Sagara Nagataka (相良長隆)
Nagataka SAGARA (1492 - July 5, 1526) was the second son of Nagatsune SAGARA, the thirteenth head of the Sagara family. Nagataka was an elder brother, born from a mistress of his father, of Nagamasa SAGARA, the fourteenth head of the Sagara family.
Nagataka SAGARA became a Buddhism priest at the age of ten with a pen name, Zuiken and entered the priesthood at Tofuku-ji temple in Kyoto. However, later on he returned to his home province and became the twelfth chief priest of Kannon-ji Temple. When Nagataka SAGARA's younger brother, Nagamasa was attacked by Nagasada SAGARA in 1524 and Nagamasa killed himself the next year, Nagataka gathered up monk soldiers and, with them, beat down Nagasada in 1526, after which he returned to the secular life naming himself Taro-Nagataka and tried to succeed to the headship of the Sagara family, however, the whole Sagara family and their vassal groups would not obey Nagataka who had been a priest, and Nagataka could not formally succeed to the headship of the family, thus he ran away from Hitoyoshi-jo Castle, and went to Nagasato-jo Castle.
After that, Nagataka was attacked by his elder brother, Yoshishige SAGARA who was backed up by an influential person of the Sagara family, Yoriyoshi UEMURA, and Nagataka was driven to kill himself. Nagataka died at the age of 35.