Who is Lady Kiri in Shogun?

Lady Kiri no Kata in Shogun is known to be the legal wife of Lord Yoshii Toranaga in the Shogun series.

Shogun is known to be one of the most historically accurate shows set in the era of Japanese history when the lands were ruled by Lords and Shoguns. The series, released in 2024, is an adaptation of the novel by the same name from 1975. Throughout the series, we have seen various impactful characters, one of which is Lady Kiri. The series has aired a total of 10 episodes in its 1st season.

Who is Lady Kiri in Shogun?

Lady Kiri, also known as Kiri-no-kata is the wife of Lord Toranaga in Shogun. In the series, it is revealed that Lady Kiri is one of the most loyal vassals to her lord. Kiri and Toranaga were revealed to have been childhood friends in the series but they had to wait to get married as when Toranaga was young, he was held captive by his enemies for quite a long time. At this time, Kiri was known to have been married to someone else - an unnamed individual in the series.

By the time Toranaga freed himself from his captors and gained his position as the Lord of Kanto, Lady Kiri was widowed and not married anymore. Toranaga offered her a marriage proposal and she accepted it. Throughout the story, Lady Kiri is known as a steadfast person and quite vigilant of what's going on around her. Her first appearance in the series was in episode 6 titled "Ladies of the Willow World" when Lord Ishido had captured Toranaga’s family and locked down their castle. During this time it was known that Lady Kiri was highly patient and was taking care of everyone, believing her Lord would find a way to save them.

Who was Lady Kiri no Kata’s character inspired from?

The Lady Kiri no Kata character in Shogun is inspired by the character of Acha-no-Tsubone (real name: Iida Suwa) from the early Japanese era. Acha-no-Tsubone was known to be the daughter of a vassal who was part of the powerful Takeda clan. In her history, she was married as a political arrangement between the Takeda and Imagawa clans. During her marriage to an able samurai, Acha-no-Tsubone bore two sons, but unfortunately, she was widowed after her husband died.

Around this time the famous samurai Tokugawa Ieyasu (the character of Toranaga in Shōgun) probably knew about Acha’s conditions as he was held captive in the Imagawa family for a long time. It was after his escape that Tokugawa asked Acha to become one of his concubines. At the time Tokugawa was seen to have many concubines but Acha-no-Tsubone was considered to be the closest to the samurai. She was highly supportive of Tokugawa, being present by his side even during the war. Acha-no-Tsubone fought the famous battle of Komaki-Nagakute alongside the Ieyasu clan while she was pregnant. During the war, Acha received a lot of injuries resulting in a miscarriage, and was unable to bear more children. After the war, Acha-no-Tsubone was considered Ieyasu's First Lady, taking care of all the internal affairs of the clans, including raising all of Ieyasu's children by other concubines.