health began to decline around 1634.
In 1636, when he headed to Edo for sankin-kotai, the third shogun Tokugawa Iemitsu was so shocked by his condition that he reportedly summoned dozens of doctors the next day.
Masamune did not recover, and Iemitsu himself visited the domain residence in Edo to see him.

Later that year, just over a month after the sankin-kotai journey, Masamune passed away.
His cause of death is said to have been esophageal cancer or carcinomatous peritonitis.
He never retired, remaining active to the very end.

Modern fiction often depicts him with an eyepatch, but historical records do not show him covering his eye.

Because Masamune had sight in only one eye, he came to be called “The One-Eyed Dragon,” a name said to reference a fierce Tang dynasty general who was also one-eyed.

There are theories that local Miyagi specialties like zunda, Sendai miso, and datemaki were devised by Date Masamune.

It’s said he smoked regularly four times a day. After smoking, he polished his own smoking tools and put them back in the pipe case.
At his mausoleum, Zuihoden, an ornate pipe case and bamboo cleaning tools were found.

Sendai Castle was built by order of Date Masamune.
Also known as “Aoba Castle,” it served as the center of domain government for 270 years.
Today the area is a park, home to one of Sendai’s best-known symbols, the equestrian statue of Date Masamune, which is lit up at night.

Entsuin Temple was built in 1647 as the family temple of Date Mitsumune, Masamune’s grandson.
Known for autumn leaves, it’s at its best from late October to mid-November, making it a great spot to visit in fall.

Zuihoden is the mausoleum of Date Masamune, founder of the Sendai Domain.
After Masamune died in 1636, it was built the following year by the second lord, Tadamune, following Masamune’s final wishes.
Zuihoden was designated a National Treasure in 1931, but was destroyed in the Sendai air raid in 1945. The current building was reconstructed in 1979, based on the original design.