The Sagara Clan and their Smuggling (3)

     Sagara Tametsugu  (1447-1500) was succeeded by his eldest son, Nagatsune (1469-1518).  Nagatsune had 3 sons; 2 elder illegitimate sons, Yoshishige (1489-1546) and Nagataka (1492-1526), and 1 younger legitimate son, Nagamasa (1501-1525).  Nagatsune abdicated in 1512, and was succeeded by Nagamasa.

     Once Nagatsune, who had been holding real power, died in 1518, Nagasada started trying to realize his belief in his legitimacy.  In 1524, Nagasada attacked Hitoyoshi Castle, eliminated Nagamasa, and killed him in 1525.  On May the 11th, 1526, Nagataka attacked Hitoyoshi Castle this time, and eliminated Nagasada.  On the 15th, Nagataka was attacked by Yoshishige, and committed hara-kiri on the 16th.  Nagasada, his wife, and his 2 sons were assassinated in 1531.

     In 1533, Uemura Nagatsune (1495-1535), one of the brothers-in-law of Sagara Yoshishige, built a large mansion at Tokubuchi Port in Yatsushiro County.  The Sagara Clan built a big enough ship, Ichiki-maru, there in 1538.  Ichiki-maru made commercial voyages southward from Kyushu to Ryukyu by themselves for about 700 kilometers.