© Copyright Robert Cole 1998 - No copying or
distributing -Note: Missing
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SUE-BIZEN - incomplete
The SENGOKU Era
When one talks of SUE-BIZEN, one talks of that that was before
the SENGOKU - and the SENGOKU.
From the relative peace of the BUN-MEI, the SENGOKU arose from
about 1490 to a crescendo in the mid/late 1500s. ODA NOBUNAGA
solidified an amorphous social and military fabric, crushing and
starving fragmenting alliances to unify the country through the
1560s and '70s. His life and those of his times would power one
of the great periods of Japanese history. See SENGOKU
The SENGOKU, in turn, would earn for swords their lowest period
in history. However, this dark reputation is really just a numbers
game. Always look at the sword for its truth. The great pieces of
the SENGOKU, for their style, can equal the best of any era.
Important Names: SAKYOnoSHIN MUNEMITSU
UKYOnoSUKE KATSUMITSU
JIROZAEMON KATSUMITSU
HIKOBEI TADAMITSU
GOROZAEMON KIYOMITSU
GENBEI SUKESADA
YOZOZAEMON SUKESADA
TAI-EI 1521_____
____|____ ____|____
NAGAMITSU SUKEMITSU
____|____ ____|___
NAGAMITSU SUKESADA
_________ ____|___
CHIKATADA EI-SHO 1504 SUKESADA
___|_____ ____|___
YOSHIKAGE TEN-MON 1532 SUKESADA
____________________
GOROZAEMON KIYOMITSU TEN-MON 1532
|_____________________
____|____ _______________|____
KIYOMITSU YOZOZAEMON SUKEMITSU (f: KIYOMITSU,
____|____ EI-ROKU 1558 adopted by: SUKEMITSU)
KIYOMITSU See SUKEMITSU
Beyond the shift of political power and social revolution of
KEI-CHO, it is said that the withering of the long BIZEN sword
tradition was caused by the tragic YOSHII-GAWA DAI-KOZUI "Great
Flood" of the YOSHII River in TEN-SHO 18, 1590. Of the more than
150 sword producing families spread over the province, only one
BIZEN SUKESADA is reliably known to have survived to leave works
and progeny to the TOKUGAWA Era. There were others, but they
migrated to the new seats of power, ...leaving BIZEN to its past.
