Tenmanya Incident (天満屋事件)
The Tenmanya Incident was an incident in which members of Kaientai (an association of roshi (masterless samurai) organized by Ryoma SAKAMOTO) (Roshi association) and Rikuentai (an association of roshi organized by Shintaro NAKAOKA) assaulted a hatago (inn with meals) on Aburanokoji-dori Street, Kyoto called Tenmanya, attacking Yasushi MIURA, who was a feudal retainer of the Kishu Domain, and fought a battle against Shinsengumi (group that guarded Kyoto during the end of Tokugawa Shogunate).
Circumstances
Munemitsu MUTSU heard that Kyutaro MIURA, a feudal retainer of the Kishu Domain, who was an influential supporter of the bakufu, together with Itsuzo IDA of the Ogaki Domain and others were plotting something threatening in Kyoto and that the Kishu clan was the mastermind of the assassinations of Ryoma SAKAMOTO and Shintaro NAKAOKA (Omiya Incident), which occurred in retaliation for the Iroha Maru Incident from which they had a grudge against Ryoma. He planned to kill Kyutaro MIURA, who was a koyonin of the Kishu clan, with members of Kaientai and Rikuentai. The Kishu clan, which sensed the danger, asked Shinsengumi through the Aizu Clan to protect Miura. At Tenmanya, Kyutaro MIURA had as his bodyguard seven Shinsengumi members including Hajime SAITO and Kuwajiro OISHI.
On January 1, 1868, 16 members in total (or another theory has 15 members) of Kaientai and Rikuentai assaulted Kyutaro MIURA and Shinsengumi, who were having drinks on the second floor of Tenmanya, and Shogoro NAKAI, who was a samurai from the Totsugawa area in Nara, slashed Kyutaro MIURA, injuring him on his cheek and jaw, as he bumped into MIURA, asking 'Are you MIURA?'. Following this, they fell in confusion but someone turned the lamp off and they fought in the dark. Saito was slashed from behind and was on the verge of losing his life: however, Katsunoshin UMEDO (Hira taishi (common soldier)) saved him. Shinsengumi and the Kishu clan, who heard about the attack, went to help them but when they arrived there Mutsu and the others had already left the scene.
During this incident, Shogoro NAKAI died and a few others were injured on the attacker's side. Shinsengumi lost Nobukichi MIYAGAWA and Kamataro FUNAZU, and four others were injured, including one seriously. From the Kishu clan, Miura got injured on his cheek and jaw, and Seiichi MIYAKE and Jinnosuke SEKI were lightly hurt.
There is a stone monument of this incident on the alley of Aburakoji Shomen-dori Street, Shimogyo Ward, Kyoto.