#historyonleo #onthisday On January 31st 1703 forty-seven ronin, led by Oishi Kuranosuke, attack the residence of lord Kira Yoshinaka and kill him and his retainers, as an act of vengeance over Kira's role in death of their former master Asano Naganori. Although authorities of Tokugawa Shogunate were to have them executed, under public pressure that sympathised with their cause, allow them to honourably commit seppuku (ritual suicide) itself. The story of 47 Ronin became immensely popular in Japan and served as basis for stage plays, novels and, later, films and TV shows.