Talk:Akechi

About Hidemitsu
I have read a few sources (and yes including wikipedia) that says that Hidemitsu is Mitsuhide's son-in-law. I have also read who is parents and children are. Anyone care to explain about that?Black Ronin8 (talk) 12:49, April 21, 2013 (UTC)
 * To be very brief about this, Hidemitsu is a figure whose past and birthplace remain a big question mark with Japanese historians. It's likely you have only read one of the five argued theories/myths for his birth. Hidemitsu, like most of the people associated with Akechi family name, is difficult to accurately research from a historical perspective since he is mainly mentioned in gunki-monogatari (historical fiction), which isn't always 100% truth or often the lone resource said person is known for appearing in thus far. What can be verified about him for certain is that he was at least present in Mitsuhide's forces around 1581 because he was given the responsibility of looking after Mitsuhide's newly built, Fukuchiyama Castle.


 * So, in 1582, Hidemitsu was married into the Akechi name through one of Mitsuhide's daughters. It's also the main reason why he is associated with that historians accept him being associated with the Akechi name at all. Keep in mind that there are still other records which do not mention the marriage to Mitsuhide's daughter but rather to someone else under the Akechi name. It's just the marriage to Mitsuhide's daughter is the popular one. About six or seven months after his marriage was finalized, however, Hideyoshi defeated Mitsuhide at Yamazaki and Hidemitsu resisted his troops at either Azuchi or Sakamoto Castle. History says he first killed his wife and child before committing suicide.


 * Flash forward some four hundred years or so later, when a guy named Sakamoto Ryōma is becoming a big name with the Japanese people and tons of stories/novels are being written for him. One of the famous novels claims to say that the Sakamoto clan was started because Hidemitsu's son somehow escaped his father's demise. This novel names the child, Daigoro, and goes onto say that the Sakamoto family name was named so because of Hidemitsu's last stand at Sakamoto Castle. For a while, this was accepted as fact because of fanatical nationalism and sensationalized propaganda. However, historians have since asserted that this is likely complete fantasy since there are no historical records which record Hidemitsu's children with names or detail, and the Sakamoto clan doesn't have any texts which can validate that they were even present near Honnoji or Yamazaki.


 * So if you claim to "know" who Hidemitsu's parents and children, then you have likely read one of the myths/legends about them. It's not the complete story. Sake neko (talk) 18:08, April 21, 2013 (UTC)


 * Do you know where I can find a conclusive and reliable biogaphy on Hidemitsu Akechi and other memebers of the Akechi Clan?Black Ronin8 (talk) 09:48, July 2, 2013 (UTC)
 * Don't know about English. There's not even a good one in Japanese. It's best to use multiple resources rather than just try to find a comprehensive one. Things keep getting "proven" and then disproved about this clan so many times, it's not even funny.


 * I would suggest watching something like NHK World's Historia series to get a general feel of how Japan perceives these historical figures first. They are "scandalous" with movie-like dramatizations, but they offer a good outline to go by. If you can't do that, then try buying and reading the Sengoku Rekigun series. They offer the same experience, but all in Japanese text. If you really can't get those, then there's the free Wikisource that's worth a look.


 * Once you have a good summary or idea of how Japan views this era, you should have learned by now that a lot of what the Japanese media perceives of the Warring States period has been jumbled with Edo period folklore. Then it's time to break down with comparing with different accounts. Try to find different textbooks and historical records from other publishers. I don't know what to recommend exactly to you since books might be harder to get depending on where you live. There's plenty of websites offering different perspectives, however. Wikipedia and the site I linked is a good guide, but it can only go so far. So try to be creative with your search. Look for specific individuals, gravestones, swords, or whatever you think could generate a hit. It would actually be best if you could visit the castle museums in Japan, but yeah. Once you do this, it's much easier to delineate between fact and fiction.


 * This clan doesn't have a lot of surviving historical texts about its genealogy, however, so it'll be harder to say for certain what is historically true or fictional. Most of the truth surrounding this clan was buried by the victors of history. Don't worry though: not even Japanese historians feel 100% confident naming this clan's roots. Occasionally, the Japanese local news might say something new that Japanese historians have discovered, so try to keep an open mind and be aware that nothing is really considered permanent for the Warring States period unless there is a record saying that it is. Good luck with that. Sake neko (talk) 09:40, July 20, 2013 (UTC)