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Sakamoto Ryoma, Meiji Restoration figure
A low-ranking samurai from Tosa who helped broker the alliance between rival domains that toppled the shogunate, and founded one of Japan's first trading companies. Assassinated at 33, he is remembered as a bold, unconventional reformer and consistently ranks among the most admired figures in Japanese history.
Usually called 龍馬 in casual reference — the given name alone, like referring to Lincoln as "Abe."
Common expressions
- 龍馬のように生きる: to live boldly, the way Ryoma did (used admiringly of an unconventional, ambitious life)
Cultural note
He brokered the 薩長同盟 (Satsuma-Choshu Alliance) between two rival domains, a turning point that led to the fall of the shogunate, and founded 亀山社中, considered Japan's first modern trading company. He is a frequent subject of NHK historical dramas and consistently tops polls of Japan's most admired historical figures.