Ashikaga Shuko (足利周嵩)
Shuko ASHIKAGA was a priest who lived during the Sengoku Period (Period of Warring States). He was a member of the Ashikaga Shogun family and a biological brother of Yoshiteru AHIKAGA and Yoshiaki ASHIKAGA.
He was born as the youngest child of Yoshiharu ASHIKAGA, who was the 12th Shogun of the Muromachi Bakufu (Japanese feudal government headed by a shogun). He entered the Buddhist priesthood in his younger days and became the Inju (the chief of a temple) of the Rokuon-ji Temple (also known as Kinkaku-ji Temple). On July 7, 1564, his brother Yoshiteru, the 13th Shogun, was killed by Hisahide MATSUNAGA and his son, Hisamichi MATSUNAGA, and the Miyoshi Sanninshu (three chief retainers of the Miyoshi clan). Although Shuko tried to escape, he was ultimately captured and executed.