Chushingura Characters
Chushingura has a large cast: not only the Ako ronin who avenged their lord, but also Kira Kozuke-no-Suke, the man they killed, an eyewitness who wrote down what he saw, a young man who took his own life before the attack, and the families who saw the ronin off. This page introduces who each person was, focusing on the historical figures and also giving the names used for them in the play Kanadehon Chushingura.
All characters22
Oishi Kuranosuke Yoshio
Chief retainer who led the 47 Ronin
Oishi Kuranosuke was the chief retainer (karo) of the Asano house of Ako in Harima Province and the leader of the 47 Ronin, the masterless samurai who killed Lord Kira…
Appears in 11 episodes: Episode 2, Episode 3, Episode 4, Episode 5, Episode 6, Episode 7, Episode 8, Episode 9, Episode 10, Episode 11, Episode 12Lord Asano Takumi-no-Kami Naganori Asano Takumi-no-Kami Naganori
Lord of Ako who drew his sword in the Pine Corridor
Lord Asano Takumi-no-Kami was the ruler of the Ako domain in Harima Province, worth 50,000 koku, who attacked Lord Kira Kozuke-no-Suke in the Pine Corridor of Edo…
Appears in 7 episodes: Episode 1, Episode 2, Episode 3, Episode 9, Episode 10, Episode 11, Episode 12Lord Kira Kozuke-no-Suke Yoshinaka Kira Kozuke-no-Suke Yoshinaka
Master of ceremonies targeted by the ronin
Lord Kira Kozuke-no-Suke was a shogunate retainer (hatamoto) at the center of the koke, the officials who managed ceremony and protocol for the Edo shogunate. He was…
Appears in 5 episodes: Episode 1, Episode 2, Episode 5, Episode 7, Episode 10Horibe Yasubei Taketsune
Swordsman famed for the Takadanobaba duel
Horibe Yasubei was a master swordsman who made his name in the duel at Takadanobaba, and the central figure among the Edo hard-liners in the Ako ronin who argued for…
Appears in 9 episodes: Episode 3, Episode 4, Episode 5, Episode 7, Episode 8, Episode 9, Episode 10, Episode 11, Episode 12Terasaka Kichiemon Nobuyuki
The one foot soldier who did not commit seppuku
Terasaka Kichiemon was the only one of the 47 Ronin of ashigaru (foot soldier) rank to join the raid, and the one who left the group afterward, never committed seppuku,…
Appears in 8 episodes: Episode 3, Episode 4, Episode 7, Episode 8, Episode 9, Episode 10, Episode 11, Episode 12Oishi Chikara Yoshikane
Youngest of the 47 Ronin
Oishi Chikara was the eldest son of Oishi Kuranosuke and the youngest of the 47 Ronin. At the time of the raid he was about 15 or 16 by the traditional Japanese count.
Appears in 9 episodes: Episode 3, Episode 4, Episode 5, Episode 7, Episode 8, Episode 9, Episode 10, Episode 11, Episode 12Kayano Sanpei Shigezane
The “48th ronin,” who died before the raid
Kayano Sanpei was a young retainer of the Asano house and one of the first express messengers to carry news of his lord's sword attack to Ako. He joined the vow of…
Appears in 3 episodes: Episode 2, Episode 6, Episode 7Hayami Tozaemon Mitsutaka
Master archer who raced the news to Ako
Hayami Tozaemon was one of the first express messengers to carry news of Lord Asano Takumi-no-Kami's sword attack from Edo to Ako, and later one of the 47 Ronin who…
Appears in 4 episodes: Episode 2, Episode 6, Episode 9, Episode 12Kajikawa Yosobei Yoritaru Kajikawa Yosobei Yoriteru
Eyewitness in the Pine Corridor
Kajikawa Yosobei was the hatamoto (shogunate retainer) who saw the sword attack in the Pine Corridor of Edo Castle with his own eyes and grabbed Lord Asano…
Appears in 3 episodes: Episode 1, Episode 2, Episode 10Kataoka Gengoemon Takafusa
Close attendant who saw his lord off
Kataoka Gengoemon was a personal attendant (sobayonin) who served close to Lord Asano Takumi-no-Kami and enjoyed his lord's deep trust. He is said to have been about…
Appears in 3 episodes: Episode 2, Episode 9, Episode 12Ono Kurobei Tomofusa
Finance-minded elder who fled Ako
Ono Kurobei was a senior retainer (karo) of the Asano house of Ako, a practical man skilled in managing the domain's finances. He slipped away from Ako by night before…
Appears in 2 episodes: Episode 3, Episode 4Hara Soemon Mototoki
Hard-line captain of foot soldiers
Hara Soemon was a captain of foot soldiers (ashigaru-gashira) in the Asano house of Ako and one of the express messengers who carried news of his lord's incident from…
Appears in 8 episodes: Episode 2, Episode 3, Episode 4, Episode 5, Episode 7, Episode 9, Episode 10, Episode 11Oishi Riku
Wife who stood behind Kuranosuke
Riku was the wife of Oishi Kuranosuke and the mother of Chikara and his siblings. She was born into the family of a senior retainer of the Toyooka domain in Tajima…
Appears in 4 episodes: Episode 4, Episode 5, Episode 7, Episode 8Otaka Gengo Tadao
Poet ronin who learned the date of the tea party
Otaka Gengo was one of the 47 Ronin, also known as a haiku poet under the pen name Shiyo.
Appears in 7 episodes: Episode 4, Episode 6, Episode 7, Episode 8, Episode 9, Episode 11, Episode 12Asano Daigaku Nagahiro
Last hope for reviving the Asano house
Asano Daigaku was the younger brother of Lord Asano Takumi-no-Kami, the man Oishi Kuranosuke and the others hoped would become head of a restored Asano house of Ako…
Appears in 1 episode: Episode 7Yoshida Chuzaemon Kanesuke
Veteran who guided the young commander
Yoshida Chuzaemon was one of the older senior retainers among the Ako ronin and a man Oishi Kuranosuke trusted deeply. He was also the superior of the foot soldier…
Appears in 4 episodes: Episode 9, Episode 10, Episode 11, Episode 12Hazama Jujiro Mitsuoki
Young ronin who struck Kira first
Hazama Jujiro was one of the 47 Ronin, the young man said to have been the first to strike Lord Kira Kozuke-no-Suke with his spear and to have taken his head.
Appears in 3 episodes: Episode 10, Episode 11, Episode 12Horibe Yahei Akizane
Oldest of the 47 Ronin
Horibe Yahei was a senior retainer of the Asano house of Ako and the adoptive father of Horibe Yasubei. At the time of the raid he was about 77 by the traditional…
Appears in 5 episodes: Episode 5, Episode 9, Episode 10, Episode 11, Episode 12Lady Yozei-in (Aguri) Yozei-in
Wife of Lord Asano Takumi-no-Kami
Lady Yozei-in was the wife of Lord Asano Takumi-no-Kami; her original name was Aguri. She was born into the Asano family of Miyoshi in Bingo Province.
Appears in 1 episode: Episode 8Shimizu Ichigaku
Kira retainer who died defending his lord
Shimizu Ichigaku was a young retainer of Lord Kira Kozuke-no-Suke who fought the Ako ronin on the night of the raid and was killed in the fighting.
Appears in 1 episode: Episode 9Horiuchi Den'emon
Caretaker who recorded the ronin's last days
Horiuchi Den'emon was a retainer of the Hosokawa family of the Kumamoto domain in Higo who looked after Oishi Kuranosuke and the other 16 ronin placed in Hosokawa…
Appears in 1 episode: Episode 12Oboshi Yuranosuke (in the later play) Oboshi Yuranosuke
The stage version of Oishi Kuranosuke
Oboshi Yuranosuke is a character in Kanadehon Chushingura, the classic play for bunraku puppet theater and kabuki, created as a stand-in for Oishi Kuranosuke. His name…
Appears in 1 episode: Episode 4