Saigo Nobutada (1855-1877) was a Japanese samurai of the Satsuma Domain and the son of Saigo Takamori. He served under his father during the Satsuma Rebellion, during which he was placed in charge of the mountainous village used as his father's rebel stronghold. He befriended the American captive Nathan Algren and helped teach him Japanese, and he also invited him to eat meals with his aunt Saigo Taka and her children. In 1877, he accompanied his father to Tokyo, where he sought an audience with Emperor Meiji, and he later helped his father escape from Okubo Toshimichi's trap. However, while his father and the others fled across a bridge, Nobutada held off the Imperial Japanese Army riflemen, who mortally wounded him with their bullets. Algren braved rifle fire to bring Nobutada to his father, and Nobutada died cradled in his father's arms.
Gallery[]
