The were mounted bodyguards for Toyotomi Hideyoshi

Toyotomi Hideyoshi

was a daimyo warrior, general and politician of the Sengoku period. He unified the political factions of Japan. He succeeded his former liege lord, Oda Nobunaga, and brought an end to the Sengoku period. The period of his rule is often called the Momoyama period, named after Hideyoshi's castle...

 at the battle of Shizugatake

Battle of Shizugatake

The was a battle in Sengoku period Japan between supporters of Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Oda Nobutaka.In May, 1583, a former general of Nobunaga's named Shibata Katsuie coordinated a number of simultaneous attacks on Shizugatake, a series of forts held by Hideyoshi's generals among whom was Nakagawa...

 in 1583. At the decisive moment in the battle, Hideyoshi ordered them to leave the position and charge at the opposing army of Katsuie Shibata. After Hideyoshi gained control of Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

, many of the members were promoted to Daimyō

Daimyo

is a generic term referring to the powerful territorial lords in pre-modern Japan who ruled most of the country from their vast, hereditary land holdings...

.

It is interesting to note that it was not uncommon for the outstanding samurai of an important battle to be named the 'Seven Spears' of that battle. The Seven Spears of Shizugatake are merely one particularly famous and accomplished example of this.

• Fukushima Masanori
  Fukushima Masanori
  was a Japanese daimyo of the late Sengoku Period to early Edo Period who served as lord of the Hiroshima Domain. A retainer of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, he fought in the battle of Shizugatake in 1583, and soon became known as one of Seven Spears of Shizugatake which also included Katō Kiyomasa and...
  
   (1561-1624)
• Hirano Nagayasu
  Hirano Nagayasu
  Hirano Nagayasu was a samurai retainer to Japanese warlord Toyotomi Hideyoshi during the Azuchi-Momoyama period of the 17th century. He was known as one of the "Seven Spears of Shizugatake"...
  
   (1559-1628)
• Kasuya Takenori
  Kasuya Takenori
  was a Japanese samurai of the Azuchi-Momoyama Period, in the service of the Toyotomi clan. 2nd son of Kasuya Tadayasu, a retainer of the Bessho clan of Harima Province. Held the title of Naizen no Kami . Following the Chūgoku campaign, Takenori became a page of Toyotomi Hideyoshi due to the...
  
   (1562-1607)
• Katagiri Katsumoto
  Katagiri Katsumoto
  was a Japanese war lord Daimyo of the Azuchi–Momoyama period through early Edo period who in his youth was famed as one of the Seven Spears of Shizugatake. ....
  
   (1556-1615)
• Katō Kiyomasa
  Kato Kiyomasa
  was a Japanese daimyō of the Azuchi-Momoyama and Edo period.-Origins and early career:Kiyomasa was born in Owari Province to Katō Kiyotada. Kiyotada's wife, Ito, was a cousin of Toyotomi Hideyoshi's mother. Kiyotada died while his son was still young...
  
   (1562-1611)
• Katō Yoshiaki
  Kato Yoshiaki
  was a Japanese daimyo of the late Sengoku Period to early Edo Period who served as lord of the Aizu Domain. A retainer of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, he fought in the battle of Shizugatake in 1583, and soon became known as one of the shichi-hon-yari , or Seven Spears of Shizugatake, Hideyoshi's seven most...
  
   (1563-1631)
• Wakizaka Yasuharu (1554-1626)

Fukushima, Katō Kiyomasa and Katō Yoshiaki were given large benefices by Hideyoshi, 240,000 Koku

Koku

The is a Japanese unit of volume, equal to ten cubic shaku. In this definition, 3.5937 koku equal one cubic metre, i.e. 1 koku is approximately 278.3 litres. The koku was originally defined as a quantity of rice, historically defined as enough rice to feed one person for one year...

 in Owari Province

Owari Province

was an old province of Japan that is now the western half of present day Aichi Prefecture, including much of modern Nagoya. Its abbreviation is Bishū .-History:The province was created in 646....

, 195,000 Koku in Higo Province

Higo Province

Higo Province was an old province of Japan in the area that is today Kumamoto Prefecture on the island of Kyūshū. It was sometimes called , with Hizen Province. Higo bordered on Chikugo, Bungo, Hyūga, Ōsumi, and Satsuma Provinces....

 and 100,000 Koku in Iyo Province

Iyo Province

was an old province of Japan in the area that is today Ehime Prefecture on Shikoku. Iyo bordered on Awa, Sanuki, and Tosa Provinces. It was sometimes called ....

, respectively. Rest of the members remained as a small retainer of some thousands Koku.

At the Battle of Sekigahara

Battle of Sekigahara

The , popularly known as the , was a decisive battle on October 21, 1600 which cleared the path to the Shogunate for Tokugawa Ieyasu...

 and Siege of Osaka

Siege of Osaka

The was a series of battles undertaken by the Tokugawa shogunate against the Toyotomi clan, and ending in that clan's destruction. Divided into two stages , and lasting from 1614 to 1615, the siege put an end to the last major armed opposition to the shogunate's establishment...

, all betrayed Toyotomi Hideyori

Toyotomi Hideyori

was the son and designated successor of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the general who first united all of Japan. His mother, Yodo-dono, was the niece of Oda Nobunaga....

, the son of Hideyoshi, and took the part of Tokugawa Ieyasu

Tokugawa Ieyasu

 was the founder and first shogun of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan , which ruled from the Battle of Sekigahara  in 1600 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. Ieyasu seized power in 1600, received appointment as shogun in 1603, abdicated from office in 1605, but...

. After the foundation of the Tokugawa shogunate

Tokugawa shogunate

The Tokugawa shogunate, also known as the and the , was a feudal regime of Japan established by Tokugawa Ieyasu and ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family. This period is known as the Edo period and gets its name from the capital city, Edo, which is now called Tokyo, after the name was...

, they or their successors were ousted from their territories, except Hirano.