What secrets does this ancient stone hold? Right here stands the Akachidon no Tsuka Stele. It is located near the entrance to the Oil Mountain hiking trail.
Akachidon no Tsuka means Red Earth Mound Stele. This stele marks a significant event from long ago. It is linked to the Kikuchi clan.
Let’s step back in time. The Kikuchi clan flourished from the Heian to the Warring States period. They were a group of samurai. Their base was in Higo Province now Kumamoto Prefecture.
During the period when Japan’s government split the Northern and Southern Dynasties, the Kikuchi clan supported the Southern Court. They fought against the Ashikaga clan. The Ashikaga clan backed the Northern Court.
The Kikuchi clan is known for the Battle of Tatarahama in Fukuoka City’s Higashi Ward. This stele is connected to the Kikuchi Shrine. It sits near the Nanakuma subway line.
“Akachidon” is the popular name. It refers to Akahoshi Saburo Aritaka. He served the Kikuchi clan at the end of the Kamakura period. Why is a retainer’s grave from Higo in the mountains of Hakata? This is a great question.
In 1333, Emperor Godaigo called on lords to overthrow the Kamakura shogunate. Ashikaga Takauji responded. He attacked the Rokuhara Tandai. Nitta Yoshisada also raised an army. He attacked Kamakura.
The Kamakura shogunate fell. Meanwhile, in northern Kyushu, Kikuchi Taketoki attacked Hojo Hidetoki. Hidetoki lived in Chinzei Tandai. But Taketoki was betrayed by Shoni Fuyusuke and Otomo Sadamune. He was chased to Baba’s Head now Sakurazaka and Ropponmatsu. There he was killed.
Akahoshi Saburo Aritaka protected Taketoki. When he saw his lord was dead, he turned his horse south. His mission was to inform the Kikuchi family in Higo.
Akahoshi was badly wounded. He fell from his horse in the Oil Mountain fields. A villager found him. Akahoshi used his last breath to convey a message. He entrusted a scroll to the villager. Then Akahoshi died.
The villager could not read. He rushed to the village headman. The headman gathered the villagers. They took the remains of the fallen warrior.
The scroll contained Taketoki’s experiences. It described the attack on the Chinzei Tandai. The villagers were moved. They decided to bury Akahoshi with honor.
They dug a grave where he fell. They built a stone monument. The monument was three feet high. It was one foot two inches wide. On it they carved “Akachidon no Tsuka”.
The villagers declared March 13th Akahoshi’s memorial day. The headman sent a messenger to Higo. He told Kikuchi Taketoki and Akahoshi Saburo of their deaths. The Kikuchi clan and Akahoshi’s family never forgot the gratitude. Every year on March 13th, they visited Akachidon’s grave.
Over time, the years passed. The era shifted to Meiji. The descendants of the villager became the Oshiro family. They enshrined Akahoshi Saburo Aritaka’s spirit. They treated him as an ancestor.
In the Showa era, the Akachidon no Tsuka Stele was moved. This was to make way for a new road. It was relocated near the Nishitetsu bus stop “Daihachi”.
Even so, the stone stele of Akachidon no Tsuka stands. It gazes at Oil Mountain. It reminds us of history. It reminds us of the fleeting changes of time.
The local historian Kota Torazo described it best. “The stele was built as proof of history. It records the history of ancestors. From there, we can taste the changes of time.”