History
Today, much of the history of Iga province can be viewed at various sightseeing locations scattered throughout Mie. The castle town of Ueno was the location of Iga-Ueno Castle.
The Iga Province is particularly famous for its clan of ninja, its most notable member being a samurai, Hattori Hanzō. Both the Iga and Kōka provinces are considered the birthplace of ninjutsu. It was also the birthplace of haiku poet Matsuo Bashō.
During the early Muromachi Period the Iga Province became effectively independent from their feudal rulers and established a form of republic. The Iga Republic was called Iga Sokoku Ikki (伊賀惣国一揆) in Japanese.
In 1581, two years after a failed invasion led by his son, the warlord Oda Nobunaga launched a massive invasion of Iga, attacking from six directions with a force of 40,000 to 60,000 men. After ruthlessly slaughtering great numbers of the inhabitants of the Iga region, Oda Nobunaga then declared a cease-fire which allowed some of the Iga ninja to escape. It was, however, the end of the independent Iga Republic.
Read more about this topic: Iga Province
Famous quotes containing the word history:
“What has history to do with me? Mine is the first and only world! I want to report how I find the world. What others have told me about the world is a very small and incidental part of my experience. I have to judge the world, to measure things.”
—Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889–1951)
“... in a history of spiritual rupture, a social compact built on fantasy and collective secrets, poetry becomes more necessary than ever: it keeps the underground aquifers flowing; it is the liquid voice that can wear through stone.”
—Adrienne Rich (b. 1929)
“When the history of guilt is written, parents who refuse their children money will be right up there in the Top Ten.”
—Erma Brombeck (20th century)