Background
Sōzen Yamana was born on 6 July 1404 in Japan.
山名 持豊
Sōzen Yamana was born on 6 July 1404 in Japan.
In the time of Shogun Ashikaga Takauji (1305-56), the head of the Yamana family held control over eleven provinces in the San’in area of western Honshu along the Japan Sea and was therefore called Rokubun-no- ichi Dono, or Lord of One-sixth of the Country, there being sixty-six provinces in Japan at that time. By Sozcn’s time, however, the number of provinces under Yamana control had dwindled to three.
When the shugo (constable) Akamatsu Mitsusuke revolted and assassinated Shogun Ashi- kaga Yoshinori in 1441, Sozen attacked and wiped out the assassin, and as a reward was given control of five more provinces, bringing the number in his domain to eight. At the time of the Onin War, which began in 1467, he heeded the wishes of Hino Tomiko, the wife of Shogun Ashikaga Yoshi- masa, by becoming commander of the forces drawn up on the west side of the capital, engaging in a protracted struggle with Hosokawa Katsumoto, the commander of the forces occupying the east side, but he died in the third month of 1473, long before the war was brought to a conclusion.
He was a vigorous man with a ruddy complexion and was accordingly nick-named Aka-nyudo, Red-faced Monk; he was also known for his savage behavior.