Sources & Archives

Monkey Punch / 'Weekly Manga Action' serialization began 1967

Long-running manga series featuring Ishikawa Goemon XIII (set as descendant of Goemon)

Namiki Gohei / First performed 1778

Kabuki masterpiece that fixed the Goemon image

English East India Company records

Letters Adams himself sent to his wife and children in England and to the East India Company; first-rank source on Japan and the voyage of the time

Compiled by Aizu-Wakamatsu City

Contemporary-adjacent primary source collection on the Aizu War, including Jōshigun descriptions

Compiled by the Kamakura Bakufu

Official chronicle of the Kamakura Bakufu, recording Yoritomo's career year by year

Compiled by the Kamakura shogunate

Official chronicle of the Kamakura shogunate, records Yoshitsune's career chronologically

Nanboku-chō-period war chronicle written from the Ashikaga side

Tsukahara Bokuden

Bokuden's own collection of didactic poems — the earliest primary source for his thought on swordsmanship

Itō Hirobumi

Itō's official commentary on the constitution — original text of Japanese constitutionalism

Compiled by the Date clan

Official chronicle of the Sendai domain detailing Masamune's career

Meiji Government

The April 6, 1868 promulgation by the Dajōkan

Fukuzawa Yukichi

Autobiography recollecting days at Tekijuku; primary source

Compiled in the Edo period

Fukushima-family record transmitting Masanori's life

Muromachi-period text, the principal classical source for Yoshitsune and Benkei legends

Miyamoto Musashi

Musashi's own treatise on strategy, completed at Reigandō cave shortly before his death

Kujō Kanezane

Diary of a Sekkanke-born aristocrat of the late Heian period; contemporary primary source on the political affairs of the Kiyomori era

Yamamoto Tsunetomo (dictated), Tashiro Tsuramoto (recorded)

Classic mid-Edo treatise on bushidō from the Saga Nabeshima domain

Yagyū Munenori

Munenori's own family treatise on the sword — original text of the katsujinken thought

Katsu Kaishū

Late-life talks of Katsu Kaishū transcribed by Yoshimoto Jō — a first-rank source on the Bakumatsu-Restoration transition

Luís Fróis

Contemporary Jesuit account documenting Gracia's conversion in detail

Transmitted at Nishi Hongan-ji

Primary source materials of the Hongan-ji organization, including Kennyo's letters and calls to arms

Horibe Yasubē Taketsune

Contemporary diary by one of the forty-seven, covering the months around the raid

Transmitted in the Ii family

Ii-family genealogy compiled in the Edo period; the principal source for the 'female Naotora' account

War chronicle transmitting the course of the Hanakura Rebellion

Compiled by the Tokugawa Bakufu

Official Bakufu register of warrior-clan genealogies including the Hattori

Takeda Izumo, Miyoshi Shōraku, Namiki Senryū

1748 jōruri / kabuki adaptation that became the most influential dramatization of the Akō Incident

Held by Kashima Shrine

Shrine documents on the Bokuden-Kashima relation

Kido Takayoshi

Personal diary of the late-Bakumatsu and early-Meiji political process

Dictated by Kōsaka Masanobu, edited by Obata Kagenori

War chronicle by a Takeda retainer — foundational text of Kai military doctrine

Transmits the course of the three-province alliance from the Takeda side's viewpoint

Records of the Ii-clan Kōyōgata office

Hikone-domain record detailing the bakufu administration during Naosuke's tenure as Tairō

Compiled by Kaibara Ekken

Systematic chronicle of the Kuroda clan and its achievements

Mansai

Diary of Mansai, abbot of the Sanbō-in of Daigo-ji; transmits political conditions of the Yoshimitsu era

Held by the Diplomatic Archives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Contemporary diplomatic records of the Harbin incident

Ōkubo Hikozaemon Tadataka

Contemporary chronicle by a hereditary Mikawa retainer of the Tokugawa

Jesuit records

Contemporary missionary report fragmentarily recording the execution of a thief in Kyoto around 1594

Held by the Imperial Household Agency, Sannomaru Shōzōkan

Contemporary illustrated scroll by Takezaki Suenaga — the foremost surviving primary source on the Mongol invasions

Historiographical Institute, the University of Tokyo

Primary source including Motonari's letters around the Battle of Itsukushima

Historiographical Institute, the University of Tokyo

Critical edition of the documents transmitted in the Mōri house, including the original of the Sanshi Kyōkunjō

Naoe Kanetsugu

Kanetsugu's April 1600 reply to Ieyasu's summons

Edo-period compilation

Narita-family record; principal source for Kaihime's participation in the Oshi Castle campaign

Transmits the surrender and execution of Aterui

Official history recording Tamuramaro's appointments, campaigns, and obituary

Okado Denpachirō

Same-day report of the Pine Corridor incident by a Bakufu metsuke on duty in Edo Castle

National Diet Library, Modern Japanese Political History Materials Room

Ōkubo's autograph letters and diaries — primary record of the early Meiji government

Principal compendium for the Sieges of Osaka, recording Matabei's movements

Held by the Hokkaido Prefectural Archives

Original government documents of Enomoto Takeaki's Ezo Republic

Yoshida Shōin

The last letter to his students, written in prison days before execution — the verbal core of Shōin's thought

Daiwa Shobō

Collected letters, poems, and writings of Saigō

National Diet Library, Modern Japanese Political History Materials Room

Includes Ryōma's autograph letters and Bakumatsu political papers

Held by Ueda City Museum and Matsushiro Sanada Treasury

Hereditary Sanada-clan documents including correspondence relating to Nobushige

Held by Ueda City Museum

Hereditary Sanada-clan documents including Masayuki's autograph correspondence

Held by Matsushiro Sanada Treasury

Hereditary documents of the Matsushiro Sanada line including Nobuyuki's autograph correspondence

Mōri Motonari

Letter of instruction given by Motonari to his three sons in 1557; preserved in the Mōri-ke Monjo; original extant

Edo-period compendium and principal narrative source for the Battle of Sekigahara

Compiled in the Edo period

Compilation transmitting the details of the Battle of Sekigahara

Edited by Shibusawa Eiichi

Late-life recollections by Yoshinobu himself, recording his Bakumatsu political decisions

Compiled in early Edo

Contemporary-adjacent records on the Shimabara Rebellion from both bakufu and local sides

Historiographical Institute, University of Tokyo

Critical edition of Shimazu-family transmitted documents; primary source including Yoshihiro's letters

Ōta Gyūichi

Contemporary record by a Nobunaga retainer; primary source containing references relating to Oichi

Ōta Gyūichi

Contemporary record by Nobunaga's vassal — the foremost Azuchi-Momoyama era source

Kamiizumi Nobutsuna

Kamiizumi's inka and teaching documents for his students — the theoretical core of the Shinkage-ryū

Nagakura Shinpachi

Memoir by a surviving Shinsengumi captain — the principal first-hand source on the unit's internal life

Held by the Shōin Shrine

Autograph letters and writings of the Shōka Sonjuku students

War narrative compiled close to the Jōhei-Tengyō rebellion; the most important quasi-primary source

War narrative compiled close to the time of the Jōhei-Tengyō rebellion; the most important quasi-primary source for Masakado's life

Yamaoka Tesshū

Tesshū's own theoretical lectures on the Mutō-ryū

Transmitted in the Tachibana family

Tachibana-family genealogy compiled in the Edo period; the principal source for Ginchiyo's inheritance

Nanboku-chō-period war chronicle; foremost source for Masashige's career

Edo-period compilation

Principal source for the consort relations of Hideyoshi

Held by the Yamaguchi Prefectural Archives

Autograph correspondence and Chōshū-related papers

Yamaguchi Prefectural Archives

Includes Takasugi's autograph correspondence around the founding of the Kiheitai

Takasugi Shinsaku

Includes correspondence from the period of his tuberculosis

National Diet Library Modern Political History Materials Room

Primary source including Hanpeita's prison letters and autograph records

Compiled in the early Kamakura period

The description of Ichi-no-Tani; foundational work of Japanese war literature

Transmitted at Tekijuku

Primary source including records of Kōan and his disciples

Held by Zenshō-an

Talks of Yamaoka Tesshū transcribed by his students including Ogura Tessui

Miyamoto Musashi

Completed 1645; Musashi's own treatise on strategy — the primary source from which all later depictions descend

Kamakura-period epic; principal classical source for Tomoe Gozen and Kiso Yoshinaka

Yamashina Tokitsugu

Eiroku-era Kyoto diary; transmits the relation of Shogun Ashikaga Yoshiteru to the swordsmen of the period

Compiled by the Edo bakufu

Bakufu-side source transmitting the course of the Hiroshima forfeit

Takenaka Shigekado

Account by the son of Hideyoshi's strategist Takenaka Hanbei

Includes the correspondence around the Hideaki adoptions

National Treasure — Yonezawa City Uesugi Museum

Hereditary Uesugi clan documents including Kenshin's autograph letters

Compiled by the Uesugi clan

Chronological clan record covering Kanetsugu's era

Held by the Yagyū family

Fragmentary record of Munenori's ōmetsuke-era intelligence activities

Compiled by Yanagawa domain

Official chronicle of the Tachibana clan and Yanagawa domain

Yoshida Shōin

Includes letters around the Shimoda stowaway attempt

Compiled by Yonezawa domain

Domain-internal record of Yōzan's words, deeds, and reform measures

Edo-period war chronicle and principal narrative source for Kiyomasa's career

Suwa Katsunori / Yoshikawa Kōbunkan

Source-critical assessment of competing accounts of Mitsuhide's death

Kameda Toshitaka / KADOKAWA

Biography reflecting recent scholarship on the Nanboku-chō period (in Japanese)

Ogawa Takeo / Chūkō Shinsho

Standard modern study of Yoshimitsu, examining both political and cultural history

Nakano Hitoshi / Yoshikawa Kōbunkan (2017)

Latest scholarly synthesis on Mitsunari (in Japanese)

Matsuoka Tsukasa / Shin-Jinbutsuōraisha

Standard modern biography of Hanpeita

Taguchi Akiko / Pelican-sha

Kabuki scholar's study of the performance and reception history of Chūshingura

Yamamoto Hirofumi / Shinchō Shinsho

Economic and organizational analysis of the Akō Incident by a University of Tokyo Historiographical Institute professor

Kobayashi Seiji / Yoshikawa Kōbunkan, Jinbutsu Sōsho series

Definitive academic biography (in Japanese)

Fujita Yō / Engeki Shuppansha

Examines the staging and history of 'Sanmon Gosan no Kiri'

Fukuo Takeichirō / Yoshikawa Kōbunkan (Jinbutsu Sōsho)

Standard modern biography of Masanori

Yamamoto Hirofumi / Chikuma Shinsho

Modern Japanese translation and commentary by a University of Tokyo Historiographical Institute professor

Yamada Yūji / KADOKAWA

Academic ninja research from the Mie University Iga collaboration project

Nomura Ikuyo / Yoshikawa Kōbunkan, Jinbutsu Sōsho series

Definitive academic biography (in Japanese)

Noguchi Minoru / Yamakawa Shuppansha

Standard modern study of Tokimasa

Murai Shōsuke / NHK Books

Standard reinterpretation of the Mongol invasions in an East Asian context (in Japanese)

Takahashi Shin'ichirō / Yoshikawa Kōbunkan (Jinbutsu Sōsho)

Standard modern biography of Tokiyori

Iwata Shinpei / Chūkō Shinsho

A critical biography grounded in modern Yoshitoki scholarship

Kanda Chisato / Kōdansha Sensho Métier

Standard modern study empirically examining the political structure of the Ishiyama War

An Jung-won / Chūkō Shinsho

Modern biography reflecting current scholarship (in Japanese)

Yoshida Tsunekichi / Yoshikawa Kōbunkan

Classic and definitive Naosuke study (in Japanese)

Arimitsu Tomohisa / Yoshikawa Kōbunkan (Jinbutsu Sōsho)

Representative modern biography of Yoshimoto

Itō Yukio / Kōdansha (Academic Bunko)

Standard recent biography of Itō Hirobumi

Saotome Mitsugu / Bungeishunjū

Standard work empirically examining the Jōshigun and Nakano Takeko

Gomi Fumihiko / Kōdansha Gakujutsu Bunko

Standard medievalist analysis of the Kamakura government structure in contrast with Kyoto

Yamada Takashi / Ebisu Kōshō Shuppan

Modern biography reflecting recent scholarship (in Japanese)

Matsuura Rei / Chūōkōronshinsha

Standard scholarly biography; detailed empirical account of the bloodless-surrender negotiations

Fujii Tetsuhiro / Chūōkōronshinsha

Study of the Nagasaki Naval Training Center, the Kanrin-maru, and the Kobe Naval Training Center

Taniguchi Katsuhiro / Yoshikawa Kōbunkan

Document-based reassessment of Mitsuhide's motives

Sasaki Suguru / Chūkō Shinsho

Standard biography by a leading Bakumatsu / Meiji historian

Owada Tetsuo / Heibonsha Shinsho

Biography by a leading Sengoku-era scholar (in Japanese)

Ikoma Takaomi / Ebisu Kōshō Shuppan

Standard modern study of Masanori; empirically examines the peace negotiations

Mori Shigeaki / KADOKAWA

Biography by a leading scholar of the Nanboku-chō period (in Japanese)

Motoki Yasuo / Chūkō Shinsho

Standard biography by a leading medievalist (in Japanese)

Gomi Fumihiko / Iwanami Shinsho

Standard biography by a leading medievalist; Benkei is a major subject (in Japanese)

Motoki Yasuo / Yoshikawa Kōbunkan (Jinbutsu Sōsho)

Standard recent biography of Yoshitsune

Mori Yoshikazu / Yamakawa Shuppansha (Sekaishi Riburetto-jin)

Standard modern study of Adams

Mori Yoshikazu / Yamakawa Shuppansha

Empirical examination of Adams's hatamoto appointment and foreign-policy advisory activity

Kawai Masaharu / Yoshikawa Kōbunkan (Jinbutsu Sōsho)

Standard postwar biography of Mōri Motonari

Hirayama Yū / Yoshikawa Kōbunkan

Definitive modern study of the Nagashino campaign

Imafuku Tadashi / Shinjinbutsu Ōraisha

Standard modern biography

Sasama Yoshihiko / Kashiwa Shobō

Describes the Mutekatsu-ryū concept and its place in sword-thought history

Tobe Shinjūrō / Chūōkōronshinsha (Chūkō Bunko)

Standard popular study of Sengoku swordsmen, with a chapter on Bokuden

Toyoda Kagehide

Posthumous biography that is the source of major Musashi legends including the Ganryū Island duel

Taniguchi Katsuhiro / Chūkō Shinsho

Empirical reassessment of Nobunaga-era retainer biographies including Mitsuhide's revolt

Taniguchi Katsuhiro / Chūkō Shinsho

Document-based reconstruction of the Oda command structure including Mitsuhide and Hideyoshi

Ikegami Hiroko / Yoshikawa Kōbunkan, Jinbutsu Sōsho series

Definitive academic biography (in Japanese)

Taniguchi Katsuhiro / Yoshikawa Kōbunkan

Comprehensive document-based reference for Mitsuhide and the Oda command

Umetani Noboru / Yoshikawa Kōbunkan (Jinbutsu Sōsho)

Standard modern biography of Kōan

Sasaki Suguru / Chūkō Shinsho

Standard biography from Bakumatsu and Meiji historical scholarship (in Japanese)

Iechika Yoshiki / Minerva Shobō

Biography by a leading scholar of Bakumatsu and Meiji history (in Japanese)

Matsuura Rei / Iwanami Shinsho (2008)

Standard empirical biography that strips away later mythologization (in Japanese)

Matsuura Rei / Iwanami Shinsho

Empirical reconstruction of Ryōma's brokering of the alliance

Takahashi Takashi / Yoshikawa Kōbunkan (Jinbutsu Sōsho)

Representative modern biography of Tamuramaro

Hirayama Yū / KADOKAWA (2015)

Definitive modern biography reflecting current scholarship (in Japanese)

Kasaya Kazuhiko / Yoshikawa Kōbunkan

Definitive study of Sekigahara including Ōtani's decision to join the Western Army

Ōishi Manabu / Chūkō Shinsho

Standard modern study based on recent archival research

Shimozawa Kan / Chūkō Bunko

Classic 1928 Shinsengumi study that combines documentary research with received tradition

Sasama Yoshihiko / Yūzankaku

Study of representative Japanese spears, including the Tonbogiri

Uozumi Takashi / Shin-Jinbutsuōraisha

Standard scholarly study of the Book of Five Rings, including treatment of modern-era Musashi imagery

Kawai Yasushi / Kōdansha Gakujutsu Bunko

Standard medievalist work re-examining Genpei-era imagery (in Japanese)

Nakano Hitoshi / Yoshikawa Kōbunkan, Jinbutsu Sōsho series

Definitive academic biography (in Japanese)

Nakano Hitoshi / Yoshikawa Kōbunkan (Jinbutsu Sōsho)

Standard scholarly work on Muneshige, including treatment of Ginchiyo

Oze Hoan

Early Edo-period biography that shaped the popular image of Hideyoshi

Takahashi Masaaki / Kōdansha Sensho Métier

Standard modern study of Taira no Kiyomori, examining the figure through political and trade history

Kawajiri Akio / Kōdansha Sensho Métier

Standard modern study of Masakado, examining the political-history meaning of the rebellion

Ichisaka Tarō / Bunshun Shinsho

Leading-scholar biography of late-Bakumatsu Chōshū

Sasamoto Shōji / Minerva Shobō

Modern academic biography reflecting current scholarship (in Japanese)

Kamogawa Tatsuo / Iwanami Shinsho (2007)

Document-based standard study of Takeda military history

Kamogawa Tatsuo / Iwanami Shinsho

Document-based study of the continuity from Shingen to Katsuyori

Hirayama Yū / KADOKAWA

Document-based study of the Katsuyori-era collapse

Uozumi Takashi / Shinjinbutsu Ōraisha

Definitive academic edition collating extant manuscripts

Kasaya Kazuhiko / Shibunkaku Shuppan

Empirical examination of the course of Sekigahara and the movements of various commanders

Motoki Yasuo / Yoshikawa Kōbunkan

Standard study positioning Masakado at the origin of the birth of the samurai class

Uwayokote Masataka / Shueisha

Standard study that locates Yoshinaka within the whole of the Genpei War

Tanaka Yūko / Iwanami Shinsho

Modern Goemon study examining the distinction between historical fact and tradition

Owada Tetsuo / Yōsensha

Representative Naotora study published around 2016 in connection with the taiga drama

Niina Kazuhito / Ebisu Kōshō Shuppan

Standard modern study of Yoshihiro, empirically examining the Korean campaign and Sekigahara

Koike Kazuo / Kōdansha

Examines the contemporary inheritance of the Goemon image

Kanda Chisato / Chūkō Shinsho

Standard modern study of the Shimabara Rebellion

Hirayama Yū / PHP Shinsho

Modern study tracing Masayuki, Nobuyuki, and Nobushige (in Japanese)

Irimoto Masuo / Shin-Jinbutsuōraisha

Source-critical scholarly account of the four figures together

Miyajima Keiichi / Yoshikawa Kōbunkan (Jinbutsu Sōsho)

Standard scholarly work on the Azai house, including Oichi's life

Compiled by the Tokugawa Bakufu

Official chronological history of the Tokugawa shoguns

Iechika Yoshiki / Yoshikawa Kōbunkan, Jinbutsu Sōsho series

Definitive academic biography (in Japanese)

Yamada Kuniaki / Yoshikawa Kōbunkan, Jinbutsu Sōsho series

Definitive academic biography (in Japanese)

Dōmon Fuyuji / Shūeisha Bunko

Bestselling popular biography that revived Yōzan's modern reputation (in Japanese)

Owada Tetsuo / Shin-Jinbutsuōraisha

Empirical examination of the position of Sengoku-period women, including a chapter on Kaihime

Yamamoto Hirofumi / Shin-Jinbutsuōraisha

Standard modern biography examining the life and thought of Tesshū

Kaihara Tōru / Minerva Shobō

Standard modern biography

Tanaka Akira / Chikuma Shobō

Locates Shōin's position at the hinge between early-modern and modern Japan

Kawaguchi Masaaki / Chichi Shuppansha

Biography drawing on long Shōin scholarship at the Hagi Academy

Aizu-Wakamatsu City, Fukushima Prefecture

Facility transmitting the life of Aizu retainers and martial-arts education

Ogurusu, Fushimi-ku, Kyoto

Traditional site of Mitsuhide's death, preserved as a historical site

Akō, Hyōgo Prefecture

Central archive for materials on the Akō Incident

Ōyano-machi, Kami-Amakusa City, Kumamoto Prefecture

Rebellion-related museum built at Shirō's birthplace

Nishi-Hemi-chō, Yokosuka City, Kanagawa Prefecture

Grave of Adams

Nishi-Hemi-chō, Yokosuka City, Kanagawa Prefecture

Historic site preserved as the graves of Adams and his wife Oyuki

Chihayaakasaka, Osaka Prefecture

Adjacent to the Chihaya Castle ruins; holds Kusunoki-clan materials

Bunkyō, Tokyo

Comprehensive archive of materials inherited from the Hosokawa clan

Tsuruga, Fukui Prefecture

Ōtani's mortuary temple, holds related materials

Kamakura City

Head Rinzai Zen temple founded by Tokimune to memorialize the Mongol-invasion war dead

Fukuchiyama, Kyoto Prefecture

Dedicated museum on Mitsuhide's tenure as lord of Tanba

Fukuoka City Museum

Holds the Nihongō spear and other Kuroda heirlooms

Fukuoka Prefecture

Holds extensive Tachibana-family documents

Izunokuni City, Shizuoka Prefecture

Temple built by Tokimasa; includes Tokimasa's grave

Ōtsu City

Temple associated with Kiso Yoshinaka and Tomoe Gozen, holds related artifacts

Ōtsu City, Shiga Prefecture

Yoshinaka's grave site; also the site of Matsuo Bashō's grave

Gyōda City, Saitama Prefecture

Within the Oshi Castle ruins; holds Oshi Castle campaign and Narita-family materials

Hagi, Yamaguchi Prefecture

Central repository of Shōin and Shōka Sonjuku materials

Hagi City, Yamaguchi Prefecture

Holds materials on Itō Hirobumi and other Chōshū-born Meiji elder statesmen

Hakodate City

Comprehensive holdings on the Goryōkaku and Hakodate War

Fujieda City, Shizuoka Prefecture

Stage of the Hanakura Rebellion where Genkō Etan held out

Minami-Arima-chō, Minami-Shimabara City, Nagasaki Prefecture

Inscribed as UNESCO World Heritage in 2018

Hino, Tokyo

Dedicated museum at his birthplace, holding his autograph letters and the prized Izumi-no-Kami Kanesada blade

Hikone City

Comprehensive archive of Ii-family heirlooms and documents

Hikone City, Shiga Prefecture

Holds Ii-family armor, Red Devil equipment, and documents

Hino, Tokyo

Dedicated museum on the Shinsengumi's Hino roots

Hiraizumi Town, Iwate Prefecture

Materials relating to Yoshitsune and Benkei's final stand at Koromogawa

Naka Ward, Hiroshima City, Hiroshima Prefecture

Castle renovated by Masanori; lays the foundation of the modern Hiroshima Castle

Aizu-Bange Town, Kawanuma District, Fukushima Prefecture

Takeko's grave and the 'Site of Nakano Takeko's Martyrdom' monument survive

Kumamoto City

Kiyomasa's mortuary temple, holds Katō family materials

Kyoto City

Site of the incident; holds related materials

Yagyū-chō, Nara City

Yagyū family mortuary temple including Munenori's grave

Ibaraki Prefecture

Holds materials related to Tokugawa Yoshinobu

Ōshū City, Iwate Prefecture

Chinjufu fortress built by Tamuramaro

Hatsukaichi City, Hiroshima Prefecture

The battlefield of the Battle of Itsukushima, with related historical sites

Kakogawa, Hyōgo Prefecture

Holds materials around the Matabei birthplace tradition

Kamakura City

Holds Kamakura-period sculpture, crafts, and documents

Kanagawa Prefecture

Specialist medieval-history archive holding extensive Kamakura-period documents

Kawachinagano City, Osaka Prefecture

Kusunoki mortuary temple; transmits Masashige's head mound and Masanori-related materials

Kashima, Ibaraki Prefecture

Bokuden's training ground; holds related materials

Ōta-ku, Tokyo (in Senzoku-ike Park)

Katsu's grave site and related materials

Sendai City Museum (UNESCO Memory of the World Register)

Original records of Masamune's mission to Europe (1613–1620)

Kōshū, Yamanashi Prefecture

Takeda mortuary temple near the site of Katsuyori's suicide

Kamakura City, Kanagawa Prefecture

Founded by Tokiyori; head temple of the Rinzai-shū Kenchō-ji-ha

Higashiyama Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture

Kannon sanctuary said to have been founded by Tamuramaro

Kōchi Prefecture

Comprehensive archive of Ryōma-related materials

Kōchi City, Kōchi Prefecture

Holds Tosa Loyalist Party-related materials and Hanpeita's letters

Habikino, Osaka Prefecture

Located near the Dōmyōji battlefield and has related historical sites

Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi Prefecture

The site of the coup; still active as a Sōtō Zen temple

Kumamoto Prefectural Museum of Art

Original Musashi ink paintings including Shrike on a Withered Branch

Kumamoto City, Kumamoto Prefecture

Holds Musashi's self-portrait and related materials

Sakyō Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture

The site of tradition for Yoshitsune's boyhood, with remains associated with Shanaō

Maebashi, Gunma Prefecture

Holds Kamiizumi and Shinkage-ryū local materials

Nagano City

Comprehensive archive of Sanada-family heirlooms

Mie University

Leading academic institution for ninja and ninjutsu studies

Kobe City

Built at the site of Masashige's last stand at the Battle of Minatogawa

Hōfu City, Yamaguchi Prefecture

Holds Mōri-family materials, including the original of the Sanshi Kyōkunjō

Sakyō Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture

Setting of the kabuki 'Sanmon Gosan no Kiri'; one of the transmission sites of Goemon

National Archives of Japan

Holds extensive Tokugawa family documents and pre-Meiji administrative records

National Archives of Japan

Original taikō kenchi land-survey ledgers and Toyotomi-era documents

Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo

Holds materials on the Constitution of the Empire of Japan

National Diet Library

Central archive for Bakumatsu and Meiji-era political papers

National Diet Library, Japan

Full-text access to primary Nobunaga-era manuscripts and woodblock editions

Sakura City, Chiba Prefecture

Holds materials on the mid-Heian birth of the samurai

Chiyoda, Tokyo

Holds performance records and scripts of kabuki and jōruri productions

Shimogyō Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture

Head temple of the Jōdo Shinshū Hongan-ji-ha; the Hongan-ji of Kennyo's line

Nagahama City, Shiga Prefecture

Remains of Odani Castle, the Azai stronghold

Okayama Prefecture

Holds materials on Kobayakawa's brief Okayama reign

Toyoake City, Aichi Prefecture

Old battlefield transmitted as the place of Yoshimoto's end

Osaka City

Comprehensive archive of materials related to the Sieges of Osaka

Ōtaki Town, Chiba Prefecture

Ōtaki Castle where Tadakatsu served as first lord; holds Honda-family materials

Ōyamazaki, Kyoto Prefecture

Local archive adjacent to the Yamazaki battlefield

Kagoshima Prefecture

Comprehensive archive for Satsuma-domain and Saigō-related materials

Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto

Central archive of Bakumatsu loyalist materials, including graves of Ikedaya casualties

Kudanshita, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo

Site of the Saitō Yakurō dōjō where Katsura was head student; a memorial stone remains

Aoi Ward, Shizuoka City, Shizuoka Prefecture

Family temple of the Imagawa; a temple connected to Yoshimoto

Higashiyama Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture

Taira base in Kyoto; holds the seated statue of Kiyomori (Important Cultural Property)

Kita Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture

Core of the Kitayama estate built by Yoshimitsu; the Golden Pavilion is a World Heritage Site

Kita Ward, Hamamatsu City, Shizuoka Prefecture

Mortuary temple of the Ii house; transmits a site said to be Naotora's grave

Kōchi City, Kōchi Prefecture

Holds Ryōma-related materials including Katsu-Ryōma correspondence

Sekigahara, Gifu Prefecture

Adjacent to the battlefield; comprehensive archive of related materials

Sekigahara Town, Fuwa District, Gifu Prefecture

Holds Sekigahara-related materials

Sekigahara Town, Gifu Prefecture

Adjacent to the Sekigahara battlefield; holds related materials

Motoazabu, Minato-ku, Tokyo

Site of Okita Sōji's grave, extant today

Chūō, Fukui City, Fukui Prefecture

The Kitanoshō Castle site; shrine enshrining Katsuie and Oichi

Shiga Prefecture

Holds materials related to Mitsunari's seat at Sawayama Castle

Shimoda, Shizuoka Prefecture

Holds materials on Perry's arrival and the Shōin stowaway incident

Shinshiro, Aichi Prefecture

Municipal museum adjacent to the Nagashino battlefield

Shōin Shrine grounds, Hagi, Yamaguchi Prefecture

The original building, designated a National Historic Site

Kagoshima City, Kagoshima Prefecture

Museum holding Shimazu-family transmitted objects, including Yoshihiro-related materials

Kamakura City, Kanagawa Prefecture

Historic site transmitted as the site of Yoshitoki's grave

Suma Ward, Kobe City, Hyōgo Prefecture

Near the Ichi-no-Tani battlefield; holds temple treasures associated with the Tale of the Heike

Yanagawa City, Fukuoka Prefecture

Holds the transmitted documents and articles of the Tachibana family

Ōtemachi, Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo

One of the traditions of Masakado's end; a distinctive space preserved in front of the modern Tokyo Station

Hiraizumi Town, Iwate Prefecture

The site of the Koromogawa Palace where Yoshitsune met his end; a memorial hall

Chūō Ward, Ōsaka City, Ōsaka Prefecture

Important Cultural Property; the Tekijuku building of Kōan and related materials survive

Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi Prefecture

Takasugi's mortuary temple; principal archive of related materials

Kyoto City

Mortuary temple of the Ashikaga shogunate, holds portrait sculptures of successive shoguns

Ueda City

Holds Sanada-clan artifacts and documents

Yamaguchi Prefecture

Holds Kido's autograph correspondence and related materials

Yamanashi Prefectural Museum

Holds Shingen's red-seal letters and the Kōshū legal code

Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture

Holds materials on the Bakumatsu Japanese navy

Yonezawa City

Comprehensive archive of Uesugi family documents and artifacts

Yanaka, Taitō-ku, Tokyo

Rinzai Zen temple founded by Tesshū; houses his grave and personal effects