Biography of Yoshitsune
(Hodo Yoshitsune
koi no Minamoto ichidaiki, 程義経戀源)
1848-1853
Minamoto
Yoshitsune (1159-1189) was a warrior whose tragic life has been fictionalized
in many plays and novels. He was placed
in a monastery after his father’s death in an unsuccessful revolt against the
dictatorship of Taira Kiyomori, but Yoshitsune escaped and in 1180 joined a
rebellion against the Taira Clan launched by his brother Minamoto
Yoritomo. Yoshitsune’s first
spectacularly successful campaign was against his cousin Yoshinaka in
1184. That same year he led an assault
on the Taira forces camped at Ichinotani, demoralizing and dispersing
them. In 1185, he finally annihilated
the Taira in the naval battle of Dannoura.
Yoshitsune was forced into an unsuccessful rebellion against his brother
Yoritomo in 1185. He eventually
committed suicide in 1189 after killing his wife and daughter. The prints in this series are each about 14
by 10 inches (36 by 25 centimeters), a size known as ôban.
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Scene: The
flight of Tokiwa-gozen through the snow with her three children, Imawaka,
Otowaka and Ushiwaka Publisher:
Iba-ya Kyûbei Robinson:
S65.1 |
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Scene: The
tengu king (here called Kibune no
keshin meaning incarnation of Kibune) giving Ushiwaka a fencing lesson Title: The
Secrets of Strategy: Chapter Two (San
ryaku den dai ni, 三略傳 第二) Publisher:
Iba-ya Kyûbei Robinson:
S65.2 NOTE: Tengu are forest-dwelling creatures
that are either human-like with wings and long noses or bird-like. Kibune is a mountain just north of |
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Scene:
Yoshitsune clinging to the branch of a tree kicks over Mitsuma no Daita who
later became his retainer Kisanda Title: The
Secrets of Strategy: Chapter Three (San
ryaku den dai san, 三略傳 第三) Publisher:
Iba-ya Kyûbei Robinson:
S65.3 |
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Scene:
Kawachi Kakutei on the lookout in a pine tree with Chôhan and his gang below Title: The
Secrets of Strategy: Chapter Four (San
ryaku den dai yon, 三略傳 第四) Publisher:
Iba-ya Kyûbei Robinson:
S65.4 |
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Another state of the above
print published by Jôshû-ya Jûzô (seal bottom center) |
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Scene:
Yoshitsune with drawn sword in his room at an inn with Kumasaka Chôhan
outside Title: The
Secrets of Strategy (San ryaku den,
三略伝) Publisher:
Iba-ya Kyûbei Robinson:
S65.5 |
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Scene: The
beautiful 15-year-old Jôruri-hime helping Yoshitsune wash his hands Title: The
Secrets of Strategy: Chapter Six (San ryaku den dai roku, 三略傳 第六) Publisher:
Jôshû-ya Jûzô Robinson:
S65.6 |
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This is another version of
the above print. The background is
much darker with the landscape in the background being shadowy rather than
misty. The harsh synthetic inks
indicate that this is a later printing.
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Scene:
Yokogawa no Kankai attacking Yoshitsune from behind Title: The
Secrets of Strategy (San ryaku den,
三略伝) Publisher:
Jôshû-ya Jûzô Robinson:
S65.7 |
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Scene:
Yoshitsune displaying his horsemanship before Fujiwara no Hidehira at the
latter’s castle in Mutsu Title: The
Secrets of Strategy (San ryaku den,
三略伝) Publisher:
Jôshû-ya Jûzô Robinson:
S65.8 |
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Scene:
Yoshitsune with an open fan and Benkei with a naginata fighting on Title: The
Secrets of Strategy: Chapter Thirteen (San
ryaku den jyu san, 三略傳 十三) Publisher:
Jôshû-ya Jûzô Robinson:
S65.9 |
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Another state of the above
print. |
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Scene:
Yoshitsune and Benkei fighting with swords Title: The
Secrets of Strategy (San ryaku den,
三略伝) Publisher:
Iba-ya Kyûbei Robinson:
S65.10 |
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Scene: Yoshitsune
discovers Washio Saburô at Hiyodori-goye trussing up a wild boar before the Title: The
Secrets of Strategy (San ryaku den,
三略伝) Publisher:
Jôshû-ya Jûzô Robinson:
S65.11 |
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Scene:
Yoshitsune with Benkei and other followers under the cherry-blossoms at Suma
after the Title: The
Secrets of Strategy (San ryaku den,
三略伝) Publisher:
Jôshû-ya Jûzô Robinson:
S65.12 |
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Scene:
Yoshitsune’s eight boat leap to escape from Noritsune at the Title: The
Secrets of Strategy (San ryaku den,
三略伝) Publisher:
Jôshû-ya Jûzô Robinson:
S65.13 |
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Scene:
Yoshitsune and Shidzuka-gozen defending themselves against the night attack
at Horikawa by Tosa-bô Shôshun Title: The
Secrets of Strategy (San ryaku den,
三略伝) Publisher:
Jôshû-ya Jûzô Robinson:
S65.14 |
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Scene: The
ghosts of Taira warriors–some in the form of crabs–attacking Yoshitsune and
Benkei at Title: The
Secrets of Strategy (San ryaku den,
三略伝) Publisher:
Jôshû-ya Jûzô Robinson:
S65.15 |
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Scene:
Satô Tadanobu wearing Yoshitsune’s armor leaps down upon the warrior-monk
Yokogawa Kakuhan at Yoshino Title: The
Secrets of Strategy (San ryaku den,
三略伝) Publisher:
Jôshû-ya Jûzô Robinson:
S65.16 |
“Robinson” refers to listing in Kuniyoshi: The Warrior-Prints by Basil William Robinson (Cornell University Press, Ithaca, NY, 1982) and its privately published supplement.
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