User:太西/Gosho no Gorōmaru

Gosho no Gorōmaru (御所 五郎丸) was a samurai of the late Heian and early Kamakura period. He is best known for saving the shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo during the Revenge of Soga Brothers incident in 1193. His imina is Shigemune (重宗) but he is best known by his azana Gorōmaru.

Life
According to Jūbankiri, Gorōmaru was born in 1176.

In May 1193, Gorōmaru, who had become a close vassal to shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo, participated in the grand hunting event Fuji no Makigari held by Yoritomo.

On May 28 of the same year, the Soga brothers took their revenge and killed Kudō Yūsuke on the last night of Fuji no Makigari. After the brothers killed ten other participants, the elder brother Soga Sukenari was shot by Yūsuke's subordinate Nitta Tadatsune. The younger brother Soga Tokimune killed all the samurai one by one who attempted to stop him, and broke into Yoritomo's living quarters. However, Gorōmaru, who was in Yoritomo's bedchamber, took Tokimune down on his own, thus ending the massacre and saving the shogun from a possible assassination attempt.



Gorōmaru is said to have been a tough warrior who was an excellent horse-rider, and a man of valor with the strength of 75 people. Jūbankiri further describes Gorōmaru capturing Soga Tokimune saying, "He is eighteen years old, but has the strength of eighty-five people".



In Soga Monogatari, it is written that Gorōmaru put a women's usuginu (a thin robe) over his haramaki armor, supposedly dressing as a woman catching Tokimune off guard. It is said that this was against the morals of samurai (bushido), and Gorōmaru was exiled from Kamakura to Yagoshima in Kai Province. However, the Kamakura period Azuma Kagami and the early version of Soga Monogatari do not mention Gorōmaru dresssing as a woman, and was most likely added later for dramatization.

According to the Hengaku Kihan written in the Edo period, Gorōmaru was born in Kyoto and later lived in Kai Province at Amari-shō manor with Ichijō Tadayori before serving Yoritomo. It is said that Gorōmaru became a vassal to Yoritomo after Yoritomo killed Tadayori in 1184.



The remains of Gorōmaru's mansion can be found at Gosho no Gorōmaru Park located in Gosho-ga-oka, Koshigoe, Kamakura, Kanagawa Prefecture. There is a stone monument and large stones, which are said to be the garden stones of the mansion. The place name of Gosho-ga-oka derives from Gorōmaru's mansion. There is also Gosho Tanuki Park nearby in Gosho, Koshigoe.

Resting place
In Goshoyama-chō, Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, there is a tombstone of Gosho no Gorōmaru, which is protected by the local Goshoyama-chō-kai. It is said that Gorōmaru lived in the Goshoyama area. The tomb shrine was built by 80 city residents and took a year to complete.

There is a tombstone of Gosho no Gorōmaru in Yagoshima, Minami-Alps, Yamanashi Prefecture. In front of the tomb is a temple dedicated to Kannon, with a statue of Kannon Bodhisattva, which is said to protect Gosho no Gorōmaru. Locals hold an annual memorial service for Gorōmaru at the end of August.

Genealogy
The descendants of Gosho no Gorōmaru are the famous clan of Toyokawa-mura, Usa-gun, Buzen Province. They descended to Kyūshū with Ōtomo Yoshinao, who was also a gokenin of Yoritomo like Gorōmaru. Later, they moved to Owari Province where they served as the sōbugyō (general magistrate) and daikan (deputy officer) of Atsuta Shrine, living in the Atsuta Palace. Gorōmaru's descendant, saishu (head priest) Hataya Daifu appears in a 1334 document, and Moribe Sukune Gorōmaru in 1442, who succeeded the position of ōuchibito.

Theater
Gorōmaru appears in noh and kabuki "Sogamono" (曽我もの) as an important supporting character in the Revenge of Soga Brothers.


 * "Soga Moyōtateshi no Gosho-zome" (曽我綉侠御所染), commonly known as "Gosho no Gorozō", the protagonist Gosho no Gorozō is modeled after Gosho no Gorōmaru.


 * "Soga Kyōgen" (曽我狂言) is as story about the Revenge of Soga Brothers in which Gosho no Gorozō is a supporting character.

Film

 * "Soga-kyōdai Fuji no Yashū" (曽我兄弟 富士の夜襲), Toei film, Fushimi Sentarō as Gosho no Gorōmaru, Director: Yasushi Sasaki, (1956)

Art
Gosho no Gorōmaru has been the subject of several ukiyo-e paintings. The most famous include the following:


 * Soga Gorō and Gosho no Gorōmaru (1794) by Sharaku
 * Warriors Trembling with Courage: Soga Tokimune and Gosho no Gorōmaru (1886) by Tsukioka Yoshitoshi
 * Buei Moyu Kagami by Utagawa Kuniyoshi