The Much Admired Retainer. Honda Tadakatsu (1548 – 1610)
Six years younger than Tokugawa Ieyasu, and the same age as another of the Shitenno*, Sakakibara Yasumasa, Honda Tadakatsu is said to have fought in the thick of 57 battles, but was never once injured.
In 1572, Tokugawa Ieyasu encountered a large contingent of samurai under rival Takeda Shingen near Hitokotozaka (modern-day Iwata City, Shizuoka Prefecture) forcing him to retreat back to his base at Hamamatsu Castle (Hamamatsu City, Shizuoka Pref.). It was Honda Tadakatsu, then just 25-years-old, who acted as a rear-guard decoy allowing Ieyasu to escape, and stopped the Takeda force from advancing without the loss of a single man. The audacious act brought praise from even the enemy Takeda, who noted that “Tadakatsu’s talents are wasted on the Tokugawa,” and that, “There are only two things above Ieyasu,…his helmet and Honda Tadakatsu.”
This statue represents Tadakatsu’s heroic battle stance.
*Shitenno, also known as the “Four Heavenly Kings”, were the four loyal generals who played a major role supporting Tokugawa Ieyasu’s efforts in the unification of Japan.
Okazaki Castle Outer Moat Enclosure >
The Much Admired Retainer. Honda Tadakatsu (1548 – 1610)
Six years younger than Tokugawa Ieyasu, and the same age as another of the Shitenno*, Sakakibara Yasumasa, Honda Tadakatsu is said to have fought in the thick of 57 battles, but was never once injured.
In 1572, Tokugawa Ieyasu encountered a large contingent of samurai under rival Takeda Shingen near Hitokotozaka (modern-day Iwata City, Shizuoka Prefecture) forcing him to retreat back to his base at Hamamatsu Castle (Hamamatsu City, Shizuoka Pref.). It was Honda Tadakatsu, then just 25-years-old, who acted as a rear-guard decoy allowing Ieyasu to escape, and stopped the Takeda force from advancing without the loss of a single man. The audacious act brought praise from even the enemy Takeda, who noted that “Tadakatsu’s talents are wasted on the Tokugawa,” and that, “There are only two things above Ieyasu,…his helmet and Honda Tadakatsu.”
This statue represents Tadakatsu’s heroic battle stance.
*Shitenno, also known as the “Four Heavenly Kings”, were the four loyal generals who played a major role supporting Tokugawa Ieyasu’s efforts in the unification of Japan.