Yasuke, who was eventually made into an anime for Netflix, is a real character with an interesting place in Japanese history.
Although historical sources are scarce, the person known as Yasuke was perhaps the first foreign person to earn the samurai title in Japanese history, despite being a foreign national and black. Looking at its origin, various sources and assumptions say it is of Mozambican, Sudanese, or Ethiopian descent.
When we look at his documented life in Japan, it is known that Yasuke came to Japan in 1579 in the service of the Italian Jesuit missionary Alessandro Valignano, who was a visitor of the Jesuit missions in the Indies.
The Japanese, who did not see a black-skinned individual until then, were greatly affected by this situation, and it is rumored that there was a small stampede in order to see him. When Yasuke was presented to Nobunaga, the greatest warlord of the time, Nobunaga thought it was painted with black paint and tried to peel Yasuke and wipe it off, later admitting that it was his original skin. but this situation will have affected him so much that he took him with him as his servant.
It was even believed that nobunaga was a protective demon of Yasuke, or the daikokuten, a god of prosperity often depicted in large, dark, black statues in temples.
The Japanese, who did not see a black-skinned individual until then, were greatly affected by this situation, and it is rumored that there was a small stampede in order to see him. When Yasuke was presented to Nobunaga, the greatest warlord of the time, Nobunaga thought it was painted with black paint and tried to peel Yasuke and wipe it off, later admitting that it was his original skin. but this situation will have affected him so much that he took him with him as his servant.
It was even believed that nobunaga was a protective demon of Yasuke, or the daikokuten, a god of prosperity often depicted in large, dark, black statues in temples.
Yasuke is mentioned in a chapter in the manuscripts, which is called shincho koki, describing Nobunaga's entry into Kyoto from 1568 until his death in 1582:
"On the 23rd of the 2nd month (March 23, 1581), a black page came from the Christian countries. The man was healthy and with a good demeanor, Nobunaga praised Yasuke's strength. Nobunaga's nephew gave him some money at this first meeting."
Entering the service of nabunaga, yasuke was soon given a house by nabunaga and a wakizashi, a short ceremonial sword, as in the documentary age of samurai (battle for japan). wakizashi; Ranging in the range of about 30 to 60 cm and worn with a katana, it was called a daisho, and it was understood that the person was a samurai, that is, the official mark of the samurai. This allowed Yasuke to both carry a gun and become a samurai.
Looking at the records, it is known that Yakuse participated in two wars. the first of these is the war of tenmokusan. On his way back after the war, he met one of Nobunaga's generals, Tokugawa Ieyasu. Matsudaira Ietada, ieyasu's servant, wrote in her diary of Yasuke:
"He's 6 shaku 2 sun i.e. 188 cm tall. He was pitch black and his skin was like coal, and he said his name was yasuke."
The second war is the honno-ji affair. Here, Akechi Mitsuhide, one of Nobunaga's generals, betrayed Nobunaga, caught him unprotected in the honno-ji temple and staged a coup. Nobunaga and his servants and guards realized that no matter how hard they resisted, they would not stand up to the large number of Akechi troops. Later, this forced Nobunaga to commit seppuku (harakiri). It is known that according to the allegations, Yasuke was also there and he fought in the defense, and then he was caught and presented to Akechi. According to another claim, it is said that he was taken to the Nanbanji Christian Church in Kyoto.
This 188 giant is so ingrained in Japanese culture that we still see his depictions in Japanese anime and manga such as afro samurai, bleack (kanama tosen) and slam dunk (takagori akagi).