Hojo Soun (Ise Moritoki)
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N 35° 15.419 E 139° 09.268
54S E 332110 N 3903103
Located outside the Odawara train station. Hojo Soun was a 15th century Samurai.
Waymark Code: WM39RJ
Location: Kanagawa, Japan
Date Posted: 03/02/2008
Views: 50
From Wikipedia.com (
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Hojo Soun (1432 – September 8, 1519) was the first head of the late Hojo clan, one of the major powers in Japan's Sengoku period. Born Ise Moritoki, he was originally known as Ise Shinkuro, a samurai of Taira lineage from a family of little importance or power, he fought his way up, gaining territory and changing his name to the illustrious Hojo.
According to some sources, he was a lowly samurai or ronin, but he had some important family connections. His sister was married to Imagawa Yoshitada, a member of a fairly powerful samurai family. When Yoshitada died in battle in 1476, Shinkuro mediated the succession dispute between supporters of Yoshitada's son Imagawa Ujichika and Yoshitada's cousin, Oshika Norimitsu. This proved a temporary peace. When Norimitsu again attempted to gain control of the Imagawa clan, Soun came to Ujichika's defense, killing Norimitsu. Soun was rewarded by Ujichika with Kokukuji castle. He gained control of Izu Province in 1493, avenging a wrong committed by a member of the Ashikaga family which held the shogunate. With Soun's successful invasion is Izu province, he is credited by most historians as being the first "Sengoku Daimyo".
Soon afterwards, he secured Odawara, the castle which would become the center of the Hojo family's domains for nearly a century. Supposedly, he seized the castle after arranging for its lord to be murdered while out hunting. Soun then took Kamakura, the old Shogunal capital, in 1512, and the castle of Arai in 1518.
Soun died the following year, and passed on the newly build Hojo domains to his son Ujitsuna, who subsequently changed the clan name from the original Ise to Hojo and postumously renamed his father to Hojo Soun.