Shinsengumi Members: The Full Roster and Structure
The Shinsengumi policed Kyoto for the shogunate during the 1860s. This page sets out its structure and its principal members.
Contents
Shinsengumi structure
The corps had a clearly defined hierarchy.
| Rank | Role |
|---|---|
| Commander | Head of the corps. Kondō Isami |
| Vice-commander | Discipline and administration. Hijikata Toshizō |
| Staff officer | Political adviser. Itō Kashitarō |
| Unit captain | Leader of one of the ten units |
| Inspector | Intelligence, internal and external |
| Accountant | Finances |
Numbers varied over time, reaching more than 200 at their peak. Recruitment expanded rapidly after the Ikedaya incident made the corps famous.
Senior members
| Person | Rank | How they died |
|---|---|---|
| Kondō Isami | Commander | Beheaded at Itabashi, 1868, aged 33 |
| Hijikata Toshizō | Vice-commander | Killed at Hakodate, 1869, aged 34 |
| Serizawa Kamo | Original senior commander | Purged from within the corps, 1863 |
| Yamanami Keisuke | General manager | Attempted to leave; ordered to commit suicide, 1865 |
| Itō Kashitarō | Staff officer | Left the corps and was killed, 1867 |
Unit captains
| Unit | Captain | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| First | Okita Sōji | The most celebrated swordsman of the corps; died of illness in 1868 |
| Second | Nagakura Shinpachi | Survived into the twentieth century and wrote the essential memoir |
| Third | Saitō Hajime | Fought as far as Aizu; became a police officer after the Restoration |
| Fourth | Matsubara Chūji | Died in 1865 |
| Fifth | Takeda Kanryūsai | Left the corps and was killed, 1867 |
| Sixth | Inoue Genzaburō | A comrade from Tama; killed at Toba-Fushimi |
| Seventh | Tani Sanjūrō | Died in 1866 |
| Eighth | Tōdō Heisuke | Left with Itō Kashitarō; killed at Aburanokōji |
| Ninth | Suzuki Mikisaburō | Itō's younger brother; survived after leaving |
| Tenth | Harada Sanosuke | Reportedly died of wounds at the Battle of Ueno |
Who survived?
Very few senior members lived into the Meiji era.
Nagakura Shinpachi (1839-1915) — captain of the second unit. He settled in Hokkaido after the Restoration and set down his recollections. Most of what is known about the corps from the inside comes from him.
Saitō Hajime (1844-1915) — captain of the third unit. He fought on to Aizu, then joined the Tokyo police under the name Fujita Gorō and served in the Satsuma Rebellion.
Shimada Kai (1828-1900) — an inspector who fought to Hakodate and later worked as a shrine guard.
Why is Okita Soji so famous?
Okita Sōji attracts more interest than any other member. Three reasons account for it.
His swordsmanship. He held full transmission in the Tennen Rishin style and was regarded as among the best blades in the corps.
Youth and illness. Tuberculosis killed him in his mid-twenties, before the shogunate had finished falling. He did not die fighting; he died of disease, and that particular pathos has fuelled a great deal of later storytelling.
The gaps in the record. His birth year is uncertain and no reliable portrait survives. The empty space has left later writers free to invent, and the handsome young man of modern fiction is largely their creation.
Why did the Shinsengumi purge its own?
Reading the list, one thing stands out: a striking number died at the hands of their own side. Serizawa Kamo, Yamanami Keisuke, Takeda Kanryūsai, Itō Kashitarō were all killed or forced to die from within.
Two reasons explain it.
Discipline demanded it. The corps was held together by strict regulations. Excusing a breach would have collapsed the structure. A body governed by rules had to turn those rules inward, and did.
It was assembled from strangers. Its members were ronin from across the country with incompatible politics and backgrounds. Factional splits were built in, and Itō Kashitarō's departure with a group of followers is the clearest instance.
Frequently asked questions
How many members did the Shinsengumi have? Numbers varied, exceeding 200 at their height.
Who was the strongest member of the Shinsengumi? It cannot be settled, but Okita Sōji, Saitō Hajime and Nagakura Shinpachi are the three most often named.
Did any Shinsengumi members survive? Yes. Nagakura Shinpachi, Saitō Hajime and Shimada Kai all lived into the Meiji period. Nagakura's memoir is a key historical source.
Who commanded the Shinsengumi? Kondō Isami. In the corps's earliest phase Serizawa Kamo also held a senior command before being purged.
For the corps itself see the Shinsengumi; for its leaders see Kondō Isami and Hijikata Toshizō.
Related reading
What Was Aizu Domain? The Byakkotai and the Boshin War
Aizu stayed loyal to the shogunate to the end and was destroyed for it. Why Matsudaira Katamori took the Kyoto post, what happened to the Byakkotai, and how the domain was punished.
What Was the Ansei Purge? Ii Naosuke's Crackdown Explained
Between 1858 and 1859 the shogunate's chief minister Ii Naosuke purged more than a hundred opponents and executed eight, including Yoshida Shoin. Why it happened and what it destroyed.
Domains of the Bakumatsu: Satsuma, Choshu and the Rest
The domains that decided the end of the shogunate, listed with their size and allegiance. Why outside lords led the overthrow, and how a few provinces outgrew the central government.