Who is Lady Ochiba in Shogun?

Lady Ochiba is an important and influential character in the Shogun series and is the wife of the late Taikō.

Shogun is known to be one of the biggest series on streaming platforms in 2024. The series is set in the early Japanese era which was ruled by Lords and regents. The series has received acclaim and accolades from audiences and critics for being historically accurate about the cultures and the story.

Shogun is a story set in the early Japanese era where the Lord of Kanto is introduced to John Blackthrone, an English sailor who was shipwrecked in Japan. As the story progresses, we are introduced to various characters who play pivotal roles in both John's character journey and the outcome of the entire story. These characters have been loosely inspired by early Japanese stories and influential figures that have importance in Japanese history.

Who is Lady Ochiba in Shogun?

Lady Ochiba is one of the highest-ranking women in Japan and is known to be the most feared and admired mother of the heir. Also recognized by the name Ochiba-no-kata, she is the consort of the late Taikō. In the series, Ochiba was the only woman who was able to conceive and give Taikō an heir to the throne. This made her one of the most significantly influential women in the series having political influence in Osaka. Her presence in the series was shown in the 1st episode of Shogun where we learned that she was held captive at Lord Toranaga’s castle.

While her original purpose in the city of Edo was to attend to her sister who was in labor, Toranaga used this moment to ensure his safety at the regents meeting which was shown in the series. Ochiba was the daughter of the great warlord Kuroda, who was highly respected and feared in all the lands and was known to be the one who almost got the entirety of Japan under his rule, completely united. After her father’s death, Ochiba was left with no allies or friends in Japan and had to make her way back up using the social ladder.

Who was Lady Ochiba in Shogun based on?

The character of Lady Ochiba-no-kata in Shogun is based on the influential Japanese figure Yodo-no-kata. In the history of Japan, Yodo was known to have one of the most dramatic stories among Japanese princesses at the time. Born with the name of Azai Chacha, Yodo was known to be the daughter of famous warlord Azai Nagamasa and mother Oichi-no-kata. During their 3 year war with the Nobunaga Clan, the Azai clan’s strength was outnumbered and the clan fell, resulting in Nagamasa committing Seppuku, resulting in Chacha living with her mother and sisters under the protection of Nobunaga.

After the sudden death of Nobunaga during the Honnōji incident in 1582, it was arranged that Chacha would be married to Shibata Katsuie, a vassal of the Oda clan. During their stay at their Katsuie's castle in Echizen, they were attacked by Hideyoshi (the Taikō) which resulted in Katsuie and Chacha’s mother committing seppuku and ending their lives. Chacha and her 3 sisters had escaped this gruesome fate surviving in Japan for a couple of years.

Later, approximately around 1588, Chacha was selected to be one of Hideyoshi's concubines. She received the status and importance her father desired, being the only female out of all his concubines to give Taiko two sons, including his wife Nene. Through this outcome, Lady Chaha came to be known as Yodo-no-kata, and was highly respected in the region. Out of her 2 sons, Tsurumatsu died at the age of two, but the second son, Hideyori, became the Heir of the Throne.