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The One-Eyed Dragon Who Overcame His Handicap — Date Masamune, Ruler of Tohoku
Date Masamune lost his right eye to smallpox and became known as the One-Eyed Dragon. Overcoming this handicap, he inherited his domain at 18 and subdued most of Tohoku by his early twenties, becoming Oshu's greatest daimyo.
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Date Masamune lost his right eye to smallpox and was nicknamed the One-Eyed Dragon. Inheriting his domain at 18, he subdued most of Tohoku by his early twenties, annihilating the Ashina at Suriagehara in 1589 to become Oshu’s greatest lord. Famous for his crescent-moon helmet and flamboyant taste — the origin of ‘date-mono’ (dandy) — he later built Sendai Castle, founding modern Sendai.
Portrait of Date Masamune — the One-Eyed Dragon of Tohoku who lost his right eye to smallpox, depicted with one eye
Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain
Sendai Castle — the seat of Masamune's 620,000-koku domain, foundation of modern Sendai city
Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 3.0
Sendai Tanabata Festival — the castle town Masamune built thrives today as Tohoku's leading city
Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 3.0
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Key Figures
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Date Masamune
One-Eyed Dragon
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Visit Related Places
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1. Zuihoji Temple (Sendai)
Founded in 1637 by Masamune's last wishes—a Rinzai Zen temple beside Zuihoden that has guarded his spirit for nearly four centuries
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2. Date Masamune Equestrian Statue (Sendai Castle Ruins)
The bronze equestrian statue of the one-eyed dragon of the north stands on the Sendai Castle cliff, surveying the city he built as a 620,000-koku domain
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3. Aobayama Park (Sendai Castle Ruins)
The castle grounds built by Masamune on Aoba Hill's cliffs in 1601—stone walls and moats of the National Historic Site overlook the city and Hirose River
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Sites of Date Masamune
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Across the Pacific to Rome — Date Masamune's Keicho Embassy to Europe
In 1613, Date Masamune sent his retainer Hasekura Tsunenaga across the Pacific and Atlantic to Spain
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Sendai and Date Masamune: Zuihoden and the Sites of the One-Eyed Dragon
Date Masamune, known as the "One-Eyed Dragon," founded the Sendai domain of 620,000 koku, built Send
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