This discontinued Warlord Games boxed set depicting the widow Takeda Naoko and her followers. Following the murder of her husband, she dons the armour of a samurai and rides out to seek vengeance, all the while clinging desperately to the path of honour.

“The rules for cavalry in the game are very simple (presented on the recruitment cards in this set), but adding even just one or two to your force changes things dramatically. The extra movement multiplied by 3 actions for your hero means you can get your most powerful model exactly where you need him (or her). And an all cavalry force is very interesting to play!

The onna bugeisha character (female samurai) comes with skill cards to show her sense of honour, family pride, and a haughty attitude to the low-born, plus a particularly interesting quest where you have to interrogate enemy samurai once they are vanquished to discover a secret. The idea is that she is tracking down her husband’s murderer. Could it be the ronin Tadashi?” Warlord Games Product Description

There was an Nakano Takeko ( April 1847 – 16 October 1868), who was a Japanese female warrior of the Aizu Domain, who fought and died during the Boshin War. During the Battle of Aizu, she fought with a naginata, and was the leader of an ad hoc corps of female combatants who fought in the battle independently.

Takeko and other women stepped forward on the front line without permission, as the senior Aizu retainers did not allow them to fight as an official part of the domain’s army

There is little evidence for them fighting mounted or the story of revenge.

A monument to her was erected beside her grave at Hōkai Temple.

The annual Aizu Autumn Festival

During the annual Aizu Autumn Festival, a group of young girls wearing hakama (a red and white dress), and white headbands take part in the procession (not shown above), commemorating the actions of Nakano and her band of women fighters of the Joshigun.

Further reading

• Hoffman, Michael (October 9, 2011). “Women warriors of Japan”. The Japan Times.
• Kincaid, Chris (August 9, 2015). “Japan’s Warrior Women”. Japan Powered. (incl. “The Wshigun“)
• Smithsonian Institution (2015). “Samurai Warrior Queens”. Smithsonian Channel.
• Szczepanski, Kallie (April 1, 2017). “Images of Samurai Women”. ThoughtCo.