Sakura Sōgorō

Sakura Sōgorō or better known as Sōgo-sama (1605 – September 1653), was a legendary Japanese farmer whose real family name was Kiuchi. He is said to have appealed directly to the shōgun in 1652 when he was serving as a headman of one of the villages in the Sakura Domain. In the appeal he requested the shōgun to help ease the peasants' burden of heavy taxes and bad crops. But since direct appeals were illegal in those days, he was arrested. It is widely believed that he was executed (crucified) along with his sons (and some sources claim also his wife) in 1653 by the daimyō of his feudal domain. However, no evidence for the existence of the incident has been found, although a farmer named Sōgorō was found listed on the record of the village.[1] The legend of Sakura Sōgorō has been made into numerous stories and plays of kabuki, Jōruri, and so on (a.o. a play called "Self-Sacrificing Man Sakura Sōgo"). In 1851 the play was first staged at Nakamura-za. He is enshrined in Sōgo-reidō of Tōshōji temple in Narita city. He was praised by Fukuzawa Yukichi and in the Freedom and People's Rights Movement and is still admired by many as gimin (martyr, in the non-religious sense). Every year on 2 September (it is said that it is the day before his execution, but other sources say he was executed on the 24th), there are all-night gatherings in memory of Sōgo-sama at the Sōgo Reidō Sanctuary (Tōshōji Temple) in Narita (Chiba prefecture).

Sakura Sōgorō
Born	Kiuchi Sōgorō 1605 Shimōsa Province
Died	September 1653 Kodzu Village
Monuments	Jōkyō Gimin Memorial Museum
Nationality	Japanese
Occupation	Agriculture
Era	Edo period Tokugawa shogunate
Criminal charge(s)	Civil disobedience to feudal Japanese military government's Tokugawa Ietsuna Conspiring with Yui Shōsetsu Petition of excessive taxation
Criminal penalty	Parents death by crucifixion Children death by decapitation
Spouse(s)	Tsuta
Children	Sohei Gennosuké Kihachi Sannosuké