Yoshiatsu Satake

Japanese: 佐竹義篤 - さたけ・よしあつ

Year of death: Sadaharu 1/Shohei 17.1.12 (1362.2.7)
Year of birth: 1311
A military commander during the Northern and Southern Courts period. Son of Sadayoshi. Commonly known as Jiro. Appointed to the position of Osakabu Daifu and Uma Gonno Kami. Following Ashikaga Takauji and Tadayoshi, he fought bravely in various places alongside Nitta Yoshisada and Kusunoki Masashige, and was appointed as Shugo of Hitachi Province (Ibaraki Prefecture) like his father. During the Kan'o Disturbance of 1350, when Takauji and Tadayoshi fought, he took a position closer to Tadayoshi in opposition to his younger brother Shiyoshi, who supported Takauji, but later switched to Takauji's side and steadily expanded the power of the Satake clan. Together with his brother Gassan's central leader, he contributed to the spread of Rinzai Zen in Hitachi, and through the central leader he gained the trust of the Ashikaga clan, and through his flexible diplomacy and solid control of his territory he helped the Satake clan to become one of the leading feudal lords in the eastern provinces. In Bunwa 4/Shohei 10th year, he divided and transferred his territory to his eldest son Yoshika, and in Sadaharu 1/January 17th year of Shohei 20th year, he divided and transferred his territory to more than ten of his children and subordinates.

(Ichimura Takao)

Source: Asahi Japanese Historical Biography: Asahi Shimbun Publications Inc. About Asahi Japanese Historical Biography

Japanese:

没年：貞治1/正平17.1.12(1362.2.7)
生年：応長1(1311)
南北朝時代の武将。貞義の子。通称次郎。刑部大輔,右馬権頭に任ず。足利尊氏・直義に従い各地で新田義貞,楠木正成らと奮戦し,父と同じく常陸国(茨城県)守護に補任される。尊氏と直義が争った観応1/正平5(1350)年の観応の擾乱では,尊氏を支持する弟師義に対抗して直義寄りの立場をとるが,のち尊氏方に転じて着実に佐竹氏の勢力を伸ばす。兄の月山中枢と共に,常陸への臨済禅の普及に貢献,また中枢を通じて足利氏の信頼を集めるなど,柔軟な外交と堅実な所領支配によって佐竹氏を東国屈指の大名に飛躍させた。文和4/正平10年嫡子義香に,貞治1/正平17年1月には子弟ら十余人に,それぞれ所領を分割譲渡した。

(市村高男)

出典　朝日日本歴史人物事典：（株）朝日新聞出版朝日日本歴史人物事典について　情報

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