Who was The Last Samurai

Introduction

The Meiji Restoration played an important role in modernizing Japan because it brought an end to the period of bushis or warriors. Out of the people who were involved in the Meiji Restoration, three figures stand out for their great achievements; Saigō Takamori, Ōkubo Toshimitsu and Kido Takayoshi (Katsura Kogorō), referred to as the “Three Great Nobles of the Restoration”.

Saigō Takamori in particular, displayed the spirit of what it means to serve as a faithful bushi until the very end. As a general, he took part in the Seinan War (also known as the Satsuma Rebillion), which was the last rebellion of the bushis, and with the realization of defeat, he took responsibility by killing himself.

In this article, we will be looking into episodes that show how Saigō Takamori is indeed the last bushi in history.

Japan’s Last Samurai “Saigō Takamori”

Saigō Takamori is the leading figure of the Meiji Restoration, but in the end he was the commander of the Seinan War. As the general on the bushi’s side who fought heroically until his death in the last and great battle of bushis referred to as the Seinan War, he is also called the “last samurai”.

Saigō Takamori was born on January 23, 1828 as the eldest son of the Saigō family, a low class samurai family of the Satsuma Domain. He worked as a junior officer of Satsuma because of his family’s background. However, he is chosen to accompany the feudal lord Shimazu Nariakira on his way to Edo for alternate attendance.

In Edo, Saigō Takamori studies national affairs under various figures including Shimazu. He begins to work for Shimazu as a director and eventually becomes a leading spirit of restoration. With Shimazu’s death, he was temporarily exiled to an island and was unable to interfere with national affairs.

The Kinmon Incident occurs against the shogunate’s army when the Chōshū Domain attempts to cram into the Imperial Palace where the Emperor resides. Saigō quells the rebellion by having Satsuma take a neutral position. Ever since the Kinmon Incident, Saigō began to work as one of the leading figures of the Meiji Restoration.

Out of Saigō’s achievements, he is especially famous for the establishment of the Satchō Alliance (the alliance between the feudal domains of Satsuma and Chōshū), and the bloodless surrender of the Edo Castle. However, Saigō leaves the government due to conflict of opinions with Iwakura Tomomi, and opens a private school in Kagoshima. His school was chosen by many students who respected Saigō. He eventually becomes the commander of the Seinan War and takes responsibility for the defeat in the form of a suicide.

Childhood〜Days of Youth

Saigō Takamori was born on January 23, 1828 as the eldest son of Saigō Kichibei Takamori, a low class samurai who lived in a Satsuma castle town in Kagoshima called Kajiyachō. Because a friend had accidentally submitted his documents for receiving a rank under the name of Saigo’s father, he received the same name as his father, Takamori.

Saigō brushed up his swordfighting skills in the Gōjyū, an educational method of Satsuma. However, when he was out with some friends for a shrine visit, they got involved in a quarrel. Saigō intervenes to settle the quarrel only to get badly cut in the right arm. The cut had reached his nerves, and although Saigō escaped death, he was no longer able to grab a sword.

This is when Saigō gave up on swordfighting and switched to focusing on his studies.

In the course of focusing on his studies, Saigō meets Ōkubo Toshimitchi. They begin to repeatedly exchange opinions in Zōshikan school, a school established by the Gōjyū and Satsuma.

Later on, Saigō became a Gunkata clerk as a low rank retainer. In Satsuma, internal struggles such as the Oyura Feud occur. As Saigō learns the doctrine of Wang Yang-Ming and Zen, he decides to succeed the last wishes of Akayama Yukie who was involved in the Oyura Feud.

Saigō, to deepen his knowledge along with Ōkubo forms a reading society to read in turns the “Kinshiroku”, which is a book of Chinese thoughts, considered to be the beginner’s guide to neo-Confucianism.

And to inherit Akayama Yukie’s will, he began to wish for Shimazu Nariakira’s promotion to become the feudal lord.

Times with Shimazu Nariakira

In 1844, Saigō was appointed as a Gunkata clerk. This position involved estimating the volume of rice which was to be paid as taxes by the farmers. Through this job, Saigō realized how tough the lives of farmers are, as well as the political contradictions of the government.

In 1851, Shimazu Nariakira became the feudal lord of Satsuma. Saigō repeatedly submitted written opinions requesting for revisions in the domain’s government. This caught the attention of Shimazu, hence the reason why he ordered Saigō to accompany him for alternate attendance.

In Edo, Saigō is assigned the position of Oniwakata of Satsuma’s residence, which was the job of a security guard as well as cleaning the gardens. Saigō also worked as Shimazu’s secretary in addition to his Oniwakata duties. As a secretary, he was able to learn more about politics from Shimazu.

Saigō, who had become somewhat of a close advisor to Shimazu, meets Fujita Tōko of the Mito Domain in Edo. Fujita had inherited Mitogaku (academic traditions of Mito) from his father Fujita Yūkoku, and advocated “Sonnō Jōi” which was the argument to revere the emperor and expel the foreigners. Saigō had learnt the doctrine of “Sonnō Jōi” from Fujita Tōko.

In 1856, Atsuhime, the adopted daughter of Shimazu got married to Tokugawa Iesada, the 13th shōgun of the Tokugawa shogunate. With this marriage, Shimazu was planning to form a centralized government dominated by the Edo Shogunate beginning with the 14th Tokugawa shōgun, Tokugawa Yoshinobu.

To realize Shimazu’s dream, Saigō decides to ask for the help of the monk, Gesshō. He works to get Tokugawa Yoshinobu to become the next shōgun; however this ends in failure. Furthermore, the political situation was about to completely change with Ii Nosuke of Hikone Domain becoming the tairō or chief minister.

Ii Naosuke selects Tokugawa Iemochi as the next shōgun, and he oppresses the Hitsotsubashi group that supported Tokugawa Yoshinoobu to make him the next shōgun. Sensing the possibility of an attack on Satsuma by the shogunate, Shimazu has his men engage in military exercises in preparation for battle, but passes away soon after.

Saigō hears about the passing of Shimazu in Kyoto. As his potential blossomed under Shimazu and he was in the process of realizing Shimazu’s dream, Saigō is deeply shocked by his death. He makes a decision to follow Shimazu to the grave.

Exile to Tokunoshima・Okinoerabujima

Although Saigō was planning to follow Shimazu to the grave, Gesshō the monk persuades him against it; Saigō decides to carry on Shimazu’s will instead. Meanwhile, Ii Naosuke who had become the tairō signs the Treaty of Amity and Commerce with the United States which led to people reacting against his policies.

Ii increases oppression of the people involved in the rebellion. This is known as the Ansei Purge. Ii began to assassinate the members of the Hitotsubashi group, as well as people against the Treaty of Amity and Commerce with the United States. Gesshō was also included in this list.

Saigō, who is requested by the Konoe family of Kyoto to protect Gesshō, returns to Satsuma. However, Satsuma was under the control of Shimazu Narioki who was wielding his power. He ordered Saigō to banish Gesshō to Himukanokuni which was in fact an order to assassinate Gesshō on the borders of Satsuma and Himukanokuni.

The two were in despair and on their way to Himukanokuni, they jumped off their boat into the Kinkō Bay to drown themselves. Gesshō dies but Saigō survives. Satsuma dismissed him, and he was banished to Amami Ōshima. In order to escape the eyes of the shogunate, he begins to live under the name Kikuchi Gengo.

Saigō gradually got used to life on Amami Ōshima. Meanwhile, Ōkubo Toshimitsu gives advice to Shimazu Hisamitsu, who was the feudal lord of Satsuma at that time; the advice was to summon Saigō. Saigō who returned to Satsuma insists that Shimazu Hisamitsu should not go to Edo. This incurs the displeasure of Hisamitsu.

Later on, Saigō refuses to go to Edo but with Ōkubo’s persuasion, joins him in the end. Saigō is given orders to wait in Shimonoseki; however, when he hears of the situation in Kyoto, he disobeys and heads towards the city. Hisamitsu, enraged with Saigō disregarding his orders, arrests him and exiles him to Tokunoshima.

In Kyoto, the Teradaya Incident occurs. Hisamitsu purges the Satsuma feudal retainers who were supporters of Sonnō Jōi. Following this, Saigō was sent off even further to Okinoerabujima.

The Kinmon Incident and The Chōshū Conquest

In Okinoerabujima, Saigō suffers poor conditions in prison and falls ill from being exposed to the wind and rain. With the help of an acquaintance, he improves the state of the prison building, and regains his health. Life on the island becomes even better with the arrival of many of his school juniors from Gōjyū.

Meanwhile in Satsuma, the Conservative Party had fallen due to the Anglo-Satsuma War. Due to the incident in Kyoto, Satsuma had gained a notorious reputation, and Hisamitsu tried to work towards making peace. As they were short handed and also because Ōkubo had given him advice, Hisamitsu decides to forgive Saigō and requests him to return.

Upon his return, Saigō is appointed as the military commander of Satsuma and heads to Kyoto. Surprised to discover the reputational damage of Satsuma in Kyoto, Saigō abides by the orders of the Imperial Court. He restricts the actions of a Satsuma merchant as he was one of the reasons for Satsuma’s bad reputation.

In the meanwhile, the feudal retainers of Chōshū had been banished from Kyoto with the Political Change of August 18. They attempt to remove Matsudaira Katamori, the military governor of Kyoto. In 1864, the feudal retainers of Chōshū raised an army, and a battle erupted in areas of the Kyoto Imperial Palace such as the Hamaguri-gomon Gate. This is called the “Kinmon Incident” (or “Hamaguri-gomon Incident”).

During the Kinmon Incident, Saigō takes a neutral position. After repelling the Chōshū force, he sent off Satsuma warriors to various places for rescue. This is when Saigō gets wounded from a gunshot. By Saigō’s actions during this event, the Imperial Court now stood in a neutral position.

An order is made to hunt down and kill the members of Chōshū who had become the Emperor’s enemy with the Kinmon Incident. Yoshinobu orders troops to head towards Chōshū. This is referred to as the “First Conquest of Chōshū”. Saigō proposes a compromise plan to Chōshū and receives permission from Yoshinobu to proceed with this plan. In the end, the problem was settled by Chōshū going under the custody of the Fukuoka Domain.

In 1866, Saigō made a secret agreement with Katsura Kogorō with the mediation of Sakamoto Ryōma. This was the Establishment of the Satchō Alliance. The shogunate engages in a discussion with Chōshū but this comes down to a rupture. So, the shogunate once again invades Chōshū; this was the “Second Conquest of Chōshū”.

The shogun’s army invades Chōshū from every direction but suffers against the cavalry led by Takasugi Shinsaku, and Ōmura Masujiro’s troops. In the midst of the battle, 14th Tokugawa shōgun, Tokugawa Iemochi suddenly passes away in Osaka Castle bringing about a cease-fire. Satsuma had also advised the Imperial Court to have Saigō stop his attack on Chōshū.

In the Second Conquest of Chōshū, the shogunate was defeated, and their authority declined. Concurrently, Chōshū was forgiven by the Emperor’s enemies which gave them the momentum to completely bring down the shogunate. This was to lead to their cooperation with Satsuma.

The Outbreak of The Boshin War

In 1867, Saigō met up with Itagaki Taisuke and Tani Kanjō of the Tosa Domain to discuss and enter into a secret treaty to attack the shogunate. This is the Satsuma Tosa Pact (Satto Mitsuyaku). A month later however, he formed an alliance with Sakamoto Ryōma and Gotō Shōjirō of Tosa. This gave them a reason to overthrow the shogunate due to restoration of imperial rule (Taisei Restoration).

These secret treaties with Tosa were in conflict with one another. Saigō had made arrangements so that he could handle the situation either way. On October 14, 1867, Yamauchi Yōdō of Tosa submitted a petition for restoration of imperial rule to the 15th Tokugawa shōgun, Tokugawa Yoshinobu. Yoshinobu reported to the Imperial Court and the Tasei Restoration was finally implemented.

The Imperial Court accepts the Taisei Restoration. Following this, Saigō leads 3000 men and enters Kyoto, pulls a few strings with the other domains involved in the plan, and just when the security of the palace was being replaced, declares the decree for the restoration of imperial rule.

The Kogosho Conference was held in the evening of the same day. It was decided that Yoshinobu was to return his titles (as Naidaijin minister) and land to the Emperor. This enraged the shogunate retainer as well as men of his army. Yoshinobu moves to Osaka Castle to settle them down.

Saigō informs Tani Kanjō that the Satsuma, Geishū, and Chōshū Domains were all given orders to hunt down and defeat the shogunate. He encouraged Itagaki Taisuke, who had fallen from power by then, to become the commander-in-chief and join the attack as agreed in the Satto Mitsuyaku.

The former shogunate army began to head to Edo from Osaka Castle. In January 1868, the Battle of Toba-Fushimi occurred in Toba and Fushimi of Kyoto with the clash between the former shogunate army and the new government army. Yoshinobu escapes to Edo on the ship Kaiyōmaru taking with him a few of his vassals.

The new government gives orders to search and kill Yoshinobu, and marches forward to Edo. Saigō has a conference with shogunate retainer, Katsu Kaishū, and succeeds in the bloodless surrender of the Edo Castle. Soon after, Saigō clashes with the Shōgitai (a group of former shogunate retainers), and they fight in the Battle of Ueno.

Saigō returned to Kagoshima after his victory in the Battle of Ueno, but was requested to take command in the Bōshin War. He was also ordered to join the Battle of Hakodate but by the time he arrived, the Goryōkaku Fortress had surrendered and the Bōshin War finally came to an end.

Reformation of Government and the Abolition of Feudal Domains, Establishment of Prefectures

Following the Bōshin War, Saigō is asked to remain by the new Meiji government but declines the offer and returns to Kagoshima. He is appointed as the daisanji (second to a governor) of Kagoshima Satsuma Domain. However, after a series of incidents, his brother Saigō Tsugumichi persuades him to serve the new Meiji government.

Saigō leaves Kagoshima in 1871, engages in conferences with various people from all over the country such as Kōchi and Kōbe, and arrives in what has become Tokyo. In Tokyo, he established the Goshinpei (imperial guards) to protect the Emperor’s residence. For this preparation, he once again returns to Kagoshima.

Later on, Saigō comes back to Tokyo with 5000 soldiers he had gathered from Satsuma and Chōshū. Not only were the Goshinpei placed in Tokyo, but garrisons were placed in Tōhoku and Kyūshū. This made it possible for the new government to carry out the abolition of domains and establishment of prefectures.

With this achievement, Saigō remains in the new Meiji government and accomplishes various reforms in the government. Amidst all this, an incident occurs in which the Joseon Dynasty that ruled Korea, rejects a document from Japan. This not only insulted Japan, but meant that the lives of residents were in danger, and there were opinions that military suppression should be considered.

Saigō suggests going to Korea; however, the grand minister of state Sanjō Sanetomi would not approve of this decision because he feared that Saigō might get assassinated in Korea.

Saigō thought if he gets killed in Korea, Japan would be justified to defeat them by military force.

A Seikanron was held by four members of Sangi including Saigō to debate on whether Korea should be conquered by military force. However, Saigō’s opinion clashes with the opinion of Iwakura Tomomi who had just returned from an inspection abroad. The four members of Sangi resigned from the new Meij government. This is called “Meiji Jyūyonen no Seihen” (also known as the political changes of 1881).

Many people sympathized with Saigō regarding the Meiji Jyūyonen no Seihen, and returned home to Kagoshima. With this, many unemployed youths gathered in Kagoshima.　Volunteers consulted with Saigō, received permission from the prefectural governor Ōyama Tsunayoshi, and a private school was established.

The private school was under the influence of Saigō, and from here the political system called the Shigakkō Tou or faction was formed. This Shigakkō Tou began to dominate the prefectural government of Kagoshima and Kagoshima Domain.

The Satsuma Rebellion and Suicide

Branch schools of Saigō’s private school were made everywhere in Kagoshima, and gradually widened their power so much that the new government was unable to ignore them anymore. They even began to consider Shigakkō Tou to be an anti-government organization that was trying to overthrow the government.

The new government decides to send off Satsuma born officials to Satsuma under the pretext of homecoming. The executive of the Shigakkō discovers that an assassination of Saigō is being planned by these officials. He reports this to Saigō along with the fact that ammunition had been stolen from their domain the day before.

Later on, Saigō and the executives of Shigakkō decide in a discussion to fight the new government army. In 1877, the Satsuma army with Shigakkō at its center and Saigō as the commander-in-chief, began to make a move to occupy the Kumamoto Castle.

This marked the beginning of the Satsuma Rebellion (Seinan War). The Satsuma army are unable to take the impregnable Kumamoto Castle by storm even if they try to starve them into surrender. To return to Kagoshima, the Satsuma army set their defensive line on Tabaru Slope; however, they gradually lost ground as the new government army kept increasing their men, and finally they were defeated.

The Satsuma army returned to Kagoshima and barricaded themselves in Shiroyama. Nonetheless, the men of Satsuma including Saigō and the executives are shot by the new government army. Saigō, resigning to his fate, commits a seppuku and kills himself with the assistance of Beppu Shinsuke. The executives were also attacked by gunshot and killed themselves, bringing the Satsuma Rebellion to an end.

Summary

In the hopes to change Japan and to remain loyal to his lord Shimazu Nariakira as a bushi, Saigō Takamori led numerous revolts towards the end of the shogunate. His actions were to realize the ideal world that Shimazu dreamed of, and in the end he took all responsibility by killing himself in the Satsuma Rebellion.

It can be said that his death was the perfect ending as a loyal bushi or samurai. If you want to see more of this kind of bushi spirit, we recommend you watch the “samurai vs ninja” livestreaming service. You will be able to experience the strong beliefs of a bushi samurai.