Mori Ranmaru

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"Faithful Ranmaru. It tore him in half to leave. He would not have if Lord Nobunaga had not commanded him."

―Yasuke describing Ranmaru after seeing the urn containing the latter's remains, 1582.

Mori Ranmaru (森 蘭丸; 1565 – 1582) was a retainer of and lover to Oda Nobunaga.

Born to the famed Mori clan descended from the Seiwa Genji, Ranmaru entered Nobunaga's service at the age of twelve and worked his way to become amongst Nobunaga's inner circle of trusted men. He stood by his lord during the Honnō-ji incident, ultimately commiting suicide following the death of his lord.

Biography

Early life and service under Nobunaga

Ranmaru was born in 1565 to Mori Yoshinari and had five brothers. His samurai family came from Mino Province who entered the service of the Oda clan in 1542. The Mori had distinguished themselves countless times in combat, and so it was no surprised that Ranmaru followed a similar path, entering the service of Nobunaga as a (koshō around 1577. Ranmaru worked his way up the ranks and gained the trust of Nobunaga and became a part of his lord's inner circle, alongside generals such as Akechi Mitsuhide, Hashiba Hideyoshi, and Tokugawa Ieyasu.

By adulthood, Ranmaru also bore the names Nagasada (長定) and Naritoshi (成利), but choose to remain with his childhood name.

Meeting Yasuke

"Yasuke. It is my honor to escort you to Lord Nobunaga."

―Ranmaru to Yasuke at Azuchi Castle, 1581.

In 1581, he received a small fief of five hundred koku. On 8 March that year, Ranmaru was present at the Honnō-ji temple beside Oda Nobunaga, when the daimyō met with the Jesuit delegation of Alessandro Valignano and Luís Fróis, who arrived in Kyoto with their sword-bearer, Diogo, to request free movement for the priests in Japan. Nobunaga took an interest in Diogo and asked to speak with him in private, at which point Ranmaru escorted Valignano and Fróis outside the temple. When they returned not long after, Nobunaga decided to grant the Jesuits' request on the condition that Diogo enter his service.

Six months later, Ranmaru was present at Azuchi Castle to greet Diogo—by now known as Yasuke—as he arrived to meet with Nobunaga. Escorting Yasuke to his lord, Ranmaru showed the samurai Nobunaga's collection of weapons, artifacts, and paintings while explaining the origins of some of the items. After reaching the room where Nobunaga was taking a bath, Ranmaru bid Yasuke farewell and left him alone with his lord.

In 1582, following the Battle of Tenmokuzan that saw the collapse of the Takeda clan, Ranmaru allegedly received a considerable land grant yielding fifty-thousand koku of rice, as well as the guard of Iwamura Castle, which was once sized by Takeda Shingen in Mino Province. This castle was later passed to Hideyoshi after Ranmaru's death.

Honnō-ji incident and death

Oda Nobunaga: "Ran! Take the women and Fróis. Set fires on your way out."

Mori Ranmaru: "Lord Nobunaga! I will not leave you!"

Oda Nobunaga: "Go! You have served me better than my sons, Ran. Do not defy me now."

—Ranmaru ordered by Nobunaga to escort Fróis away, 1582.

Ranmaru order by Nobunaga to take Fróis to safety

On 21 June 1582, Ranmaru was with Yasuke and Nobunaga when Akechi Mitsuhide betrayed the daimyō and surrounded Honnō-ji with his army. Ranmaru was tasked by Nobunaga to take the women and Luís Fróis away from the temple and escort them to safety, an order which Ranmaru initially refused to follow. Not wanting to disobey his lord, however, he eventually obeyed Nobunaga's wishes and escaped from the temple.

After making sure that everyone was safe, Ranmaru returned to Honnō-ji, which had burned down completely. Devastated by his lord's death and overwhelmed with guilt, he later returned to Azuchi Castle and committed seppuku. His body was cremated and his remains were stored in an urn that was kept in the castle's tenshu. Niwa Nagahide later brought Yasuke to look at the urn containing Ranmaru's remains.

Behind the scenes

Mori Ranmaru is a historical figure and character appearing in the 2025 video game, Assassin's Creed: Shadows, though he was briefly introduced in the podcast Echoes of History in the Shadows series, promoting the then-upcoming game.

Within the podcast, it was said that, in 1582, Ranmaru was together with Nobunaga and Yasuke at the Honnō-ji temple in Kyoto when they were ambushed by forces gathered by Nobunaga's vassal Akechi Mitsuhide. According to legend, after Nobunaga committed seppuku, Ranmaru removed his lover's head before also committing suicide and, in turn, having his head removed by Yasuke.

Gallery

• 
  Ranmaru beside Lady Nene at Honnō-ji
• 
  Ranmaru introducing the Jesuits to Lord Nobunaga
• 
  Ranmaru bringing the Jesuits back on his lord's orders
• 
  Ranmaru reluctantly listened to his lord's orders

Appearances

• Echoes of History (mentioned only)
• Assassin's Creed: Shadows (first appearance)