As if her character could get any cooler, Mariko is actually based on a real-life woman named Hosokawa Gracia, a Japanese noblewoman and Christian convert. A brave and honourable woman, when her father and his men were killed in battle, she took in their daughters and widows as her ladies-in-waiting, giving them a place in court — a detail not in the books that Frederik subtly included in the show. Her own death later was, in fact, a catalyst for the Battle of Sekigahara, the largest and most important battle in Japanese feudal history, which ultimately ushered in a new, peaceful era.
Some audiences were also surprised to see Mariko wield a spear in the show, assuming it was fictionalised for dramatic effect, but the scene is a lot less farfetched than one might imagine. “Highborn women learned the art of the naginata and would always have a dagger with them to protect themselves if they needed,” said Frederik.
As for her costume, Carlos wanted her to appear “ghost-like” in the beginning as she navigated her disgraced past. “The first uchikake (formal Japanese robe), she wears has hand-painted curves on it in grey, black and gold, symbolising snow covering grass, but as she finds her purpose as a translator, her costume starts to bloom with camellias to represent her finding her own voice and truth,” he said.
OCHIBA
FX
Lady Ochiba, or the queen regent to the heir in Shogun, was based on Yodo-no-kata, a samurai princess and daughter of a powerful warlord. Her role in the show might be one of the most complex, as she attempted to maintain her seat of power by manipulating the warring lords to do her bidding. Perhaps one of the most delicate dynamics depicted is the one between Ochiba and the Daiyoin — the former queen who failed to produce a viable male heir for the late Taiko, or emperor. The relationship is not explicitly explained in the show, and is one rather specific to how women respected each other in feudal Japan. Many viewers, including myself, were left scratching our heads — shouldn’t there be bitter in-fighting between the two women essentially occupying the same seat? “In Japan, it’s the very opposite,” explains Frederik. “The clan, and the name of the house comes first, so there are many instances of the legal wife taking in and protecting a concubine’s son to ensure that there be an heir to the house.” Shogun has shown, time and time again, that one of its women’s greatest strengths is their ability to put aside their own ego for the greater good. In the last moments of the series, Ochiba sends one fateful letter to Toranaga announcing her change of loyalties, which changes the entire course of the war — and history.