Date Narikuni

Date Narikuni (伊達斉邦, DAH-tay; 6 November 1817 – 9 September 1841) was an late-Edo period Japanese samurai, and the 12th daimyō of Sendai Domain in the Tōhoku region of northern Japan, and the 28th hereditary chieftain of the Date clan.

In 1828, with the death of Date Nariyoshi, Sendai Domain faced a major crisis.

The Tokugawa shogunate had taken extraordinary measures to ensure the continuation of the Date line in the case of his predecessors Date Chikamune and Date Narimune; however, the patience of Shōgun Tokugawa Ienari had worn thin over Sendai Domain succession problems, and the domain faced the possibility of attainder.

The rōjū, Mizuno Tadaakira, initially proposed a solution whereby Nariyoshi’s 4-year-old daughter, Masahime would be married to a son of Tokugawa Ienari; however, negotiations did not proceed and instead she married Date Narikuni, from one of cadet houses of the Date clan.

Events went as planned and in 1828 Narikuni received Court rank of Junior Fourth, Lower Grade and the courtesy title of Mutsu-no-kami.