 | This Biography & Later records may lend undue weight to certain ideas, incidents, or controversies. The specific problem is: Heavy focus on the Ikeda clan's movements and political connections than on the figure. Too many "maybe she was there" with Sen's alleged presence without concrete evidence or reliable sources to support it. (November 2023) |
Ikeda Sen | |
|---|---|
池田せん | |
 Crest of the Ikeda clan | |
| Personal life | |
| Born | 1560s |
| Died | September 9, 1599 |
| Nationality | Japanese |
| Spouse | Mori Nagayoshi Nakamura Kazuuji |
| Children | Nakamura Kazutada |
| Parent |
|
| Religious life | |
| Religion | Buddhism |
| Dharma names | Anyōin (若御前) |
| Military career | |
| Allegiance |  Oda clan Toyotomi clan Tokugawa clan |
| Unit |  Ikeda clan |
| Commands | Commander of a female Teppō unit |
| Battles / wars | Battle of Yamazaki Battle of Shizugatake Battle of Komaki and Nagakute Battle of Gifu Castle |
Ikeda Sen (池田 せん; birth unknown – 9 September 1599),[1] or Anyōin (安養院),[1] was a late-Sengoku period onna-musha. She was the daughter of Ikeda Tsuneoki and the older sister of Ikeda Terumasa. Mori Nagayoshi (older brother of Mori Ranmaru) was her first husband. She was a woman trained in martial arts and was commander of a unit that consisted of 200 female musketeers (Teppō unit)[2]
Despite having little historical record about her life, Ikeda Sen is described as a female samurai who participated in notable military campaigns and received 10,000 koku, being a female lord or a possible daimyo.[3]
When the Sekigahara Campaign began in the fall of 1600, Ikeda Sen was said[by whom?] to have led her squad of women musketeers in other battles in which the Ikeda family participated, including the Battle of Yamazaki and the Battle of Sekigahara. If the speculation that she was present in the Sekigahara Campaign is true, she probably participated in the Battle of Gifu Castle alongside her brother and Fukushima Masanori.[2]
According to Edo's initial manuscript, ''Tōdaiki'' (当代記) or "The Present Chronicles", which recorded income from the rice wages of several warriors, Ikeda Sen received 10,000 koku. She had land in her own right, her fiefdoms with a recipe equivalent to 10,000 koku, it is considerably high for a warrior, making Sen a possible daimyo. Because there is little detail about this, Ikeda Sen's life and fate is uncertain.[3]
Genealogy
[edit] | This section needs additional citations for verification. (November 2025) |
Ikeda Sen's grandmother, Yōtoku-in (養徳院), was the wet nurse (foster mother) of Oda Nobunaga, a major daimyo. Yōtoku-in's position as Nobunaga's foster mother, exacerbated the wealth of the Ikeda clan and its political influence.
Sen's father, Ikeda Tsuneoki, served Oda Nobuhide, Oda Nobunaga, and Toyotomi Hideyoshi. He was one of the elders of Kiyosu Castle, and later became the lord of Inuyama and Ogaki Castles. Her younger brother, Ikeda Terumasa would become the lord of Yoshida Castle in Mikawa province.
Sen's brother, Terumasa, was offered a powerful political marriage, he married Tokugawa Tokuhime, the daughter of Tokugawa Ieyasu, and would become known as the ''Shogun of the West'' after building the remaining Himeji castle.
Ikeda Sen's first husband, Mori Nagayoshi, was also a famous samurai serving the Oda family. Nagayoshi served the Oda shortly after inheriting the Mori clan and became famous for his monstrous strength and ferocity. His reputation with his fellow retainers varies between a foul mannered ruffian to a man of refined penmanship. His younger brother was Nobunaga's closest page, Mori Ranmaru.
In popular culture
[edit]- Ikeda Sen appears in the Koei Tecmo video game Samurai Warriors 4 Empires and Nobunaga's Ambition.
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ a b "池田家履歴略記 上巻".
- ^ a b 荒木祐臣 (1978). 備前藩幕末維新史談 (in Japanese). 日本文敎出版.
- ^ a b "史籍雑纂. 苐二 - 国立国会図書館デジタルコレクション". dl.ndl.go.jp. Retrieved 2019-05-12.