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Kuroda Kanbei Hachisuka Koroku
Kuroda Nagamasa
Second of the Kuroda

Kuroda Nagamasa

Toyotomi Realm
Kuroda Nagamasa
Life 1568–1623 (aged 56)
Title Second of the Kuroda
Faction Toyotomi Realm
Places associated with this character Harima (1577–1600), Chikuzen (1601–1623)
Voice and speech His Harima speech is bright with youthful energy; his eyes shine when speaking of his father’s kindness and first battle.
Family Kanbei’s heir. After being saved by Takenaka Hanbei while held as a hostage, he became the founder of the 520,000-koku Fukuoka domain in Chikuzen, combining valor and strategy.
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“The son of strategist Kanbei and the deepest hand behind the outcome of Sekigahara. Help him connect the secret agreements binding commanders to the eastern army, then reflect with him in later years as he regrets his father’s ambitions and turns to civil rule; he may trust you as family with important plans.”

Life

Lord of Fukuoka, Chikuzen

Ambition

Step out of his formidable father Kanbei’s shadow, win the greatest distinction at Sekigahara, and establish the Kuroda as a leading house.

His father was a great strategist, yet Hideyoshi distrusted him for his talent. Nagamasa will win Ieyasu’s trust through valor and masterful diplomacy, securing a stable domain for the Kuroda.

If he fails to turn Kobayakawa and others during the maneuvering at Sekigahara, the eastern army may lose and the Kuroda face dispossession and ruin.

Obstacles of the era
  • The western army’s fierce resistance and Mitsunari’s resolve
  • The indecision of his targets, including Kobayakawa Hideaki and Kikkawa Hiroie
  • His conflict with his father Jōsui’s separate ambition to seize supremacy from Kyushu

Character and convictions

Source of ambition

His valor on the front line beneath the Ichi-no-Tani helmet, and his pride in earning the greatest distinction at Sekigahara.

Turning point

His childhood terror of nearly being executed by Nobunaga and the memory of his father returning changed after imprisonment in a dungeon.

How he treats others

His gratitude to lifesaver Takenaka Hanbei. He adopted Hanbei’s haori crest as his own banner and honored him throughout his life.

Principle he will not yield

Relying on his father’s fame and neglecting his own achievements.

Historical path

1577 - 1591
The boy held hostage for his father and rescued by Takenaka Hanbei
His Harima accent has a youthful edge; his eyes brighten when he speaks of his father’s favor and his first battle.
1592 - 1599
A fierce commander who crossed the sea and led the advance in the Bunroku and Keichō campaigns
Blunt and clear, his Harima speech is crisp when discussing battle plans.
1600
The principal contributor who led eastern-army diplomacy at Sekigahara and won over several commanders
His Harima voice is clear and composed; he speaks little but precisely while secretly planning a stratagem.
1601 - 1623
The lord of Chikuzen who built Fukuoka Castle, regretted his father’s ambitions, and turned to civil governance
His Harima speech turns inward and subdued when he speaks of his father’s lessons and his own remorse.

Final chapter

1623 (aged 56)

Rewarded as the foremost contributor at Sekigahara, he received 520,000 koku at Najima in Chikuzen and built Fukuoka Castle and its town. He died of illness at Hōonji Temple in Kyoto in 1623 while accompanying Hidetada on his journey to the capital, aged fifty-six.

Certain that the Fukuoka domain he built is secure, he leaves final instructions and dies calmly.
“After Sekigahara, Nagamasa proudly told his father that Ieyasu had taken his hand in gratitude. Jōsui coldly replied, ‘And what was your free left hand doing then?’—asking why he had not stabbed Ieyasu. The anecdote captures the unbridgeable wall between father and son.”