Yamada Arinobu

Who was Yamada Arinobu?

Yamada Arinobu was a retainer of the Shimazu clan during the Edo period.

He served under Shimazu Takahisa and then under Shimazu Yoshihisa. On 1568, he became a Karo for his services.

He was known as a skilled commander in the battle. On 1578, Ōtomo Yoshishige attacked Shimazu clan and Arinobu gathered 500 troops to hold ground at Taka Castle. Managing to defend the castle led to a decline in the morale of Otomo's troops. In the battle of Mimigawa that followed, the Shimazu army defeated Otomo who retreated under heavy losses losing commanders like Kamachi Akimori from which it never recovered.

On 1586, when Toyotomi Hideyoshi launched the invasion into Kyūshū and Shimazu clan territory, Arinobu again gathered a handful of troops to take a defensive stand even after the main body of army led by Shimazu Yoshihisa had lost. Refusing to surrender to Toyotomi's troops, Arinobu surrendered only after Yoshihisa ordered surrender and offered Toyotomi his son Yamada Arinaga as hostage.

Yamada died on 1609 and it is said that Yoshihisa prayed in front of his coffin thanking him for his long service.