Shimazu Yoshihisa

Who was Shimazu Yoshihisa?

Shimazu Yoshihisa was a daimyo of Satsuma Province and the eldest son of Shimazu Takahisa. His mother was a daughter of Iriki'in Shigesato, Sesshō. Shimazu Yoshihiro and Shimazu Toshihisa are his brothers.

His childhood name was Torajumaru but went by the name of Matasaburo. On his genpuku, he took the name of Tadayoshi but after receiving a kanji from the shogun Ashikaga Yoshiteru, changed to Yoshitatsu. He later changed his name to Yoshihisa. He married his own aunt and after her death, married his relative, a daughter of Tanegashima Tokitaka.

In 1566, he succeeded as the head of Shimazu clan after his father to become the sixteenth leader. Working together with his brother Yoshihiro, Toshihisa, and Shimazu Iehisa, he launched a campaign to unify Kyūshū. Starting in 1572 with the win against Itō clan at the battle of Kizaki, Yoshihisa would win victories after victories. In 1578, he defeated the Ōtomo clan at the battle of Mimigawa, in 1583 against Ryūzōji clan, and on 1584 against Aso clan. By the middle of the 1580s, the Shimazu clan would control most of Kyūshū with the exception of Otomo's domain and a unification was not far into the future.