According to historical accounts, Yasuke first arrived inJapan in the service of Italian JesuitAlessandro Valignano. Nobunaga summoned him out of a desire to see a black man.[6] Subsequently, Nobunaga took him into his service and gave him the name Yasuke. As a samurai, he was granted a sword, a house and astipend.[3][7][8] Yasuke accompanied Nobunaga until his death and fought at theHonnō-ji Incident until the death ofOda Nobutada. Afterwards, Yasuke was sent back to theJesuits.[9] There are no subsequent records of his life.
Birth and early life
Yasuke is the first known African to appear in Japanese historical records. Much of what is known about him is found in fragmentary accounts in the letters of theJesuit missionaryLuís Fróis, Ōta Gyūichi'sShinchō Kōki (信長公記, Nobunaga Official Chronicle),Matsudaira Ietada'sMatsudaira Ietada Nikki (松平家忠日記, Matsudaira Ietada Diary),Jean Crasset'sHistoire de l'église du Japon andFrançois Solier'sHistoire Ecclesiastique des Isles et Royaumes du Japon.[10][11]
The earliest record of Yasuke dates to 1581.[1] He received his name from Oda Nobunaga.[12] His birth name is unknown.[13]
Based on Ōta Gyūichi's biography of Nobunaga,Shinchō Kōki, Yasuke was estimated to be in his mid-twenties in 1581.[1] Accounts from his time suggest Yasuke accompaniedAlessandro Valignano from "theIndies", a term encompassingPortuguese overseas territories like Goa and Cochin (modern-dayGoa andKochi in India) as well asPortuguese Mozambique.[1] ResearcherThomas Lockley has also proposed that Yasuke might have originated from theDinka people of what is nowSouth Sudan.[1] A 1581 letter by Jesuit Lourenço Mexia[14] and a later account from 1627 byFrançois Solier refer to Yasuke as aCafre.[a] Solier further described Yasuke as aMore Cafre, which has been interpreted as "Moorish infidel", and identified him as a servant from Mozambique. Due to these descriptions, some historians have suggested that Yasuke may have beenMuslim.[17][18]
In 1579, Yasuke arrived in Japan in the service of the Italian Jesuit missionaryAlessandro Valignano.[6][19] Valignano had been appointed the Visitor (inspector) of theJesuit missions in theIndies (which at that time meantEast Africa,South,Southeast, andEast Asia). Valignano's party spent the first two years of their stay in Japan, mainly inKyushu.[10]
Entering 1581, Valignano decided to visit the capitalKyoto as an envoy. He wanted to have an audience with Oda Nobunaga, the most powerful man in Japan, to ensure the Jesuits' missionary work before leaving Japan.[10] These events are recorded in a 1581 letter Luís Fróis wrote to Lourenço Mexia, and in the1582 Annual Report of the Jesuit Mission in Japan also by Fróis. These were published inCartas que os padres e irmãos da Companhia de Jesus escreverão dos reynos de Japão e China II (1598), normally known simply asCartas.[20][21] On 27 March 1581, Valignano, together with Luís Fróis, who had arrived in Japan earlier, had an audience with Nobunaga, and Yasuke is said to have accompanied them as an attendant.[9]
The Jesuit Luís Fróis wrote that while in the capital, a melee broke out among the local townsfolk who fought amongst themselves to catch a glimpse of Yasuke, breaking down the door of a Jesuit residence in the process and ended in a number of deaths and injuries among the Japanese.[22][6] Luís Fróis'sAnnual Report on Japan states that Nobunaga also longed to see a black man, and summoned him.[6] Fr.Organtino took Yasuke to Nobunaga, who upon seeing a black man for the first time, refused to believe that his skin color was natural and not applied later, and made him remove his clothes from the belt upwards.[21] Suspecting that Yasuke might have ink on his body, Nobunaga made him undress and wash his body, but the more Yasuke was washed and scrubbed, the darker his skin became.[23][24] Nobunaga's children attended the event and one of his nephews gave Yasuke money.[25]
On the 23rd of the Second Month, a blackamoor came from the Kirishitan Country. He appeared to be twenty-six or twenty-seven years old. Black over his whole body, just like an ox, this man looked robust and had a good demeanor. What is more, his formidable strength surpassed that of ten men. The Bateren brought him along by way of paying his respects to Nobunaga. Indeed, it was owing to Nobunaga's power and his glory that yet unheard-of treasures from the Three Countries and curiosities of this kind came to be seen here time and again, a blessing indeed.[27]
Nobunaga was impressed by Yasuke and asked Valignano to give him over.[6] He gave him the Japanese nameYasuke,[b] accepted him as attendant at his side and made him the first recorded foreigner to receive the rank of samurai.[1] Nobunaga granted Yasuke the honor of being his weapon-bearer and served as some sort of bodyguard[29][30] According to Lopez-Vera, he was occasionally allowed to share meals with the warlord, a privilege extended to few other vassals.[30]
TheShinchō Kōki of theSonkeikaku Bunko (尊経閣文庫) archives states:
It was ordered that the young black man be given a stipend (扶持,fuchi), named Yasuke, and provided with a sword (さや巻,sayamaki), and a private residence. At times, he was also entrusted with carrying the master's weapons.[7]
According to historians this was the equivalent to "the bestowing of warrior or 'samurai' rank" during thisperiod.[1][31] Yasuke was also granted servants according to Thomas Lockley.[1][32]
Father Lourenço Mexía wrote in a letter to Father Pero da Fonseca dated 8 October 1581:[33]
The black man understood a little Japanese, and Nobunaga never tired of talking with him. And because he was strong and had a few skills, Nobunaga took great pleasure in protecting him and had him roam around the city of Kyoto with an attendant. Some people in the town said that Nobunaga might make him astono ("lord").
Yasuke next appears in historical records on 11 May 1582.The Ietada Diary ofMatsudaira Ietada, a vassal ofTokugawa Ieyasu, mentions that Yasuke accompanied Nobunaga on his inspection tour of the region after he destroyed his long-time arch-enemy, theTakeda clan ofKai.[9][10] The description of 11 May 1582 states:
Nobunaga-sama was accompanied by a black man who was presented to him by the missionaries and to whom he gave a stipend. His body was black like ink and he was 6shaku 2bu [182.4 cm or near 6 feet] tall. His name was said to be Yasuke.
According to Fujita, on 14 May 1581, Yasuke departed forEchizen Province with Fróis and the other Christians.[c][24] They returned to Kyoto on May 30th.[24]
Honnō-ji Incident
On 21 June 1582, Oda Nobunaga was betrayed and attacked by his senior vassalAkechi Mitsuhide atHonnō-ji temple inKyoto, an event known as theHonnō-ji incident. At the time of the attack, Nobunaga was accompanied by a retinue of about 30 followers, including Yasuke. They fought but were defeated by theAkechi's forces, and Nobunaga committedseppuku.[1][34]
On the same day, after his lord's death, Yasuke joined the forces ofNobutada, Nobunaga's eldest son and heir, who was garrisoned at the nearby Nijō-goshō imperial villa. They fought against the Akechi clan but were overwhelmed. Yasuke was captured by Mitsuhide's vassals, then sent to the Jesuits by Mitsuhide who suggested that because Yasuke was not Japanese, his life should be spared.[1][34]
There are no historical documents to show the true meaning of Mitsuhide's statement, and it is not known whether it was a sign of his discriminatory mindset or an expedient to save Yasuke's life.[9][35] It is certain that Yasuke did not die. Mitsuhide's vassals accompanied him to a Jesuit church, and Luís Fróis wrote five months after the Honnō-ji Incident thanking God that he did not lose his life.[10][1] However, there are no historical sources about him since then and what happened to him afterwards is unknown.[36][5]
Possible depictions of Yasuke
Detail from theSumō Yūrakuzu Byōbu, drawn in 1605. It has been suggested that the dark-skinned man on the left is Yasuke.
Sumō Yūrakuzu Byōbu
TheSumō Yūrakuzu Byōbu (相撲遊楽図屏風,Sakai City Museum collection), drawn in 1605 by an anonymous artist, depicts a dark-skinned man wrestling a Japanese man in the presence of noble samurai. There are various theories regarding the work: some believe that this samurai is Oda Nobunaga orToyotomi Hidetsugu, while others believe that the dark-skinned man wrestling in the center is Yasuke and the one further to the right of the wrestlers (not depicted in the detailed image), playing the role of agyōji (referee), is Oda Nobunaga.[35]
Rinpa Suzuri-bako
An ink-stone box (suzuri-bako) made by aRinpa artist in the 1590s, owned byMuseu do Caramulo [pt], depicts a black man wearing Portuguese high-class clothing. AuthorThomas Lockley argues that it could be Yasuke, as he does not appear to be subservient to the other Portuguese man in the work.[37]
Nanban byōbu (painted by Kano Naizen), Europeans and their African followers
Nanban byōbu
ANanban byōbu painted byKanō Naizen, a painter active in the same period, depicts dark-skinned followers holding parasols over Europeans as well as a spear.[34] It was not uncommon for individual Africans to be brought to Japan as attendants of Jesuit missionaries.[9]
In popular culture
Literature
In 1968, author Yoshio Kurusu and artist Genjirō Mita published a children's book about Yasuke titledKurosuke (くろ助). The following year, the book won the Japanese Association of Writers for Children Prize (日本児童文学者協会賞,Nihon Jidō Bungakusha Kyōkai-shō).[38][39]
Yasuke plays a minor role in the 2005 to 2017 manga seriesHyouge Mono by Yoshihiro Yamada.[43]
Yasuke is featured in the 2016 to 2020 manga seriesNobunaga o Koroshita Otoko (信長を殺した男, "The Man Who Killed Nobunaga") by Akechi Kenzaburō and Yutaka Tōdō.[43]
In March 2017,Lionsgate announced plans for a live-action film about Yasuke titledBlack Samurai.[46] In May 2019,Deadline reported that the film, retitledYasuke, had left Lionsgate forPicturestart.Chadwick Boseman signed on to portray Yasuke.[47][48] As of September 2021, Picturestart's official website states that the film is "in development".[49]
In April 2019,MGM announced plans for their own live-action film about Yasuke, to be produced by Andrew Mittman andLloyd Braun ofWhalerock Industries, with a script written by Stuart C. Paul.[50]
In the 2023 historical drama filmKubi directed byTakeshi Kitano, Yasuke, in another portrayal by Jun Soejima, served as a retainer to Oda Nobunaga.[51]
Yasuke is a recurring minor character inKoei Tecmo'sNobunaga's Ambition series, appearing in the 1992 video gameNobunaga's Ambition: Tales of the Conquerors as aDLC character, and returning in 2013'sNobunaga's Ambition: Sphere of Influence as a recruitable officer.[53]
^Originally, the Portuguese used the wordCafre, pluralCafres — fromArabickāfir (كافر), meaning "infidels", "renegade" — to designate the non-Bantu peoples they encountered in southern Africa, particularly theKhoisan people of southern Africa. In Asia, the term was applied to individuals with dark skin, who were often enslaved.[15][16]
^Lockley, Thomas."Yasuke".Britannica Online. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica.ISSN1085-9721.Archived from the original on 16 July 2024. Retrieved23 November 2024.Ōta states that Nobunaga made Yasuke a vassal, giving him a house, servants, a sword, and a stipend. During this period, the definition of samurai was ambiguous, but historians think that this would contemporaneously have been seen as the bestowing of warrior or "samurai" rank.
^López-Vera, Jonathan (2020).A History of the Samurai: Legendary Warriors of Japan. Tokyo; Rutland, VT: Tuttle Publishing. pp. 140–141.ISBN9784805315354.He was granted the rank of samurai and occasionally even shared a table with Nobunaga himself, a privilege few of his trusted vassals were afforded.
^abKaneko, Hiraku (2009).織田信長という歴史 － 「信長記」の彼方へ [The History of Oda Nobunaga: Beyond the Shinchōki] (in Japanese).Iwanami Shoten. p. 311.ISBN978-4-585-05420-7.然に彼黒坊被成御扶持、名をハ号弥助と、さや巻之のし付幷私宅等迄被仰付、依時御道具なともたさせられ候、
^abcdeAndo, Kenji (6 May 2021)."織田信長に仕えた黒人武士「弥助」の生涯とは?ネトフリのアニメ『Yasuke -ヤスケ-』のモデルに" [What was the life of Yasuke, a black warrior who served Oda Nobunaga? The model for the Netflix anime Yasuke].HuffPost (in Japanese). BuzzFeed Japan.Archived from the original on 19 September 2023. Retrieved12 September 2023.
^abcdef"ハリウッドで映画化!信長に仕えた黒人、弥助とは何者だったのか?" [Movie made in Hollywood! Who was Yasuke, a black man who served Nobunaga?].WARAKU web (in Japanese).Shogakukan. 30 August 2019.Archived from the original on 19 September 2023. Retrieved12 September 2023.
^Arndt, Jochen S. (2 January 2018). "What's in a Word? Historicising the Term 'Caffre' in European Discourses about Southern Africa between 1500 and 1800".Journal of Southern African Studies.44 (1):59–75.doi:10.1080/03057070.2018.1403212.ISSN0305-7070.
^abcFujita, Midori (2005).アフリカ「発見」日本におけるアフリカ像の変遷 [Discover Africa―History of African image in Japan (World History series)] (in Japanese).Iwanami Shoten.ISBN978-4-00-026853-0.
^Lockley, Thomas (February 2016)."The Story of Yasuke: Nobunaga's African Retainer"(PDF).桜文論叢 (Sakura Bunron Sō) (in Japanese).91. Nihon University College of Law: 109. Retrieved24 March 2025.he was granted a short sword called akoshigatana, which in this period was a specific symbol of status and wealth, rather than possessing any notable fighting utility.
^abcWatanabe, Daimon (19 May 2021)."織田信長が登用した黒人武将・弥助とは、いったい何者なのか" [Who was Yasuke, the black warlord promoted by Oda Nobunaga?].Yahoo! News (in Japanese).Yahoo! Japan.Archived from the original on 19 September 2023. Retrieved12 September 2023.
^abAyukawa, Tetsuya (4 October 2020)."信長に仕え本能寺の変を生き延びた"黒人侍"" [Black Samurai who served Nobunaga and survived the Honnoji Incident].Aera (in Japanese). The Asahi Shimbun Company.Archived from the original on 19 September 2023. Retrieved12 September 2023.
^Vaporis, Constantine Nomikos (2019).Samurai. An Encyclopedia of Japan's Cultured Warriors. Santa Barbara, California: ABC-CLIO. p. 114.ISBN978-1-4408-4270-2.
^"Yasuke Voice – Nioh (Video Game)".behindthevoiceactors.com.Archived from the original on 8 April 2023. Retrieved30 May 2022. Check mark indicates role has been confirmed using screenshots of closing credits and other reliable sources.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: postscript (link)
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