Tsukioka Yoshitoshi (月岡芳年, 1839–1892), Kondō Isami's bravery at Katsunuma Station (勝沼駅近藤勇驍勇之図), nishiki-e woodblock print, 1880; Edo-Tokyo Museum. In Keiō 4 (1868), with the outbreak of the Boshin War, Kondō Isami of the Shinsengumi organised the Kōyō Chinbutai as a shogunate force and advanced into Kai Province to confront the imperial army moving east to overthrow the Tokugawa regime. At the Battle of Kashio, he stood against the government troops but was defeated and forced to retreat eastward. The image of Kondō standing firm like a guardian statue before the gate of Daizen-ji captures the Shinsengumi's final, defiant stand, yet even their valour could not halt the tide of the Restoration.
