Shinsengumi

[TylerY]

I've recently gotten a real interest in the Shinsengumi and I was wondering if there were others on the forum who knew stuff about them that they'd be willing to share?

Heres what I know about the Shinsengumi:

They were known as the Miburou and were like a Bakufu SWAT team used against the imperialist revolutionaries in Kyoto

They wore light blue and white haori

Aku Soku Zan

[joekc6nlx]

I believe they were a separate group from the Bakufu (which was the military side of the shogunate). Almost like a bunch of vigilantes, but on the side of, and tolerated by, the shogunate.

[Pan-Chan]

http://www.ridgebackpress.com/heroes/shinsegumi.htm

This has some information on it. Hope it gives you some information you want.

P.S- You watch a lot of Rurouni Kenshin, don't you? Not that it's a bad thing if you do. ;)

[joekc6nlx]

http://www.ridgebackpress.com/heroes/shinsegumi.htm

This has some information on it. Hope it gives you some information you want.

P.S- You watch a lot of Rurouni Kenshin, don't you? Not that it's a bad thing if you do. ;)
I do.....although I'll never be as quick as the Hitokiri Battousai.

[Pan-Chan]

I do.....although I'll never be as quick as the Hitokiri Battousai.

Yeah.. same here. BUT, I have a good eighty years(hopefully) to develope my seme and timing to break through that "god-like" speed of Mr.Himura's. :D

[Akai Bushi]

The Shinsengumi was lead by a samurai named Kondo Isami. He was a villager that was adopted into the samurai class by the Kondo family.

[TylerY]

Yeah.. same here. BUT, I have a good eighty years(hopefully) to develope my seme and timing to break through that "god-like" speed of Mr.Himura's. :D
Gotta love Kenshin and his sword which surpasses the speed of light lol

Oh BTW does anyone know the "secret" of his super-technique, as said in the anime? My friend's been arguing with me that he takes one less step, where I've been saying it's because he's been taking an extra one. We're both too lazy to find the episode and re-watch it, so if anyone knows off the top of their heads, it'd be greatly appreciated.

[Pan-Chan]

Gotta love Kenshin and his sword which surpasses the speed of light lol

Oh BTW does anyone know the "secret" of his super-technique, as said in the anime? My friend's been arguing with me that he takes one less step, where I've been saying it's because he's been taking an extra one. We're both too lazy to find the episode and re-watch it, so if anyone knows off the top of their heads, it'd be greatly appreciated.

It's that whole "need to live," and not throwing away your life for the fight attitude. At least that's what I remember being the secret.

[TylerY]

It's that whole "need to live," and not throwing away your life for the fight attitude. At least that's what I remember being the secret.
That Soujiro kid also mentioned something about the left foot; that's what I was wondering about.

[Pan-Chan]

That Soujiro kid also mentioned something about the left foot; that's what I was wondering about.

Oh. That was what the difference between his "secret" technique and his regular battou-jutsu was.

I own the entire series on DVD... I'm a Rurouni Kenshin geek.

[TylerY]

Oh. That was what the difference between his "secret" technique and his regular battou-jutsu was.

I own the entire series on DVD... I'm a Rurouni Kenshin geek.
Hehe, I've recently finished re-watching the entire series, and OVA's in story order. If only there really was a place to learn Hiten Mitsurugi-ryu.... */whimsical*

[Zaphiel]

read the kenshin-manga:wink: .....
no just kidding.....

damn just recogniced that this was mentioned before...sorry

[AkuSokuZan]

惡即斬... Ya gotta love it Rk fans!!!!!! (I have the entire manga and anime on cd lol)

[T.Lee]

shinsengumi is just overpriced ramen.

[Pan-Chan]

read the kenshin-manga:wink: .....
no just kidding.....

damn just recogniced that this was mentioned before...sorry

I've read the first three, but sadly none of the others. Samurai Deeper Kyo on the other hand.. I just purchased the tenth volume today after practice.

[Hisham]

I've read the first three, but sadly none of the others. Samurai Deeper Kyo on the other hand.. I just purchased the tenth volume today after practice.
Do read the manga if you have a chance, the story has been changed in the anime.

[R A Sosnowski]

http://www.ridgebackpress.com/heroes/shinsegumi.htm

This has some information on it. Hope it gives you some information you want.

P.S- You watch a lot of Rurouni Kenshin, don't you? Not that it's a bad thing if you do. ;)
I would stick with the writings of Romulus Hillsborough:

Ryoma: Life of a Renaissance Samurai (1999),
Samurai Sketches (2000), and
Shogun's Most Dreaded Samurai Corps: The Bloody Legacy Of The Shinsengumi (2005)


You also might consider the following DVD

Tennen Rishin Ryu (http://budogu.com/shopsite_sc/store/html/product610.html)


The accomapnying description reads

Tennen Rishin Ryu was practiced by the Shinsen Gumi, a group of swordsmen organized to protect Kyoto during the revolution that eventually overthrew the Shogunate in 1868. This is a serious art that was still in use in combat as recently the 19th century. Powerful warriors, their art became famous after their many battles during the Meiji Restoration.

HTH,

[TylerY]

Hehe reading these articles brings back recollections of Peacemaker Kurogane.

[Zaphiel]

yes i really like samurai x...it's cool but somehow it's getting worse after number 19....in my oppinion ...I'm till 22

[learnkendo]

shinsengumi is just overpriced ramen.
Hey, But I like it!!!

I drive 4 hours round trip just to go to the Shinsengumi for their ramen!! Plus its always so close to the kendo tournament...

Is there a better place for Ramen around??

[reg]

They wore light blue and white haori
this is a dramatized view of many. historically, there was only one occasion in which they wore a uniform, and it wasn't light blue and white if i remember correctly. dont really remember which occasion but. anyway, they did not walk around wearing the haori, not even during official missions/raids.

[Reikon]

Bah! Your Ki is weak...I've seen all 96 RK eps and all three DVDs

[Denker]

Whew, I hadn't even heard of Rurouni Kenshin until I saw people on sword arts forums "educating" people on the historical aspect of the Sakabatou (It never being used historically, that is.)

I almost want to watch it now...

[sminki]

There's a good movie about some men in ShinSenGumi (based on true events but fictional) called Mibu Gishi Den. I think its English title is When the Last Sword was Drawn.

[AkuSokuZan]

I believe there is a continuing series of TV called Shinsengumi (Japanese Channels)

[Legato]

I believe there is a continuing series of TV called Shinsengumi (Japanese Channels)
I really recommend that you watch the Shinsengumi drama, it's very good, and it tells almost the real story of the Shinsengumi (maybe a bit dramatized). The one thing I didn't like in the RK was that the Shinsengumi was shown as a bunch of villains, and that the royalists were shown as somekind of heroes. You can find NHK's Shinsengumi in some J-Dorama torrent sites.

[Yiu Fai]

http://www.shinsengumihq.com/prom.htm

Enjoy!

[Andou]

http://www.shinsengumihq.com/prom.htm

Enjoy!

Wow...that's exactly how I pictured it'd look in my mind...Storming the Ikeda-Ya in that battle garb...Striking fear in all who stood in their path.

[kenshiwannabe]

http://www.shinsengumihq.com/prom.htm

Enjoy!

That is just wrong, very wrong!

[2SwordStyle]

Oh BTW does anyone know the "secret" of his super-technique, as said in the anime? My friend's been arguing with me that he takes one less step, where I've been saying it's because he's been taking an extra one. We're both too lazy to find the episode and re-watch it, so if anyone knows off the top of their heads, it'd be greatly appreciated


According to the Anime it was that he stepped out first left footed as oppose to right footed and the stuff about being at one with himself was a meaphore for if he screwed it up he could cut his own leg off instead of cutting the enemy. Has some basis in truth but at least from the perspective of cutting yourself by accident by doing things that way. But sorry to say that it's not the ultimate technique to sword fighting in real life.

I indeed have the secret... yes... the ultimate technique...garunteed to kill any sword fighter who ever lived in a single movement in a face to face duel.

and that ultimate style is........... Desert Eagle .50 Ryu....BAM!! LOL

sorry.. I had to. LOL

[Kingofmyrrh]

I indeed have the secret... yes... the ultimate technique...garunteed to kill any sword fighter who ever lived in a single movement in a face to face duel.

and that ultimate style is........... Desert Eagle .50 Ryu....BAM!! LOL

sorry.. I had to. LOL
Don't apologize - it's the most sensible thing you've said since you arrived!

[2SwordStyle]

can't we all just get allong... whats with the insults. what i ever do to you?

[Mibu-Ro[Okita]]

here is some info for you. :)

they were the most feared police force in tokugawa history and consisted of hundreds of expert swordsmen, each endowed with the official sanction and an unflinchin propensity to kill. Their purpose was to restore law and order to the blood soaked streets of the imperial capital. "Fight fire with fire, and terror with terror," reasoned the powers that were, with a single-minded objective bolstered by the corps' draconian code.

The radicals from Choshu (http://www.ridgebackpress.com/terms.htm#choshu) and Tosa (http://www.ridgebackpress.com/terms.htm#tosa) unleashed a reign of terror and assassination in Kyoto (http://www.ridgebackpress.com/terms.htm#imperialcapital) during the early 1860s. In the spring of 1863, the Tokugawa Bakufu (http://www.ridgebackpress.com/terms.htm#tokugawa) made its final preparations for the first visit to Kyoto by a shogun (http://www.ridgebackpress.com/terms.htm#shogun) in over two centuries. To restore order to the imperial capital, the Tokugawa authorities recruited over two hundred ronin (http://www.ridgebackpress.com/terms.htm#ronin) from provinces around Japan, under the slogan of “loyalty and patriotism.” Shortly after the “loyal and patriotic corps” reached Kyoto, the bakufu (http://www.ridgebackpress.com/terms.htm#bakufu) had second thoughts about the wisdom of their plan. Many of the ronin they had recruited were actually Imperial Loyalists (http://www.ridgebackpress.com/terms.htm#imperialloyalist) who shared the xenophobic sentiments of the Choshu and Tosa men whom they had been enlisted to suppress. Most of the enlistees were soon sent back to Edo, where they could do little harm. Some twenty of them, however, remained in Kyoto, under the supervision of the Lord of Aizu (http://www.ridgebackpress.com/terms.htm#aizu), a staunch Tokugawa ally and the shogunate’s official Protector of Kyoto. The diminished corps assumed the name Shinsengumi, “Newly Selected Corps,” led by two particularly lethal swordsmen, Serizawa Kamo (http://www.ridgebackpress.com/terms.htm#serizawakamo) and Kondo Isami (http://www.ridgebackpress.com/terms.htm#kondoisami), who were bitter rivals. Serizawa, who hailed from a wealthy samurai family of the Mito domain, one of the elite Go-sanke (http://www.ridgebackpress.com/terms.htm#gosanke), the three branch houses of the Tokugawa, was a highly skilled swordsman. Kondo, originally of peasant stock from the province of Musashi (http://www.ridgebackpress.com/terms.htm#musashi), near Edo (http://www.ridgebackpress.com/terms.htm#edo), had been adopted by a local sword master for his ferocity on the practice floor. Serizawa had a reputation as a violent drunk. He felt that he was above the law. He took advantage of his newfound power to embezzle money from wealthy Kyoto merchants, to carouse at his favorite house of pleasure at the expense of the perplexed proprietress, and to have his way with women, including other men’s wives. The Protector of Kyoto, unhappy that this leader of his police corps behaved contrary to his raison d’etre, ordered Kondo to assassinate Serizawa. Kondo carried out this order with the same cold-blooded expedience by which his corps would subdue the enemies of the Tokugawa. He now became the sole commander of the Shinsengumi, which he, and his best friend and right-hand man, Hijikata Toshizo (http://www.ridgebackpress.com/terms.htm#hijikatatoshizo), would lead with an iron rule.

As suggested by the corps’ symbol, the Chinese character for sincerity, Kondo and Hijikata commanded the Shinsengumi based on the severest of codes. Any man who failed to abide by this code was forced to commit seppuku (http://www.ridgebackpress.com/terms.htm#seppuku), and it was through this code which the Shinsengumi secured its place in Japanese history.

hope this helps and makes you become a believer too

Okita

[Moe-KendoFreak!]

But sorry to say that it's not the ultimate technique to sword fighting in real life.

I indeed have the secret... yes... the ultimate technique...garunteed to kill any sword fighter who ever lived in a single movement in a face to face duel.

and that ultimate style is........... Desert Eagle .50 Ryu....BAM!! LOL

sorry.. I had to. LOL

LMAO!!!!! somehow i didnt expect it!! lol

[Alice]

The secret of the Amakakeru Ryuu No Hirameki was the extra step, not one less step. He takes one step that propels him forward at the last instant. But if you make a tiny mistake, you could cut yourself, you therefore the will to survive was important. I have the whole series on DVD but I have that particular episode on VHS and I used to watch it a lot before buying the DVDs. Good show. I`m embarrassed to let my kendo club friends know I like it though, haha.

Back on topic, Shinsengumi is pretty popular in Japan. I was walking around Asakusa the other day and I saw they were selling Shinsengumi uniforms. There was also a sword (there were lots of cool swords- I wanted one) that was apparently a recreation of Hijikata Toshizou`s sword. He is my favourite member of the Shinsengumi. My friends seem to like Okita though. He`s my second favourite. Child prodigies, as a rule, irritate me, but I love Okita Souji. I had a dream about him last night. Right after dreaming about practicing kendo (and my kamae was horrible because I was laying in bed, and I was being taught by Abe Hiroshi. o_o).

Also, there is a cute Shinsengumi poster here that says "ai to seigi no tame ni, kyou mo tatakau zo!"

[TJHara]

The secret of the Amakakeru Ryuu No Hirameki was the extra step, not one less step. He takes one step that propels him forward at the last instant. But if you make a tiny mistake, you could cut yourself, you therefore the will to survive was important.

I always figured launching the move from the left foot just meant there was sort of an uncoiling motion to the body that added strength and/or speed to the cut; I still have yet to see a translation of that part of the story that connects the "will to live" thing to the technique in a way that makes sense to me.

There was also a sword (there were lots of cool swords- I wanted one) that was apparently a recreation of Hijikata Toshizou`s sword.

Was it like this one (http://www.samurai-store.com/sword/m003/index.html)? This is the place I bought my first iaito from, and I think it's pretty slick that they offer historical replica iaito, too. Although I always have to wonder how good someone's sources were to be able to say "THIS is what it looked like." The Shinsengumi were relatively recent, of course, but do the original blades of, say, the Yagyuu or the Tokugawa still exist that these replicas are based on, or are we relying on old paintings and the like to recreate them?

Oh, and going back to an earlier post (like "back in January" earlier) I also recommend Romulus Hillsborough's Shinsengumi book, which I'm just about to finish reading myself. The author seems overly fond of the phrases "unyielding will to power," "propensity to kill," and "germ of self-importance," but the book is very informative and an easy read. In response to the original question "why Shinsengumi?" the book also offers reminders that the "good guys" the Shinsengumi were commissioned to fight sometimes got out of hand, as well.

[Alice]

I always figured launching the move from the left foot just meant there was sort of an uncoiling motion to the body that added strength and/or speed to the cut; I still have yet to see a translation of that part of the story that connects the "will to live" thing to the technique in a way that makes sense to me.



Was it like this one (http://www.samurai-store.com/sword/m003/index.html)? This is the place I bought my first iaito from, and I think it's pretty slick that they offer historical replica iaito, too. Although I always have to wonder how good someone's sources were to be able to say "THIS is what it looked like." The Shinsengumi were relatively recent, of course, but do the original blades of, say, the Yagyuu or the Tokugawa still exist that these replicas are based on, or are we relying on old paintings and the like to recreate them?

Oh, and going back to an earlier post (like "back in January" earlier) I also recommend Romulus Hillsborough's Shinsengumi book, which I'm just about to finish reading myself. The author seems overly fond of the phrases "unyielding will to power," "propensity to kill," and "germ of self-importance," but the book is very informative and an easy read. In response to the original question "why Shinsengumi?" the book also offers reminders that the "good guys" the Shinsengumi were commissioned to fight sometimes got out of hand, as well.
I didn`t really get the will to live thing myself. I am just repeating what I heard in the episode. And yes, I think it was like that if I remember correctly. And thank you for the book recommendation.