Torii Suneemon

Who was Torii Suneemon?

Torii Suneemon was an ashigaru who served the Okudaira family, retainer of Tokugawa Ieyasu. He became famous for his bravery and incredible exploit at the siege of Nagashino.

He was a retainer of Okudaira Sadamasa and member of the Nagashino garrison when the fortress came under siege by the forces of Takeda Katsuyori. Already renowned for his bravery and known for his knowledge of the surroundings, he volunteered for the extremely dangerous mission of sneaking through the siege lines to request aid from Tokugawa Ieyasu in Okazaki. After successfully warning Tokugawa, however, he was captured by the Takeda on his return to Nagashino.

Torii was taken prisoner and forced to shout to his compatriots in the fortress that no help was on the way, and that they should surrender. He instead encouraged the garrison that Tokugawa's army was, in fact, on the way, and that they should keep fighting. There is some dispute as to whether Torii was crucified before or after this proclamation, as well as in the precise details of his execution.

Nevertheless, the end result was the same.