Kondō Isami

{{short description|Japanese swordsman (1834–1868)}} {{family name hatnote|Kondō|lang=Japanese}} {{Infobox officeholder | name = Kondō Isami | native_name = 近藤勇 | native_name_lang = ja | image = Kondo Isami02.jpg | caption = Kondō Isami (1834–1868) | order = [[Shinsengumi|Shinsengumi Commander]] | term_start = 1863 | term_end = 1868 | predecessor = none (Briefly, office held jointly with [[Serizawa Kamo]] and [[Niimi Nishiki]]) | pronunciation = | birth_name = Miyagawa Katsugorō | birth_place = [[Chōfu, Tokyo|Kamiishihara Village]], [[Musashi Province]], [[Tokugawa Shogunate]] | birth_date = {{birth date|mf=y|1834|11|09}} | death_date = {{death date and age|mf=y|1868|5|17|1834|11|9}} | death_place = [[Itabashi execution grounds]], [[Itabashi]], [[Edo]], [[Japan]] | death_cause = [[Decapitation]] | resting_place = [[Dead body|body]]: Ryugenji Temple, Osawa, [[Mitaka, Tokyo|Mitaka]], [[Tokyo]], Japan [[head]]: [[Hozoji]] Temple, [[Okazaki, Aichi|Okazaki]], [[Aichi Prefecture]], [[Tokugawa Shogunate|Japan]] | resting_place_coordinates = | citizenship = | party = | other_party =  | height =  | spouse = {{marriage|[[Matsui Tsune]]|1860|1868}} | partner = Miyuki Oko | relations = [[Kondō Shūsuke]] (adoptive father) [[Kondō Fude]] (adoptive mother) Kondō Hisatarō (grandson) | children = {{unbulleted list|[[Kondō Tama]] (daughter)|Oyu (daughter), ''with Oko''}} | parents =  | mother = Miyagawa Miyo | father = Miyagawa Hisajirō | relatives = Miyagawa Rie (sister) [[Miyagawa Otogorō]] (brother) [[Miyagawa Sōbei]] (brother) [[Kondō Yūgorō]] (nephew) | education = | alma_mater = | occupation = | profession = | known_for = Commander of [[Shinsengumi]] | salary = | net_worth =  | cabinet = | committees = | portfolio = | awards =  | blank1 = Other names | data1 = Shimazaki Katsuta Shimazaki Isami Fujiwara no Yoshitake | blank2 = Alias | data2 = Okubo Tsuyoshi Okubo Yamato | blank3 = | data3 = | blank4 = | data4 = | blank5 = | data5 = | signature = | signature_alt = | website =  | nickname = | allegiance = [[Tokugawa bakufu]] | branch = [[Rōshigumi]] (former) [[Mibu Rōshigumi]] (former) [[Shinsengumi]] | service_years = 1863–1868 | rank = [[Wakadoshiyori]] | unit = | commands = [[Mibu Rōshigumi]] (former) [[Shinsengumi]] | battles = [[Ikedaya incident]] [[Kinmon incident]] [[Second Chōshū expedition]] [[Boshin War]] {{bulleted list|[[Battle of Toba–Fushimi]]|[[Battle of Kōshū-Katsunuma]]}} | mawards =  | military_blank1 = | military_data1 = | military_blank2 = | military_data2 = | military_blank3 = | military_data3 = | military_blank4 = | military_data4 = | military_blank5 = | military_data5 =  | module = | module2 = | module3 = | module4 = | module5 = | footnotes = }} {{nihongo|'''Kondō Isami'''|{{linktext|近|藤}} {{linktext|勇}}||November 9, 1834 – May 17, 1868}} was a Japanese [[swordsman]] and [[samurai]] of the late [[Edo period]]. He was the fourth generation master of [[Tennen Rishin-ryū]] and was famed for his role as commander of the [[Shinsengumi]].<ref name="Stephane Lun 2021">[[Stephane Lun (2021)]] "A Guide on Shinsengumi: the background and management." [Kindle paperwhite version] Retrieved from amazon.com</ref>

==Background==  [[File:Birthplace of Isami Kondo.JPG|left|thumb|Birthplace of Kondo Isami in [[Chōfu, Tokyo|Chōfu]]]] He was born Miyagawa Katsugorō to a farmer Miyagawa Hisajirō and his wife Miyo<ref>Ōishi Manabu 大石学, ''Shinsengumi: saigo no bushi no jitsuzō'' 新選組: 最後の武士の実像. (Tokyo: Chuōkōron-shinsha, 2004), p. 21</ref> in Kami-Ishihara village in [[Musashi Province]] (present city of [[Chōfu, Tokyo|Chōfu]]) in [[Western Tokyo]] on November 9, 1834.<ref>Kojima Masataka 小島政孝. ''Shinsengumi yowa'' 新選組余話. (Tokyo: Kojima-Shiryōkan 小島資料館, 1991), p. 10</ref> He had two older brothers, Otojirō (音次郎; later known as Otogorō 音五郎) and Kumezō (粂蔵; later known as Sōbei 惣兵衛) and an older sister Rie (リエ), who died two years before he was born.<ref>Ōishi, p. 22</ref> Katsugorō began training at the [[Shieikan]] (the main dojo of the [[Tennen Rishin-ryū]]) in 1848.<ref>''Shinsengumi dai zenshi'' 新選組大全史. (Tokyo; Shin Jinbutsu Oraisha, 2003) p. 27; Ōishi, p. 22.</ref>

[[File:Kondo Isami.jpg|thumb|Kondo Isami (1834–1868)]]

As a young man he was said to be an avid reader, and especially liked the stories of the ''[[Forty-seven rōnin]]'' and the ''[[Romance of the Three Kingdoms]]''.<ref>Kojima, p.14</ref> His renown as a scholar and his fame at having defeated a group of thieves who tried to break into his family home was great, and caught the attention of [[Kondō Shūsuke]], the third generation master of the Tennen Rishin-ryū.<ref>''Shinsengumi dai zenshi'', p. 27</ref> Shūsuke wasted no time in adopting the young Katsugorō in 1849, who first took the name of Shimazaki Katsuta (島崎勝太).<ref>Kojima, p.95-96.</ref> According to a record in the possession of the former Gozu-tennōsha Shrine 牛頭天王社 (now the Hino Yasaka-jinja Shrine 日野八坂神社), Katsuta is listed, with full common name and formal name, as Shimazaki Isami Fujiwara (no) Yoshitake (島崎勇藤原義武), and thus, had the name Isami (勇) as of 1858, the document's date.<ref>Ōishi, p. 22.</ref>

Kondō was said to have owned a [[katana]] called "Kotetsu" ([[:ja:長曽祢虎徹 (近藤勇佩刀)|虎徹]]), the work of the 17th century swordsmith [[Nagasone Kotetsu]]. However, the [[Authentication|authenticity]] of his "Kotetsu" is highly debatable. According to Yasu Kizu's pamphlet on the swordmaker Kotetsu, Kondō's sword may actually have been made by [[Minamoto no Kiyomaro]], a swordmaker of high repute roughly contemporary to Kondō.<ref>Yasu Kizu, ''Swordsmith Nagasone Kotetsu Okisato'' (Hollywood: W.M. Hawley Publications, 1990), p. 9</ref>

Kondō married Matsui Tsune in 1860.<ref>''Shinsengumi dai zenshi'', p.35</ref> This was an advantageous match for Kondō as Otsune was the daughter of [[Matsui Yasogorō]] (松井八十五郎), a retainer to the [[Gosankyo|Shimizu-Tokugawa]] clan.<ref>Ōishi, p. 24.</ref> On September 30, 1861,<ref>27 August, Bunkyū 1 (1861), by the old lunar calendar. See Ōishi, p. 24.</ref> Isami became the fourth generation master (''sōke no yondai me'' 宗家四代目) of Tennen Rishin-ryū, assuming the name Kondō Isami and taking charge of the Shieikan.<ref>''Shinsengumi dai zenshi'', p.27; Ōishi, p. 24.</ref> A year later, his daughter [[Kondō Tama]] (1862–1886) was born.<ref>''Shinsengumi dai zenshi'', p.36; Ōishi, p. 24.</ref>

[[File:Coat of mail of Kondo Isami.jpg|thumb|A kusari-katabira (chainmail) and hachi-gane (forehead protector) used by Kondō Isami]]

Although he was never employed by the Shogunate before his Shinsengumi days, Kondō was a candidate for a teaching position at the [[Kōbusho]] in 1862.<ref>"Kondō Hijikata to Okita no Shinsengumi" 近藤・土方・沖田の新選組. ''Rekishi Dokuhon'', December 2004, p.62.</ref> The Kobusho was an exclusive military training school, primarily for the use of the shogunal retainers, set up by the Shogunate in 1855 in order to reform the military system after the arrival of [[Matthew Calbraith Perry|Perry]]'s [[Black Ships]].<ref>G. Cameron Hurst III. ''Armed martial arts of Japan''. (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1998), pp. 148–152.</ref>

==Shinsengumi period== In 1863, the [[Tokugawa shogunate]] organized a massive group of ''[[rōnin]]'' for the purpose of protecting the shōgun [[Tokugawa Iemochi|Iemochi]] during his time in Kyoto.<ref>''Shinsengumi dai zenshi'', p. 38</ref> Kondō joined the unit, which became known as the [[Rōshigumi]], with his close friend [[Hijikata Toshizō]], as well as Shieikan's members and guests [[Yamanami Keisuke]], [[Okita Sōji]], [[Harada Sanosuke]], [[Nagakura Shinpachi]], [[Tōdō Heisuke]], and [[Inoue Genzaburō]].<ref name="Stephane Lun 2021"/> After the de facto commander [[Kiyokawa Hachirō]] revealed their true purpose as being Imperial supporters, the Rōshigumi was disbanded and most of the members returned to Edo. Kondō, Hijikata, former Mito retainer [[Serizawa Kamo]], and a handful of others remained in [[Kyoto]] and formed the [[Mibu Rōshigumi]].<ref>Kojima, pp. 39–40</ref> Acting under the direct orders of the shogunate,<ref>Yamakawa Hiroshi 山川浩. ''Kyōto Shugoshoku Shimatsu'' 京都守護職始末. ed. Tōyama Shigeki (Tokyo: Heibonsha, 1966), p. 87</ref> [[Matsudaira Katamori]] of [[Aizu]] undertook supervision of these men. Under the oversight of Aizu, acting in its role as [[Kyoto Shugoshoku|Protector of Kyoto]], they worked as police in the imperial capital.<ref>''Shinsengumi dai zenshi'', p. 45</ref>

On August 18, his unit was given the name ''Shinsengumi''.<ref>''Shinsengumi dai zenshi'', pp. 52–53</ref> In July 1864, the Shinsengumi became well known for arresting a cell of [[Shishi (organization)|shishi]] (the incident was known as the ''[[Ikedaya Jiken]]'', or Ikedaya Affair).<ref>''Shinsengumi dai zenshi'', p. 56–59</ref>

Kondō later had at least two mistresses in Kyoto, Miyuki and Oko, who were both [[geisha]]s, with the latter he had an illegitimate daughter named Oyu, who would later become a geisha as well at [[Gion]].

On July 10, 1867,<ref>6-month, 10-day, 1867 by the lunar calendar. See Ōishi, p. 160.</ref> Kondō became a [[hatamoto]], along with the rest of the Shinsengumi.<ref>Ōishi, p. 160.</ref>

After suffering a gunshot wound at the [[Battle of Toba–Fushimi]] in January 1868, Kondō returned to [[Edo]]. There he met with the military commander [[Katsu Kaishū]] and was promoted to the rank of [[wakadoshiyori]] (''wakadoshiyori-kaku'' 若年寄格) in the rapidly disintegrating Tokugawa administration.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.tamahito.com/isami.htm|title=近藤勇 KONDO|website=www.tamahito.com|access-date=Apr 30, 2019}}</ref> Kondō created a new unit, {{nihongo|[[Kōyō Chinbutai]]|甲陽鎮撫隊|Pacification Corps}}, based on the surviving remnants of the Shinsengumi and led them under the alias of '''Okubo Tsuyoshi'''. They departed from Edo for [[Kōfu Castle]] on March 24 on orders to suppress uprisings there. Upon receiving news on March 28 that Kōfu Castle had been taken by [[Imperial Court (Japan)|Imperial Court]] forces led by [[Itagaki Taisuke]], they settled at a town of Katsunuma five miles east of Kōfu.

On March 29, 1868, Kondō and his unit were attacked by the Imperial forces at the [[Battle of Kōshū-Katsunuma]], holding out for about two hours but ultimately losing. They narrowly escaped from the battle and retreated to Edo.

On April 11, 1868, Kondō, Hijikata and their unit departed Edo again and set up temporary headquarters at the Kaneko family estate, northeast of Edo. Kondō later changed his alias from Okubo Tsuyoshi to '''Okubo Yamato'''.

Later on April 25, 1868, they moved to a new headquarters in [[Nagareyama, Chiba|Nagareyama]].

==Execution== While training at Nagareyama on April 26, 1868, Kondo and his unit were caught by surprise by Imperial forces. The vice-chief of staff [[Arima Tota]] of [[Satsuma Domain]] suspected that "Okubo Yamato" was Kondō himself, and ordered him brought back to the Imperial forces camp at [[Koshigaya]]. Kondō was then taken to [[Itabashi]] on April 27, 1868, for questioning. On the same day Hijikata went to Edo to see Katsu Kaishū and asked for his help in getting a pardon for Kondō. The following day, April 28, a messenger arrived at Itabashi with a letter seemingly written by Katsu requesting that Kondō's life be spared. However, the messenger was arrested and the request was denied.

Kondō was put on trial on April 30, 1868, and declared guilty. As a result, Kondō was beheaded by the executioner Yokokura Kisoji at the [[Itabashi execution grounds]] on May 17, 1868.<ref>Kojima, p.91</ref> Among the crowd witnessing his execution was his nephew [[Miyagawa Yūgorō]]. Kondō's head was put on a pike for public display.

Three days later on May 20, 1868, Kondō's body was claimed by his nephew to be taken back to Osawa, Edo to be buried, while his head was salted and moved to [[Kyoto]], where it was displayed on a pike on [[Sanjō Ōhashi]].

While on display on the bridge, Kondō's head was taken away by [[Saitō Hajime]], who would later ask the priest Sonku Giten to hold a memorial service for him. The head was taken by the priest when he moved to [[Okazaki, Aichi|Okazaki]], [[Aichi Prefecture]], and buried in a small mound behind the [[Hozoji]] temple.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://nippon-kichi.jp/article_list.do;jsessionid=AAEBDDBC27703E1F0035088955DF47FB?kwd=944|title=日本吉 - NIPPON-KICHI|website=nippon-kichi.jp|access-date=Apr 30, 2019}}</ref>

According to [[Tani Tateki]] (1837–1911) of the [[Tosa Domain]], Kondō was arrested and executed by the new government (formed mostly by samurai from [[Chōshū Domain|Chōshū han]] and [[Satsuma domain|Satsuma han]]) as a direct result of being accused of the assassination of [[Sakamoto Ryōma]]. Tani continued to insist that Kondō was responsible for the killing even after former [[Mimawarigumi]] member Imai Nobuo confessed in 1870.

==Grave memorials== [[File:Grave of Isami Kondo.JPG|thumb|Kondo Isami's memorial grave in [[Aizu]]]] Kondō has at least four grave sites; it is believed that the first of them was the grave erected at Ten'nei-ji Temple (天寧寺) in [[Aizu]] by [[Hijikata Toshizō]].<ref name=kisamihaka>{{Cite web|url=https://www.city.aizuwakamatsu.fukushima.jp/j/rekishi/shinsengumi/shiseki/kisamihaka.html|title=天寧寺「近藤勇の墓」|website=www.city.aizuwakamatsu.fukushima.jp|access-date=Apr 30, 2019|archive-date=September 20, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190920221525/https://www.city.aizuwakamatsu.fukushima.jp/j/rekishi/shinsengumi/shiseki/kisamihaka.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> Hijikata, was convalescing nearby from an injury sustained at the [[Battle of Utsunomiya]], brought Kondō's hair there and was said to have personally supervised the preparation and construction of the site.<ref name=kisamihaka/> Kondō's funerary name, ''Kanten'inden'junchūseigi-daikōji'' (貫天院殿純忠誠義大居士) is believed to have been granted by [[Matsudaira Katamori]].<ref name=kisamihaka/>

Another grave site is located at Ryugenji Temple in Osawa, [[Mitaka, Tokyo|Mitaka]], [[Tokyo]] where his body was brought by his nephew and buried with his family.

A grave mound containing Kondō's head is located behind the [[Hozoji]] temple in [[Okazaki, Aichi|Okazaki]], [[Aichi Prefecture]], [[Japan]].

[[File:Itabashi Execution Grounds.JPG|thumb|Isami Kondo's memorial grave at Graves of Shinsengumi in [[Itabashi]]]]

Another grave is located on the memorial known as ''Grave of Shinsengumi'', in front of [[Itabashi Station]] near the location of former [[Itabashi execution grounds]]. It was erected in 1875 by [[Nagakura Shinpachi]], with the help of [[Matsumoto Ryōjun]] and several surviving former Shinsengumi members including Saitō Hajime. It memorializes Kondō and Hijikata Toshizō.

==Legacy== In 1876, Kondō's 14-year-old daughter Kondō Tama married his nephew Miyagawa Yūgorō, who succeed him as a fifth generation master of Tennen Rishin-ryū and took the name of Kondō Yūgorō. Kondō Yūgorō established his own dojo, Hatsuunkan, in Kami-ishihara (present day [[Chōfu, Tokyo|Chōfu]], Tokyo). Tama and Yūgorō's only child, a son named Kondō Hisatarō, was born in 1883. Kondō Tama died three years later in 1886 and Yūgorō later remarried at least twice.

In 1905, Kondō Hisatarō was [[killed in action]] in the [[Russo-Japanese War]] at the age of 22. This marked the end of the Kondō Isami bloodline.<ref>Romulus Hillsborough. ''Shinsengumi: The Shogun's Last Samurai Corps.'' (North Clarendon: Tuttle Publishing, 2005), p. 183</ref>

==In fiction== Kondō Isami is often depicted in fiction, across different media, including television, film, books, [[anime]], and [[manga]].

The [[NHK]] [[Taiga drama]] ''[[Shinsengumi!]]'' depicted the life of Kondō.

Kondō Isa''o'' from ''[[Gintama]]'' is roughly based on him. He also appears in the video-game-turned-anime series ''[[Hakuouki Shinsengumi Kitan]]''. Kondō also makes appearances in the series ''[[Kaze Hikaru]]'' and ''[[Peacemaker Kurogane]]'', among others. Kondō is briefly mentioned in the anime series ''[[Soar High! Isami]]'' by the main characters' ancestors who are also members of the Shinsengumi. The female protagonist of the series, Isami Hanaoka, is named after and based on him. He is briefly shown in the anime ''[[Golden Kamuy]]''. Kondō is portrayed by and modelled after [[Eiichiro Funakoshi]] in the video game ''[[Yakuza Ishin|Ryu ga Gotoku Ishin!]]'', serving as a major character in the plot of the game. In the remake, ''[[Like a Dragon: Ishin!#Remake|Like a Dragon: Ishin!]]'', he is instead voiced by [[Akio Otsuka]] and has the likeness of Koichi Adachi, a character from ''[[Yakuza: Like A Dragon]]''.

Kondō Isami appeared in ''[[Rurouni Kenshin: The Beginning]]'' in 2021. He was portrayed by [[Takahiro Fujimoto]].

Kondō Isami appeared in Record of Ragnarok: Season 2. Kondō is depicted as one of humanity's greatest warriors; sent to fight the mythological Gods for the fate of humanity.

Kondō Isami appeared in the 2024 drama "With You I Bloom: The Shinsengumi Youth Chronicle" based on the 1963 Shinsengumi manga by [[Osamu Tezuka]]. He was portrayed by Akira Takano.<ref>https://www.tv-asahi.co.jp/kimiyuki/</ref>

==Notes== {{Reflist}}

==Further reading== *Kikuchi Akira 菊池明. ''Shinsengumi 101 no Nazo'' 新選組101の謎. Tokyo: Shin Jinbutsu Oraisha, 2000. *Kojima Masataka 小島政孝. ''Shinsengumi yowa'' 新選組余話. Tokyo: Kojima-Shiryōkan 小島資料館, 1991 *Ōishi Manabu 大石学. ''Shinsengumi: saigo no bushi no jitsuzō'' 新選組: 最後の武士の実像. Tokyo: [[Chuokoron Shinsha|Chūōkōron-shinsha]], 2004. *Yasu Kizu. ''Swordsmith Nagasone Kotetsu Okisato''. Hollywood: W.M. Hawley Publications, 1990. * "Kondō Hijikata to Okita no Shinsengumi" 近藤・土方・沖田の新選組. ''Rekishi Dokuhon'', December 2004. *''Shinsengumi dai zenshi'' 新選組大全史. Tokyo; Shin Jinbutsu Oraisha, 2003. {{ISBN|4-404-03065-7}} *''Shinsengumi Jiten'' 新選組事典. Tokyo: Shin Jinbutsu Oraisha, 1978. * Stephane Lun 倫世豪. ''A Guide on Shinsengumi: the background and management''. 2021 Kindle Paperwhite version. Amazon.com

==Links== * [https://shinsengumijapan.com SHINSENGUMI] 新選組 Shinsengumi Website

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kondo, Isami}} [[Category:1834 births]] [[Category:1868 deaths]] [[Category:Hatamoto]] [[Category:Shinsengumi]] [[Category:People executed by Japan by decapitation]] [[Category:19th-century executions by Japan]] [[Category:People of the Boshin War]] [[Category:Japanese swordfighters]] [[Category:Wakadoshiyori]] [[Category:Executed Japanese people]] [[Category:People from Chōfu]] [[Category:People from Western Tokyo]] [[Category:Tennen Rishin-ryū]]