Oe no Chikahiro (大江親広)

OE no Chikahiro (birth year-unknown to January 24, 1242) was a busho (Japanese military commander) who lived in the early Kamakura period. His father was OE no Hiromoto. His mother was a daughter of Noritsuna TADA. He was the eldest son of OE no Hiromoto. His wife was a daughter of Yoshitoki HOJO (Takedono).

He was once adopted as a son of MINAMOTO no Michichika and called himself 'MINAMOTO no Chikahiro,' however, when his father reverted the family names to Oe in June 1216, he followed his father and reverted to his family names of Oe. Since his father was an influential person in bakufu (Japanese feudal government headed by a shogun), he was treated preferentially as a jisha-bugyo (magistrate of temples and shrines) by shogun MINAMOTO no Sanetomo and was trusted by the Hojo clan as well. He entered the priesthood and called himself 'Rena' because Sanetomo was assassinated by Kugyo in January 1219. In February 1219, he was appointed as kyoto-shugo (military governor of Kyoto) together with Mitsusue IGA and went to the capital Kyoto. In the Jokyu War in 1221 when he accepted Emperor Gotoba's invitation and joined the imperial army, he fought with the army of bakufu in Omi Province, but he was defeated and returned to Kyoto.

He hid himself after the war and is said to have gone into seclusion in Dewa Province. And Takedono, who was forced to divorce him after the war, later became a concubine of Sadamichi TSUCHIMIKADO, a son of Michichika TSUCHIMIKADO, whereafter she grew deeply involved in the enthronement of the Emperor Gosaga.

[Original Japanese]