Sanada Nobutsuna

Sanada Nobutsuna (真田 信綱) was a Japanese samurai of the Sengoku period. He was born in Matsuo castle and was the eldest son of Sanada Yukitaka, a castle lord in Shinano Province who, by the time of his son's coming-of-age, had pledged his loyalty to the Takeda. During his coming-of-age ceremony, therefore, Sanada Nobutsuna was granted the shin (信) character from Takeda Shingen's name and took the name of Nobutsuna (信綱).

Nobutsuna's first military campaign is believed to have been around the time of the Siege of Toishi. He is known as one of the "Twenty-Four Generals of Takeda Shingen". During the Battle of Nagashino in 1575, Nobutsuna led over 200 horsemen and was killed in combat. A nephew of his, Sanada Yukimura (Nobushige) became one of the most famous samurai of this period.