Kochiyama Soshun
Encyclopedia
was a historical Japanese person
. A servant at Edo Castle
in Japan, he became a model for characters in kōdan
, kabuki
, film and television. Works of fiction sometimes write the name with a different final character as 河内山宗俊 or 河内山宗心.
A man of Edo
, Sōshun served as a cha-bōzu in the administrative headquarters of the Tokugawa shogunate
. The function of a cha-bōzu was to oversee the provision of personal service and serving of meals, and to run errands, for high-ranking officials like the shogun
and daimyo
at the castle. In 1808, he lost his assignment, and formed a band of outlaws with gamblers and unruly gokenin
, engaging in extortion and other activities. He was arrested in 1823, and died in custody.
No record of the verdict against him survives. This has given authors a free hand to embellish his story. They portray him as a villain with free rein to commit crimes as he pleases, or a champion of the oppressed masses against the evil people in power. A historical treatment of him is the Kōchiyama Jitsuden. In the early Meiji period
the kōdan Tenpō
Rokka-sen was completed by Matsubayashi Hakuen II. Here, Sōshun is not a cha-bōzu but an osukiya-bōzu, a servant who overseas tea service and articles for tea ceremonies. The centerpiece of the kōdan is
Sōshun's swindling of the Matsue Domain
. In 1874, Kawatake Mokuami
added further embellishments to Hakuen's story, and the resulting kabuki play, Kumono-ueno San'e no Sakumae, had its premiere performance. Mokuami further developed the story, and in 1881, Kumo ni magou Ueno no Hatsuhana opened at the Shintomi-za in Tokyo with Ichikawa Danjūrō IX
portraying Sōshun. The play is in the current repertoire.
An early film including Sōshun as a character was the 1928 Teikoku Kinema silent Tenpō Doro Ezōshi. The 1936 Kōchiyama Sōshun
, directed by Sadao Yamanaka
, starred Kawarasaki Chōjūrō IV. Kunio Watanabe directed Roppa Furukawa in the 1951 Gokuraku Rokkasen. Four years later, the story appeared again in Kiyoshi Saeki's 1955 Toei
film Tenpō Rokudōsen Hirado no Kaizoku, starring Ryūnosuke Tsukigata
. Masahiro Makino
directed Toei's 1960 Tenpō Rokkasen Jigoku no Hanamichi, starring Utaemon Ichikawa
.
Sōshun's television debut took place in 1975, with the series Tsūkai! Kōchiyama Sōshun. Shintaro Katsu
starred in the 26-episode series on Fuji Television
. Kōji Ishizaka played the nemesis Sōshun in NHK
's 1996 Appare Yajūrō, with Hiroshi Abe
as the title character Yajūrō.
Japanese people
The are an ethnic group originating in the Japanese archipelago and are the predominant ethnic group of Japan. Worldwide, approximately 130 million people are of Japanese descent; of these, approximately 127 million are residents of Japan. People of Japanese ancestry who live in other countries...
. A servant at Edo Castle
Edo Castle
, also known as , is a flatland castle that was built in 1457 by Ōta Dōkan. It is located in Chiyoda in Tokyo, then known as Edo, Toshima District, Musashi Province. Tokugawa Ieyasu established the Tokugawa shogunate here. It was the residence of the shogun and location of the shogunate, and also...
in Japan, he became a model for characters in kōdan
Kodan
, is a style of traditional oral Japanese storytelling. The form evolved out of lectures on historical or literary topics given to high-ranking nobles of the Heian period, changing over the centuries to be adopted by the general samurai class and eventually by commoners, and eventually, by the end...
, kabuki
Kabuki
is classical Japanese dance-drama. Kabuki theatre is known for the stylization of its drama and for the elaborate make-up worn by some of its performers.The individual kanji characters, from left to right, mean sing , dance , and skill...
, film and television. Works of fiction sometimes write the name with a different final character as 河内山宗俊 or 河内山宗心.
A man of Edo
Edo
, also romanized as Yedo or Yeddo, is the former name of the Japanese capital Tokyo, and was the seat of power for the Tokugawa shogunate which ruled Japan from 1603 to 1868...
, Sōshun served as a cha-bōzu in the administrative headquarters of the Tokugawa shogunate
Tokugawa shogunate
The Tokugawa shogunate, also known as the and the , was a feudal regime of Japan established by Tokugawa Ieyasu and ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family. This period is known as the Edo period and gets its name from the capital city, Edo, which is now called Tokyo, after the name was...
. The function of a cha-bōzu was to oversee the provision of personal service and serving of meals, and to run errands, for high-ranking officials like the shogun
Shogun
A was one of the hereditary military dictators of Japan from 1192 to 1867. In this period, the shoguns, or their shikken regents , were the de facto rulers of Japan though they were nominally appointed by the emperor...
and daimyo
Daimyo
is a generic term referring to the powerful territorial lords in pre-modern Japan who ruled most of the country from their vast, hereditary land holdings...
at the castle. In 1808, he lost his assignment, and formed a band of outlaws with gamblers and unruly gokenin
Gokenin
A was initially a vassal of the shogunate of the Kamakura and the Muromachi periods. In exchange for protection and the right to become shugo or jitō , in times of peace a gokenin had the duty to protect the imperial court and Kamakura, in case of war had to fight with his forces under the...
, engaging in extortion and other activities. He was arrested in 1823, and died in custody.
No record of the verdict against him survives. This has given authors a free hand to embellish his story. They portray him as a villain with free rein to commit crimes as he pleases, or a champion of the oppressed masses against the evil people in power. A historical treatment of him is the Kōchiyama Jitsuden. In the early Meiji period
Meiji period
The , also known as the Meiji era, is a Japanese era which extended from September 1868 through July 1912. This period represents the first half of the Empire of Japan.- Meiji Restoration and the emperor :...
the kōdan Tenpō
Tenpo
was a , also known as Tempō, after Bunsei and before Kōka. The period spanned the years from December 1830 through December 1844...
Rokka-sen was completed by Matsubayashi Hakuen II. Here, Sōshun is not a cha-bōzu but an osukiya-bōzu, a servant who overseas tea service and articles for tea ceremonies. The centerpiece of the kōdan is
Sōshun's swindling of the Matsue Domain
Matsue Domain
The ' was a Japanese domain of the Edo period. It was headquartered in what is now Matsue, Shimane.-List of lords:*Horio clan, 1600-1633 #Horio Yoshiharu#Horio Tadauji#Horio Tadaharu*Kyōgoku clan, 1634-1637...
. In 1874, Kawatake Mokuami
Kawatake Mokuami
' was a Japanese dramatist of Kabuki. It has been said that "as a writer of plays of Kabuki origin, he was one of the greatest, if not the greatest, Japan has ever known." He wrote 150 or so plays over the course of his fifty year career, covering a wide variety of themes, styles, and forms,...
added further embellishments to Hakuen's story, and the resulting kabuki play, Kumono-ueno San'e no Sakumae, had its premiere performance. Mokuami further developed the story, and in 1881, Kumo ni magou Ueno no Hatsuhana opened at the Shintomi-za in Tokyo with Ichikawa Danjūrō IX
Ichikawa Danjuro IX
Ichikawa Danjūrō IX was one of the most successful and famous Kabuki actors of the Meiji period ....
portraying Sōshun. The play is in the current repertoire.
An early film including Sōshun as a character was the 1928 Teikoku Kinema silent Tenpō Doro Ezōshi. The 1936 Kōchiyama Sōshun
Kochiyama Soshun (1936 film)
is a 1936 black-and-white Japanese film directed by Sadao Yamanaka.It is one of three surviving films by Sadao Yamanaka.- Cast :* Chojuro Kawarasaki* Kanemon Nakamura* Shizue Yamagishi* Setsuko Hara as Onami- See also :* Kōchiyama Sōshun...
, directed by Sadao Yamanaka
Sadao Yamanaka
was a Japanese film director and writer who directed 24 films during a seven-year period in the 1930s. He was a contemporary of Yasujirō Ozu, Mikio Naruse and Kenji Mizoguchi and one of the primary figures in the development of the jidaigeki, or historical film. Yamanaka died of dysentary in...
, starred Kawarasaki Chōjūrō IV. Kunio Watanabe directed Roppa Furukawa in the 1951 Gokuraku Rokkasen. Four years later, the story appeared again in Kiyoshi Saeki's 1955 Toei
Toei Company
is a Japanese film, television production, and distribution corporation. Based in Tokyo, Toei owns and operates thirty-four movie theaters across Japan, a modest vertically-integrated studio system by the standards of the 1930s United States; operates studios at Tokyo and Kyoto; and is a...
film Tenpō Rokudōsen Hirado no Kaizoku, starring Ryūnosuke Tsukigata
Ryūnosuke Tsukigata
was a Japanese actor known especially for his work in jidaigeki in film and television. His real name was Kiyoto Monden.-Career:Born in Miyagi Prefecture, Tsukigata entered the actor's school at Nikkatsu in 1920, but earned his first starring role working at Shōzō Makino's studio in 1924...
. Masahiro Makino
Masahiro Makino
was a Japanese film director of more than 260 films, primarily in the chanbara and yakuza genres. His real name was Masatada , but he took the stage name Masahiro, the kanji for which he changed multiple times .-Career:...
directed Toei's 1960 Tenpō Rokkasen Jigoku no Hanamichi, starring Utaemon Ichikawa
Utaemon Ichikawa
was a Japanese film actor famous for starring roles in jidaigeki from the 1920s to the 1960s. Trained in kabuki from childhood, he made his film debut in 1925 at Makino Film Productions under Shōzō Makino. Quickly gaining popularity, he followed the example of Makino stars such as Tsumasaburō Bandō...
.
Sōshun's television debut took place in 1975, with the series Tsūkai! Kōchiyama Sōshun. Shintaro Katsu
Shintaro Katsu
, born Toshio Okumura was a Japanese actor, singer, producer, and director...
starred in the 26-episode series on Fuji Television
Fuji Television
is a Japanese television station based in Daiba, Minato, Tokyo, Japan, also known as or CX, based on the station's callsign "JOCX-DTV". It is the flagship station of the Fuji News Network and the ....
. Kōji Ishizaka played the nemesis Sōshun in NHK
NHK
NHK is Japan's national public broadcasting organization. NHK, which has always identified itself to its audiences by the English pronunciation of its initials, is a publicly owned corporation funded by viewers' payments of a television license fee....
's 1996 Appare Yajūrō, with Hiroshi Abe
Hiroshi Abe (actor)
is a Japanese model and actor.He began his career as a model, but he successfully made the transition to acting, becoming one of the most regularly visible presences in Japanese media. He is a 1988 graduate of Chuo University.-Career:...
as the title character Yajūrō.
Further reading
- 歌舞伎への誘い | 『天衣紛上野初花』 ("Invitation to Kabuki: Kumo ni magou Ueno no Hatsuhana") Japan Arts Council, an Independent Administrative InstitutionIndependent Administrative InstitutionAn Incorporated Administrative Agency or in lay terms an Independent Administrative Corporation or Independent Administrative Institution is a newly designed type of legal body for Japanese governmental organizations regulated by the Basic Law on Reforming Government Ministries of 1998...
of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and TechnologyMinistry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (Japan)The , also known as MEXT or Monkashō, is one of the ministries of the Japanese government.The Meiji government created the first Ministry of Education in 1871.... - 歌舞伎事典 ("Kabuki Dictionary") Japan Arts Council