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of his descendants, YOSHIKYIO, settled in the TAKEDA village, and took its
name. The clan grew in strength century after century, and its fame was
the highest when TAKEDA HARUNOBU "SHINGEN" (1521-1573), took its leadership.
The story of this famous Daimyo is well-known because of Akira Kurosawa's
film" KAGEMUSHA". To face the threats of the ODA and TOKUGAWA clans on the TAKEDA clan, he asked his nephew TAKEDA KUNITSUGU to settle in AIZU (district of Fukushima) , which he did in 1574. He was justified in the following events, since in 1575 the defeat of the TAKEDA clan in NAGASHINO led to the sepukku of Daimyo KATSUYORI, son of Shingen, the annihilation of his army, and the invasion of the Kai province.
Welcomed by MORIUJI ASHINA, leader of the AIZU clan, KUNITSUGU agreed, being grateful to his host, to teach the famous martial art of the Takeda, the AIKI IN HO YO, to the high dignitaries of the AIZU clan. His descendants settled as priests in the temples of the province and handed down the secrete principles of their martial art. The central place of the teaching was the NISHINKAN dojo.
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1643, a lord called HOSHINA MASAMORI, related to a vassal of the Takeda
clan, and moreover to the Tokugawa Shogun, became the leader of the AIZU
clan. Advisor of the Tokugawa for 20 years, he made the art evolve into
an art of peacekeeping in the palace: Oshikiuchi (litteraly: defense of
the court) was born. Besides, he studied the techniques of the Hono Ha Itto ryu school of Katana, and required that every successor to the lord of AIZU passed on the teaching of those two schools. It is the SAIGO family that took care of this handing down.
Recognition was at its highest when the Shogun asked the Aizu clan to train his own guardsmen.
A member of the Takeda family, TAKEDA SOEMON (1758-1853), a shinto priest versed in several martial arts, unveiled the secrets of AIKI IN HO YO and OSHIKIUCHI to his son TAKEDA SOKICHI, and to SAIGO TANOMO of the AIZU clan. TAKEDA SOKICHI became a renowned sumotori.
AIGO
TANOMO (1829-1905) followed the teaching of SOEMON in NISHINKAN, at 10.
Later, he became O karo (great steward) of the AIZU clan, in a troubled
time when the Tokugawa shoguns were being challenged. Thus, the SATSUMA
and CHOSU clans united against the shoguns to restore the power of the emperor.
SAIGO TANOMO led the armies of the AIZU clan and fought better prepared and more numerous ennemies. He was defeated at the battle of shirakawaguchi, in 1868. Ennemy troops invaded the AIZU clan, and besieged the TSURUGAJO castle in AIZU. The clan was destroyed and most of the dignitaries were killed or commited Seppuku.
SAIGO Tanomo, having survived, retired under the name HOSHINA GENSHIN (and H. CHIKANORI), as the Great Priest of the Tokugawa temple in NIKKO (AIZU NIKKO TOSHOGU). However, his family having almost been destroyed completely, he was deprived of descent. He looked for an heir to preserve the art of the clan. This was first Shida Shiro, then Takeda Sokaku.
HIDA
SHIRO (1866-1922) was chosen as young as 9 to become the successor of SAIGO
Tanomo, and was intensively trained by him. In 1882, he changed his name
to SHIRO SAIGO. He met in 1883 Master JIGORO KANO, and was highly impressed by this teacher with modern ideas, yet very young. He then quit Daito ryu and became Jigoro Kano's student.
However, he used the techniques of Oshikiuchi during the challenges,
very frequent at that time (among those techniques, the famous "Yama arashi",
storm in the mountain). He was immortalized on the screen by A. KUROSAWA
under the name Sugata sanshiro. He also quit Judo a few years later.
AKEDA
SOKAKU (1860-1943), as a young man, was trained by his father, TAKEDA SOKICHI.
Then, he studied from 1875 to 1898 with Saigo Tanomo. He was also trained
in the Jiki shinkage Ryu school of Katana and Hozoin Ryu (art of the spear).
He was delivered the menkyo kaiden of Oshikiuchi by Saigo Tanomo in 1898.
Upon the request of Saigo Tanomo, he made the teachings of the clan's techniques
available to other people. He used the name "DAITO" - the name of the castle of the clan founder - to call his art, the word "AIKI" - refering to the ancient art of combat: AIKI IN HO YO - and "Ju-jutsu" (flexible techniques).
(refer to the biography in the "Masters of References" section).
