足利尊氏

Ashikaga Takauji was the first shōgun of the Muromachi shogunate, having overthrown the Kamakura regime. Though instrumental in Emperor Go-Daigo's restoration, he eventually broke with the emperor and sparked the Nanbokuchō conflict. Takauji was a formidable warrior who also possessed deep religious devotion, patronizing the monk Musō Soseki and founding Tenryū-ji. He favored Sōshū-den swords and possessed numerous tachi by the great Kamakura smiths. The Nanbokuchō period saw a vogue for massive ōdachi, and Takauji's armies wielded these imposing blades across many battlefields. Swords passed down through the Ashikaga house were treasured as 'Ashikaga-ke gomotsu' and later formed the foundation of the celebrated Higashiyama collection of the Muromachi shōguns. Takauji showed magnanimity toward defeated enemies yet was ruthless in political calculation — his complex character remains a subject of debate to this day.