In the period of warring states, the most well known Christian woman is Hosakawa Gracia who was baptized in the great influence of Takayama Ukon.
The real name of Hosakawa Gracia was Tama who was the daughter of Akechi Mituhide and married Hosokawa Tadaoki,the lord of Miyazu.
Akechi Mituhide was one of the powerful warriors following Oda Nobunaga. He was ordered by Oda Nobubaga to go to the front of the battle with Mouri in Chugoku district to support Toyotomi Hideyoshi.
Akech Mituhide dispathed Kameyama Castle in Tanba, leading 13 thousands soldiers,but he suddenly turned their soldiers to Honnouji Temple,where his lord Oda Nobunaga stationed,and finally destroyed Oda Nobunaga.
The news of the rebellion by Akechi Mituhide arrived at Hosokawa Tadaoki who had led a satisfactory life with his beautiful wife Tama.
Since the incident of Honouji Temple,the position of Hosokawa Tadaoki became delicate because he had the daughter of the rebel as a wife.
Akechi Mituhide sent a letter to Hosokawa Tadaoki,asking that Hosokawa family should obey Akechi Mituhide.
The position of Hosokawa Tadaoki split between the loyalty to his lord Oda Nobunaga and the conspiracy with his relative Akechi Mituhide.
After all,Hosokawa Tadaoki rejected the invitation of Akechi Mituhide and attacked the branch castles of him,and allied with Toyotomi Hideyoshi on the side of Oda Nobunaga.　
One of the problems was the treatment of Hosakawa Tama,a wife of Hosokawa Tadaoki.
If left a daughter of the rebels as she was, Hosokawa Tadaoki himself would be seen a collaborator of the rebellion.
Although he loved and attached to her so much, he couldn't help divorcing her,now that her father Akechi Mituhide rebelled against his lord Oda Nobunaga.
Tama and her followers went into seclusion in a lonely village of Mitono in the mountain of Tanba.
Akechi Mituhide entered Syouryouji Castle where Tadaoki and Tama had married two years before,and prepared the battle against Toyotomi Hidesyohi just quickly returned from the front line of the battle against Mouri.
Tama secluded in Mitono was worried about both welfare of her father Akechi Mituhide and her husband Hosokawa Tadaoki and had fallen in the anxieties of her family and her future.
The force of Akechi Mituhide was inferior in number and defeated by Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the actual successor of Oda Nobunaga,and killed on his way to his castle in Sakamoto.
The Sakamoto Caste burnt down and two elder sisters of Tama died,resulting in a collapse of Akechi Family.
Tama was left alone, holding in his heart a pain of parting with his husband and children. In the midst of her grief,the teachings of Christianity penetrated in the heart of Tama.

Oosaka is an old commercial city at the mouse of the Yodogawa River,facing Oosaka Bay. Oosaka had been a main district from the period of warring states to the beginning of Edo period.
At the time of Sekigahara Battle in 1600,Ishida Mitunari,the general of western force,tried to take hostages the wives and children of the lords following Tokugawa Ieyasu,the general of eastern force.
Among them,there was Hosakawa Gracia,the wife of Hosokawa Tadaoki belonging to the east force,and she rejected to be taken hostage and commited suicide in the residence of Oosaka.
Oosaka is the second flourished city in Japan,and especially now developing as a international city.
In the 16th century,saint monk Rennnyo founded Ishiyama Honganji Temple and a large town grew up within the temple precincts. This is the beginning of Oosaka city.
In 1583,Toyotomi Hideyoshi built the Oosaka Castle and transferred merchants living in Sakai to Oosaka,and the streets became flourished.
Oosaka Castle is the biggest of castles in Japan,and said to be impregnable because of its three fold moats and huge stone walls.
But it had once burned down in 1615 at the battle of Summer Campaign to Oosaka but it was rebuilt in 1629,and again burnt down at the time of Battle of Toba and Fushimi in 1868.
In 1931,the tower of the castle was rebuilt and reformed to a Oosaka Castle Remains Park.
In 1582,Akechi Mituhide,the father of Hosokawa Gracia,was ordered to go into the battle with Mouri to support Toyotomi Hideyoshi.
Akechi Mituhide left his Sakamoto Castle in Oumi and entered Kamayama Castle in Tanba.Akechi Mituhide suddenly turned his solriers to Kyoto and attacked Hounouji Temple where his lord Oda Nobunaga had stayed.
Nobunaga killed himself at this time.This incident is called "The Honnouji Incidnet". The left picture is now Honnouji Temple in Kyoto.
Mitono in Tango peninsula is the place where Hosokawa Gracia secluded herself.
If left Tama,a daughter of Akechi Mituhide, as she was,Hosokawa Tadaoki himself would be suspicious of rebellion.
Tama secluded with some followers in Mitono where there was the family's tea plantation in the mountains of Tanba province.
One can arrive at Mitono,using train from Kyoto to Mineyama Station on the Sanin and Kitakinnki Tango Railroad Line and bus from Mineyama Station to Mizotani for 20minutes on the bus line for Taiza.
 Miyazu is a port town,facing Wakasa Bay. It had developed as the castle town ruled by Hosokawa Yuusai.
Oda Nobunaga made his son Tadaoki and Akechi Mituhide's daughter Tama marry in the policy of strengthening the tie between Akechi family and Hosokawa family.
However,Tama who had lived a satisfactory life was suddenly fallen into the depth of desperate situation by the Honnouji Incident.
Only small rock showing the site of the castle is remained near the Miyazu Port.
Shouryuuji Castle is known as the castle in which Hosokawa Gracia married Hosokawa Tadaoki.
She left Sakamoto Castle,the base of her father Akechi Mituhide, and came to this castle by a palanquin. Both bride and groom were 16 years old then.
At that time,Tama had never thought the day might come that her father would kill his lord Oda Nobunaga and escape to this castle.
One can arrive at Shouryuuji Cstle for only 10 minutes on foot from JR Nagaoka Station.
Hosokawa Yuusai and Tadaoki,father and son, had served for Oda Nobunaga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi, held the territory of 120 thousands koku in Miyazu,Tango.
In the battle of Sekigahara,they belonged to the east force led by Tokugawa Ieyasu.
After the battle,they were given the territory of 359 thousand koku in Kokura and Tadatoshi,son of Tadaoki,transferred to Higo(now Kumamoto)to be given the territory of 540 thousand koku as the lord of Higo.
In 1632,after the transfer of Hosokawa to Higo,Ogasawara family entered Kokura castle from Akashi in Harima domain.
In the time of Pacific War,Kokura castle became a headquarters and the 24th troop was stationed here.

　 In March 1584,Tama left Mitono with a permission of Toyoomi Hideyoshi who had became a ruler of Japan after the death of Oda Nobunaga and entered the residence of Hosokawa family located at Tamatukuri in the south of Oosaka.
Hosokawa Tadaoki chreshied and attached her as if she were a treasure barely taken back,and she was accompanied with many servants by Tadaoki's order.
On top of that,she was banned to leave the residence even one step. In the confined life like a jail, she was burdened with her sickly son.
At that time, she was moved by the story of his husband's friend Takayama Ukon and visited at a missionary in Osaka.Thereafter,she held a longing for Christianity.
But the order of the prohibition of Christianity was issued in 1587,the rumor spread that missionaries would be expelled.
There was now way of being baptized for her in such a confined life. So,she decided to take a unusual means.She was baptized in her residence by a servant Maria who had learned the way of baptism from a missionary.
This was the birth of Mrs.Hosokawa Gracia.
Hosokawa Tadaoki got to know the matter when he retuned from Kyushu Expedition,and flew into a furry on the matter. But his severe fury couldn't deprive of her faith in Christ.
On the eve of Sekigahara Battle in 1600,the general of the west force Ishida Mitunari gathered wives and children of the lords belonging to the east force led by Tokugawa Ieyasu as hostages.
But Hosokawa Gracia rejected to be taken a hostages and made her servants kill herself.
After the victory of the battle,Hosokawa Tadaoki held a magnificent funeral in the form of Christians as Gracia had wished.
He dedicated a service with a full respect for the repose of her in heaven.

E-mail to Yoshimura Naohiro.