Morishige-ryu hojutsu (gunnery of Morishige school) (森重流砲術)
Morishige-ryu hojutsu was a school of gunnery. The founder of this school was Subeyoshi MORISHIGE, who came from Suetake, Suo Province (present-day Kudamatsu City, Yamaguchi Prefecture).
After learning the naval battle tactics of Santo school, he left his hometown at the age of 18 and traveled around the country to learn the art of gunnery of various schools such as the Asaka, Nakajima, Ongoku, and Kinden; he mastered Hashizume Kaishinsai school Gobu-denpo (橋爪廻新斎流合武伝法), and military science in Koshu and Echigo. He wrote "the 28 volumes of Funaikusa yoho" (the method of a naval battle) and established naval science of Gobu-Santo school; its section of gunnery was later to be called Morishige school.
The Kanagawa Prefectural Isehara Shooting Range is currently a stage of its activities.
(As of 2006, that shooting range is provisionally closed because of construction, so the shooting range in the Chiba Prefecture General Sports Center is temporarily used as its training ground.)
Since the members of this school belong to the Muzzle Loaders' Shooting Association of Japan, they excel in firing matchlock guns with live shots; this school produced the medalist of the International Muzzle Loader Contest. Every year in the 'Nagashino Banner Festival' held in Shinshiro City, Aichi Prefecture, they conduct a demonstration of gunfire together with the Preservation Society of Traditional Gunnery of Yonezawa Domain and the Nagashino Shitaragahara Musket Corps. They also have demonstrations in 'Nihon Kobudo Enbu Taikai' (an annual event) sponsored by the Japanese Classical Martial Arts Association of the Nippon Budokan (Nippon Budokan in 2004, Hyogo Prefecture Budokan in 2005, Kumamoto City General Gymnasium and Youth Center in 2007).