Ito Ittosai

Dates of birth and death unknown. Founder of the Itto-ryu school, a major school of swordsmanship in the early modern period. His name was Yagoro, later he became Kagehisa and went by the penname Ittosai. Much of his biography is unclear, and the common theory is that his surname was Ito and that he was born in Izu, but there are other theories, including that he was in Katata, Omi (Otsu City, Shiga Prefecture), Kanazawa in Kaga, or even Tsuruga in Echizen, and there is also some variation regarding his place of death. He studied the art of the Nakajo-ryu style of sword and spear martial arts under Kanemaki Jisai (also known as Toda Michiie), one of the three schools of the Toda style (Yamazaki, Hasegawa, and Kanemaki), and mastered its subtleties.However, he eventually traveled around the country to train, and during the Tensho era (1573-1592) he went to the Kanto region and worked to spread the style. Among his disciples, Kotouda Kagenyuzaemon Toshinao (the founder of Yuishin Itto-ryu), a retainer of the Hojo clan of Odawara in Sagami Province, and Mikogami Tenzen (later Ono Jiroemon Tadaaki), a retainer of the Mangi clan of Kazusa, stood out, and he is said to have imparted to them the secret teachings of Hoshato, Habiki, and Kotachi. His whereabouts after that are completely unknown, but one theory is that he returned to the west, served under Otani Yoshitsugu of Tsuruga, and participated in the Battle of Sekigahara, but there is no definite proof.

[Ichiro Watanabe]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

生没年不詳。近世剣術の一大流派である一刀流の祖。名は弥五郎、のち景久(かげひさ)、一刀斎と号した。その伝記は不明なところが多く、通説では姓を伊東とし、生国を伊豆としているが、近江(おうみ)堅田(かたた)（滋賀県大津市）や加賀金沢、さらに越前(えちぜん)敦賀(つるが)などの諸説があり、没地についてもまちまちである。富田(とだ)流三家（山崎、長谷川(はせがわ)、印牧(かねまき)）の一、鐘捲自斎(かねまきじさい)（別名、外他通家(とだみちいえ)）に従って中条流刀槍(とうそう)の術を学び、その精妙を究めたが、やがて回国修業に出て、天正(てんしょう)年間（1573～92）関東に下って流儀の弘布(こうふ)に努めた。門弟のうち、相州小田原・北条氏の臣、古藤田勘解由左衛門俊直(ことうだかげゆざえもんとしなお)（唯心一刀流の祖）、および上総(かずさ)万喜(まんぎ)氏の臣、神子上典膳(みこがみてんぜん)（のち小野次郎右衛門忠明(ただあき)）の両名が傑出し、彼らに払捨刀(ほっしゃとう)、刃引(はびき)、相小太刀(こたち)などの秘伝を授けたという。その後の動静もまったく不明であるが、一説に帰西して敦賀の大谷刑部少輔吉継(よしつぐ)に仕え、関ヶ原の戦いに参加したというが、確証はない。

［渡邉一郎］

出典　小学館　日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)について　情報 | 凡例