| Amakusa Shirō | |
|---|---|
 | |
|
Real Name |
Masuda Shirō Tokisada |
|
Born |
1621 |
|
Died |
April 12, 1638 |
Origin[]
Masuda Shirō Tokisada, also known as Amakusa Shirō, was a Japanese Christian of the Edo period and leader of the Shimabara Rebellion, an uprising of Japanese Roman Catholics against the Shogunate. His Christian name was Geronimo and was later known as Francisco. The uprising led by Shirō was defeated, and he was executed at the age of 17. His head was displayed on a pike near Nagasaki as a warning to Christians.
Shirō was born in 1621 as the son of Catholic parents, Masuda Jinbei, a former Konishi clan retainer, and his wife. Urban legend speculates that Shirō could have been the illegitimate son of Toyotomi Hideyori, but these claims have little credibility. Portuguese Jesuit missionaries had been active in Japan since the late 16th century. By the age of 15, the charismatic youth was known to his Japanese Catholic followers as "Heaven's messenger". Miraculous powers were attributed to him.
He became the leader of the Shimabara Rebellion, a 1637 uprising of Christians in Nagasaki, but One of the rebel soldiers, Yamada Emosaku, betrayed Shirō. He got a message to the Shogunate that rebel food supplies were running low. The Shogunate forces made a final assault, taking Hara Castle. In the process, the army of the Tokugawa Shogunate massacred almost 40,000 rebels, and Shiro was captured and beheaded.
See Also[]
- Wikipedia
- Wikipedia (Makai Tensho)
- Kamen Rider Wiki
- Historica Wiki