The Ippon Sugi Incident and The Practice of Revenge Killing in Japan

On an unremarkable corner of the Nakasendo road in Saitama, in front of a pre-school in a bland, suburban section of the former Urawa juku sits a lone cedar tree with a stone marker bearing only the simple inscription of “Ippon Sugi” (One Cedar Tree). Seemingly in the “Not much to see here, move along…” category of historical sites, this lonely, unremarkable spot marks the location of the last legally sanctioned blood revenge killing (katakiuchi) of the Edo Period. 

The story begins in 1860, when Saichiro Miyamoto, a retainer with the Mito Domain and Yunosuke Kawanishi, a retainer of the Sanuki Marugame Domain were traveling on a ship sailing to Edo. The two were old friends who often practiced swordsmanship and drank together. During one practice session, a quarrel ensued between the two and Yonusuke, either by accident or in a bout of martial fervor, dealt a fatal blow to Saichiro, and upon arriving in Edo, fled and went into hiding.

Saichiro’s son, Kataro, applied for and received a license from the Mito Domain to avenge his father’s death, and thus granted, set off on a search for his target that would last over 4 years. Eventually, Kataro learned Yunosuke was living in a house on this spot on the Nakasendo. On the morning of January 28, 1864, Kataro, with his two brothers and his uncle, Saichiro’s younger brother, lay in wait for their target to appear and when he did, burst through the house’s outer gate and cut him down. One account of the incident suggests that, arriving in Edo following their fateful voyage, Yunosuke, overwhelmed with remorse over the death of his friend, reportedly sought to become a monk to atone for his actions. When faced with Saichiro’s avengers 4 years later, this account describes, Yunosuke did not resist his attackers but succumbed to them. Following the attack, the four then reported to the heads of Harigaya village, within the Urawa-Juku, who interrogated them. The Mito Domain residence verified Kataro’s katakiuchi license in Edo and they escorted the four attackers back home, their 4-year mission completed with no further consequences. Yunosuke was buried on the grounds of Kakushinji Temple, just one kilometer south of the Ippon Sugi marker on the Nakasendo. The Meiji government banned the practice of katakiuchi in 1873, making Kataro’s revenge killing the last sanctioned blood revenge in the Tokugawa Period.

The Codification of Vengeance in Tokugawa Japan

The concept of revenge killing had long been established in Japan but increased dramatically during the Edo Period. Many samurai, now idle, and with no wars to fight, viewed katakiuchi as a path to honor that was no longer possible on the battlefield. The shogunate had prohibited the pursuit of most “private quarrels,” as they defined katakiuchi in 1683, and had extended that prohibition to the samurai. However, the conditional, official sanction of some forms of katakiuchi supplied a loophole for satisfying the older spirit of self-redress while staying within the official bounds of the recognized social order. 

Blood revenge was a practice that was, in fact, approved, if not encouraged, by the Tokugawa shogunate, which allowed government agencies at various levels to allow vendettas. Of the sanctioned vendettas that have come down to us in the records, virtually all were undertaken by people on behalf of their relatives-for example, as in Miyamoto Kataro’s case, the revenge of a son against the murderer of his father. 

The authorities vetted circumstances of a vendetta along strict guidelines. A license for katakiuchi, for example, would not be granted if the accused was apprehended by authorities and already under the jurisdiction of shogunate justice. The act of revenge was a onetime event. Retribution could not extend to other family members or clans of the accused to avoid prolonged blood feuds that would upset social order. If the target of the vendetta had died before the avenger could do the job himself, the katakiuchi license was not transferrable to other members of the target’s family. High-ranking targets of a blood revenge could offer a hereditary servant as a surrogate for the revenge target. As one observer put it, “This could be a costly strategy, but it had the advantage of preventing a feud that could last for generations.” Unlike many other privileges granted to the warrior class, the practice extended to commoners, but was most often performed by samurai.

The government took seriously the procedures in obtaining a katakiuchi license to preserve the honorable nature of the vendetta and successful applicants often received both the legal and economic support of their domains. Their income continued uninterrupted during their quest, with assurances that their families and lands would be cared for until their return. Often, expenses for the vendetta would also be reimbursed by the domain. A revenge killing that was unregistered or unlicensed from the local domain or the shogunate was a dishonorable, criminal act that would lead not only to prosecution of the avenger but also have serious, potentially life-threatening consequences for his family and their position in society.

Following the successful completion of the avenger’s mission, he and his accomplices had to turn themselves over to the authorities, who would then verify his registration of katakiuchi with the relevant domain. As in the Ippon Sugi case, they released the assailants back into the custody of their home domain, having resolved their honor according to the law.

For the samurai, honorable conduct demanded a willingness to use violence against another in a show of strength while displaying a willingness to sacrifice one's own life in restoring one's honor or that of one's extended family. Honor, or conversely, shame, could reach beyond the warrior himself and even beyond his lifespan. Seeking a license for blood revenge was a serious and risky undertaking, not just because it involved taking a life. A successful katakiuchi could cause the rapid elevation of one's honor and prestige in the domain. However, a failed or unsanctioned attempt could bring a tremendous loss of honor that would reverberate across generations. 

Sources and Further Reading