Daimyo Kato Kiyomasa hunting a tiger in Korea
Kato Kiyomasa hunting a tiger in Korea. A Japanese daimyo of the Azuchi-Momoyama and Edo periods. His court title was Higo-no-kami. His name as a child was Yashamaru, and first name was Toranosuke. He was one of Hideyoshi's Seven Spears of Shizugatake. Kiyomasa was one of the three senior commanders during the Seven-Year (Imjin) War (1592-1598) against the Korean Joseon. Together with Konishi Yukinaga, he captured Seoul, Busan and many other cities. He defeated the last of the Korean regulars at the Battle of Imjin River and pacified Hamgyong. Tiger hunting was a common pastime for the samurai during the war. He used a yari (spear), and later presented the pelts to Hideyoshi. Some versions of the story say he was in fact hunting tigers to catch them alive, in order to bring their meat to Hideyoshi, as he thought it would improve his lord's health, but later, the tigers were killed because of the lack of food for his men
