Kanji: 酒井 忠次
Dates: 1527-December 17, 1596
Other Known Names: Unknown
Sakai clan mon
Sakai Tadatsugu was a daimyo during the Sengoku period who belonged to the senior branch of the Sakai family, which had been divided four generations prior. He was one of Tokugawa Ieyasu’s most distinguished samurai and belonged to an elite group known as the “Four Guardians of the Tokugawa”.
Alongside Ieyasu, Sakai Tadatsugu fought against the Azai-Asakura alliance at Anegawa in 1570, and played a major role in the counterattack at Mikatagahara in 1573. In the year 1575, Takeda Shingen’s son, Katsuyori laid siege to Yoshida Castle, which was held by Sakai Tadatsugu and located in Mikawa. Ieyasu had predicted his movements and reinforced the 1,000 men castle with an additional 5,000 men. The combat outside castle walls was fierce, and after much stagnation, Katsuyori abandoned the siege and headed for Nagashino. Tadatsugu would follow and participated in the battle. At the Battle of Nagakute in 1584, Sakai Tadatsugu defeated Ikeda Nobuteru. After the Odawara Campaign in 1590, he was awarded the fief of Tadasaki.
Sakai Tadatsugu died on December 17, 1596 in Kyōto.
