2.26. History of the Mongols: Samurai who fought the Mongols twice

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">For most who experienced the Mongol invasions first hand, it was a sight of untold horror, an unstoppable enemy bringing fire and ruin. For Takezaki Suenaga, a samurai who fought against the Mongols in both of their failed invasions of Japan, it was a chance for the highest glory, and none could restrain him from taking the field against them. For the second episode in our</span> <em><span style= "font-weight: 400;">Ghost of Tsushima</span></em> <span style= "font-weight: 400;">-themed week, we present the story of a historical samurai who fought the Mongols, one who provided us with a set of illustrated scrolls which described his exploits. Today, we’re going to go through the account of Takezaki Suenaga, a rare opportunity to see how one man experienced the Mongol invasions first hand. Perhaps you’ll be able to compare his experiences with those of the player character, Jin, in</span> <em><span style= "font-weight: 400;">Ghost of Tsushima</span></em><span style= "font-weight: 400;">. I’m your host David, and this is Kings and Generals: Ages of Conquest.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">   </span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Very little is known of Takezaki Suenaga prior to the invasions. He was a</span> <em><span style= "font-weight: 400;">gokenin</span></em><span style= "font-weight: 400;">, a ‘houseman,’ a minor samurai from Higo province of Kyushu island, the southernmost of the main five of the Japanese home islands. He was part of the Takezaki clan, owned lands, could provide himself a horse, armour and bring 5 retainers to battle- about average for warriors from Kyushu, but slightly more than what the common samurai of Honshu, the largest Japanese island, could muster. 29 years old on the eve of the first Mongol invasion in 1274, Suenaga was known to have been involved in a land dispute which had put his personal finances in great jeopardy. Beyond such broad strokes, his early life is lost to us.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-weight: