New Book Introduction
Shedding light on another historical event shortly after the Oshio Heihachiro's uprising
"Ratsuka no Yuki; Falling Sakura Like Snow
- The Ikuta Yorozu Rebellion"
Released in 2026 by Niigata Nippo Media Net >
During the Edo period's Tenpo era, following the Oshio Heihachiro Rebellion, the Ikuta Yorozu Rebellion shook the shogunate. In Kashiwazaki, Echigo Province, an exclave of the Ise Kuwana Domain (a Tokugawa shogunate-affiliated domain), a small group of ronin (masterless samurai) rose up under the banner of "Revere the Emperor and Save the People." A corrupt system, exacerbating a poor rice harvest and driving up rice prices, had deeply corroded the shogunate system.
The story begins with the encounter of three mavericks of the late Edo period: Ikuta Yorozu, Watanabe Kazan, and Hirata Atsutane. In the midst of the Great Tenpo Famine, the rice market is manipulated by the schemes of money and greed, with cunning figures such as Mizuno Tadakuni, a senior official of the shogunate, Hattori Hanzo, a chief retainer of the Kuwana domain who has Iga ancestry, and Senba Tarobei, a wealthy merchant of Takanawa in Edo, operating in the shadows.
Is there any way to save the people of this rice-producing region who, due to their desperate circumstances, have had to throw their young children into the river, sell their daughters into prostitution, and starve to death?
Was it an act of recklessness, or an act of righteousness? This story attempts to unravel that mystery and depicts the vivid life and death of a samurai who lived through the turbulent end of the Edo period. Set against the backdrop of snow-covered Echigo, the story paves the way to a new era.
Portrait of Ikuta Yorozu sketched by Watanabe Kazan
The main characters include: Ikuta Yorozu (a ronin from the Tatebayashi Domain in Joshu), Watanabe Kazan (a painter and chief retainer of the Tahara Domain in Mikawa), Hirata Atsutane (a scholar of Japanese classics), Hattori Hanzo (a chief retainer of the Kuwana Domain in Ise), Matsudaira Sadanaga (lord of the Kuwana Domain in Ise), Mizuno Tadakuni (a senior councilor of the shogunate), and others. In addition, fellow ronin, Kuwana domain samurai, merchants, and farmers are all real people who appeared in historical records.
*Available for purchase at major bookstores in Niigata Prefecture, and can also be ordered from bookstores nationwide. It can be purchased from the Niigata Nippo MediaNet website and some online bookstores.